In the county of Yorkshire, which lies in the north of the country, there once lived a powerful baron. He was a great wizard and knew how to predict the future. One day, when his son was only four years old, the baron looked into the Book of Fates and read in it that his son would marry a simple girl who had just been born in a house near York Cathedral. The Baron also learned that this girl’s father is very, very poor, and that he already has five children.
He angrily slammed the black book shut, ordered a horse and galloped off to York. There he drove past a poor man's house. And at that time he was sitting at his doorstep, sad and sorrowful.
The baron jumped off his horse, approached this man and asked:
- What happened to you, my dear?
“Oh, your honor,” the poor man replies, “the fact is that I already have five children, and another girl has just been born.” Where can I get enough bread to feed them all? I can't imagine!
- Don't lose heart, buddy! - said the baron. - If this is your problem, I will help you. I’ll take your last little one with me, and you won’t have to worry about her anymore.
“Thank you very much, sir,” the man replied.
He went into the house, carried out the girl and gave her to the baron, who jumped on his horse and rode away with her. When he reached the bank of the River Ouse, he threw the baby into the water and rode on to his castle.
But the girl did not drown - her diapers kept her afloat, and she swam and swam until she was washed ashore in front of a fisherman’s hut. The fisherman found the baby, took pity on her and took her to his house.
So she lived with him, not knowing grief, until she was fifteen years old and became a slender and beautiful girl.
And then it happened one day that the baron was traveling with his friends along the banks of the Ouse River to hunt and stopped at a fisherman’s hut to quench his thirst. The girl came out to the hunters with water, and they immediately saw that she was very good. And one of the baron's friends said:
- Baron, you know how to predict fate, who do you think this girl will marry?
“Uh, it’s not hard to guess,” answered the baron, “for some dork.” But I will still draw up her horoscope. Come here, honey! Tell me what day were you born?
“I don’t know, sir,” the girl answered. “They picked me up in this very place about fifteen years ago.” The river brought me here.
Then the baron realized who she was. And when everyone drove on, he returned and said to the girl:
- Listen, honey, do you want me to make you happy? Take this letter to my brother in Scarborough, and you will be set for life.
The girl thanked the baron and took the letter. And the letter said this:
“Dear brother!
Seize the giver of this and immediately put her to death.
Your loving HUMPHREY."
Soon the girl went to Scarborough and stopped to spend the night at an inn. And just that night, robbers broke in. They saw the girl and searched her, but found no money on her, only a letter. They opened it, read it and decided that it was a betrayal - a shame and disgrace to kill a defenseless girl! The leader of the gang took pen and paper and wrote this:
“Dear brother!
Accept the giver of this and immediately marry her to my son.
Your loving HUMPHREY."
Then he gave this letter to the girl and wished her a happy journey. And she went to Scarborough to the baron's brother - a noble knight. And at that time the baron’s son was visiting him. The girl gave the letter to the baron's brother, and he ordered to immediately prepare the wedding. The wedding took place on the same day.
And a few days later the baron himself arrived at his brother’s castle. Well, he was surprised when he learned the news! More than anything else, he feared this wedding, and now it happened.
“Well, it’s okay, I won’t give up so easily!” - the baron decided and invited the girl to walk with him along the rocky shore. And as soon as they were left alone, the baron grabbed the girl by the hand and wanted to throw her into the sea.
- Spare me! - the girl begged. - I'm not to blame for anything. Let me go and I will do whatever you want. I swear to you, I will not see your son or you again until you want me to.
Then the baron took the gold ring from his hand, threw it into the sea and said:
“Don’t you dare show yourself to me without this ring!”
And he let her go.
The poor girl walked and walked until she finally reached the castle of a noble nobleman. Then she asked to be given at least some work, and she was left in the castle as a scullery maid - after all, she was accustomed to this work even in the fisherman’s hut.
And it had to happen that one fine day someone came to this castle - who do you think? Yes, the baron himself, his brother and the baron’s son are her husband! She simply did not know what to do, and only hoped that they would not see her in the castle kitchen.
With a sigh, she set about her work and began to gut the huge fish that she was ordered to prepare for dinner. And suddenly something sparkled in the fish’s stomach. Ring! The same one that the baron threw into the sea from a cliff in Scarborough. Oh, how happy the girl was! She tried to cook the fish tastier and served it on the table.
Listen to what happened next. The guests tasted the fish, and they liked it so much that they asked the owner of the house who cooked it. The owner replied that he did not know and ordered the servants:
- Hey, send the cook who prepared this fish here!
The servants went down to the kitchen and told the girl that they wanted her in the hall. So she got dressed up, put the baron’s gold ring on her finger and went up into the hall.
The guests gasped when they saw the young and beautiful cook. Only the baron didn’t like it. He jumped up from the table and was ready to rush at the girl, but she came up to him with an outstretched hand, took the ring from her hand and placed it in front of him.
Then the baron realized that you couldn’t escape fate. He seated the girl at the table and announced to all those gathered that she was his daughter-in-law and the faithful wife of his son. And then he took her and her son home to his castle, and since then they all lived without grieving and never drank from an empty bottle.
Translated from Russian · original on wisdomlib.ru