Once upon a time, there was a miller who had three sons. when he died 🎵, he left them only three things: his mill, his donkey, and his cat. They quickly divided these things among themselves without any lawyers, because lawyers would have taken everything for themselves!

The oldest son got the mill 🎵, and the second son got the donkey 🎵. So, the youngest son was left with just the cat 🎵. He felt pretty sad about this.

“My brothers can work together to make money,” he said, “but all I can do is eat my cat and make a pair of gloves from its fur. Then I’ll probably starve 🎵!”

The cat heard this and pretended not to listen. Then he said very seriously, “Don’t worry, Master. Just get me a bag and some cool boots so I can walk in the woods. You’ll see that your part of the inheritance isn’t so bad after all.”

Now, this cat was known for being pretty clever. When catching mice, he would hide in flour and hang upside down, pretending to be dead. So even though his master didn’t totally believe what the cat said, he felt a little hopeful.

When the cat got his new boots, he put them on happily 🎵. He hung the bag around his neck and set off to a place where lots of rabbits lived. He put some food in the bag and lay down, pretending to be dead. His plan was to wait for a young, naive rabbit to come looking for the food.

Soon enough, a silly young rabbit went into the bag. The cat quickly pulled the strings tight and caught it.

Feeling proud of his catch, the cat went to the king’s palace 🎵. He asked to see the king and was let in. He bowed to the king and said, “Your Majesty, I bring you a rabbit from the estate of the Marquis of Carabas. He asked me to give it to you as a gift.” (The cat made up this fancy title for his master.)

“Tell your master thank you.” said the king. “I appreciate his gift.”

Another time, the cat hid in a wheat field with his bag open. two birds 🎵 flew in, and he caught them both. He took them to the king just like he did with the rabbit. The king was really happy 🎵 and even gave the cat a treat.

For a few months, the cat kept bringing gifts to the king, saying they were from his master. One day, he heard that the king was going on a trip by the river with his daughter, who was the most beautiful princess 🎵 in the world.