People have told stories about Robin Hood for over 700 years. Nobody knows if he was a real person or an invented character. In the legends, Robin was extremely smart and humorous, he helped strangers, and later his kindness paid off.
The Merry Adventures of Robin Hood was just a young man, who was good at archery (射箭术). One day he was walking through Sherwood Forest, a royal hunting forest near Nottingham in England. There he got into trouble with a group of men. Among them, he killed the cousin of the Sheriff (郡长) of Nottingham. Robin became a legendaryoutlaw, and soon the leader of one hundred outlaws, known as his "Merry Men".
Robin and his "Merry Men" always looked for rich people and asked them to their camp in Sherwood Forest. When they arrived, Robin gave them a good meal and played music for them. Then he took their gold away to help the poor. Robin became most famous for "robbing from the rich and giving to the poor."
The Sheriff of Nottingham was Robin's greatest enemy. He was cruel and treated the poor badly. It was his job to keep the woods safe and to make sure that nobody stole the king's deer. He hated Robin because Robin was an outlaw. But most of all, he hated Robin because everyone else loved him. The Sheriff of Nottingham kept trying to catch Robin Hood and his "Merry Men", but never succeeded.
