Predict

Will Rachel keep her promise to never disagree with the king’s judgments?

So the king and the innkeeper’s daughter were married and lived so happily that for a long time the king forgot about his pride. But one day Rachel saw a peasant at court with a sad, sad face.

“I own a mare that gave birth under my neighbor’s wagon,” he told her. “The king has ruled that the foal belongs to my neighbor.”

“Why, that’s not right!” cried Rachel. “Go stand under the king’s window with a fishing rod and pretend you’re catching fish.”

The peasant obeyed. When the king asked him how he could catch fish on a marble floor, the peasant answered as Rachel had told him, “If a wagon can give birth to a foal, then I can catch fish on a marble floor.”

When the king heard this answer, he knew that only Rachel could have given it. His pride overpowered his love.

“Since you have broken our agreement,” he told Rachel, “you must leave the palace.” Even as he said these harsh words, the king felt his heart break. But his pride was still stronger than his love. “You must leave,” he repeated, “but you may take your dearest possession with you.”