At last the emperor went to see the cloth himself. Many ministers went with him. The two strangers showed the empty looms. They pointed at the air. They smiled and spoke about the beautiful work. The emperor looked. He saw nothing at all. His heart was cold with fear. «Am I stupid? Am I a bad emperor?» he thought. But he could not say the truth. So he smiled and said, «It is wonderful! It is the best cloth in the world!» All the ministers said the same. They were all afraid. The two men asked for more gold. They asked for more silk. They worked all night by the candles. They cut the air with big scissors. They sewed with empty needles. In the morning they said, «The clothes are ready!» The emperor came into the room. The men helped him. They took off his old clothes. They put the new clothes on him. But there were no clothes at all. The emperor stood naked. But he did not say this. He looked in the mirror. He turned this way and that way. «Yes, they fit me well», he said. Outside there was a big parade. All the people stood in the streets. The emperor walked under a fine roof of cloth. Two men held his long train behind him. But there was no train. They held only the empty air. All the people said, «Oh, how beautiful! What lovely colours!» Nobody wanted to look stupid. Then a small child saw the emperor. The child said in a clear voice, «But he has no clothes on!» The father tried to stop the child. But the people heard. They began to talk. Soon they all said, «The child is right! He has no clothes on!» The emperor heard this too. He knew it was true. But he kept walking. The two ministers walked behind him. They still held the empty air.