Kuzma lived alone in a dark forest. He didn’t have anything to take off or put on, and he didn’t even bother to lay it down.
So he set a trap. In the morning I went to look - the fox got caught. -? Well, now I’ll sell the fox, I’ll take the money, and that’s why I’ll get married. The fox says to him: -? Kuzma, let me go, I’ll do great good for you, I’ll make you Kuzma the Soon-Rich, just fry me one chicken with butter - fatter.
Kuzma agreed. I fried the chicken. The fox ate the meat, ran into the royal reserved meadows and began to roll around in those reserved meadows. -? Oooh! I was visiting the king, I drank and ate what I wanted, they called me tomorrow, I’ll go again.
A wolf runs and asks: —? Why, godfather, are you rolling around and barking? —? How can I not roll around and bark! I was visiting the king, I drank and ate what I wanted, they called me tomorrow, I’ll go again.
The wolf asks: —? Lisanka, won’t you take me to the king for dinner? —? The king will start to worry about you alone. Get ready, forty wolves, then I will take you to visit the king.
The wolf began to run through the forest, collecting wolves. He gathered forty wolves, led them to the fox, and the fox led them to the king. They came to the king, the fox ran ahead and said: -? Tsar, the good man Kuzma Skororich the Great bows to you with forty wolves. The king was delighted, ordered all the wolves to be driven into the fence, locked tightly, and he himself thinks: “Rich man Kuzma!”
And the fox ran to Kuzma. She ordered another chicken to be fried with butter - fattier, had a hearty lunch and set off for the royal reserved meadows.
Rolling and lying around in the protected meadows. A bear runs past, sees a fox and says: -? Oh, the damned tail-tail, how it's cracked! And the fox said to him: -? Oooh! I was visiting the king, what I wanted - I drank and ate, they called me tomorrow, I’ll go again. The bear began to ask: -? Fox, will you take me to the king for dinner? -? For one thing, the king won’t even want to worry about you. Collect forty black bears and I will take you to visit the king.
The bear ran to the oak forest, collected forty black bears, led them to the fox, and the fox led them to the king. She herself ran forward and said: “Tsar, good man Kuzma Skorobogaty bows to you with forty bears.” The Tsar was very happy about this, ordered the bears to be driven in and locked up tightly. He himself thinks: “What a rich man Kuzma is!”
And the fox again ran to Kuzma. And she ordered to fry the chicken with a rooster, with fatter butter. I ate for my health - and let's go for a ride in the royal protected forests. A sable with a marten runs past: -? Eh, sly fox, where did you eat so fatly? -? Oooh! I was visiting the king, I drank and ate what I wanted, they called me tomorrow, I’ll go again.
The sable and the marten began to beg the fox: “Gossip, take us to the king.” At least we'll see how they feast. The fox says to them: -? Collect forty forty sables and martens - I will take you to the king. Sable and marten rounded up forty forty sables and martens. The fox led them to the king, and ran ahead herself: “Tsar, good man Kuzma Skorobogaty bows to you with forty forty sables and martens. The Tsar cannot be amazed at the wealth of Kuzma Skorobogaty. He ordered these animals to be driven in and locked up tightly. “Here,” he thinks, “the trouble is, what a rich man Kuzma is!”
The next day, the fox again runs to the king: -? Tsar, good man Kuzma Skorobogaty ordered you to bow and asks for a bucket with hoops - to measure silver money. His buckets are full of gold. The king, without refusing, gave the fox a bucket with hoops. The fox ran to Kuzma and ordered him to measure the sand in buckets in order to lighten the side of the bucket.
As the barrel near the bucket became bright, the fox tucked some small money into the hoop and took it back to the king. She brought it and began to woo his beautiful princess to Kuzma Skorobogaty.
The Tsar sees that Kuzma has a lot of money: they were falling for the hoop, he didn’t even notice. The Tsar does not refuse, he orders Kuzma to get ready and come.
