I don't get it
An old man keeps bragging in taverns that he can teach a donkey to speak. The King hears about it, summons the man to the court and asks whether he said so.
-- Yes, Your Highness, I can teach a donkey to speak.
-- Well, then, you are hereby ordered to take a donkey from the royal stables and teach it to speak. If you succeed, you will get a title and riches; if you fail, you will lose your head. Understood?
-- Perfectly, Your Highness. However the process is complicated, requires a special environment, expensive materials, and takes about five years.
-- No problem, you will have a spacious house, and all the money you need. But, five years from now, you'd better bring me a talking donkey, or...
-- Thanks Your Highness, will do as you command.
When the man gets home and tells his wife what happened, she gets desperate.
-- Dear, what have you done! We both know that you cannot do it, it was idle talk, you will die!
-- Calm down, woman: before the five years are over, either the King is dead, or I am dead, or the donkey is dead...
Poll
