Кот в сапогах/ The Cat in Boots

"OK," said the miller's son, "it's all the same to me."
He went to the bank of the river, took off his clothes and went bathing. The Cat followed his master and hid his clothes under a great stone.
At that moment the King drove past that place in his carriage. The Cat began to shout at the top of his voice:
"Help! Help! The Marquis of Carabas is drowning!"
The King heard the shouts and put his head out of the carriage. He recognized the Cat.
"Guards!" he said. "Help the Marquis of Carabas! Quick!"
The guards ran to the river. They quickly pulled the young man out of the water.
The Cat came up to the King's carriage. He made a low bow and gave his explanations.
"My master went bathing," he said, "and suddenly some thieves came. They took all his clothes and ran away. And now the Marquis of Carabas can't appear before Your Majesty and your beautiful daughter."
"Oh, it's not a problem at all," said the King.
He ordered one of his guards to ride back to the palace and bring fine clothes for the Marquis of Carabas.
Soon the guard brought a nice suit for the miller's son. The young man put it on and came up to the carriage to thank his majesty.
The miller's son wasn't rich, but he was a handsome and well-built fellow. In the King's elegant suit he looked like a real gentleman.
The beautiful princess admired the handsome young man very much. The miller's son looked at the girl several times, and she fell in love with him.
The King was very happy to meet the Marquis of Carabas. He asked the young gentleman to sit with him and his daughter in the carriage. Of course, the miller's son didn't refuse.
  
Helpful Words & Notes
 
Then leave the rest to me. — Остальное предоставьте мне.
you are no longer yourself — вы больше не вы.
it's all the same to me — мне всё равно.
drove — форма прошедшего времени глагола drive.
at the top of his voice — во весь голос.
The Marquis of Carabas is drowning! — Маркиз Карабас тонет!
Guards! — Стража!
thieves — форма множественного числа существительного thief.
he looked like a real gentleman — он выглядел, как настоящий джентльмен.
she fell in love with him — она в него влюбилась.
  
Exercises
 
1. Answer the questions.
1) How long did the Cat continue to bring presents to the King?
2) What did he hear one day in the palace?
3) What did the Cat ask his master to do?
4) What kind of explanation did the Cat give to the King?
5) Where did the King send his guard?
6) Why did the princess fall in love with the miller's son?
2. Complete the sentences.
1) Every time the Cat brought presents to the King and said …
2) The Cat hid his master's clothes …
3) The miller's son looked like a … in an elegant suit.
3. Say why:
1) the miller's son agreed to go bathing.
2) the King stopped by the river.
3) the miller's son didn't refuse to sit in the King's carriage.
4. Fill in the nouns from the text.
1) The King drove along the ___ of the river.
2) The miller's knew nothing about the Cat's new ___.
3) The ___ brought a nice suit from the palace.
4) The young ___ fell in love with the miller's son.
5. Put the verbs in brackets in the right form.
1) "Help my master!" (to shout) the Cat.
2) The guards (to pull) the young man out of the water.
3) The miller's son (to come up) to the window of the carriage.
4) "The thieves (to take away) my master's clothes," said the Cat.
6. Fill in the prepositions from the box.
in under at for
1) The King received gifts from the Marquis of Carabas ___ a long time.
2) "Guards!" shouted the King ___ the top of his voice.
3) The Cat didn't hide his master's boots ___ the tree.
4) The miller's son fell ___ love with the princess.
7. Imagine that you're the King. Describe what happened that day on the bank of the river.
8. The author thinks that cats can look wise. Do you agree with him? What other animals or birds can look wise?
9. The miller's son looked like a real gentleman in a King's suit. Who is a gentleman? Is it enough to put on nice clothes to become a gentleman? Why?
  
Chapter 4
 
The Marquis of Carabas entered the carriage. The Cat in Boots ran away fast. He kept a long way ahead of the King's carriage. He went on and on, till he saw some mowers in a meadow. The Cat came up to them.
"Listen, good people," he said, in a very firm voice, "the King is going to stop here and talk to you. You must tell him that this meadow belongs to the Marquis of Carabas. Do that if you want to stay alive."
The King's carriage drove up to the meadow.
"What a nice meadow, and so much hay! Whose meadow is this?" he asked the mowers.
"It belongs to the Marquis of Carabas, sir," they all cried with one voice, trembling with fear.
"You have a good meadow, marquis," said his majesty to the miller's son.
The young man bowed and said, "As you see for yourself, this is a very good meadow, sir. The crops of hay are high every year."
The Cat went still on. He was far ahead of the King and his companions. Finally he came to a wheat field. There were some reapers on the field.
"My good fellows," he said to the reapers, "the King is going to stop here and talk to you. You must tell him that this field belongs to the Marquis of Carabas. Do that if you want to stay alive."
The King's carriage arrived a few moments later.
"What a beautiful wheat field! Good people, whose field is this?" he asked the reapers.
"It belongs to the Marquis of Carabas, sir," cried the reapers, trembling with fear.
At this the King was pleased with the Marquis more than ever.
The King continued his journey, and the Cat still ran on ahead of him. He said the same thing to everyone. The King drove past a new mill, a beautiful garden, houses, more fields and meadows. And all the people on his way said the same: all those places belonged to the Marquis of Carabas.
Finally the Cat returned to the King. He came up to the carriage and bowed.
"Your master is a very rich man," said the King to the Cat. Then he smiled to the young man and said, "My dear Marquis, isn't this your castle in that park? It looks beautiful. Can we go there now?"
The miller's son didn't know what to say. He looked at the Cat. The Cat bowed and said:
"My master, the Marquis of Carabas, is happy to invite you to the castle. But, Your Majesty, please wait an hour. I'm going to the castle at once to get everything ready for you."
"No problem," said the King. "And in the meantime we can visit your nice park. My dear Marquis," he said to the young man, "I hope you have many flowers there. My daughter is so fond of white roses."