Once upon a time, in the immense Russian steppe, lay a little village where nearly all the inhabitants bred horses. In October, a big livestock market was held yearly in the main town. Two brothers, one rich and one poor, set off for the market. The rich man rode a stallion, and the poor brother rode a young mare.
At dusk, they stopped beside an empty hut, tethered their horses outside, and slept on piles of straw. To their surprise, next morning they saw three horses instead of two. The newcomer was a foal, born to the mare during the night. When the brothers first saw it, the foal was standing beside the stallion.
"It belongs to me!" exclaimed Dimitri, the rich brother. "It's my stallion's foal."
Ivan, the poor brother, laughed. "Whoever heard of a stallion having a foal? It was born to my mare!"
"No! It was standing close to the stallion, so it's the stallion's foal. Therefore, it's mine!"
The brothers quarreled and decided to take the matter to the judges in town. Still arguing, they headed for the courtroom. Unbeknownst to them, it was a special day when the Emperor himself administered justice. The brothers were ushered before him and told their story.
The Emperor knew perfectly well who the foal's owner was and was about to rule in favor of Ivan when the poor man developed an unfortunate eye twitch. Annoyed by this perceived familiarity from a humble peasant, the Emperor decided to punish Ivan. He declared it impossible to determine the rightful owner and, in a mood for fun, posed a challenge: "The foal will be awarded to whoever solves these four riddles: What is the fastest thing in the world? What is the fattest? What is the softest? And what is the most precious? Return in one week with your answers."
Dimitri, the rich brother, was puzzled. He sought help from a quick-witted but astute neighbor woman, agreeing to cancel part of her debt in exchange for answers. She demanded the entire debt be wiped out and gave her answers: the fastest was her husband's bay horse, the fattest was their pig, the softest was her goose-feather quilt, and the most precious was her three-month-old nephew. Dimitri was doubtful but had no other solution.
Meanwhile, Ivan, a widower, returned to his humble cottage where he lived with his seven-year-old daughter. The thoughtful and clever little girl, often left alone, listened to her father's problem. After a moment's silence, she said firmly, "Tell the Emperor: the fastest thing is the cold north wind in winter. The fattest is the soil in our fields that feeds all life. The softest is a child's caress. And the most precious is honesty."
A week later, the brothers returned. The Emperor roared with laughter at Dimitri's foolish answers. But when Ivan gave his daughter's wise replies, a frown spread over the Emperor's face, especially at the answer about honesty. Knowing he had been dishonest in denying Ivan justice, the Emperor angrily demanded, "Who gave you these answers?"
Ivan told him it was his small daughter. Still annoyed, the Emperor said, "You shall be rewarded with the foal and a hundred silver ducats for having such a wise daughter... But..." He winked at his counselors. "In seven days, bring your daughter before me. Since she's so clever, she must appear neither naked nor dressed, neither on foot nor on horseback, neither bearing gifts nor empty-handed. If she succeeds, you get your reward. If not, you lose your head for your impudence!"
The onlookers laughed, sure the poor man could never fulfill these impossible conditions. Ivan went home in despair, but his daughter calmly instructed him, "Tomorrow, catch a live hare and a live partridge. Leave it to me."
On the appointed day, the palace was thronged with bystanders. The little girl appeared, draped in a fishing net, riding the hare, and holding the partridge. She was neither naked nor dressed, neither on foot nor on horseback. Scowling, the Emperor said, "I said neither bearing gifts nor empty-handed!"
The little girl held out the partridge. As the Emperor reached for it, the bird fluttered into the air—thus fulfilling the third condition. Despite himself, the Emperor admired her cleverness. In a gentler voice, he asked, "Is your father terribly poor? Does he desperately need the foal?"
"Oh, yes!" replied the little girl. "We live on the hares he catches in the rivers and the fish he picks from the trees!"
"Aha!" cried the Emperor triumphantly. "So you're not so clever! Whoever heard of hares in the river and fish in the trees!"
To which the little girl swiftly replied, "And whoever heard of a stallion having a foal?"
At that, the Emperor and the entire court burst into peals of laughter. Ivan was immediately given the hundred silver ducats and the foal. The Emperor proclaimed, "Only in my kingdom could such a wise little girl be born!"