"Why are you tormenting yourself over a little thing like that?" the shepherd laughingly replied. "Leave it to me, and all will be well. To-morrow I will come here and dress myself in your robe, and I will turn the tables on him."
At first the Abbot demurred, but in the end he yielded, and the matter was settled.
The next day the shepherd went boldly to find the Emperor.
"Well, Reverend Abbot," the Emperor said with serenity, "have you found out the answers?"
"Yes, certainly, sire."
"Speak, I am listening."
"Sire, the sea is as deep as a stone's throw.
"To measure the distance between the earth and the sun, you only need one cow's tail, if it is long enough.
"Do you wish to know, sire, what you are thinking? Well, at this moment, you think, sire, that the Abbot of the convent is in your presence, and it is only his shepherd."
The Emperor laughed so heartily that if he has not stopped laughing he is laughing still.