It never pays to overreach yourself

Once, there was a king. He had a jester in his court. The king was very fond of him. He enjoyed every kind of liberty of speech. He used to make fun of lords and ministers. He did not spare even the king. He became very bold and proud.

One day, when the king was holding court and was busy in some serious state affairs, the jester made fun of him. The king was greatly, offended. He sentenced the jester to death. He begged for mercy, but the king turned down his request. After repeated requests for mercy, the king allowed him to choose the kind of death he liked. The clever jester at once said that he would choose the death of old age. The king was pleased with him and forgave him with a warning to be careful in future.

Moral:

            It never pays to overreach yourself