In which kingdom, in which state did the king live, and he was single. He had twelve archers with him; and there was only one shooter, Ondrej, who shot the falcon while it was flying, and he was already listed as the senior shooter. And so their desire came out, as they worked for six days for the king, and the seventh for themselves. So he lived with him for five years and all at the same job. Well, it seemed to him that the income was small, he wanted to leave. Then I thought:
“Let me live this month, go hunting for myself again, and then I’ll go out.”
And once he comes to himself, it’s like on the seventh day.
He went out, of course, walked through the forest all day, and he didn’t see anyone.
Then he walks close to the city and looks: a falcon is sitting by the forest.
- Well, let's shoot this one at least.
He shot her, cursed her, she fell. He picked her up and wanted to turn her head. Well, the falcon spoke in a human voice:
– Here’s what, Ondrej the shooter: you don’t rip my head off, but carry it home. When you bring it home, sit down to drink tea, and put me on the window. Then throw it outside the window and see what happens. If you want it, take it for yourself, but if you don’t, give it to people.
So when he started drinking tea, he put it on the window, then threw it outside the window. And there a girl was formed, like a flower. And he looks at her, unable to say a word. She asked:
- Well, then, Ondrej the shooter, will you give it to people or will you take it for yourself?
- I'll take it for myself.
- Well, okay, just know how to hold it.
That's when she came and began to live with him. They lived with him for a week, and she said:
– Ondrej, you probably live poorly?
- Yes, as you can see for yourself. She says:
- Tell you what, Ondrej, do you have anyone you know who could help you out for a hundred rubles - go and ask. When you receive this money, go to the store and bring me a hundred arshins of silk, and I will sew a carpet from it.
Ondrej now went to see a merchant he knew.
“Here,” he says, “please give me twenty rubles of money.”
- What do you need?
- Yes, you know - for the need.
- What do you need twenty for? Here, I'll give you forty.
He thanked him and went to another merchant he knew.
- That's it, Friend, give me twenty rubles, I really need it.
– What do you need, Ondrej? Now I’ll give you forty.
He took it; He already has eighty, he needs another twenty. He went out; goes to the third merchant.
- That's it, friend, help me out for ten rubles.
And he gave him twenty rubles. He got one hundred. When he received this money, he went into the store, bought a hundred arshins of silk and brought it to his wife.
- Here, Elena the Beautiful, I brought silk. She tells him:
– Who did you take this money from: one merchant or three, and how much did they give you?
“I asked the first merchant for twenty, and he gave me forty; I asked the second for twenty, he gave me forty; and the third one was ten, and he gave me twenty, so I have a hundred rubles.
- Now, Ondrej, when you receive money and give it, give it in two ways: from whom you asked for twenty, and he gave forty, you give eighty, and so on from everyone.
Then Ondrej goes to work for six days, and she got to work: she began sewing a carpet. While Ondrej was hunting for six days, he comes home, and at this time she prepared the carpet.
Ondrej comes, of course, on Saturday, and on Sunday morning she brings the carpet and says:
- Here, Ondrej, go to the market and sell the carpet, well, just don’t tax the prices, whoever gives what, take it. He takes the carpet and walks around, and she says:
– Listen, Ondrej, when you receive the money, pay it back twice as much as they gave you.
Ondrej the shooter takes the carpet and goes to the market. He comes to the market, brings a carpet, unrolls it, and the public gathers to look at this carpet, so much so that there is no way through. And no one imposes prices, they just watch. And this carpet was painted like this: on it there was a forest, rivers, lakes, seas, birds, fish and everything in the world. That's all they stand for. Pete happened to be riding as the royal orderly:
- Well, what are you gathered here, let’s go!
He forced his way into this audience and let’s look at the carpet.
This orderly examined the carpet for about three hours, and he really liked it, and began to ask:
– Whose carpet is this and how much does it cost?
Then Ondrej approaches the orderly and says:
- This is my carpet.
- How much does it cost?
- And as much as you give, I’ll take as much. Then the royal orderly says:
“So, Ondrej, I’ll give you thirty thousand: will that be enough?”
- Enough.
He takes money out of his pocket, gives it to him and leaves. Ondrej comes to the first merchant and gives him eighty rubles; the merchant asks:
- Why, Ondrej, eighty: I gave you forty.
- Because I asked you for twenty, you gave me double, so I will pay double.
So to the second merchant, and so to the third. These merchants thanked Ondrej, and he brings the money from the rest home to his wife.
- Here, Lenochka, I brought you money.
- How much did you get?
- Thirty thousand.
- Did you pay the money?
