Learn English through Stories Level 3 ⭐ The Clever Wife - Graded Reader | English Audio Podcast

long ago an old farmer lived with his wife and his son Peter as the years went by the farmer became very sick after some time he died leaving his wife and son alone oh my poor husband he was such a good man how could this happen his wife cried she cried for many days her son tried to make her feel better but he couldn't then her sadness changed to worry at night she looked up into the sky and asked what are we going to do how are we going to live after many weeks like this

she began to take control of herself again and make plans for herself and her poor son her husband had left them some money £200 when they had finished almost all of the food they had in the house she gave Peter half the money and said go into town my son and use this money to buy salt flour and bread I hope this food will last until spring then we can look for work Peter did as his mother asked he put the money in his pocket and walked into town as he passed a butcher store he

saw that a crowd of people had gathered the butcher had tied an old dog to a tree he was beating the dog and the dog was crying in pain Peter pushed through the crowd and shouted butcher why are you beating this poor dog because this poor dog ate some of my best beef this morning that's why how can I earn money when this stupid animal eats my best meat oh but I'm sure he was only hungry and he looks so sad listen I could use a dog why don't I buy him from you I'll give

you 100b for your dog the butcher laughed you can't be serious you want to spend 100 lb on this dog yes I'm serious replied Peter then you must be crazy but you've made me happy even if you are a Madman so give me the 100b and I'll give you the dog certainly said Peter and he took the poor frightened dog away he began to walk back along the road out of the town and toward his home they walked slowly until they came to a tree that had fallen by the road Peter sat down brought the

dog close to him and looked into his eyes Leo that's what I'll name you and you'll have a safe and happy home with my mother and I The Grateful Dog jumped up and kissed Peter's face with his big pink tongue he knew that Peter had saved his life and was a kind and gentle person the two friends then continued walking slowly home side by side when Peter came home and told his mother he had spent all their money on an old dog she was very angry what you took our money and spent it on this

dog what good can this be to us you know we have nothing I've made one small cake with the last cup of flour we had left that's our dinner tonight and there's nothing else do you understand oh what would your father do if he could see us now but mother this dog is our good luck Peter tried to say his mother was not listening without speaking she gave Peter half of the small cake she had made and left him alone to eat it Peter shared his small meal with Leo the dog the next day Peter's

mother sent him into town again but before he left she sat him down and spoke to him in a serious voice these are our last 100 lb you must not waste them this time you must buy food so so we can eat do you hear me yes Mother answered Peter he left their house and walked along the road into town with the 100 lb in his pocket on his way into town Peter saw a small boy who had tied a rope around the neck of an old cat and was dragging her along the road Peter

couldn't bear to see this terrible treatment of a poor animal and asked the boy why he was doing it because this cat stole one of my mother's special cookies I'm going to show her what happens to a cat that steals I'm taking her to the river and I'm going to throw her in don't do that I've been thinking that I would very much like a cat I'll buy her from you for 100 said Peter 100b for this old thing with a funny tail you're joking aren't you laughed the boy oh no I'm very serious and

here are the 100 lb to prove it said Peter the the boy couldn't believe it when Peter gave him the money he happily untied the cat which jumped into Peter's arm Peter turned and began walking home with his new friend he decided to name her Pika when Peter came home this time carrying an old cat with a bent tail instead of the food they needed his mother was very very angry Peter tried to calm her anger mother this is our second piece of good luck but she threw him out of their house and shouted at

him to make his own way in the world and to take the dog and the cat with him so Peter let left home to look for work and a place to live his friends the cat and the dog never left his side one evening after lots of days of searching Peter came into a small village and saw a priest who was just closing the door of his church the priest was curious ious about this young man with the dog and the cat and started a conversation with him to find out more hello young man where

are you going with your two friends I'm looking for work and a place to live well if you work for me for 3 years you won't have a contract but you'll have a roof over your head and food for you and your friends and at the end of that time you'll be paid well so Peter accepted the priest's offer and proved to be a good and honest worker at the end of the three years the priest came to Peter you been a good worker and now your three years with me have ended I said that

you would be paid well and you will be you may choose one of these three payments he then put in front of Peter a bag of gold a bag of silver and a bag of sand Peter thought about it if he chose the gold he could buy whatever he needed for a long time he he could be almost as wealthy with the silver but the sand why was the priest offering him a bag of sand this must be some kind of test and in this simple test I think there is some kind of deeper meaning

thought Peter so he stepped forward and said I'm going to choose the bag of sand well if you don't like silver and gold of course take the sand the priest answered and he gave Peter his bag of sand Peter then left the priest to search for more work taking his bag of sand Leo and Pika with him the bag of sand was very heavy and sometimes Peter wanted to leave leave it behind but he never did after walking for days he came to a dark Forest so quiet that it seemed no one had ever stepped

