<P> The action begins when John makes a day trip to a nearby town . While he is gone, Nicholas convinces Alisoun to have sex with him, and their affair begins . Shortly afterward, Alisoun goes to church, where Absolon sees her and immediately falls in love . He tries to woo Alisoun by singing love songs under her window during the full moon and seeks her attention by taking a part in a local play . Alisoun rebuffs all his efforts, however, because she is already involved with Nicholas . </P> <P> Nicholas, meanwhile, longs to spend a whole night in Alisoun's arms rather than just the few moments they get together during John's absences . With Alisoun, he hatches a scheme that will enable him to do this . He convinces John that God is about to send a great flood like the one he sent in Noah's time . He says that God told him they could save themselves by hanging three large tubs from the ceiling to sleep in . Once the waters rose, they would cut the ropes and float away . John believes him and duly climbs into his tub . He thinks Nicholas and Alisoun are doing the same, but in fact, they are spending the night together in John's bed . </P> <P> That same night, Absolon comes and begs Alisoun to kiss him . At first she refuses him, but she finally agrees . Instead of presenting her lips to Absolon's, though, she sticks her backside out the bedroom's "shot - window" (privy vent), and Absolon kisses her "ers" in the dark . Angry at being fooled, Absolon gets a red - hot coulter from the smith with which he intends to burn Alisoun . When he returns, though, Nicholas sticks his backside out to get in on the joke and farts in Absolon's face . Absolon thrusts the coulter "amidst the ers" of Nicholas who cries out for "Water!" to assuage the pain . </P> <P> The screams wake John, who thinks the flood is upon them and cuts the rope attaching him to the ceiling . He crashes to the floor, and the townspeople, hearing the noise, rush to the scene . Upon hearing Nicholas' and Alisoun's version of events, they laugh at poor John and consider him mad . </P>

Who is branded by a red-hot poker in the miller's tale