In a bright and cheerful kingdom, there lived a king who had a bit of a puzzle. He was getting older, and he had three sons. Two of them thought they were super smart, always showing off. The youngest son, everyone called him Simpleton, but he was actually very kind and often quiet.

One day, the king gathered his sons. "My dears," he said, "I am old, and one of you must become king. But who? I have a plan!" He took three fluffy feathers and went outside. "I will blow these feathers into the air. Where they land, you must follow. The one who brings me the most amazing things will be king!"

WHOOSH! The king blew.
One feather flew east. The first smart son ran that way.
Another feather flew west. The second smart son dashed off.
The third feather, Simpleton's feather, just floated gently down, down, down, and landed right next to a funny-looking little door in the ground, like a tiny trapdoor.

Simpleton chuckled, opened the trapdoor, and found some stairs. Down he went, and at the bottom, he saw a very big, very green, and rather plump toad sitting with lots of little toads around her.
"What do you need, little human?" croaked the big toad.
Simpleton, always polite, said, "The king, my father, wants the most beautiful carpet in the world."
The big toad croaked to a little toad, "Little frog, green and small, hop along and fetch the best of all!"
A little toad hopped away and came back with a tiny, tiny box. The big toad gave it to Simpleton. "Take this. It will be just what you need."

Meanwhile, the two smart brothers thought, "Simpleton is so silly, he won't find anything!" They just bought the first plain old rugs they saw from a shepherd.
When Simpleton opened his tiny box in front of the king, out unfolded the most wonderful, soft, and sparkly carpet anyone had ever seen! It looked like it was woven with sunshine and rainbows. The king was amazed!

But the king said, "That is wonderful, but I need more. Now, bring me the most beautiful ring!"
Again, he blew the feathers. Again, the smart brothers ran off, and Simpleton's feather landed by the toad's trapdoor.
"Big green toad, so round and neat, I need a ring, oh so sweet!" said Simpleton.
The big toad called a little toad, who brought another tiny box.
The smart brothers just found some old, ordinary rings. But when Simpleton opened his box, out came a ring that sparkled with a diamond so bright it looked like a tiny star!

The king was even more impressed. "Amazing! But one last thing," he declared. "Bring me the most beautiful maiden to be your bride!"
Off they went again. Simpleton's feather, you guessed it, landed right by the toad's door.
"Oh, big green toad, so wise and true, I need a maiden, beautiful too!"
The big toad smiled (as much as a toad can). "This time," she croaked, "you'll get something truly special." She gave Simpleton a hollowed-out yellow turnip, pulled by six little mice. "Take one of my little toads and put her inside."
Simpleton gently picked up a small toad and placed her in the turnip. And POOF! The turnip turned into a golden coach, the mice became splendid horses, and the little toad transformed into the most beautiful princess he had ever seen, with eyes like stars and a smile like sunshine.

The two smart brothers, meanwhile, just grabbed the first farm girls they met, thinking Simpleton would surely fail this time.
When Simpleton arrived with his princess in the golden coach, everyone gasped. She was so lovely! The king was overjoyed.
"But wait!" cried the smart brothers, who were very jealous. "We need one more test! Let's see whose maiden can jump through that giant hoop hanging in the great hall!" They thought the farm girls, being strong, might win.

The two farm girls tried, but they stumbled and couldn't make it.
Then, Simpleton's princess, as light as a feather herself, took a little run and leaped gracefully through the hoop without even touching the sides!

"Hooray!" shouted the king. "Simpleton, you shall be king!"
And so, Simpleton, who wasn't so simple after all, married the beautiful princess and became a kind and wise king. His brothers learned that sometimes, being kind and a little bit lucky is better than thinking you're smart all the time. And everyone in the kingdom lived happily, especially when they saw the king and queen riding in their golden coach, which once, long ago, was just a turnip.

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