Hong Kong chief executive Donald Tsang Yam-kuen. [sina.com]

Casually dressed without his signature bow tie, Tsang also met Chan Yik-hei, the first student in Hong Kong to be admitted to a local university straight from Form Five.

Tsang told the 16-year-old to treasure his talent and ability to contribute to Hong Kong. He also asked his parents to give the youngster sufficient space to develop.

Before reading the tale, Tsang said his storytelling skills had become rusty since he last told a story to his two sons about 20 years ago.

He chose a Scottish folklore tale, The Goodman of Wastness, which tells the story of a handsome and heavily sought-after young man who marries a "seal maiden" after seizing her seal skin.

The seal maiden soon begins to miss her family in the sea and decides to return to them, leaving her seven children behind.

Asked by the chief executive how they would end the story, one child suggested the seal maiden could return to visit her children from time to time.

Tsang praised the children's maturity, saying their solutions denoted a harmonious life. He added that the story carried a special meaning that taught people to be selfless and responsible.