A long time ago, there lived in a village a fox named Yamada. She really loved to play mischief and play pranks. So people had to cajole her: either on the way from the city of sweets they would leave a bag on the side of the road, or after a wedding or funeral they would bring treats. “This is Yamada’s fox’s amusement,” they said in the village.
There lived in that village an old man who was honest and flexible. The only problem is that I couldn’t see at all with my left eye. It often happened to him to go to the city market. It used to be that the old man would sell vegetables and all sorts of things that he had collected in the mountains there, and buy his old woman fresh fish to eat. His old woman really loved fish. One day, on market day, an old man was walking along the road, hurrying to the city. And that road was old, narrow, overgrown with grass - few people walked along it. An old man walks and sees a fox sleeping on the side of the road in the grass. “Here we go!” — the old man was surprised. “This is the first time I’ve seen a fox sleeping on the road in broad daylight.” That’s right, it’s a werewolf!” The old man picked up a large lump of earth and swung it at the fox.
- Well, get away from here! - he shouted.
The fox woke up and got scared. She stared angrily at the old man. But the old man is not afraid at all.
- Well, shoo, shoo! - he shouted and laughed.
“Okay, okay,” the fox hissed, “you’ll still come back.” Then we’ll compete!
The fox snorted, hit her tail and ran into the mountains. “Let the old man go to the market,” he thinks, “and in the meantime I’ll go to the old woman and fool him a little.”
The fox stopped, turned around and instantly turned into an old man. If you look, you won’t be able to tell the difference. Well, just like the old man! Only bad luck: she looked the old man eye to eye on the road, but she didn’t realize that the old man was blind in his left eye. She herself went blind on the right side.
The fox went to the village, found the old man’s house and shouted:
- Hey, old woman, I'm back from the market!
“You’re kind of early today,” the old woman was surprised. “Maybe something happened?”
She came out to meet the old man and saw that his right eye was blind. “How can this be?” the old woman thought thoughtfully. “When I left in the morning, I couldn’t see with my left eye, but now I can’t see with my right.” Maybe this is not my old man at all. Maybe the fox Yamada is fooling me.” The old woman guessed, but didn’t show it.
“Well, tell me what happened,” he says. “Did you buy fish?”
“Why, I bought it,” the fox answers her. And she holds out the knapsack with the fish that she grabbed at the door.
- What a fish! - the old woman began to praise. - Fresh! Fat! You just look tired after the market. You shouldn't have gone into town today.
“I know myself that I shouldn’t have gone!” - the fox answers.
- And if so, then I must say: “I’m tired, old woman, I want to sleep!” “I know what I have to say,” the fox answers again.
- If you know, add: “At home, old woman, it’s not hot at all, when I fall asleep, my feet will freeze.” Bring me a straw bag and wrap my legs!” “I myself know that you need to warm your feet!” - the fox got angry. - Carry the bag, old one!
The old woman ran and brought a bag, and in the bag there was hay.
“Hey, old man,” he says, “you should climb into the bag up to your waist, the hay will warm you.”
- I know it myself! - the fox tells her. “I always like to warm my feet in a bag of hay.”
The old woman helped the fox get into the bag and began to teach again:
- Listen, old man, now you have to tell me: “Tie my legs with a straw rope, old woman, otherwise the wind will blow through!” - I know it myself! - the fox answers her. “I don’t want the wind to blow around me.”
The old woman grabbed a straw rope and tied the old man’s legs from top to bottom.
“Sleep,” he says, “old man, rest!”
But the fox really warmed up and was drawn to sleep. Just then the real old man returned. The one who was blind in his left eye.
“Hey, old woman,” he shouts, “I came from the market!”
- What miracles are happening today! — the old woman clasped her hands. “They both look the same!” Only this one’s right eye can’t see, and this one’s left one can’t see!
-What are you talking about? - the old man was surprised.
The old woman took him by the hand and led him into the house. He entered and saw a fox sleeping in the room, tied up with ropes. The old man recognized her and said:
- What a shameless fox! She decided to take revenge on me for scaring her off today.
The fox heard voices and woke up. I realized that in a dream I had taken on my fox form again. She wanted to jump up, but she couldn’t - the ropes were holding her tightly. She rushed to the right, rushed to the left - but wherever! Then the fox prayed:
- Let me go, old man, let me go, old woman! I will never fool you again!
“Okay,” the old man took pity on the fox. “Go away, and think next time before you compete with people.”
They untied the fox and let him go. Since then, no one in the village has seen the Yamada fox. She left those places. And with her, troubles and misfortunes went away.
Translated from Russian · original on wisdomlib.ru