The Canterbury Tales: A Bluffer's Guide part 11

Prince was wrong. Stupid Prince.  I must admit, I am not entirely surprised.

The Shipman's Tale:  You know that magic trick / con act where the guy puts a rubber ball under one of three cups and then moves them all around, and you have to guess which cup the ball is under?  This story is a bit like that.  Keep an eye on the 100 Francs.

A rich-ish merchant called Paul, and his beautiful wife are friends with a monk.  Paul and the monk are very close; more like brothers than friends.  At least that's what Paul thinks.

The monk comes to stay with them for a few days, and while he's visiting he tells Paul's wife he's madly in love with her, and that Paul really isn't that much of a mate.  She, by way of response, moans about the fact that her husband is unkind and tight with money.  Poor old Paul.  She needs (needs!) 100 Francs to pay for some new dresses she's already ordered, and asks the monk to give it to her.  He says of course he will, being a fool who has fallen in love, and she offers to do anything he wants to repay him. The implication is that she'll sleep with him which, if you take into account inflation and ignore the fact that Paul knows nothing about the arrangement, makes this exactly like that film Indecent Proposal, where someone offers that guy a million dollars to sleep with his wife.

The monk rather cleverly asks Paul if he can borrow 100 Francs, which Paul lends him quite happily because (in his head, anyway) they are such great mates, and that's what you do for your friends.   Paul goes off on a business trip, which is convenient, and the monk gives the 100 Francs to Paul's wife, and then  jumps into bed with her.  Afterwards he goes home to Paris, no doubt feeling a little smug about the free sex he's just had.

Paul's trip takes him to Paris, so he goes to visit the monk, and gently reminds him about the 100 Francs.  The cheeky Monk tells him he's already paid back the money; he left it with Paul's wife.

Paul goes home and has an amorous night with his wife, then tells her off for not telling him the monk has given her back the 100 Francs.  She says he did give her some money but she thought it was a gift, and that she's already spent it, and then offers her husband more sex to distract him.  It seeems to work.