Barbara the Fair with the Silken Hair

Chudo-Yudo's ransom referred to Yeremey's newborn son Andrei, born during the king's year-long journey. Yeremey had cataloged everything in his kingdom but didn't know his wife had given birth to an heir. The underwater king used this unknown child as payment for releasing Yeremey from the well.

The ransom is hinted at when Yeremey confidently believes he has counted everything in his kingdom before setting off on his journey.

King Yeremey mistakenly identified the fisherman’s son as his own child, believing the pampered prince was the fisherman’s child. This error stemmed from the earlier child swap that was reversed, confusing the king's knowledge of which boy was which. Yeremey sent what he thought was the less valuable child to fulfill his debt.

The king's confusion was planted when his advisor's wife secretly restored both children to their original places, leaving no public record of the truth.

The fisherman’s son passed because of his genuine kindness, courage, and selflessness, qualities Varvara's tests specifically rewarded. The spoiled prince, raised in privilege, proved selfish and lacked compassion, causing him to fail the same trials. The tests were designed to reveal true character rather than noble birth.

Years earlier, the two boys' contrasting upbringings, the pampered prince versus the hardworking fisherman’s son, foreshadowed their different responses to the tests.

After the prince betrayed Varvara and attempted to interfere with her relationship with the fisherman’s son, Varvara cursed him, turning him into a dog. This magical punishment reflected his ugly behavior and served as a consequence for his vanity and cruelty.

The prince's selfish nature, developed through years of being spoiled, set the stage for his ultimate betrayal and transformation.

The advisor's wife was moved by compassion and chose to help the children. She restored both the prince and the fisherman’s son to their rightful places, undoing her husband's plan to protect the true heir by substituting another child. Her intervention ensured the boys grew up in their correct identities.

The advisor's initial plan to swap the children planted the seeds for this reversal, as his wife witnessed the consequences of deception.

The king mistakenly believed the fisherman’s son was his actual heir, thinking the pampered prince was the fisherman’s child. Because the fisherman’s son was kind, hardworking, and virtuous, the king grew to favor him over the supposedly lesser prince. This ironic situation left the true heir appearing unworthy in the king's eyes.

The initial confusion from the reversed child swap created this mistaken perception that persisted for years.

The advisor's wife revealed the entire truth about the failed child swap, exposing how her husband had planned to substitute the prince with a fisherman’s child, and how she had personally reversed that plan. This confession cleared the confusion that had persisted for years and allowed the families to reconcile.

The lingering doubt about the children's true identities, combined with the growing tension between the two boys, set the stage for this necessary revelation.

King Yeremey learned that pride and obsession with control led him to make poor decisions, he bargained away a child he didn't know existed, mistakenly honored the wrong heir, and nearly lost his kingdom to the consequences of vanity. Through the humbling experience of losing his son to a curse and witnessing the fisherman’s son's virtue, Yeremey came to value kindness and mercy over birthright.

The king's compulsion to count everything revealed his need for control, which ultimately led to his downfall when he failed to account for the one thing that mattered most.