The Ballad of the Conniving Count

In days of old when knights were bold
Lived a king who possessed a vast hoard of gold.

Now the gold he owned, such an immense amount
Was coveted by his most trusted count.

So it came to pass one fateful day,
The count contrived, the king to slay.

This evil plot was soon made known,
So the king had the count brought before the throne.

"Who else is involved?" demanded the king.
But the count refused to divulge a thing.

"Then I'll execute you!" threatened the king.
But again the count revealed not a thing.

So up to the scaffold the count was led,
Bound and blindfolded and soon to be dead.

The count's last words were, as the axe fell,
"Don't chop off my head! I'll tell! I'll tell!"

The lesson, you see, is, when the plot thickens,
Don't hatchet your count before he chickens.