Once upon a time there was a poor guy in the world, and a little stupid at that. More than once he went to bed on an empty stomach because he could not even earn enough for a piece of bread. If it were not for the help of his neighbors, who remembered his late parents with kindness, he would have died of hunger. Either they will send him to the forest for firewood, or water? They are told to apply, then they will be asked to dig up a garden or help during the harvest. He took on the most menial jobs because he was good for nothing else. Time passed. Already? fuzz began to appear on the boy’s upper lip. The time has come for him to learn some craft, as all reasonable people do. But the guy had a hard time learning, so he didn’t learn anything.
We met one day in the middle of the road, Mind and Happiness.
- Hello, brother! What a pleasant meeting! - said Happiness. - We haven't seen each other for a long time. How are you, what are you doing?’
“Yes, I walk around the world, teaching people wisdom,” answered Um. “I was passing by a village just now and met one poor fellow there, about whom both you and I had completely forgotten. And he was so unhappy and stupid that I felt sorry for him.
- What you say is true, brother! - said Happiness. - Let's help him get back on his feet.
“Okay,” agreed Um, “let’s help, otherwise it’s really a shame that we completely forgot about him.”
No sooner said than done. Mind and Happiness went to the village where the boy lived and clung to the hole in the rickety fence. Meanwhile, the boy came out of his poor shack. He took the donkey and went into the forest to get firewood. Then the Mind whispered in his ear to cut down a large beech tree, and not, as before, collect crooked branches and brushwood, which cost only fifty pennies in the market. The boy began to walk from tree to tree until he fell in love with an old dry beech tree. He rolled up his sleeves and began to chop. The tree fell, and gold coins, which Happiness had placed there, fell out of the hollow. The boy had never seen so much gold and did not know its value, but the Mind advised him to hide it in a bag.
The boy loaded so much wood onto the donkey that the poor thing’s legs gave way. How is the boy already? wasn’t as stupid as before, so this time he decided to go to the nearest town and sell the firewood at a higher price, and find out what his yellow circles were worth. A guy came to the city and made a good profit, because the firewood was dry, without knots. He went to the goldsmith and showed him one gold piece. Did your eyes flash greedily at the sight of the coin? master, he put the gold in the box, and threw only a few pennies to the boy. But he guessed that the goldsmith wanted to deceive him, and said:
— I don't sell my coin. It was left to me as a keepsake from my late mother. I just wanted to know how much it costs.
The master began to persuade him to sell the coin. He, they say, will make a gold ring out of it for his daughter. He poured out two handfuls of pennies to the boy, if only he would sell him a gold coin.
Seeing so much money, the boy thought:
“It’s probably a gold coin and is very expensive. I won't allow myself to be fooled. It is a shame for the one who lies, but even more shame for the one who allows himself to be deceived. I'll ask another master. Since this one gives so much, the other one can give even more.”
He took his coin back and went around the bazaar to ask questions. I went to one goldsmith, to a second, to a third - each wanted to buy a coin and gave more for it than the other. In the end, the boy sold the coin to a money changer for a lot of money, bought himself a good caftan, a few other little things and returned home.
After some time, the guy put a bag of gold on his back and went to sell them from city to city. If in one place they gave him, say, a thousand groschen for one gold piece, then in another - two thousand, and in a third - three thousand groschen. So the boy collected a lot of money, and there was still a lot of gold left in his bag. He bought himself a good horse, beautiful clothes and went to the royal city. There he sold all the gold pieces for a good price and became a very rich man.
And Mind and Happiness, like shadows, followed him and helped him in everything. His mind advised him to become a merchant and hire a shop on the busiest street. The boy did just that. He hired a shop, filled it with all sorts of goods and started trading.
Whoever entered his shop, everyone was amazed at the sight of the beautiful decoration and rare goods, and most of all they liked the boy himself, reasonable and friendly. Soon the whole city was talking about him, his shop was never empty, because Um taught the young merchant: “Sell cheaper, there will be no end to buyers. And you will receive more revenue, and you will gain good fame and respect.”
Even the royal servants began to buy everything they needed for their sovereign in the boy’s shop. The king heard that his merchant was very rich and helpful. And at this time he needed money to pay his army. So the king sent his treasurer to him with a request to lend him money. The boy willingly gave the treasurer as much money as he asked. This happened many times. A year passed, and the boy did not even mention the debt. The king marveled at the wealth of the merchant, who did not demand money back for a whole year, while others asked every month to return the debt to them, and even with high interest.
One day the king invited all the prominent people of the capital to visit. He also invited a rich merchant. The young man dressed himself in expensive clothes made of velvet and brocade. He went to the palace and sat down at the table with other noble guests, like some important gentleman. This importance did not spoil him, because he was smart, dignified, and had a face like the clear sun.