- Paid.
- Well, Ondrej, how do you see my income now?
- Yes, nothing.
- Well, now you can live well.
When this royal orderly laid the carpet on the wall, and at that time the young prince came to the orderly and looked at this carpet. The young prince looked at the carpet and liked it very much. And he began to ask:
- Where did you, orderly, get this carpet, how much did you buy it for?
“I bought it at the market and paid thirty thousand.
- Who?
- Ondrej the Sagittarius.
– Sell it to me, I’ll give you thirty-five. He says:
- Please receive it; I’ll go to Ondrei and order a new one.
He received the money and in the evening, at about ten o’clock, he went to Ondrej to order a carpet.
When he comes to Ondrei, Ondrei had already gone to bed and the doors were barred. So he comes, knocked, Ondrej says:
- We need to open it, Lenochka, probably someone; I’ll go, get dressed, one of the royal servants will open the door. She says:
“Ondrej, you’ve calmed down, you’ve undressed, so go to sleep, and I’ll go and open it myself.”
He comes to the door and opens it. When she opened the doors, the royal orderly looked at her, carried one leg over the threshold, but could not bear the other, and fell silent, unable to say another word. She begins to ask:
- Why did you come, the Tsar’s orderly? Do you need him for yourself, Ondrei, or for the Tsar? You know, he went to bed, and in the morning he needs to go to work.
Well, he was still silent. She waited a long time for his answer, and finally, she couldn’t wait, she turned him by the shoulders and closed the door. He remained silent and went home. Finally, I walked a hundred yards away and remembered: “Oh, I went to order a carpet and forgot. Well, Ondrej has a good wife and a good portrait.”
When he comes home, the prince comes at the same time:
- Well, how? Have you ordered a carpet?
- Not really.
- Why?
- Well, I had no time for the carpet: Ondrej’s wife is such a good one, I didn’t remember myself. What a beauty! Then he told him:
– Well, okay, then I’ll go and order a carpet myself and see what kind of wife Ondrej has.
So the young prince went to Ondrei at eight o’clock. He comes, and Ondrej, having already undressed, also goes to bed, the doors, of course, were closed. When they knocked, he said, Ondrej:
- Elena the Beautiful, we need to go, I’ll get dressed and go now.
- No, no, Ondrej, if you’ve already undressed, I’ll go and open it myself.
When Elena came to the door and opened it, the young prince raised his leg over the threshold, saw such a pattern in front of him, and was speechless and stood there.
She looked at him for a long time, then began to ask:
- What, young prince, what is your request for Ondrej, please tell me, I’m waiting. You know, Ondrej needs to rest and go to work in the morning.
He couldn’t say anything, the young prince kept looking at her.
She turns him by the shoulder.
- Go, young prince, if you can’t say anything; Ondrej needs to sleep.
And he left. When he walked away a little space, he remembered: Ay-ay, Ondrei has such a good wife, no matter what it takes, we must take her away from Ondrei, or maybe he’ll kindly give her to me.”
When he comes home and gathers his boyars and starts talking to him:
– How can one take Ondrej’s wife away from him: he cannot be executed. You can't forcefully fire your wife. Well, in a word, we need to come up with some kind of service.
And everyone agreed to give him a service, so that he would give up his wife, or give her up voluntarily through this service. So they start to think. They thought for a long time, but could not come up with anything. Finally, one nobleman took three days to come up with a service for ten thousand rubles.
- You know what, I’m giving you money. And gives him an order. He takes out the money.
“If you don’t come up with something, then on the third day, head off,” and with those words he left the room.
This nobleman thought for two days, he could not come up with anything.
On the third day I went into the forest. “I’ll figure it out, I’ll figure it out, no, I’ll hang myself: my head is off anyway.”
So he walks through the forest, sad, melancholy, and can’t think of anything, and in the evening there’s no need to show up. And suddenly he looks - an old woman meets him and says to him:
- What, man, are you thinking? And he answers her rudely:
– What do you need from me?
He walked around a bit and thought about it: “Here’s what: I should probably ask the old lady, maybe she knows something.”
- Sorry grandma, impudent word, maybe you know what I think?
- That's it, dear, let's go ahead like this; Don't run around old people. Go, tell the king: let him go to distant lands, to distant mountains, to the thirtieth kingdom, to the island of Buyan, and bring a golden sheep's head. Give him a current ship and drink the command, he will go there, won’t come back, and give him a term of four months, no more; he will abandon his wife.
Then this nobleman thanked the grandmother and said:
- Thank you, I’ll go now.
