Somehow it happened that Generous and Greedy lived together. They decided to go seek their fortune. They put the khurjins on their shoulders and set off. They walked cheerfully, told fables and fairy tales, and the road seemed shorter to them. At the halt, Generous took food out of the khurjin, and Greedy said that he would leave his own in reserve. Somehow it happened that Generous and Greedy lived together. They decided to go seek their fortune. They put the khurjins on their shoulders and set off. They walked cheerfully, told fables and fairy tales, and the road seemed shorter to them. At the halt, Generous took food out of the khurjin, and Greedy said that he would leave his own in reserve. The generous man, of course, treated his friend, and so it happened every time. When the Generous One ran out of food, the Greedy One left him to his fate and, without saying a word, walked on. Generous, despondent, turned onto the path. Soon it got dark, and it was time to take care of the night. Generous saw an abandoned mill, lay down in a grain trough and fell asleep. A strange noise woke him up. Waking up, he saw that a fire was burning nearby, and a fox, a wolf and a bear were sitting around it. Generous was very frightened and lay motionless. “Tell me something,” the wolf and the bear asked the fox. “I’ll tell you about something that is useless for us, but useful for humans,” said the fox. “Near the mill ditch there are two large stones, under them there is a hole, and in the hole lives a mouse.” At sunrise, she takes gold out of the hole, and in the evening she takes it back. “And now it’s your turn,” the fox turned to the wolf. “There are sheep grazing on that high mountain,” said the wolf. “One of them, the lousiest one, gives as much wool as the whole flock does not.” That's what a person should know! “And I know that there is a treasure buried under the walnut tree at the city gate,” said the bear. At dawn the animals left, and the Generous One took for himself all the treasures that the animals spoke about and bought the worst sheep from the shepherds. The Generous One returned home and lived in abundance. And then Greedy returned. He was very exhausted and dressed in rags. At home he was told about the good fortune of his traveling companion. On the second day, Greedy went to Generous and began to complain about his fate: “I traveled through many countries, and everywhere I suffered grief and suffering.” How did your luck come to you, my brother? The generous one told him everything and shared his treasures with him. But it seemed to Greedy that he had been deprived, and he decided to go to the same place himself and eavesdrop on the conversation of the animals. Suddenly they will tell you about new treasures! Having found the mill, he climbed into the grain trough and waited. At midnight the animals came, lit a fire and began to warm themselves. They looked very unhappy. - Why are you sad, fox? - asked the wolf and the bear. “How merry can I be when someone found out my secret and stole the gold,” answered the fox. “And someone took our treasures,” complained the wolf and the bear. “They must have overheard us!” Let's check if anyone is here. The animals began to search the mill. They found Greedy in the grain trough and tore him to pieces.
Translated from Russian · original on wisdomlib.ru