The Golden Duck: The Story of Prince Raduz and the Faithful Ludmila

Shortly after the poplar was cut down there grew up under the king’s very window a pretty little pear tree that bore golden pears. It was a wonderful little tree. No matter how many pears you picked in the evening, by the next morning the tree would again be full.

The king loved the little tree and was forever talking about it. The old queen, on the other hand, disliked it.

“I wish that tree would die,” she used to say. “There’s something strange about it that makes me nervous.”

The king begged her to leave the tree alone but she worried and complained and nagged until at last for his own peace of mind he had the poor little pear tree cut down.

The seven years of Yezibaba’s curse at last ran out. Then Ludmila changed herself again into a little golden duck and went swimming about on the lake that was under the king’s window.

Suddenly the king began to remember that he had seen that duck before. He ordered it to be caught and brought to him. But none of his people could catch it. Then he called together all the fishermen and birdcatchers in the country but none of them could catch the strange duck.

The days went by and the king’s mind was more and more engrossed with the thought of the golden duck. “If no one can catch it for me,” he said at last, “I must try to catch it myself.”

So he went to the lake and reached out his hand after the golden duck. The duck led him on and on but at last she allowed herself to be caught. As soon as she was in his hand she changed to herself and Raduz recognized her as his own beautiful Ludmila.

She said to him: “I have been true to you but you have forgotten me all these years. Yet I forgive you, for it was not your fault.”

In Raduz’ heart his old love returned a hundredfold and he was overjoyed to lead Ludmila to the castle. He presented her to his mother and said:

“This is she who saved my life many times. She and no one else will be my wife.”

A great wedding feast was prepared and so at last Raduz married the faithful Ludmila.