yellow fairy tale book

Chapter 47 Reliable John (1)

Once upon a time there was a king who was so ill that he thought to himself, "I am probably going to die." Then he said, "Call for John the Good." So he was called that because he served the king faithfully all his life.When he came to the king's bed, the king said to him, "Most sure John, I feel my end is at hand, and if it were not for my son, I would face death without worry. I am too young to make up my own mind about everything, and unless you promise me to teach him everything he should know, and treat him like a father, I will die with my eyes closed." So reliable John replied, "I will never will desert him, and will serve him faithfully, even at the cost of my life." Then the old king said, "Now I may die in peace." Then he said, "When I die, You must show him all the rooms and houses and cellars in the castle and all the treasures stored in them, but you must not take him to the last room at the end of the corridor, where the Golden Crown Princess is hidden Once he sees the portrait, he will fall in love with the person in the painting and pass out, and because of her, he will encounter many dangers. You must protect him.” Reliable John again When he agreed to the king's request once, the old king fell silent and died with his head on the pillow.

After burying the old king, the reliable John told the young king everything he had promised the old king before he died, and added: "I must fulfill my promise and be as loyal to you as I was to your father, even if I sacrifice my father. Life doesn't matter."

When the period of mourning was over, good John said to him, "Now is the time to see your inheritance. I will show you the castles of your ancestors." So he took the young king to see everything , let him see all the treasures and gorgeous rooms, only the room where the painting was hidden he did not open.And that painting is placed in a position that can be seen at a glance when the door is opened. The people in the painting are depicted very beautifully and lifelike.That painting is the loveliest and most beautiful thing in the world.The young King, noticing a door that good John kept avoiding, said, "Why don't you keep opening this door for me?" "There's something in it that will frighten you," he answered.But the king said, "I have seen the whole castle, and I want to see what is in that room." And he went to the door and tried to push it open.But good John drew him back, and said, "I promised your father, before he died, that you would not see what was in that room, and that it would bring great misfortune to you and me."

"Oh! no," answered the young King, "if I do not go in, I shall surely be ruined. I shall have no peace, day or night, unless I see what is in this room with my own eyes. Now, you must Open this door, or I won't leave here."

Reliable John had no choice but to sigh one after another, and took out the key from a large bunch of keys with a heavy heart.After opening the door, he went in first, intending to cover up the portrait so that the king would not see it.But it was useless to do so, the king had tiptoed over his shoulder to see.He saw that the portrait of the woman was so beautiful that he was so excited that he passed out on the ground.Reliable John picked him up, put him on the bed, and thought sadly: "Disaster has come upon us, good God! What will be the result of all this?" Take a sip of wine to wake him up.The first thing he said when he woke up was: "Oh! Who is that in that beautiful picture?" "That's the Princess with the Golden Crown," answered the trusty John.The king went on: "I love her so much that even if all the leaves on the tree could talk, they could not express my love for her. Whether I can live or not depends on whether I can win her love. Are you My most reliable John, must support me."

The faithful servant considered for a long time what to do with the matter, for it was said that even seeing the princess was difficult.At last an idea occurred to him, and he said to the king, "Everything around her—table, chairs, plates, goblets, bowls, and all her furniture—is made of gold. Five of your treasures Tons of gold, let the goldsmiths of your kingdom fashion them into vases and vessels of every kind, birds of game and wondrous beasts of all kinds, that will please her. We may take these things to See her and try your luck." The king called all the goldsmiths together, and made them work day and night until the most magnificent objects were finished.They were loaded on to a great ship, and Steady John disguised himself as a merchant, and the king had to do the same, so that they would not be recognized at all.Then they sailed across the sea, and finally arrived at the city where the Golden Crown Princess lived.

Steady John kept the king on board until his return. "Perhaps," he said, "I can bring the princess, so you will arrange everything, arrange the gold ornaments, and decorate the whole ship." into his apron, went ashore and walked straight to the palace.When he entered the courtyard, he saw a beautiful girl standing by the well drawing water from two golden buckets.Just as she was about to leave with the shining water, she turned and saw the stranger, and asked who he was.So he replied, "I'm a merchant," and opened his apron to let her look in. "Oh, my God!" she exclaimed, "beautiful pieces of gold!" She put down her bucket, looked at them carefully one after another, and said, "The princess must have a look at them, she likes gold very much." , will buy all your gold." She took him by the hand and led him into the palace, for she was the princess' maid.

When the princess saw those things, she was ecstatic and said: "They are all very beautifully made, and I want to buy all your things." But the trustworthy John said: "I am only a servant of a rich merchant. They are nothing compared to my master's goods on board, and his goods are finer and more expensive than any gold that ever came." She wished they would bring them all to show her, But he said: "Those things are too many. It will take several days to move them here, and they will take up many, many rooms. You can't fit in this house." So much so that she said at last: "Take me aboard your ship, and I will see your master's treasures myself."

Reliable John was overjoyed and took her aboard.As soon as the king saw her, he found that she was more beautiful than in the picture.She went aboard, and the king led her into the cabin.While Steady John remained behind with the helmsman, he ordered the ship to be put away. "Leave all sails, and we will fly like birds on the seas." Meanwhile the king showed the princess all the gold in the cabin, and showed her everything—plates, wine glasses, Bowls, birds, game, and all the fantastic beasts.Hours passed in this way, and she was so happy that she did not notice that the boat was moving away.After seeing the last thing, she thanked the merchant and was ready to go home, but when she got to the side of the ship, she found that they were on the high seas, far away from the land, and the ship was sailing fast with full sails . "Oh!" she cried in terror, "I have been deceived and carried away, and I have fallen into the clutches of a merchant. I wish I could die!" But the King took her by the hand, and said: "I am not a businessman, but a king of noble birth like you. It was my deep love for you that made me snatch you here. The first time I saw your portrait, I was so excited that I passed out on the ground .” Hearing these words, the Golden Crown Princess was relieved, and said that she liked him and was willing to be his wife.

(End of this chapter)