The nobleman comes to the king and says:
– Your Majesty, that’s what I came up with. Give Ondrei the following service: let Ondrei go to distant lands, to distant mountains, to the kingdom of thirtieth, to the island of Buyan, and bring a golden sheep's head. Give him a ship now, I drink the command, he’s going there, he won’t come back. This prince then said to him:
- Well, thank you.
Now he is sending a servant for Ondrej.
– Call him, what will he tell me?
Yes, when the servant arrived, he announced to him that the king had called.
He thinks.
“Why did the king call me,” says Elena the Beautiful, “I don’t know.”
Elena says:
- That's it, Ondrej, go to the king, there is a service for you, I know.
When you come to the king, he will tell you: “Here’s what, Ondrej, if you give up your wife, I won’t give you any service and I won’t tell you, if you don’t give it up, here’s your service.” When you come, tell him: “Okay, load the ship with wine and bread.” And get along with him and don’t agree to go for less than four months.
Our bot Ondrej went to the king. He came to the king and said hello.
– That’s it, Ondrej, what’s the matter. Give me your wife; if you give it back, I won’t tell you what kind of service, if you don’t give it back, here’s your service.
Ondrej answers the king like this:
“I got married, Your Majesty, for myself, not for people, and I don’t agree; load the ship with wine and bread. They made arrangements with him for a period of four months.
“If you don’t bring it, then your head will be off your shoulders,” that’s what the king said.
And with these words he went home. “Well,” he thinks, “don’t bother me, you won’t get me anything in four months.”
Ondrej comes home and bursts into bitter tears.
- Well, Elechka, I won’t see you again!
She notes to him:
– Listen, Ondrej, this is not a service, but a service, and the service will all lie ahead. Let's eat, go to bed, and the morning is wiser than the evening.
So they had dinner, she went to bed with him. She slept, rested until midnight, then got up, pulled out a magic handkerchief from her pocket and waved it. Three young men jumped out of there.
- What can I serve you, Elena the Beautiful?
- Here, guys, what will happen. You need to run at two o'clock to distant seas, to distant mountains, to the thirtieth kingdom, to the island of Buyan, to bring from there a golden sheep's head.
Two hours later the kids brought a lamb - a golden head.
She takes it, packed it in a box, put it in her head and goes to bed. They slept until six o'clock. Elechka stood forward, warmed the samovar and began to wake him up - Ondrej, get up, you need to drink, eat and go on the road.
When Ondrej had drunk and eaten, he went on the road and began to cry:
- Elechka, goodbye, I won’t see you again?
- Ondrej, don’t cry, do you think the steam will take me? No, he won’t see me like he can see his own ears. She hands him the box.
– Here, Ondrej, take care of this box. When you come to the ship, two months will have passed, the weather will be calm. During calm weather, get the whole crew drunk so that not a single one is sober, and turn the ship around. When you come back, well, understand that there is a golden sheep’s head in this box, and you will give it to the king.
So he began to say goodbye and began to cry. She takes a handkerchief out of her pocket, wipes it and says:
- Well, Ondrej, go, don’t be afraid of anything, I’m not going anywhere.
So, with that said, Ondrej went to the pier. Ondrej arrives at the pier, the ship is already completely ready. Board the ship and set off across the sea.
As soon as Ondrei left, the prince sent a detachment to Helen the Beautiful. They searched for her for a long time, ransacked the whole house, and lifted up the floorboards, but they couldn’t find her, and they decided that Ondrej had taken her with him.
So Ondrej walked on the sea for two whole months, then calm fell. He says:
- Well, guys, on the occasion of good weather, let's all have a drink together.
And they started drinking. When he had given them all something to drink, it was quiet on the ship, he went into the helm and slowly turned the ship. There was a breeze. He says:
- Here's what, guys, can anyone take the helm?
- Listen, Ondrej the shooter, we can get up, but our head hurts.
- Well, well, we need to get a hangover.
They drank a little and went forward again, and continued to drink. Here they are sailing, the weather is very good, there is a breeze. They swam and swam and suddenly arrived at their state.
When they sailed to their state, the crew asked him:
- Well, Ondrej the shooter, where were we, why did we go, how did we all drink, why did we return to our state, did we bring what, or rather, did we get what we went for?
And he answers them:
- Yes, guys, don’t you remember?
- How can I remember when everyone was drunk?
- We got it.
- Well, thank God.
With these words they go out to the pier. When they just reached the pier, they meet a young prince, a saber in his hand, walking towards him. When Ondrej met the prince and said:
- Well, Ondrej, did you get it?
“Here, you can look,” and gives him the box.
