'Good' King Wenceslas

Ok, let's unpack this.

We got a king, of Bohemia, it turns out.  He notices on a winter's day a subject toiling.  He wants to do something nice.  He asks a servant if he knows where the man lived.  The servant knows his house.  Provisions are gathered and off the two go.  The slight Page struggles a bit to keep up with the hale king and the king gives him a suggestion to make the trek easier on him.  The suggestion works.  A feast is delivered to the Peasant and a good deed is done, on the day after Christmas.

That's the story.  Of the song.

The Peasant lives 3 miles away, nearer to the mountain and his house is butted up against the forest.  yet there he is, gathering firewood and hour from home when his back yard has trees in it.  Did he have business in town, and figured he might as well schlep some wood on his trip back?  Multi-task a bit.  Or was he just trying to look natural to distract from his actual agenda.  Plotting an assassination, or planting an infernal device to rid the land of a bier swilling tyrant.

Page knew where he lived?  Shoulda kept his mouth shut about.  I bet this isn't the first goat rope that king dragged that young man into.  "I know not where he dwells, Sire."  All he had to say and he could have stayed in the castle safe and warm instead of being forced to brave a raging blizzard at night with a madman do-gooder.  I'm sure he didn't get time and a half for that.

And pine boughs?  I guess if there is nothing else pine will burn just fine.  But it's not my first choice for firewood after you got it started.   What grows in the Czech Republic 1000 years ago?  No oak?  Maybe hardwood is too dear to burn if you can help it, as it is needed for other things.  Like charcoal for industry.

His servant flags, near death, in the storm, and Wenceslas doesn't go 'hey, lemme carry part of that heavy burden, as you are just an undernourished boy, unaccustomed to toiling outside in the blow.'  What he does do, which isn't half bad is give his lowly Page leave to overlook protocol, which would have the boy to the side and slightly behind his liege.  Instead, the kid could walk single file behind the king, ingnoring such etiquette concerns, and walk in the kings footstep.  This way the sand people hide their numbers.  Also, this way the king trudges through the drifts and the Page's walk is easier, staving off his exhaustion.  Perhaps also serving as a wind break for the lad.

We don't hear what happens on the long walk back, after the king and Page and loagy from eating and swilling.  It was hard to get there, now they are drunk and even more susceptible to hypothermia in the dark.  No one knew they were heading out, the castle would be in an uproar in the moring.  How do I know?  More senior servants wouldn't have let the king sally forth without greater assistance.  That's just not done.  And we already established that Peasant was acting in dubious manner.  Maybe he fell on the king and dragged him into the forest and stuff his corpse in some crevass.  Prolly taint St Agnes' Fountain as he decomposes.  Maybe the Page was in on it.  It was a conspiracy.  Or the Peasant was threatening the Page's family, and he was compelled to deliver the Wenceslas to the murder-hut.

Or maybe it was all as reported.  A hard working but poor Peasant and his family got to sup with his ruler on a cold winter night.  What a Joy.  He who would bless the poor will in turn find blessings.  And not one Krampus is sight.  Other conspiracies would play out, but not this one, with the murder hut at the forest fence.  And perhaps that Page would be the one that tries to avenge his lord after foul betrayal on some September day.