When the eldest son was letten blood, the king said unto them all three, "My dear friends, where is your father buried?" Then answered they, and said, "Forsooth, my lord, in such a place." Anon the king commanded to dig in the ground for the body, and to take a bone out of his breast, and to bury the body again: and so it was done. And when the bone was taken out, the king commanded that it should be laid in the blood of the elder brother, and it should lie till it had received kindly the blood, and then to be laid in the sun and dried, and after that it should be washed with clear water. His servants fulfilled all that he had commanded: and when they began to wash, the blood vanished clean away; when the king saw this, he said to the second son, "It behoveth that thou be letten blood, as thy brother was." Then said he, "My lord's will shall be fulfilled," and anon he was done unto like as his brother was in all things, and when they began to wash the bone, the blood vanished away. Then said the king to the third son, "It behoveth thee to be letten blood likewise." He answered and said, "My lord, it pleaseth me well so to be." When the youngest brother was letten blood, and done unto in all things as the two brethren were before, then the king's servants began to wash the bone, but neither for washing nor rubbing might they do away the blood of the bone, but it ever appeared bloody: when the king saw this, he said, "It appeareth openly now that this blood is of the nature of the bone, thou art his true son, and the other two are bastards. I judge thee the tree for evermore." XXIX.--FULGENTIUS. In Rome some time dwelt a mighty emperor named Martin, which for entire affection kept with him his brother's son, whom men called Fulgentius. With this Martin dwelt also a knight that was steward of the empire, and uncle unto the emperor, which envied this Fulgentius, studying day and night how he might bring the emperor and this youth at debate. Wherefore the steward on a day went to the emperor, and said, "My lord," quoth he, "I that am your true servant, am bound in duty to warn your highness, if I hear anything that toucheth your honour, wherefore I have such things that I must needs utter it in secret to your majesty between us two." Then said the emperor, "Good friend, say on what thee list."