The prince took it and went home, and Ondrej also went home.
When he approaches the house, Elechka runs out onto the porch, hugs him, kisses him and leads him into the room; the samovar is already ready. They sit down to drink tea, Elechka asks:
- Well, how did you go, Ondrej?
- Nothing, okay.
- You will also have to go a second time.
Two days had not passed when the young prince found out that Ondrej had a wife.
“At any cost, we must take his wife away from him.”
I called this nobleman to come up with another service for him.
The nobleman says:
- Okay, Your Majesty, I'll figure it out soon.
And he goes to look for this old woman again. Walking along a forest road. As soon as I saw this old woman, I immediately stopped.
- Well, friend, how did Ondrej go?
- Yes, I went.
– Well, it’s not smart to deceive Ondrej, but you won’t be able to deceive his wife very quickly.
- Well, come up with another service for him, grandma. Grandma answers; - Okay, I'll figure it out soon. Pushai Ondrej will again go beyond distant lands, beyond distant seas, to the kingdom of thirty, to the island of Buyan, and will bring the golden bristle pig.
Give him the command to drink, the ship is leaking. He will go there and will not come back.
With these words the nobleman came to the prince:
- Well, Your Majesty, I came up with an idea again. Let Ondrei go to distant lands, to distant seas, to the thirtieth kingdom, to the island of Buyan, and bring the golden bristle pig. Give him the command to drink, the ship is leaking. And give the deadline for four months, no more.
Soon Ondrej is called to soar. He says to Elechka:
- Again, something, some kind of trouble is starting to happen to me, they’re calling me again.
She says:
“Tell the king to let them load the ship with wine and bread again.”
You know, you took me for yourself, and not for people, know how to keep me.
Here he comes out. He comes, of course, to the king. He comes and says:
- What do you need, Your Majesty, from me? The king says to him:
– Listen, Ondrej, where are you putting your wife when you leave?
– She’s at my house.
- Give it to me, otherwise I will give you service again.
“No,” he answers, “I won’t give it back.” I married for myself.
- Well, if you don’t give it to me, then I’ll give you service. Go to the distant seas, to the distant lands, to the thirtieth kingdom, to the island of Buyan, bring the golden bristle pig.
We give you four months. If you don’t bring it, your head will be off your shoulders!
Ondrej answers him like this:
- Well, Your Majesty, load the ship with wine and bread, I will be ready.
With these words, Ondrej left the house. When he comes to Elechka, Elechka asked him:
- Well, what, Ondrej?
- Yes, again the service, where before.
- Well, okay, Ondrej, don’t be sad, the morning is wiser than the evening. This is all, Ondrej, not service. There will be a third service, and at this service we will have to think about it.
Then they had dinner and went to bed. She slept with him until twelve o'clock, at twelve o'clock she got up, pulled out a magic handkerchief, waved it, three young men appeared and bowed to her:
- What, Elechka, do you want me to do?
- So, guys, run at two o’clock to the distant kingdom, to the thirtieth state, to Buyan Island, to bring the golden bristle pig!
The guys bowed and ran. Not even two hours had passed, the guys came running and brought this pig. She takes the pig, stuffed it in a box and went to bed. She got up at six o’clock, warmed up the samovar and began to wake Ondrei:
- Get up, Ondrej, we need to drink, eat, and hit the road!
So Ondrej drank some tea, of course, began to get dressed and began to cry:
- Well, Elechka, I probably won’t see you!
– Don’t cry, Ondrej, nothing will happen. When he got dressed, she handed him the box:
- Well, Ondrej, here’s a box for you, and in it is a golden bristle pig. In two months, get the crew drunk, turn the ship around and come back. And you don't need to go anywhere. Everything is in your drawer.
- Will the king find you?
- No, he won’t find it, he won’t see his ears.
And so Ondrej went to the ship.
He comes, boards the ship, and so they set off.
As soon as Ondrei left, the prince went to his house, ransacked everything, raised the floors, tore down the stoves, turned everything over. “Well, she probably doesn’t exist,” he thinks, “Ondrej took her with him.”
Here Ondrej is sailing, they sailed for two months, until there was a calm. When the weather calmed down, he gave the whole crew a drink, and when it was already quiet on the ship, he went into the helm, turned the steering wheel and began to wake the crew from sleep.
- Get up, friends, correct someone if you can. They answer:
- It’s good to rule, master, but my head hurts.
- Well, then, get over your hangover.
Now they began to move towards their state. This is your state. And they began to ask again:
- Ondrej the Sagittarius, did we get what we were looking for?
