One sunny morning, a farmer was digging in his field when his shovel hit something hard. Clink! It was a beautiful mortar, all shiny and golden! But wait, where was the pestle, the little stick that goes with it? He couldn't find it anywhere.

He showed the golden mortar to his daughter, who was as bright as a button. "Father," she said, "if you give the King the mortar without the pestle, he'll think you're hiding the pestle and will be very cross."

But the farmer didn't listen. He took the golden mortar to the King. Just as his daughter predicted, the King said, "This is a fine mortar! But where is the pestle?" And when the farmer said he didn't find it, the King got angry and threw him into a dark, gloomy jail.

The poor farmer cried, "Oh, if only I had listened to my daughter!" The guards heard him and told the King. The King was curious. "Bring this clever daughter to me!" he commanded.

When the daughter arrived, the King said, "If you are so clever, solve my riddle. Come to me not dressed and not naked, not riding and not walking, and not on the road and not off the road. If you can do this, I'll free your father and marry you!"

The clever girl thought for a moment. Then, she wrapped herself in a big fishing net (so she wasn't dressed, but not quite naked!). She borrowed a donkey. She put one leg over the donkey's back and let her other foot drag on the ground (so she wasn't riding, but not quite walking!). And she made the donkey walk with one hoof in the cart track on the edge of the road and the other hoof just off it (so she wasn't on the road, but not quite off it!).

The King was amazed! "You truly are clever!" he declared. So, he freed her father, and they had a big wedding. The farmer's daughter became the Queen.

One day, two farmers came to the King. One said, "My mare had a baby foal, but it was born under this other farmer's cart! He says the foal is his!" The King, not thinking very hard, said, "Well, if it was born under his cart, it must belong to the cart."

The poor farmer whose mare had the foal was very sad. The Queen saw him and whispered, "Tomorrow, go to the big, dry field where the King will be. Take a fishing net and pretend you are fishing."
"But there's no water!" said the farmer.
"Exactly!" smiled the Queen.

The next day, the King saw the farmer casting his net on the dry land. "What are you doing, silly man?" laughed the King. "You can't catch fish on dry land!"
The farmer replied, "Well, Your Majesty, it's just as likely as a cart having a baby foal!"

The King knew at once who had given him this clever idea. He was very angry with the Queen. "You have tricked me!" he shouted. "You must leave the castle! But, because I once loved you, you can take one thing with you – whatever you love most."

The Queen smiled sadly. That night, she gave the King a special drink that made him fall fast asleep. Then, she carefully had him carried out of the castle in a big, comfortable chest. She took the chest to her father's little cottage.

When the King woke up, he was very surprised! "Where am I?" he asked.
"You are with me," said the Queen gently. "You told me I could take the one thing I love most. And that, my dear King, is you."

The King's heart melted. He realized how much he loved his clever wife. He hugged her tightly. They went back to the castle, and from that day on, the King always listened to his wise Queen. And they lived happily, with lots of smart ideas, for many, many years.

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