inside in the center of the forest a fire was burning and a beautiful young woman was tied to a tree in the middle of the Flames the fire was almost touching her and she would soon be burned alive when the young woman saw Peter she shouted oh sir please stop this fire I promise to bring you good luck for the rest of your days if you help Peter didn't care about the good luck she promised he just wanted to help the poor girl so he quit quick ly took his bag of sand and threw it

on the fire to stop it thank you thank you you've saved my life cried the girl as Peter untied her when she was free the girl told Peter that she was the daughter of the king of Elf Kingdom and that a cruel King who was at war with her father had done this to her she then asked Peter where he had gotten his bag of sand Peter told her he had chosen the sand instead of gold and silver for his three years work for the priest she said to Peter Well if you chose that sand

and not silver or gold it must be very important to you I will always be grateful for your wonderful kindness and to prove it I want you to have this ring as she said this the girl gave Peter a beautiful gold ring with shining jewels in it this ring is very special she told him it's a magic ring that will give you anything you wish even if your wish is to marry a King's Daughter to use its power just take it off your finger and throw it from one hand to the other but be careful

you must keep the secret of the ring if you tell anyone about its magic it will bring you great sadness as soon as she said this she turned into a snake and slid quietly into the Forest Peter watched her go and then looked down at the ring on his finger he was filled with happiness he laughed and told Leo and Pika do you realize what this means we don't need to search for work we'll have everything we need and I can help my poor mother but let's see this wonderful magic so he took off the

ring and threw it from hand to hand as the girl had told him to do he then watched in amazement with Leo and Pika as 10 young men suddenly appeared and said oh Master tell us what in the world you want and we will bring it to you Peter couldn't believe his eyes and ears he answered good men take take us back to my poor mother and so they came back to his village his mother who was filled with guilt and sadness for sending her son away was very happy to see him again oh my

son I've missed you so much and worried so much can you ever forgive me she cried there's nothing to forgive Dear Mother and our life is going to be wonderful now cried Peter of course Peter couldn't tell his mother about the magic ring so he quietly went outside took the ring off and threw it from hand to hand immediately the 10 young men appeared again and said oh Master tell us what in the world world you want and we will bring it to you Peter told them to bring the best food and vodka and the

finest meat for Leo and Pika they then celebrated their good luck they all lived together in happiness for many months whenever they needed anything Peter just took off the ring threw it from hand to hand and immediately 10 young men appeared bringing Peter whatever he wanted time went by and Peter began to think of marriage he remembered what the King's Daughter had told him that he could have even a King's Daughter so he asked his mother to go to the king's Palace and ask permission for Peter to marry the princess his mother was very worried

and warned her son that this was a mistake the son of a farmer doesn't marry the daughter of a king you should look for an ordinary girl to be your wife you're asking me to do something which is very dangerous the king could have our heads cut off for even asking such a thing but Peter had made his decision and wouldn't change his mind so his mother went to the Palace feeling very worried when she tried to enter the palace the guards wouldn't allow her inside they tried to take her away but she made such

a noise that the king agreed to see her you must be crazy how could you imagine that a king would allow his daughter to marry a farmer he answered when she asked if Peter could marry his daughter but my son is the kindest and smartest young man in the whole world he would make any wife proud she answered well he may be smart he may be kind but I'll tell you this a man who wants to marry the daughter of a king must send beautiful and expensive gifts go away old woman come back when you

can bring gifts of this kind then maybe we'll talk again the king knew that a simple farmer would never be able to give these beautiful gifts so he thought this would be the end of the problem however when Peter's mother came home and and told her son what had happened he quickly used the magic ring to make cloth Jewels fine clothes and many other great gifts he then sent his mother back to the palace with all these wonderful things the riches brought by Peter's mother amazed the king but he was also upset as he did

not want his daughter to marry this young man he said that it was impossible for a king to consider marrying his daughter to a farmer but I've done as you asked you promised me that we would discuss the marriage if I brought these gifts cried Peter's mother the king did not know what to do and was quite worried then the governor spoke my dear King may I make a suggestion certainly Governor answered the king hoping for a way out of this mess thank you if as this woman says her son really is the smartest young

man in all the world then he must build a beautiful palace next to yours for his wife to live in and he must build a bridge of pure silver with mango trees on either side with fruit of silver and gold he must also build a great church for the couple's wedding I suggest that if this woman's son is smart enough to do this he can marry your daughter if not both mother and son should lose their heads the king happily agreed and told Peter's mother that her son must produce these things by the next morning

or they would lose their heads Peter's mother rushed home with this news thinking that they would certainly die but Peter wasn't worried the next morning the king woke up and went outside to start the day when he stepped into his garden he was amazed there in front of him stood a beautiful shining Palace a bridge with trees of silver and gold mangoes and a great church the king knew then that he had to agree to the marriage and preparations began in the palace the princess and Peter were dressed in the finest clothes and a beautiful