- We got it.
- OK; that's good.
- So don’t you remember?
- How can you remember when you were completely drunk?
- We got it.
When they arrived, they all went out onto the pier, and a young prince walked with a sword and asked:
- Well, Ondrej, how did you get it?
- I got it, you can have it, Your Majesty. Executed.
And he went home. As soon as he arrives at the house, Elechka jumps out onto the porch, kisses him, and leads him into the room. The samovar was already ready, we sat down at the table. They were drinking tea, and she asked:
- Well, how did you go, Ondrej?
- Nothing, okay.
- Well, okay, it will continue like this.
Less than two days later, the prince had already learned that Ondrej had a wife. I found this nobleman to come up with a third service and at any cost to take his wife away from Ondrej. So they found this nobleman, and the prince said to him:
- That's it, friend, come up with a third service for Ondrei. . He answers:
- Okay.
It doesn’t take long for him to come up with an idea; he already hopes for this old woman.
Then the nobleman went again along the forest road. He walked for a long time and met this old woman.
- Hello, grandma.
- Hello, son. She asked him:
– Well, how did Ondrej perform?
- Fulfilled it.
- Hm, it doesn’t take long to deceive Ondrej, well, you can’t deceive his wife. Well, it’s okay, now I’ve finally come up with an idea, I’ll separate him from his wife for seven years. And he says to him:
- So go to the king and say this: “Let Ondrei go there, I don’t know where, bring something, I don’t know what.” And give him an indefinite term, well, no less than seven years. Maybe he won't come back. And at this time the king can marry Helen the Beautiful. (She doesn’t know that Elena is hiding.)
Now this nobleman comes to the king and reports:
“Here, Your Majesty, let Ondrej go there, I don’t know where, and bring something, I don’t know what.” And give him an indefinite period. And at this time you will get your wife.
When the king heard these words from the nobleman, he impatiently sent for Ondrei. When the ambassador arrived, he ordered Ondrei to come to the king, and immediately called him. Ondrej replied:
- Okay.
He speaks again to his Elena the Beautiful:
“Something, Elechka, the king is probably up to something bad again.” - Yes, probably service again. Well, don’t refuse the service, take it, and we’ll see.
When Ondrej comes to the king, the king takes him into a special room and begins to treat him with wine: he thinks about making him drunk so that he will agree more quickly, but his wife warns him:
– Look, Ondrej, don’t drink vodka.
Ondrej, of course, did not refuse, and went to the table with him. He sat down, drank one small glass, and the king began to say to him:
“Here, Ondrej, listen: give me your wife, and I’ll marry you to the general’s good daughter, and you’ll live happily without unnecessary trouble, otherwise I’ll give you a big service again.”
Ondrej did not agree to anything, to any concessions, and said:
“I’d rather go than give up my wife.” And I gave up vodka completely.
– Then you know what, Ondrej, I give you a service; go there, don’t know where, bring something, don’t know what. I give you an indefinite period, if you don’t bring it and come back, then your head will be off your shoulders.
Ondrej left with the same words, and he comes home to Elena the Beautiful.
He comes sad, sorrowful, with tears in his eyes.
Elechka asked Ondrej; - Why are you crying?
- How can I not cry, Elechka, they gave me such a service: go there, I don’t know where, bring something, I don’t know what. She answered him:
- Listen, Ondrej, don’t be sad, drink, eat, and go to bed, and the morning is wiser than the evening, by morning everything will be cleared up.
We had dinner and went to bed. She slept a little, gets up, takes the magic book in her hands and begins to look for somewhere, don’t know what. She searched for a long time, but, of course, could not find it; She threw away the magic book and took the magic handkerchief. She shook it and three young men jumped out.
- What, Elena the Beautiful, do you order?
- Here, guys, do you know somewhere, you don’t know what?
One says - I don’t know, the other - I don’t know, everything seems to be in one word. She hid the handkerchief in her pocket, took a large skein of wool, and began to twist it into a ball. When she had made a large club, she could hardly pick it up, took it outside and put it on the porch. She spent this time until six o'clock in the morning. She put the samovar on and began to wake Ondrei:
- Get up, Ondreyushko, dear friend, you have work to do, the path is long!
So they sat down, drank tea, and she said:
– Here, Ondrej, there is a ball on the porch. This ball will roll along the road, and you go with it. This ball will roll along the road, you go, keep going, until the ball ends, the thread will stretch along the road, there you will see a palace. Go to this palace, they will meet you there.
Here Ondrej is getting ready. She packed a bag and a bag for him, and he cried:
- Well, Elechka, I won’t see you again, don’t know where I’ll go!
