Plain speech in royal decrees means writing that's clear as crystal, free of fancy court language, making it easy for every subject in the kingdom to understand, from the highest noble to the humblest peasant. This approach became essential after the Great Confusion of the Western Provinces, where a particularly wordy decree about chicken taxes led to three days of farmers bringing their chickens to dance at the royal ball.
The king thought long and hard, and finally came up with a brilliant plan: he would tax the jokes in the kingdom.
“After all,” he said, “everyone enjoys a good joke, so it's only fair that they should pay for the privilege.”
The king's subjects were not amused. They grumbled and complained, but the king was firm
The people of the kingdom, feeling uplifted by the laughter, started to tell jokes and puns again, and soon the entire kingdom was in on the joke.
| King's Treasury | People's happiness |
|---|---|
| Empty | Overflowing |
| Modest | Satisfied |
| Full | Ecstatic |
The king, seeing how much happier his subjects were, realized the error of his ways and repealed the joke tax. Jokester was declared a hero, and the kingdom lived happily ever after.
The king thought long and hard, and finally came up with a brilliant plan: he would tax the jokes in the kingdom.
“After all,” he said, “everyone enjoys a good joke, so it's only fair that they should pay for the privilege.”
The king's subjects were not amused. They grumbled and complained, but the king was firm:
As a result, people stopped telling jokes, and the kingdom fell into a gloom. But there was one person who refused to let the king's foolishness get him down: a court jester named Jokester.