The Emperor's Dream

One night, the emperor dreamed of a magical floating palace made of gold and jewels. The next day, he described the dream to his courtiers and announced, "I want such a palace to be built."

The courtiers were stunned, but none of them dared say anything. The next day, an old man arrived at the court, pleading for justice. 

"Your Majesty, all my life savings have been stolen," he said to the emperor.

"Who has stolen your money?"

"You did, Your Majesty."

"Scoundrel, on what grounds do you accuse me of theft?"

"Last night, I dreamed that Your Majesty entered my house and stole all my money."

"Don't you know that dreams don't depict reality?"

"If Your Majesty's dream of a floating palace can come true, why can't mine?"

The old man then took off his disguise; he turned out to be none other than Tenali Rama!

"Forgive me, Your Majesty," he said. "I wanted to convince you that your dream was far removed from reality."

The emperor realized his folly and praised Rama for his resourcefulness.