Story 39-The real princess(豌豆公主）

Once upon a time there was a prince who wished to marry a princess, but she must be a real princess. He travelled all over the world in the hopes of finding such a lady, but it was difficult to find one. There were princesses, but whether they were real was impossible for him to recognize for there was always something wrong. At last he returned to his palace desperately, because he wished so much to have a real princess.
One evening, it thundered and lightened, and rained heavily. It was dark everywhere. Just then there was strong knock at the door, and the old King opened the door himself.
It was a princess who was standing outside the door. Because of the heavy rain and wind blowing, she was in a poor condition, the water trickled down from her hair, and her clothes clung to her body. She said she was a real princess.
"Ah! We shall soon see that!" Thought the Queen without saying anything, she went into the bedroom, took away all the bedding, and put a little pea on the board. She then put twenty mattresses on the pea, and put twenty feather beds on the mattresses.
The princess had to sleep on the bed the night.
The next morning they was asked how she had slept. "Oh, very badly!" She replied. " I had scarcely closed my eyes the whole night through. I don't know what was on my bed, and it hurt me so much!"
By then everyone knew that she was a real princess. If she had not been a real one, she would not have the feeling of the pea, which had been put under so many mattresses.
Hence, the prince married her, for now he knew that she was the real princess.