His lord wel koude he plesen subtilly,
To yeve and lene hym of his owene good,
And have a thank, and yet a cote and hood.
– Geoffrey Chaucer
The Canterbury Tales, General Prologue. The Reeve is the manager of an estate and is stealing in a particularly sly and underhand way. He gives and lends his landowner some of the Lord’s own possessions. As a result he is rewarded by his employer. A case of the Lord’s serf outsmarting his upper class boss. The Reeve’s stealing has made him a very rich man.