ey Come to Cheaping Knowe Once More. Of the King Thereof

Toward evening comes Redhead, and tells Ralph how he hired him a dozen
men-at-arms to follow him well-weaponed to Cheaping Knowe: withal he
counselled him to take a good gift with him to that same town to buy
the good will of the King there; who was a close-fist and a cruel lord.

Afterwards they sat together in the court of that fair house before
good wine, Ralph and Ursula, and Redhead and the Sage of Swevenham, and
spake of many things, and were merry and kind together. But on the
morrow Redhead departed from Goldburg with his men, and he loth to
depart, and they gave him farewell lovingly. Thereafter Ralph's new
men came to him in the hostelry, and he feasted them and did well to
them, so that they praised him much. Then he gat him victuals and
sumpter-horses for the journey, and bought good store of bows and
arrows withal. Furthermore he took heed to Redhead's word and bought a
goodly gift of silver vessel and fine cloth for the King of Cheaping
Knowe.

The day after he and his company departed from Goldburg toward the
mountains, which they passed unfought and unwaylaid: partly because
they were a band of stout men, and partly because a little before there
had been a great overthrow of the wild men of those mountains at the
hands of the men of Goldburg and the Chapmen; so that now the
mountain-men lay close, and troubled none that rode with any force.

On the way they failed not to pass by the place where they had erst
found Bull Nosy slain: there they saw his howe, heaped up exceeding
high, covered in with earth, whereon the grass was now beginning to
grow, and with a great standing stone on the top thereof, whereon was
graven the image of a bull, with a sword thereunder; whereby the
wayfarers wotted that this had been done in his memory by his brother,
the new Lord of Utterbol.

So they came down out of the mountains to Whiteness, where they had
good entertainment, but tarried not save for one night, riding their
ways betimes to Cheaping Knowe: and they came before the gate thereof
safe and sound on the third day; and slept in the hostelry of the
chapmen. On the morrow Ralph went up to the King's Castle with but
three men unweaponed bearing the gift which he had got for the King.
Albeit he sent not away his men-at-arms till he should know how the
King was minded towards him.

As he went he saw in the streets sad tokens of the lord's cruel
j