Once upon a time in Bukhara, a carpenter was famous for his skill. He had a beautiful wife. They loved each other very much and never parted.
The Bukhara padishah decided to build himself a new palace. He called the best carpenters and adobe workers. The carpenter was also ordered to go to work.
When the carpenter went to work in the city, his wife gave him a bouquet of flowers. He stuck it under his turban. Watching the work of the craftsmen, the padishah noticed flowers in the carpenter’s turban.
“These flowers were given to the carpenter by his beautiful wife,” the wazir said to the padishah.
The padishah wanted to know what kind of wife the carpenter had. He ordered the Wazir to go to the carpenter's home and bring his wife to him.
Having found the carpenter's house, the wazir saw his wife and said to her: “Greetings to you from your husband!” He sent me for you.
- What did he send me as a gift? - the woman asked.
The Wazir left and returned with expensive gifts. There was nothing among them that a carpenter could give to his wife.
The woman led the wazir into the room, removed the gifts and revealed her face to the guest. The Wazir was delighted with her beauty.
“I’m ready to go with you to my husband,” said the carpenter’s wife, “we’ll leave tomorrow morning.” And now it’s evening—you’ll have to spend the night in our house.
The Wazir happily agreed.
Suddenly a knock was heard at the gate.
- Who is this? - asked the Wazir.
- Oh, woe! This is my older brother. If he doesn't have you here, he will kill both you and me!
“What should I do?” asked the Wazir.
- I'll hide you in the barn. I'll send my brother out, then I'll call you.
The Wazir hid in the cowshed. The carpenter's wife quickly slammed the door behind him and locked the barn. She greeted her brother cheerfully and began to treat him to tea. Wazir sat in the cowshed all night.
In the morning he saw through a crack that a woman was sweeping the yard.
“Hey, let me out of here quickly!” the wazir shouted. “After all, I have to take you to Bukhara.”
The woman said:
— My cotton is not all cleaned yet. If you clear it for me, I will go to town with you.
There is nothing to be done, the wazir agreed to clean the cotton. From morning to evening he cleaned cotton bolls.
“Apparently, the carpenter’s wife is very beautiful, and my wazir is sorry to part with her,” the padishah thought and sent another wazir to her.
Like the first wazir, this one also brought expensive gifts to the carpenter’s wife. Not finding a sign from her husband in them, the woman frightened this guest with her brother and locked her in the barn. In the darkness he came across a man and recognized the first wazir by his voice. The first wazir told the second that the carpenter's wife promised to go with him to the city when he cleaned all her cotton.
In the morning, both wazirs began to diligently clean the cotton.
“Now dishevel him,” the woman told them, “then I will go with you to the city.”
Sitting in the cowshed, one wazir opened the bolls of unripe cotton, the other ruffled it.
Receiving no news from his vasirs, the padishah was burning with curiosity. Finally, he decided to go himself to see the beauty, with whom his vasirs could not part with.
When the carpenter’s wife saw that the padishah himself was coming to see her, she dressed up and preened herself. Looking at the hostess, the padishah was struck by her beauty.
- Did my vasirs come to you? he asked.
- Well, they spent the night with me, and now they went to the market.
Then there was a knock on the gate again. The frightened padishah also ran to hide in the cowshed.
The woman locked the barn door. In the darkness the padishah came across the wazirs.
- Hey, you blind man, you crushed my head! - shouted one of the wazirs, pushing the padishah. The padishah recognized the wazir by his voice. He immediately realized that he had fallen into the hands of a cunning beauty, just like his vasirs.
The padishah began knocking on the door and shouted:
- How dare you joke with the padishah like that? Aren't you afraid that I can do whatever I want to you?
“I’m so afraid of you that I can’t bring myself to let you out of here.” “We’ll wait until my husband returns,” the woman answered.
Then the padishah swore that he would not harm her and her husband and would immediately let her husband go home if she freed him and the vasirs.
The carpenter's wife released them, and they, hiding from the people, went home. On the same day, the padishah sent the carpenter home.
Translated from Russian · original on wisdomlib.ru