Once upon a time, there was a princess who was very beautiful but arrogant, haughty, and willful.
Many suitors proposed to her, but she rejected them all and mocked them cruelly.
The king, worried about his daughter’s future, decided to hold a grand feast and invited all eligible bachelors from near and far.
They were arranged in a line according to their status, and the princess was to choose from them.
As the princess walked past them, she began to ridicule them.
She said of the shorter, fatter ones, “They look like barrels!”
To the taller, slimmer ones, she said, “They look like bamboo!”
To those with paler skin, she said, “They look like corpses!” And to those with redder skin, she said, “They look like turkeys!”
Among them was a young prince who would one day become king. He was very handsome and liked the princess very much.
However, when the princess glanced at him, she burst out laughing and said, ” he has a chin like the beak of a thrush!”
Just because his chin was a little hooked.
After that, he was always called “King Thrushbeard”.
The old king thought to himself that it was one thing for his daughter to be unable to find a husband, but her arrogance and rudeness had offended everyone.
He was furious and said to the princess in public, “I will make you marry a beggar!”
A few days later, the king heard a wandering minstrel singing and begging outside the palace. He called the minstrel in and also summoned the princess.
He said to the minstrel, “I think your singing is wonderful and you have talent, so I’ve decided to marry my daughter to you!”
The princess was horrified. Although the king had said he would marry her off to a beggar, she thought it was just a spur-of-the-moment remark.
She was adamant in her refusal, but the king was determined and immediately called a priest to perform the wedding ceremony on the spot.
After the wedding, the king said, “You are married now and cannot stay here. Go to your own home!”
The beggar took the princess by the hand and led her away from the palace.
As they passed through a forest, the princess said, “This forest is so beautiful. I wonder who it belongs to?”
“It belongs to King Thrushbeard. If you had married him, this forest would have been yours too.”
“Ah! I regret it so much. I should have married him.”
As they passed a meadow, the princess asked, “This meadow is so beautiful. I wonder who it belongs to?”
“It also belongs to King Thrushbeard. If you had married him, this meadow would have been yours too.”
“I truly regret it. I should have married him.”
As they passed a city, the princess asked again, “This city is so beautiful. I wonder whose it is?”
“It also belongs to King Thrushbeard. If you had accepted him, this city would have been yours.”
“Ah! I really regret it. I should have accepted him.”
The beggar was annoyed and said, “Why do you keep lamenting in front of me about not marrying another man? I am your husband now!”
When they arrived at a house, the princess said, “Oh, this house is so shabby and small. I wonder who it belongs to?”
The beggar replied, “It is mine, and now it is yours too. You will live here with me from now on. Come in.”
The princess reluctantly entered the house and said, “Ask the servants to bring me a cup of tea.”
“Don’t be ridiculous. I’m a beggar, and I don’t have any servants. From now on, you will have to cook, do the laundry, and clean the house yourself.”
He then urged her to start cooking. But the princess didn’t know how to cook, so the beggar ended up doing it himself.
A few days later, with no food left, the beggar told the princess, “We can’t just sit here and eat everything up. We need to work and earn money.”
He went to gather some willow branches and asked the princess to weave baskets.
However, the pampered princess wasn’t used to such hard work, and her delicate hands were soon injured by the branches.
The beggar then asked her to spin yarn, but the yarn cut her hands as well.
He shook his head and said, “It seems I married a wife who doesn’t know how to do anything!”
He then had her go to the market to sell pottery.
The princess thought, “Oh my! I’m a princess, selling goods at the market. People will surely laugh at me.”
But she had no choice and went to the market to sell pottery.
At first, it seemed to go well because of her beauty. Many people came to buy pottery, and some even paid but didn’t take the items.
However, one day, a drunken cavalryman rode through the market and smashed all the pottery to pieces.
The princess was terrified and cried, unsure of how her husband would react. She ran home, sobbing.
The beggar said, “Stop crying. I told you, you don’t know how to do anything. Maybe this job isn’t right for you either. Fortunately, the palace kitchen is hiring female workers. They agreed to take you in, and at least you’ll get three free meals a day.”
So, the princess became a kitchen maid in the palace, doing the dirtiest and most exhausting work.
Every day, she would take leftover food from the kitchen, put it in a small jar, and hide the jar in her pocket to take home.
