The Jackal always considered himself the most cunning among Leo's associates. Perhaps only the fox, his cousin, was not inferior to him. The fox was the most cautious of all, and no one managed to fool him around their finger. The jackal was secretly jealous of his cousin and decided to get even with him first.
One day Leo fell slightly ill, apparently, he caught a cold. He was fed an omelette with garlic, but he did not feel any relief from this food. Then the ruler gathered his courtiers to ask them for advice on how to quickly get rid of the disease. The animals vying with each other gave advice. But Leo was not satisfied with any of this advice.
“There is no better cure for a cold,” the cunning Fox finally said, “than the blood of the Jackal.”
The lion glanced at the Jackal, but he didn’t even move his ear.
“This is indeed so, O king of beasts,” said the Jackal after some reflection. “But it is necessary that my blood be mixed with the brain of the Fox.”
With a blow of his paw, the Lion crushed the Fox's head, and the Jackal inflicted a small wound on himself, from which a few drops of blood came out, and prepared medicine for the king of beasts.
“And what’s left of the Fox, you, Jackal, go and bury it in the ground,” said the Lion.
The jackal took the remains of the Fox to the ravine, ate the meat, and buried the skin and bones. Joyful, he thought: “From now on and forever I am free from the law of the Great Council!”
Translated from Russian · original on wisdomlib.ru