In ancient times, there lived an old wizard. One day the khan called him to his place. But it must be said that this khan never knew grief in his life and therefore was very cruel.
So the wizard came to the khan, and he said:
- I heard that you are a great wizard. Come on, show your art!
- What does my khan want to see?
“Yes, whatever!” the khan answered impatiently.
- Fine. Pour hot tea into a cup, put it here, and go out the door.
Khan did everything as he said, and when he walked out the door, he saw the handsome black man. The khan really liked the horse. He jumped into the saddle and took off at a gallop. He drove and drove and drove into unknown places. Suddenly the horse threw off its rider and rushed off, and the khan was left alone in the deserted steppe. He had to drink water from puddles, eat locusts and grasshoppers. Staggering from hunger and fatigue, the khan wandered across the steppe and kept looking for something to eat.
One day he met an old woman and two thin little boys.
The woman told the khan that all her property had been taken away from her by the khan’s collectors, and now the children had nothing to eat. The khan began to live with them. One spring, one boy fell ill and died. Khan felt very sorry for him. He sat down on a stone and wept bitterly.
How long the khan sat like that is unknown, but when he calmed down and looked around, he saw that he was sitting on his throne under a canopy, even the tea in the cup had not yet cooled down.
“Well, khan, have you seen enough of people’s grief?” asked the old wizard. “You see how hard life is for the people who are offended by you!”
And the old wizard left.
Translated from Russian · original on wisdomlib.ru