Once upon a time, in a kingdom far away, there lived a wise and caring old queen who had one wish — to see her beloved son, the prince, happily married. However, the queen had high standards for her future daughter-in-law. She believed that only a true princess would be worthy of her son’s love and the throne.

To ensure the prince’s future happiness, the queen devised a clever plan. On a stormy night, she went to the nearby village and sought shelter in a humble cottage, where she found refuge with an old woman. During her stay, the queen confided in the old woman about her desire to find a genuine princess for her son. The old woman, who was known for her wisdom, proposed a test to identify a true princess.

The following morning, the queen returned to the palace with a plan in mind. She ordered her servants to prepare a bed for the test. The bed consisted of twenty mattresses piled high, with a single pea placed beneath them all. It was said that a true princess would be so sensitive that she could feel the tiny pea under the stack of mattresses.

Soon after, a series of princesses from various kingdoms arrived at the palace, each hoping to win the prince’s heart and become queen. However, as the princesses took their places in the luxurious beds prepared for them, not one of them complained of discomfort during the night.

The queen began to lose hope that they would ever find a true princess when, one stormy night, a young woman knocked on the palace gates seeking shelter from the rain. Drenched and disheveled, she introduced herself as a princess and requested a bed for the night.

The queen welcomed the weary traveler and informed her of the special bed with the pea hidden beneath it. The young woman agreed to the test and was shown to her room.

The next morning, the princess emerged from her room with dark circles under her eyes. She had hardly slept a wink. The queen’s heart leaped with joy because she knew that only a true princess could have felt the pea through all those mattresses.

The prince, captivated by the young woman’s beauty and impressed by her sensitivity, proposed to her, and she accepted. They were married in a grand ceremony, and the whole kingdom rejoiced. The prince had found his true princess, and the queen’s wish had come true.

The story of “The Princess and the Pea” teaches us about the value of sensitivity, empathy, and kindness. It reminds us that true royalty is not determined by wealth or status but by the qualities that lie within. And so, the prince and his sensitive princess lived happily ever after, their love a testament to the power of recognizing true royalty in the heart.