The guests began to eat and drink, and after a while the queen appeared with her daughter to greet the invited guests. When the princess saw the young man, she fell in love with him. And when they retired to their chambers, the girl admitted to her mother that she would like a young merchant to be her husband.
“Oh, dear daughter, don’t think about it,” the queen answered her. “Your father decided to marry you off to the prince so that you could live happily and reign.” And this fellow may be rich, but of simple birth. He's not a match for you.
The princess burst into tears:
- Believe me, dear mother, I fell in love with him, I want to marry him. And if you don’t agree, then I’ll throw myself from the tower or hang myself, and you’ll be to blame for everything,
Having said this, the princess locked herself in her room and burst into tears.
The queen thought. As soon as the guests left, she told her husband what their daughter was up to.
They both went to the princess and began to persuade her through the door so that she would throw this thought out of her head? And the princess sobs and repeats her:
- Either he or I will die.
The king was touched by his daughter’s tears and he said to his wife:
“Well, dear queen, if this is the case, we’ll marry her to this merchant, as long as the princess is alive, healthy and cheerful.” It’s okay that he’s not of royal descent.
- Since you agree, great king, have it your way. Come here, daughter, kiss your father’s hand.
The princess immediately jumped up, became cheerful, opened the door, bowed to her father and mother, and kissed their hands, as was customary.
They immediately ordered to call the young merchant. The fellow came, found out what was the matter, bowed and said:
- Dear King, Dear Queen, thank you for the great honor. But have you thought everything through well, won’t you repent later? After all, I am not of noble birth.
“It’s okay that you’re from a simple family, now you’ll be from a royal family, because happiness has befallen you.” “Now put on this gold ring and live with my daughter in peace and love,” said the king.
The young merchant was delighted, bowed at the waist to the king and queen and put on the wedding ring.
The princess's dowry already? It was ready a long time ago and, without delaying it for long, a week later they celebrated the royal wedding. They invited important guests from all over the world to the palace;
they called the musicians and set the long tables.
On the wedding day, Mind and Happiness met in front of the palace.
“Where have you disappeared, brother,” shouted Happiness, “look where our fellow has flown!” Today he will become the king's son-in-law. Do you see how I took care of him? It’s not for nothing that old people say: “Give me birth, mother, happy, and don’t think about me!”
“How can I tell you, brother,” answered Um, “if not for my advice, he would not have soared so high.”
- So, in your opinion, he owes you everything? - Happiness got angry. - After all, the tsar himself said that he was giving him his daughter because he was lucky, and not because he was smart.
They began to argue and quarreled.
“If so,” I give it to you. You'll see how he'll ruin everything!
Having said this, Um left the guy at the moment when the young people came to their bedchamber.
The guy, who was still so smart and reasonable, became again the same idiot he was before. When they were left alone with the princess, for no apparent reason he swung his hand, and bam! - slapped her in the face. The stunned bride wanted to ask him why he hit her, but before she had time to open her mouth, the guy again - bam! bam! The king's daughter began to cry. After all, no one had laid a finger on her until now, and this made her even more offended. She ran to complain to her father and mother.
The king immediately sent for the groom. He began to question him, and he spouted such nonsense,
that it immediately became clear to the king that his son-in-law was out of his mind.
“Dear queen,” said the angry king. - Do you see what happened to the rich merchant? Just as he became the king’s son-in-law, he lost his head.
“He probably got dizzy with joy,” the queen sighed. “Maybe he’ll get some sleep and become wiser again tomorrow.”
“Maybe he’ll grow wiser if his luck doesn’t change him.” And if he doesn’t wise up, then tomorrow I’ll give him a hundred blows and drive him out of the palace.
I saw Happiness, what's going on? they were becoming bad, his heart felt heavy: he had worked so hard, all in vain. Happiness was convinced that it itself, without the help of the Mind, could not do anything, and went to look for its brother-in-law. It walked and walked, and finally found him.
“Have mercy, brother,” Happiness begged, “help the guy too,” he disgraced himself. I admit that I was wrong and promise from this moment on never to part with you again.
And Uma already? I'm tired of being angry. He turned and walked towards the guy. And he immediately became smart again.
The groom appeared before the royal throne, bowed low, and the king asked him why he hit the princess three times. But well done already? knew what to answer.
- Great king! When my father was dying, he gave me this order: “I am dying, son, and you are left alone in the world. When you get married, your wife's parents will become your father and mother. You must respect and love them like your own family. And I also punish you: on the first evening after the wedding, hit your bride three times. The first time - so that she would remember her wedding for the rest of her life; the second - so that she respects her parents, and the third - so that she respects and loves you.” That's why I hit my wife, not because I was angry with her.
Hearing these wise words, the king breathed a sigh of relief and praised his son-in-law in front of the entire court for his intelligence and kind heart. The king and queen accepted the young merchant as their own son. And the young people lived in the palace cheerfully and happily and live there, probably, to this day.
Translated from Russian · original on wisdomlib.ru