- Don’t think about anything, Ondrej, the king won’t take me, I’ll wait for you; Of course, we won't see each other for a long time. In addition, she also tells him:
“Here’s your bag, when you come to the palace, they will meet you there, feed you, give you something to drink, and put you to bed.” When you get up the next morning, you wash your face, they will bring you a towel, well, don’t rub yourself in their towel, take yours out of your purse and dry yourself.
So he came in, he felt very sorry for her, and began to cry. She began to console him, dried him with a handkerchief, and together they went outside to the porch. He went down onto the road, and the ball rolled in front of him. And so Ondrej set off on his journey.
That’s how the prince found out that Ondrei had left, so he immediately posted a guard near her house, began to search the whole house, but could not find it; Finally, he got angry and burned the whole house.
And then Ondrej continues on his way; Well, the ball rolled and rolled and became smaller and smaller. As Ondrej walks, the ball becomes smaller and smaller. Ondrej was bored, he kept thinking about Elena the Beautiful. So he walked and walked, continued his way, the ball became small, about the size of a chicken head. Ondrej became bored, there was no place to live. The smaller the ball became, the more boring Ondrej became. The ball has become so small that it is no longer noticeable along the road, the thread has stretched along the road. Ondrej raised his eyes, looked at the palace, approached the front porch. When he approaches the porch, two girls run down the stairs towards him from above, just like his Elechka, but he did not dare to say. They take him by the hands and lead him to the second floor.
That's when they brought him in, now they covered him with swearing tablecloths, liqueurs, and foreign wines. They watered, fed and put him to sleep on a feather bed. And they left on their own. He slept that night. In the morning they come running at eight o'clock and wake him up from sleep. When he got up, they brought him water to wash, and brought him towels. Ondrej, of course, washed his face. They hand him a towel.
- No, girls, I have my own travel towel.
He takes a towel out of the box, just managed to cover his face with the towel, one of the girls grabbed the towel and ran away, and the other followed. Ondrej remained standing in great sadness, thinking:
- What will happen to me now, how did she tell me to dry myself in my towel?
These girls bring a towel to their mother and say:
– You know what, mom, our son-in-law Ondrej has come.
- Yeah, I know, I know why he came.
It was her towel: that’s why she ordered him to dry himself in a towel, so that they would know who he was and why he was coming, that’s why she told him to dry himself.
The old woman jumped off the chair, along with her daughters, and came to him:
- Hello, son-in-law!
- Hello, hello, mother.
“And I know why you came; The Tsar wants to take my Christmas tree. Wow, this won’t work for him, but I’ll help you, why did you come? Stay with me for a few days. Look, he, the young prince, decided to take my Elechka. Even if he searches for her for a hundred years, he won’t find her.
Then Ondrej sat down at the table, began to eat and calmed down. Now she says:
- Okay, son-in-law, stay with me for three days, and I’ll look.
And he leaves. She took the magic book in her hands and began to look where it was, who knows what. She looked for a long time, threw the book and grabbed her hair, could not find it. I thought and thought and said:
- Finally, I thought of it.
She takes two goliks and flies through the air. I flew for a day and arrived and couldn’t find it. He takes the magic book and starts looking again. I looked and looked, but couldn’t find it, so I dropped the book and started thinking. I thought for about eight hours and said:
“Now I’ve come up with an idea and found out where it is.” Skokushka - grandma has lived in a swamp for three hundred years, she probably knows when I’ll fly to her.
She takes two goliki and flies.
When she flew to the fast-paced grandmother in the swamp and asked:
- You know, crazy old lady, somewhere, don’t know what?
“I know,” he says.
- Say so.
- No, I won’t tell. Then I will tell you, when you carry me to the fiery river in steamed milk, then I will tell you, but I won’t tell you before.
She takes the junk and brings it with her. She took a jug of milk and began to steam. That's when she hovered, planted this jumping grandmother, a frog, that is, and comes to her son-in-law:
“Well, son-in-law, get dressed, you’ll go, I’ll give you my horse.”
Our shooter Ondrej got dressed, and his mother-in-law leads out his horse. Then he says to him:
- Fly on this horse to the fiery river, and there will be no horse at the fiery river, and ask your grandmother how to get further.
When he reached the fiery river, he no longer had a horse, only a jug remained, and he began to pull out this jumpy thing by a thread. He pulled out the skokushka, and she said to him:
– Sit on me, Ondrej, before it’s too late.
And he says to her:
- What are you, grandma, you’re too small, I’ll crush you.
- Well, sit down!