Kuzma went to the Tsar. And the fox ran ahead and persuaded the workers to cut down the bridge. Kuzma had just driven onto the bridge - he and he fell into the water. The fox began to shout: -? Ahti! Kuzma Skorobogaty has disappeared!
The king heard and immediately sent people to intercept Kuzma. So they intercepted him, and the fox shouted: -? Ahti! We need to give Kuzma some clothes - some better ones. The Tsar gave Kuzma his holiday clothes.
Kuzma arrived to the Tsar. And the tsar has no beer to brew, no wine to smoke - everything is ready. Kuzma got married to the princess and lives with the tsar for a week, then lives for another. “Well,” says the tsar, “let’s go now, dear son-in-law, to visit you.”
Kuzma has nothing to do, he needs to get ready. We harnessed the horses and drove off. And the fox went forward. She sees shepherds guarding a flock of sheep, she asks them: -? Shepherds, shepherds! Whose flock are you shepherding?—?Snake Gorynych.—?Say that this is the flock of Kuzma Skorobogatiy, otherwise Tsar Fire and Queen Molonitsa are coming: if you don’t tell them that this is the flock of Kuzma Skorobogatiy, they will burn you and your sheep together!
The shepherds see that the matter is inevitable, and they promised to tell about Kuzma Skorobogaty, as the fox taught. And the fox set off forward. He sees other shepherds guarding the cows.—?Shepherds, shepherds! Whose herd are you grazing?—?Snake Gorynych.—?Say that this is Kuzma Skorobogaty’s herd, otherwise Tsar Fire and Queen Molonitsa are coming: they will burn and burn you all with your cows if you remember the Serpent Gorynych!
The shepherds agreed. The fox ran forward again. He runs up to the horse herd of the Snake Gorynych, tells the shepherds to say that this is the herd of Kuzma Skorobogaty. -? Otherwise, Tsar Ogon and Queen Molonitsa are coming: they will burn and burn you all with your horses! And these shepherds agreed.
The fox runs forward. He runs to Zmey Gorynych directly into the white stone chambers: -? Hello, Zmey Gorynych! -? What do you say, little fox? -? Well, Zmey Gorynych, now you need to quickly hide. The formidable Tsar Ogon and Tsarina Molonitsa are riding, everyone is burning and scorching. Your flocks and their shepherds were burned and burned. I didn’t hesitate - I started to tell you that I almost suffocated from the smoke. The snake Gorynych began to spin: -? Oh, little fox, where can I go? -? There is an old reserved oak tree in your garden, the middle is all rotten; run, hide in the hollow until King Fire and Queen Molonitsa pass by. The serpent Gorynych hid in fear in this hollow, as the fox taught.
Kuzma Skorobogaty goes for himself and goes with the king and with his princess wife. They reach a sheep herd. The princess asks:—?Shepherds, whose flock are you tending?—?Kuzma Skorobogatogo. The Tsar is happy about this:—?Well, dear son-in-law, you have a lot of sheep!
They drive further, reaching a herd of cows.—?Shepherds, whose herd are you grazing?—?Kuzma Skorobogatogo.—?Well, dear son-in-law, you have a lot of cows!
They travel further; shepherds graze horses.—?Whose herd?—?Kuzma Skorobogatogo.—?Well, dear son-in-law, you have a lot of horses! Now we’ve arrived at the palace of the Serpent Gorynych.
The fox greets the guests, bows low, leads them into the white-stone chambers, seats them at oak tables and stained tablecloths... They began to feast, drink, eat and have fun. They feast for a day, feast another, they feast for a week. The fox says to Kuzma: “Well, Kuzma!” Stop walking - we need to fix things. Go with the king to the green garden; in that garden there is an old oak tree, and in that oak tree sits the Serpent Gorynych, he hid from you. Shoot the oak into small pieces. Kuzma went with the king to the green garden. They saw an old reserved oak tree, and they began to shoot at that oak tree. Then death came to the Serpent Gorynych.
Kuzma Skorobogaty began to live with his princess wife in white-stone chambers and treated the little fox to chicken every day.
Translated from Russian · original on wisdomlib.ru