A long time ago, there lived a man in Pyongyang. Kind, kinder could not be. He kept a small shop and lived there. Traded honestly, without deception. And if you need to help someone out of trouble, he’s right there.
One day an old Taoist came into the shop. He has no wife, no children - alone in the whole world. We talked with the owner. Word for word - and then it turns out: he is related to the owner. Not distant - close. The old man says:
“I don’t have long to live.” Maybe you can give me shelter?
The shopkeeper would not refuse a stranger, but here he is his own, dear. How not to let me in? And he gave the Taoist the best room and began to take care of him.
The old man brought with him a wooden pillow in a darned rag. I treasured it like the apple of my eye and never parted with it. He didn’t even let it out of his hands at home, and if he went anywhere, he would certainly take it with him. Nobody knew what kind of pillow this was.
Several years have passed. The shopkeeper is impoverished, there are no buyers at all. Rarely does anyone look into the store. And the old man lives for himself and lives. As if he doesn't care about the shopkeeper.
One day the owner is sitting in the shop, thinking sad thoughts. Then an old man comes up to him and says:
“I see your face has fallen asleep.” Or what kind of trouble happened? Take my pillow, sleep on it at night and you will feel better.
He said this, untied the rag, and pulled out the wooden block from it. The merchant took the block of wood, thanked the old man, and he himself thought: “Where has this been heard of, that a block of wood would suddenly make you feel better?”
The old man went to his room, and the shopkeeper became sad again. He sat and sat, wanted to sleep, put a block of wood under his head and lay down. Suddenly he hears the music playing. He opened his eyes, and white smoke rose from the pillow. Trickle after trickle - nothing was visible in the room. Suddenly, out of nowhere - little people. And a golden bull with luggage. The little men grab the luggage and put it in the corner. And these are all nodules. Their darkness is overwhelming. It seemed to the shopkeeper that there was money in those bundles, and he thought: “I’m so poor that I can see money even in my dreams!” I thought so, turned over from side to side and fell soundly asleep.
The next morning the shopkeeper forgot his dream, went into the shop and looked - the drawer was full of money. Moreover, all the promissory notes.
Creditors came running, thanking him for repaying them with interest.
Here the shopkeeper remembered a dream and realized: it was not just a simple block of wood that the Taoist had given him - it was a magical one. The shopkeeper went to the old man and told him what a miracle had happened to him, and the old man answered as if nothing had happened:
- This is for your kindness!
Translated from Russian · original on wisdomlib.ru