One of these damsels, above all others, pleased the friends and relations of our Champenois because of her beauty, goodness, riches and so forth. They told him ‘twas time he married.
“Thou art now three-and-twenty years of age,” said they, “and there could not be a better time. An thou wilt listen to us, we have sought out for thee a fair and good damsel who seemeth to us well fitted to thee. It is such an one—thou knowest her full well.” And they told him her name.
The young man, who cared little whether he was married or not, so as he did not lose money by it, answered that he would do whatsoe’er they wished.
“Since ye think ‘twill be to my advantage,” said he, “manage the business to the best of your ability, for I would follow your advice and instructions.”
“Thou sayest well,” said these good folk. “We will look and consider as carefully as though the matter concerned us or one of our children.”
To cut matters short, a little while afterwards our Champenois was married; but on the first night, when he was sleeping with his wife, he, never having mounted on any Christian beast, soon turned his back to her, and a few poor kisses was aught she had of him, but naught on her back. At which one may guess his wife was not well pleased, albeit she concealed her discontent.
This unsatisfactory State of affairs endured some ten days, and would have endured yet longer had not the girl’s mother put a stop to it.
It should be known that the young man was unversed in the mysteries of wedlock, for during the lifetime of his parents a tight rein had been kept upon him, and, above all things, he had been forbidden to play at the beast with two backs,[108] lest he should take too much delight therein, and waste all his patrimony. Which was prudent on the part of his parents, for he was not a young man likely to be loved for his appearance.
And since he would do naught to anger his father and mother, and was not, moreover, of an amorous disposition, he had ever preserved his chastity, albeit his wife had deprived him of it right gladly had she known but how.
On a certain day the mother of the bride came to her daughter, and questioned her as to her husband’s state and condition and the countless other things which women like to know. To all of which questions the bride replied that her husband was a good man, and that she did not doubt but that she would be happy with him.