marriage ceremony took place in the great church for days afterward there were wonderful celebrations at the palace the young couple then began to live together as husband and wife in their palace next to the king's but the King's Daughter was not happy she was silly and proud and very angry that her father had married her to a simple farmer she wanted to get rid of her husband and tried everything to find out what his secret was always asking him questions in her sweetest voice you're so smart my husband but you're such a mystery too how

are you able to do all these wonderful things won't you tell your loving wife but nothing worked Peter never forgot what the elfhame King's Daughter had told him and he never told his Secret at last one night his wife thought of a new and better idea she put extra wine in his cup at dinner and kept filling it until he was very drunk she then kept him talking until he finally told her all about the magic ring as soon as he was asleep she took the ring from his finger and used used it to take

herself the palace the bridge and the church to a far away Kingdom leaving Peter lying alone in their bed when the king found the next morning that his daughter was gone he was very angry he wanted to know where she was but Peter was as surprised and confused as the king and could not tell him anything so the king ordered his guards to to build a high stone tower Peter was locked up in this Tower there was only one tiny window and he was given no food or water the king planned to punish him with

a long slow lonely death Leo the dog had been hunting and when he came back he was very UPS said about what had happened to his friend he ran to Peter's mother's house to tell her and found Pika the cat Lying by the fire sleeping happily what are you doing here Leo shouted at Pika you only think about your own Comfort when this terrible thing has happened to our friend the man who saved Our Lives why aren't you you trying to help him when he's in trouble Pika felt very guilty and quickly left the fire

she then listened carefully as Leo told his plan to trick people in the village out of their food and take it to Peter the next day Leo and Pika went into the village to carry out their plan pika got under the feet of Shoppers as they walked home with their breads when they dropped the bread Leo caught them and the dog and the cat ran away when little Pika climbed the Stone Tower and sat in the one tiny window with the first bread Peter cried with joy my dear friends you haven't forgotten me so their

plan was a success and Leo and Pika managed to keep Peter alive in this way for a year when the year ended Leo decided that Peter couldn't live this way for much longer he told paa we must go together and try to find the magic ring that has caused all this pain pain and trouble so they left together and crossed mountains rivers and even an ocean with Pika holding on to Leo's back after lots of months they arrived in a far away Kingdom and found the beautiful palace that Peter had created for his wife using

the ring Leo told told Pik to find her way into the servants rooms and whenever they needed anything to run quickly and get it for them Pika soon became well known in the palace as a good helper so the servants allowed her and her friend Leo to sleep in the palace in this way Pika and Leo were able to walk around and watch the King's Daughter closely they saw that she always wore the ring they wondered if she took it off to sleep but her bedroom was the one room they weren't allowed into and they

were both too big to slide in under the door only a mouse was small enough to do this so they decided to travel to the kingdom of the mice we must show them that we are strong strong and powerful so they will be frightened of us and agree to help us Leo told pah and this is what they did they went to the mouse Kingdom and bit the mice until they were so afraid that they surrendered we can't fight you what is it that you need we are your servants the mouse King asked them Leo

told them about the ring so the mouse King asked one of the mouse soldiers to slide under the princess door that night and steal the ring at midnight when the whole Palace was asleep the mouse Soldier went quietly into her room and up onto her bed then he gently took the ring off her finger the next morning Leo and Pika had the magic ring back the ring that would save their friend they began to prepare for their long journey home Pika put the ring in her mouth and climbed onto Leo's back as they began to

cross the ocean once again Leo and Pika were filled with joy and rushed back to the tower Pika then quickly climbed up the stone walls and thre the ring inside through the tiny window Peter who had not eaten for days was very happy when he saw it he instantly threw the ring from hand to hand and ordered the 10 young men to bring him food and wine he had his two friends brought up to be with him and celebrate he then asked musicians to play music so beautiful that people could do nothing except listen to

it and be joyful back in his Palace the king heard the music in the tower he was very angry that instead of dying Peter was celebrating he sent his guards to stop this but the guards could do nothing except stand and listen to the music the king then sent his soldiers to stop the noise but they could do nothing except stand and sing happily so in the end the king went himself but he found that he couldn't move either he then gave up and told Peter that if he tells everything everything he would be forgiven

so Peter went with the King to the palace and told him the story of the ring and what the King's Daughter had done the King was very sad to hear this and told Peter I know that my daughter should be killed for what she has done to you but she is my daughter can you find it in your heart to forgive her Peter was as kind as he had always been he couldn't have the princess killed so he agreed to take her back the King was happy that his daughter would live but he was still

sad about her behavior Peter told him go and rest tonight and I'm sure everything will look different in the morning the king said okay and went to his room after asking his servants to bring Peter his best whiskey and to put the finest silk sheets on his bed that night while everyone was sleeping Peter went out into the palace Gardens and used the magic ring to bring everything back the next morning when the king went outside he saw with great happiness the palace the bridge and the great church Peter and the princess lived as man

and wife again and after some time the princess understood what a good man Peter really was she began to love him and they then lived together in happiness Peter never took took off the ring from his finger and his friends Leo the dog and Pika the cat were always by his side