He hesitated for a long time, did not sit down, and finally:
- Well, okay, I'll sit down.
He sat down, and this frog began to rise up, up and became higher than the forest and drank it all into itself, only one head was visible.
So she spoke:
- Well, hold on tight!
Just as this frog jumped, it jumped across the fiery river. She released him. He starts asking her:
- But where, grandma, is there something, you don’t know what?
“Well, if you hadn’t asked, I never would have known.” Now I'll tell you.
Here the grandmother begins:
“Here’s somewhere, you don’t know what lives: walk along this path, it will take a long time for you, of course, to walk, well, go.” You will see a house - not a house, a barn - not a barn, a room - not a room; go into it, the house is completely empty, only one stove has fallen apart. You go into this house and stand behind the stove. Two young men will come in and say: Swat Naum, have a drink, eat." Various music will play, the tablecloths will be covered, drinks and liqueurs, foreign wines. So you stand until they leave and the room is completely empty. Then come out and say: “Swat Naum, drink, eat.” And the same will happen to you. The old woman also told him:
- When you drink and eat, treat Naum’s matchmaker with a glass, then he will stay away from you. It will be something, no one knows.
This was all told by the old lady, the crazy old lady. He thanked her and set off on his own. So he walked for a long time, finally he saw it; Yes, a house is not a house, a barn is not a barn. One stove comes into it, completely empty and collapsed. And suddenly he sees two young men coming, they just said:
- Swat Naum, drink, eat!
And suddenly, the tablecloths were covered with curses, drinks and liqueurs, various foreign wines, and the room changed completely different.
When they started walking and left, the room became empty again. Then Ondrej comes out from behind the stove. When he came out from behind the stove and spoke:
- Swat Naum, drink, eat!
The same thing happened to him, the tablecloths were covered with swearing, drinks and liqueurs, foreign wines, and also vodka and a glass, and everything in the world. So he sat down at the table and began to eat, and said:
- Swat Naum, can I have a second glass? Matchmaker Naum gives him a second glass.
- Matchmaker Naum, treat yourself to a second glass from me, a dear person.
When the matchmaker Naum drank a glass and spoke:
- Well, Ondrej the shooter, you treated me to a glass, and I’m getting nowhere from you. I’ve been feeding two fools for thirty years, and I haven’t seen a burnt crust from them yet.
When Ondrej treated him, he said:
- Matchmaker Naum, show yourself!
“No,” he says, “I am such a spirit that no one sees me, I am that, don’t know who.”
So Ondrej drank, ate and began to get ready.
- Well, matchmaker Naum, will you come with me?
- Of course, I'm always behind you.
- Where?
- Well, let's go.
Ondrej walked along the road for a long time and kept asking questions; - Swat Naum, are you there?
- Yes, I’m nowhere from you.
Finally, Ondrej comes to the sea. When he came to the sea and said:
- Swat Naum, where are we going now?
- Wait, Ondrej, now a ship will arrive, and we will sail on it.
Suddenly a ship appears out of nowhere; a boat arrives and transports him to the ship. When he entered the ship, he asked:
- Swat Naum, are you there? - Yes, yes, I’m nowhere from you.
Well, there wasn't a person on the ship. - Why, matchmaker Naum, we don’t have people, who will rule us? There are no navigators or sailors.
Then matchmaker Naum said:
- Go to bed, and I’ll handle it alone.
So Ondrej lay down, slept, and gets up. The matchmaker Naum tells him; - Well, Ondrej, we will sail to one island, and on this island we will land, settle, that is.
Here they are sailing to one island. Now a boat is descending from the ship, transporting them to the island, and the ship has disappeared.
They enter the island, the island stood on the sea. Swat Naum says:
- That's it, Ondrej, on this island we will build a palace and surround it with gardens. Three ships will pass by the island, they will come to visit us.
Now the matchmaker Naum built a palace, surrounded the gardens, and began to live, to continue life forward. And the matchmaker Naum says to him:
“In two days, three ships will sail here.” And they have never seen such sharpness; they have been walking past this place for thirty years, but have not seen any housing here. And they will just stay here and come to us. On these ships, the captains have three things, curiosities, that we need to take with us in exchange for me. They will agree, but I will get nowhere from you. When we give them water, food, and drunkenness, they will boast about their wonders and ask you: “What kind of matchmaker Naum do you have?” Just a little time passes, and three ships are sailing. They all came together and began to marvel:
“What is it, we’ve been swimming for thirty years and haven’t seen such a wonder.” Who came here and built a palace, we must see.
