te the wedding of Bianca and Lucentio, Baptista having willingly
consented to the marriage of Bianca when he had got Katharine off his
hands.

When they entered, Baptista welcomed them to the wedding feast, and
there was present also another newly married pair.

Lucentio, Bianca's husband, and Hortensio, the other new married man,
could not forbear sly jests, which seemed to hint at the shrewish
disposition of Petruchio's wife, and these fond bridegrooms seemed high
pleased with the mild tempers of the ladies they had chosen, laughing
at Petruchio for his less fortunate choice. Petruchio took little
notice of their jokes till the ladies were retired after dinner, and
then he perceived Baptista himself joined in the laugh against him: for
when Petruchio affirmed that his wife would prove more obedient than
theirs, the father of Katharine said: 'Now, in good sadness, son
Petruchio, I fear you have got the veriest shrew of all.' 'Well,' said
Petruchio, 'I say no, and therefore for assurance that I speak the
truth, let us each one send for his wife, and he whose wife is most
obedient to come at first when she is sent for, shall win a wager which
we will propose.' To this the other two husbands willingly consented,
for they were quite confident that their gentle wives would prove more
obedient than the headstrong Katharine; and they proposed a wager of
twenty crowns, but Petruchio merrily said, he would lay as much as that
upon his hawk or hound, but twenty times as much upon his wife.
Lucentio and Hortensio raised the wager to a hundred crowns, and
Lucentio first sent his servant to desire Bianca would come to him. But
the servant returned, and said: 'Sir, my mistress sends you word she is
busy and cannot come.' 'How,' said Petruchio, 'does she say she is busy
and cannot come? Is that an answer for a wife?' Then they laughed at
him, and said, it would be well if Katharine did not send him a worse
answer. And now it was Hortensio's turn to send for his wife; and he
said to his servant: 'Go, and entreat my wife to come to me.' 'Oh ho!
entreat her!' said Petruchio. 'Nay, then, she needs must come.' 'I am
afraid, sir,' said Hortensio, 'your wife will not be entreated.' But
presently this civil husband looked a little blank, when the servant
returned without his mistress; and he said to him: 'How now! Where is
my wife?' 'Sir,' said the servant, 'my mistress says, you have some
goodly jest in hand, and therefore she will not com