In a long, distant time, a strong stream of rain carried the delicate Beida flower into a rice field. So he stayed there. In dry summers, when the soil cracked due to lack of moisture, the flower had a particularly hard time.
“How can I remain beautiful, blooming and fragrant on such dry land,” Beyda thought bitterly. And the flower really wanted to return to its native places, where before it happened to smell fragrant among the blue waters and lush algae.
Beida thought for a long time about how to make his dream come true, and finally came up with an idea. Having built a sailboat from leaves, he got into it and sailed to the river backwater.
So far everything was favorable for the flower: a fair wind was blowing and the boat was dashing along the shore. On his way he met a needle.
- Dear flower Beida! Where are you going? - asked the needle.
“I want to return to places where the water is clean and the grass is green.”
“Let me come with you,” the needle asked. The flower agreed, and they swam further together. On the way they met a chicken.
- Beyda and needle, where are you going? - the chicken asked them.
“We are sailing to where the water is clean and the grass is green,” answered the flower.
“Take me with you,” the chicken asked. And there were three of them in the boat.
They swam and swam, and a creeper came towards them.
-Where is the current taking you? he asked.
“We want to get to where the water is clean and the grass is green,” answered the Beida flower.
“Take me with you,” asked the creeper. And there were four of them in the boat.
They swam and swam, and a pestle came towards them.
– Where are you in such a hurry? he asked.
“We are hurrying to where the water is clean and the grass is green,” Beyda answered.
- Can I come with you? - asked the pestle.
And the friends set off again. They swam for a long time along a quiet river and came to the witch's house, which stood on a high bank. The sorceress, pretending to be kind, invited her friends to her place. She found a job for each of them: the pestle was supposed to thresh rice, the needle was supposed to sew up old torn clothes, Beyda, a beautiful light flower, was supposed to serve as a decoration for the house, the little creeper was supposed to grow up a little, and the chicken was supposed to be eaten.
“It seems to me that this woman is a witch,” said Beida, who sensed evil. – We have to be very careful. I am especially concerned about the fate of the chicken and the night crawler. If the witch is up to some kind of meanness, we will never get to where the water is clean and the grass is green.
And Beida began to explain to everyone what they should do to protect the evil old woman.
“You,” Beida turned to the needle, “must climb into the witch’s bed and prick her while she sleeps.” The chicken will hide in the oven and, as soon as the witch sets out to cook food, she will sprinkle it with ash. It would be good for the crawler to climb into the tank and, when the witch begins to draw water, spank it with all his might with his tail. Well, the pestle and I will remain in the boat, and when the witch goes down to the water, the pestle will kill her.
As soon as the witch went to bed for the night, she immediately jumped out of bed.
– Somehow the bugs are biting a lot today! She tried in vain to fall asleep - the needle gave her no rest.
Early in the morning, when it began to get light, the sorceress went to prepare food.
As soon as she approached the stove, the chicken flapped its wings and covered the witch from head to toe with ash. The witch rushed to the water tank to wash her eyes, and the creeper hit her in the face with its tail.
– What is happening to me? – the witch was perplexed.
Leaving the house, she headed towards the boat, but, afraid to crush the flower, she stumbled and fell. At that very moment a pestle jumped out of the boat and beat it to death.
Having got rid of danger, the friends continued on their way to where the water is clean and the grass is green.
Translated from Russian · original on wisdomlib.ru