One day, as she was about to leave with the jar of food, she passed by the palace banquet hall and saw it was lively inside.
She walked to the door and saw people in elegant clothes and clinking glasses.
It turns out it was the king’s daughter’s wedding.
The princess felt envious and melancholy, thinking: all of this was once hers, but due to her arrogance, stubbornness, and willfulness, she now finds herself in such a desperate and embarrassing situation.
Suddenly, the king’s son approached her.
Upon seeing him, the princess immediately tried to leave.
But he grabbed her and insisted on dancing with her.
She struggled fiercely because she recognized him as King Thrushbeard.
He forcibly dragged her into the hall, and during the struggle, the jar of food fell from her pocket, spilling food and soup everywhere.
All eyes in the hall turned to her, and she heard various mocking comments.
“Isn’t that the princess from the neighboring country? How did she end up like this?”
“I heard she married a beggar…”
The guests whispered and mocked her openly.
The princess felt the sting of the ridicule she had once inflicted on others.
She wanted to find a hole to hide in.
She turned to run towards the door, but a man blocked her way.
It was King Thrushbeard again.
He said gently, “Don’t be afraid. Actually, your beggar husband is me. I love you very much. When your father was angry and said he would marry you to a beggar, I discussed with him and asked him to let me dress up as a beggar. The soldier who broke your pottery was also me in disguise. I did all this to humble your pride and arrogance and to punish you for your contempt and harm towards others.”
The princess, in tears, said, “Now I understand the pain I caused others. I was so wrong, and I don’t deserve you.”
“It’s all in the past. Let’s have our wedding.”
They had a grand wedding, and the princess’s father also attended.
The princess’s happy life began, and she learned to be humble and no longer mocked others.
👉 Very Short Story
A princess was very beautiful but extremely arrogant.
Many suitors came to ask for her hand in marriage, but not only did she reject them, she also mocked and ridiculed them mercilessly.
One young king who was handsome but had a slightly hooked chin was nicknamed “King Thrushbeard” by her in mockery.
Her father, the king, was furious that his arrogant and inconsiderate daughter had insulted all the noble suitors from far and wide. In a fit of rage, he declared that he would marry her to a beggar.
The princess thought her father was merely speaking out of anger, but one day, the king summoned her, pointed to a beggar, and commanded that she marry him. Without further ado, the king drove both of them out of the palace.
In truth, the beggar was King Thrushbeard in disguise. He liked the princess, but she was too arrogant, so he discussed with the king and came up with this plan.
The princess had no choice but to follow the beggar to his shabby little house.
Gone were the splendor of the palace, the luxurious clothes and fine food, and the devoted servants. More crucially, there was no money!
They had to think about making a living, but the princess had no practical skills and could only sell pottery in the market.
As she feared, people recognized her and mocked her, and she finally realized how hurtful her past taunts had been to others.
She also had to haggle with common folk and face the harshness of life.
In addition, she also had to deal with unreasonable people. Once, a soldier on horseback charged through the market and shattered all her pottery. Before she could say anything, he berated her mercilessly, leaving her helpless and humiliated.
With the pottery business ruined, the princess had to work as a kitchen maid in the royal palace.
One day when she returned home, she saw a grand banquet being held in the palace hall, filled with elegantly dressed guests and the clinking of wine glasses.
She couldn’t help but feel sorrowful, remembering how she had once been among them, only to end up in her current plight because of her arrogance.
At that moment, someone approached her, and she recognized him as King Thrushbeard.
Embarrassed, she tried to run away, but he caught her and asked her to dance.
As she struggled, the scraps of leftover food she had hidden in her clothes spilled onto the floor.
All eyes turned to her, and someone recognized her.
“Isn’t that the proud princess? How did she end up reduced to eating scraps?”
“I heard she married a beggar!”
“Serves her right…”
She wished the ground would open up and swallow her.
She turned and ran toward the door, only to be stopped once more, again by King Thrushbeard.
Gently, he said, “Your beggar husband is me in disguise. I was also the soldier who smashed your pottery. I did all this to humble your pride and teach you the pain you inflicted on others.”
The princess wept and said, “I understand now…”
“It’s all in the past,” he said.
The princess and King Thrushbeard were married, and she became a kind, humble, and gracious queen, living a life of true happiness.
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