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At the beginning of April, Abbot Marcos Rebelo's poor house looked onto an orchard in blossom. Despite the flowers, the mountain wind brought bitter cold. The room had dirty whitewash, dark wood, old chairs and worn pictures. A red bedspread covered the table, and dead flies hung inside a clock without glass.
At ten o'clock, a man came out of the bedchamber. It was Veríssimo, although people in that house treated him as Dom Miguel. He had broad shoulders, walked with a limp and opened the window while smoking, but the cold displeased him. Senhorinha entered, curtseyed and addressed him as Your Majesty. She said that the abbot had gone to hear a dying woman's confession and had ordered breakfast to be served. Veríssimo replied that, in that house, the abbot was in charge.
The smell of salpicão sausage with eggs rose from the kitchen, and Veríssimo sniffed hungrily. Senhorinha laid silver on the poor table and became distressed when he tried to help. Veríssimo said that a king was a man like any other, but she disagreed. He attacked the pickled sardines with an appetite that was hardly regal. Then he ate salpicão sausage with eggs and spoke about the tripe he had missed in exile. The abbot became emotional as he watched him gnaw pork and wipe his greasy beard.
There followed roast veal, old wine and invented titles for Abbot Marcos. Senhorinha thought that such hunger proved great suffering in exile. Basing his story on a book, the abbot said that Dom Miguel had no money for milk in Rome. Veríssimo confirmed the story and said that he had refused sixty contos for the sake of his rights. The narrator makes the patriotism, enormous appetite, tears and titles comic. At the end, Veríssimo smoked cigars, opened his waistcoat and burped. Senhorinha announced Mr Trocatles, and Veríssimo almost forgot his title of viscount.
Torcato Nunes, a former royalist sergeant, entered and shut himself in the bedchamber with Veríssimo. The servants laughed at the new viscount, who had once borrowed two patacos for cigarettes and never repaid them. One of them said that Nunes had been the first to recognise the supposed king and that he and his family were now receiving favours.
Abbot Marcos returned tired from hearing the confession of an old woman who had drunk too much and fallen. The cook said that the guest had eaten everything and that the town was suspicious of the large quantities of food. The servant had replied that some priests were dining there, and the abbot approved the excuse.
Marcos asked permission in his own house, and the others left the bedchamber posing as king and courtier. Veríssimo called him Dom Prior; Marcos knelt, but was ordered to stop the ceremonies. The abbot said that Captain-Major Cristóvão Bezerra, now called Baron of Bouro, had written to him. Nunes confirmed that Cristóvão Bezerra was a perfect gentleman.
The letter announced a messenger carrying another letter from Vasco Cerveira Lobo. The letter said that Cerveira had been the king's friend and could help through his name and wealth. Veríssimo pretended to remember the friend, and Nunes supplied details about an old military imprisonment. Veríssimo ordered a reply saying that he eagerly awaited Cerveira's letter. In private, he admitted to Nunes that he feared a visit and questions about the past. Nunes coached him to receive Cerveira as an old friend without going into detail. He said that Cerveira was always drunk, might not even come and, above all, had a great deal of money. The abbot brought the brief reply, and Veríssimo said that he would receive the letter that night, with precautions.
Senhorinha announced Caneta from Braga with a letter, and Veríssimo and Nunes hid, pretending to be afraid. The letter came from the Abbot of Priscos, whom they called Bishop-elect of Coimbra. He was sending one hundred gold pieces offered by the Botelhas women of Braga. According to the letter, they gave the money on their knees and placed all their property at the king's service. Caneta delivered two rolls tied with red ribbons and asked for a receipt. While the abbot went to write, Nunes felt one roll and realised that it was gold. He rejoiced because the money was beginning to arrive. Veríssimo opened his eyes wide and stuck out his tongue with greed. At that moment, the narrator says, he looked nothing like a king.