A mower was mowing the meadow. I got tired and sat down under a bush to rest. He took out the bag, untied it and began to chew the bread.
A hungry wolf comes out of the forest. He sees a mower sitting under a bush and eating something. The wolf approached him and asked:
- What are you eating, man?
“Bread,” the mower answers.
- Is it tasty?
- And how delicious it is!
- Let me taste it.
- Well, try it.
The mower broke off a piece of bread and gave it to the wolf.
The wolf liked the bread. He says:
- I would like to eat bread every day, but where can I get it? Tell me, man!
“Okay,” says the mower, “I’ll teach you where and how to get bread.”
And he began to teach the wolf:
- First of all, we need to plow the land...
- Then there will be bread?
- No, brother, wait. Then you need to harrow the ground...
- And can I eat bread? - The wolf waved his tail.
- What are you talking about, wait. First you need to sow rye...
- Then there will be bread? - the wolf licked his lips.
- Not yet. Wait until the rye sprouts, survives the cold winter, grows in the spring, then blooms, then begins to spike, then ripens...
“Oh,” the wolf sighed, “however, we have to wait a long time!” But then I’ll eat plenty of bread!..
- Where can you eat? - the mower interrupted him. - It's still early. First you need to squeeze the ripe rye, then tie it into sheaves, put the sheaves in heaps. The wind will blow them away, the sun will dry them, then take them to the current...
- And will I eat bread?
- Eh, so impatient! You must first thresh the sheaves, pour the grain into bags, take the bags to the mill and grind the flour...
- That's all?
- No, not all. You need to knead the flour in the bowl and wait for the dough to rise. Then place it in a hot oven.
- And will the bread be baked?
- Yes, the bread will be baked. “That’s when you’ll eat it,” the mower finished his lecture.
The wolf thought, scratched the back of his head with his paw and said:
- No! This work is painfully long and hard. Better advise me, man, how to get food easier.
“Well,” says the mower, “since you don’t want to eat heavy bread, eat light bread.” Go to the pasture, the horse is grazing there.
The wolf came to the pasture. I saw a horse.
- Horse, horse! I'll eat you.
“Well,” says the horse, “eat.” Just take the horseshoes off my feet first, so as not to break your teeth on them.
“And that’s true,” the wolf agreed. He bent down to take off the horseshoes, and the horse hit him in the teeth with its hoof... The wolf somersaulted and ran.
He ran to the river. He sees geese grazing on the shore. “Should I eat them?” -thinks. Then he says:
- Geese, geese! I'll eat you.
“Well,” the geese answer, “eat.” But first, do us one favor before you die.
- Which one?
- Sing to us, and we will listen.
- It's possible. I am a master of singing.
The wolf sat down on a hummock, raised his head and began to howl. And the geese, flapping and flapping their wings, rose up and flew away.
The wolf got down from the hummock, looked after the geese and went away empty-handed.
He goes and scolds himself with the last words: “What a fool I am! Why did I agree to sing? Well, now I’ll eat whoever I meet!”
Just when he thought so, lo and behold, an old grandfather was walking along the road. The wolf ran up to him:
- Grandfather, grandfather, I will eat you!
- And why is it in such a hurry? - says Del. - Let's smell the tobacco first.
- Is it tasty?
- Try it and you'll find out.
- Let's.
The grandfather took a tobacco pouch out of his pocket, sniffed it himself and gave it to the wolf. As the wolf sniffed with all his might, he inhaled the entire pouch of tobacco. And then he started sneezing all over the forest... He can’t see anything because of his tears, he keeps sneezing. He sneezed like this for an hour until all the tobacco was sneezed out. I looked around, and there was no trace of my grandfather.
The wolf moved on. He walks, walks, and sees a flock of sheep grazing in a field, and the shepherd is sleeping. The wolf spotted the best ram in the herd, grabbed it and said:
- Ram, ram, I will eat you!
“Well,” says the ram, “this is my lot.” But so that you don’t suffer for a long time and don’t break your teeth on my old bones, you better stand in that hollow over there and open your mouth, and I’ll run up the hill, speed up and draw you into my mouth.
“Thanks for the advice,” says the wolf. - That's what we'll do.
He stood in the hollow, opened his mouth and waited. And the ram ran up the hill, sped up and hit the wolf on the head with its horns. So sparks fell from the gray one’s eyes, and the whole light began to spin in front of him!
The wolf came to his senses, shook his head and reasoned with himself:
- Did I eat it or not?
Meanwhile, the mower has finished his work and goes home. He heard the wolf's words and said:
“I didn’t eat anything, but I did taste some light bread.”
Translated from Russian · original on wisdomlib.ru