saw how much
the King preferred Fiordelisa. They complained bitterly to the King, and
begged and teased him, until he at last consented to have the Princess
shut up somewhere out of sight while King Charming's visit lasted.
So that night, as she went to her room, she was seized by four masked
figures, and carried up into the topmost room of a high tower, where
they left her in the deepest dejection. She easily guessed that she was
to be kept out of sight for fear the King should fall in love with her;
but then, how disappointing that was, for she already liked him very
much, and would have been quite willing to be chosen for his bride! As
King Charming did not know what had happened to the Princess, he looked
forward impatiently to meeting her again, and he tried to talk about
her with the courtiers who were placed in attendance on him. But by the
Queen's orders they would say nothing good of her, but declared that
she was vain, capricious, and bad-tempered; that she tormented her
waiting-maids, and that, in spite of all the money that the King gave
her, she was so mean that she preferred to go about dressed like a poor
shepherdess, rather than spend any of it. All these things vexed the
King very much, and he was silent.

'It is true,' thought he, 'that she was very poorly dressed, but then
she was so ashamed that it proves that she was not accustomed to be so.
I cannot believe that with that lovely face she can be as ill-tempered
and contemptible as they say. No, no, the Queen must be jealous of her
for the sake of that ugly daughter of hers, and so these evil reports
are spread.'

The courtiers could not help seeing that what they had told the King did
not please him, and one of them cunningly began to praise Fiordelisa,
when he could talk to the King without being heard by the others.

King Charming thereupon became so cheerful, and interested in all he
said, that it was easy to guess how much he admired the Princess. So
when the Queen sent for the courtiers and questioned them about all they
had found out, their report confirmed her worst fears. As to the poor
Princess Fiordelisa, she cried all night without stopping.

'It would have been quite bad enough to be shut up in this gloomy tower
before I had ever seen King Charming,' she said; 'but now when he is
here, and they are all enjoying themselves with him, it is too unkind.'

The next day the Queen sent King Charming splendid presents of jewels
and rich st