There once lived an Eastern Queen named, Layla Rani. She was wise, clever, and had made her kingdom wealthy and prosperous.

One day a minister from her court approached her with a sad face and said, "Oh great Queen Layla Rani! You are the wisest, greatest, and mightiest woman in our land, but I heard some disturbing things about you as I was traveling through this kingdom. Everywhere I went most people praised you, but some people spoke ill of you. They cracked jokes at your expense and complained about some wise decisions you have taken. Why do some speak this way against you and your governing?"

Queen Layla Rani smiled and said, "My faithful minister, like every person in my kingdom, you know what I have accomplished for all of you. Several regions are under my control and each has achieved progress and prosperity. In these regions, people love me because of my justice. You are right, I can do many things. I can order the gigantic gates of my cities closed, but there is one thing I cannot do. I cannot stop the citizens from expressing their opinions. It is not really a question of what some people say about me, bad or untrue. What is important is that I do good despite what they say."

Note: The story above is an old Persian tale which I titled and rewrote in parts.

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