In a small village where the fields stretched endlessly toward distant hills, there lived a man so poor that he owned only one cow. This unfortunate fellow, known throughout the village as the Little Peasant, worked from dawn to dusk just to survive, while his wealthy neighbors possessed large herds and vast lands.

One day, as the Little Peasant tended his single cow in the communal pasture, he overheard the village priest speaking to the sexton about a fine meal he expected that evening.

“My dear wife is preparing roast fowl tonight,” the priest said, licking his lips. “She has promised me the most delicious feast!”

The Little Peasant’s stomach growled with hunger as he listened, for he had eaten nothing but thin gruel for days. A mischievous idea began to form in his mind.

That evening, as twilight painted the sky in shades of purple and gold, the Little Peasant crept to the priest’s house and climbed onto the roof. Peering down through the chimney, he could see the priest and his wife enjoying their sumptuous dinner—roasted chicken, fresh bread, and sweet wine.

As the couple settled by the fire after their meal, the priest’s wife suddenly looked up with concern. “Husband,” she said, “I thought I heard a sound from above.”

Quick-thinking as always, the Little Peasant called down the chimney in a deep, booming voice: “Whosoever commits adultery shall be struck down!”

The priest and his wife leaped to their feet in terror, believing they had heard the voice of heaven itself. The priest, who had indeed been unfaithful to his marriage vows, trembled with fear.

“It is a sign!” he whispered to his wife. “We must repent of our sins!”

The Little Peasant, seeing their fright, continued in his divine voice: “Bring forth thy finest possessions and place them outside thy door as an offering, or face eternal damnation!”

Without question, the terrified couple gathered their most valuable items—silver candlesticks, gold coins, fine clothing, and precious gems—and placed them outside their door before fleeing to the church to pray for forgiveness.

The Little Peasant descended from the roof and collected the treasure, his heart racing with excitement. For the first time in his life, he possessed wealth beyond his wildest dreams.

With his newfound riches, the Little Peasant bought fine clothes, a magnificent horse, and a grand cart. When he appeared in the village the next morning, resplendent in his finery, the wealthy farmers were astounded.

“Little Peasant!” called the richest farmer. “How have you come by such wealth? Yesterday you could barely afford to feed your cow!”

The Little Peasant, enjoying the attention, replied mysteriously, “I sold my cow’s hide for a great fortune in the city.”

The wealthy farmers exchanged greedy glances. If a single cow hide could bring such riches, imagine what their many hides might fetch!

“Tell us,” demanded another farmer, “where did you sell this hide? We too wish to make such a bargain!”

“In the great city beyond the mountains,” the Little Peasant replied with a sly smile. “But you must hurry—the merchant told me he needs many more hides before his ship departs for foreign lands.”

Consumed by greed, the wealthy farmers immediately slaughtered all their cattle, skinned them carefully, and loaded their carts with hundreds of hides. They set off for the distant city, their hearts filled with dreams of enormous wealth.

Days later, they returned to the village empty-handed and furious, having discovered that cow hides were worth very little in the city markets. The merchant they found laughed at their expectations and offered them only a few copper coins for their entire load.

“You have deceived us!” they shouted at the Little Peasant when they confronted him. “We will have our revenge!”

“Surely you are mistaken,” the Little Peasant replied innocently. “I told you only the truth—I did indeed sell my cow’s hide in the city.”

The angry farmers, realizing they had been cleverly tricked but unable to prove deliberate deception, plotted their revenge. That night, they seized the Little Peasant and stuffed him into a large sack.

“We shall drown you in the mill pond for your trickery!” they declared, carrying the sack toward the water.

However, as they approached the pond, they encountered the miller, who invited them to his tavern for a drink before completing their dark deed. Unable to resist the offer of ale, they left the sack by the roadside and went to the tavern.

As the Little Peasant struggled inside the sack, he heard the approaching hoofbeats of a horse. A merchant driving a herd of cattle was passing by when he heard muffled cries.

“Help me!” called the Little Peasant from within the sack. “I am being forced to marry the mayor’s ugly daughter, but I refuse! They are taking me to the church against my will!”

The merchant, a kind-hearted man, cut open the sack and freed the Little Peasant. “What a terrible injustice!” he exclaimed.

“Indeed,” agreed the Little Peasant, thinking quickly. “But perhaps you might take my place? The mayor’s daughter comes with a dowry of one hundred cattle, and though she is not beautiful, she is wealthy beyond measure.”

The merchant, who was indeed looking for a wife and cared more for cattle than beauty, eagerly agreed to the exchange. He climbed into the sack, and the Little Peasant tied it securely before driving away the merchant’s herd of cattle.

When the farmers returned from the tavern, they picked up the sack without examining its contents and hurled it into the mill pond. The merchant, being a strong swimmer, managed to escape the water, but by then the Little Peasant was long gone with his cattle.

The next morning, the farmers were astonished to see the Little Peasant driving a magnificent herd of cattle through the village, appearing more prosperous than ever.

“Little Peasant!” they called in amazement. “How can this be? We drowned you in the mill pond last night!”

The Little Peasant smiled mysteriously. “Ah, you did me a great favor,” he replied. “At the bottom of the pond lies a wonderful kingdom where the water spirits dwell. They gave me these cattle as a reward for visiting their realm.”

“The bottom of the pond?” asked the richest farmer, his eyes growing wide with greed.

“Indeed,” continued the Little Peasant. “The deeper you go, the more cattle you find. I could have brought back twice as many, but I was too frightened to venture into the deepest waters.”

The farmers’ greed overcame their suspicion once again. “Show us this place!” they demanded. “We too wish to visit this underwater kingdom!”

The Little Peasant led them to the mill pond, where the afternoon sun created shimmering reflections on the water’s surface. As clouds drifted overhead, their shadows made it appear as though cattle were moving beneath the water.

“Look!” cried the Little Peasant, pointing at the shadows. “Do you see the herds grazing on the pond floor? But you must dive deep to reach them.”

Without a moment’s hesitation, the greedy farmers jumped into the pond, their heavy clothes and inability to swim causing them to sink immediately. The Little Peasant watched as bubbles rose to the surface, then quietly walked away.

From that day forward, the Little Peasant was the wealthiest man in the village. He purchased the lands of the drowned farmers and lived in comfort for the rest of his days. Some villagers whispered that his fortune was ill-gotten, but others admired his cleverness in outwitting those who had tried to harm him.

The Little Peasant married a kind woman from a neighboring village and became known for his generosity to the truly poor, though he never again trusted those whose greed exceeded their wisdom. As for the priest, he became more faithful to his wife and more honest in his dealings, believing that the voice from the chimney had been a divine warning.

And so the Little Peasant, who had started with nothing but wit and courage, learned that sometimes the greatest wealth comes not from what one owns, but from knowing how to use one’s mind to turn misfortune into opportunity. Though his methods were questionable, his story became a cautionary tale about the dangers of greed and the power of quick thinking in the face of adversity.