So they stopped - all three ships - all the captains with sailors, navigators, lowered the boats and went up the mountain.
When they arrived at the mountain and entered this palace. Ondrej-etrelok met them and said:
- Swat Naum, drink, eat, treat the sailors, and tablecloths, drinks, liqueurs, various overseas wines!
And this was all done. The guests sat down at the table. When we started drinking vodka, we got pretty drunk. So they start asking him:
- What kind of matchmaker do you have, Ondrej the shooter, Naum, what kind of person is he, and how long have you settled here on the island? He then tells them:
- This is the matchmaker Naum - my friend, he carries out all my orders, and wherever I wanted to settle, I would go there with him.
- And what kind of person is he, how can I look at him?
“I don’t know, I haven’t seen him myself, he is such a spirit that no one sees him.”
When these guests got drunk and began to brag. One captain says:
- Yes, Ondrej, I also have a wonder: whatever I want, I have an ax, I’ll say to the tree: “Axe, chop-it-up, and become a ship.” And at that very moment it will be. Then the second of the captains spoke:
- Yes, you have nothing; Well, I also have a saber like this. If I come to the shore and strike along the water, it will become a crystal bridge. If I hit it across the water, nothing will happen. And if I decide to work on a palace, then I go to a good square, turn around with a saber three times and make such a palace as I order.
Then the third captain says to the second:
- I also have a good thing. There is a pipe like this: I will go out onto the field, whistle, and there will be as many troops as I order, and they will do it.
When all the captains explained all the stories, the matchmaker Naum said to Ondrei and whispered in his ear:
- Listen, Ondrej the Sagittarius, trade for me, we need all these things, but I’m nowhere to be found with you; they will agree. Then Ondrej the shooter says to the captains:
- That's it, comrade captains, let's change it, I'll give you Naum's matchmaker, and you give me all these things.
The captains thought, talked among themselves and finally said:
- Okay.
And so they decided:
“Let’s do this, comrades: let’s go home, bring our wives and live on the island, and matchmaker Naum will feed us, we don’t need to work.”
Now we went to the ships to get our things. When we arrived on the ships, we took our things and arrived again at the mountain. And at this time the matchmaker Naum says to Ondrei:
- When they arrive, you meet them, make them drunk, and then take your things and go to the end of the island.
When they arrive, these captains sat down at the table, and they started drinking.
These captains give him things, and he says to the matchmaker Naum:
“Well, matchmaker Naum, now you stay with the captains,” serve them as you served me, and now I’m leaving.
I said goodbye, got my things and left. I walked away a little and thought:
- Swat Naum, are you there?
“I’ve been following you for a long time, but just wait, they’ll drink a little and then fall asleep.” They will wake up on bare rocks, there will be nothing else there.
These captains drank so long that they fell asleep. We woke up, jumped up, were left on the bare stones, there was nothing: no palace, no gardens, Ondrej was gone. When Ondrej came to the end of the island and asked the matchmaker Naum:
- Well, matchmaker Naum, what are we going to do?
- It seems that you yourself know now. Do you have an axe?
- Eat.
- Well, build a ship.
Ondrej soon found a tree and hit it with an axe:
- Well, you dumbass, become a ship.
At that very moment the ship was ready and was already standing on the water. Now he says:
- Well, how can we, matchmaker Naum, get on the ship now?
- Well, you have a thing, don’t you?
He takes a saber, strikes along the water, and creates a bridge. They crossed onto the ship, hit it across - they removed the bridge, and they sailed on the ship.
So they swam, long, short, low, high, close, far, and they kept swimming and swimming. Ondrej sails to the same state from which he came. And he sees that it’s the same. When they arrived in the roadstead, Ondrej took a saber, struck along the water - a bridge was formed. They got up and went up the mountain. They went ashore, walked through the city, Ondrej went to the dwellings where his room was. When I saw it, I looked at this place, this place was all burnt, the grass had already grown in this place.
He looked and said:
- Well, that’s right, my Elechka died, he burned it, you madman!
Then Ondrei had nothing to do, he began to ask the matchmaker Naum:
- What are we going to do now, matchmaker Naum? Matchmaker Naum answered him:
- Build a house, and your Elechka will be found.
Then Ondrej the shooter takes the sabers, wraps them around himself and says:
- Well, build me a palace, even three times better than the royal one!
And at that very moment the palace was built with a silver inscription: “Ondrej the Archer.” When he saw that such a magnificent palace had been built, he happily went to the second floor and began to walk from room to room. Finally, he went into the bedroom. When he entered the bedroom, opened the curtain, he looked at Elechka sleeping on the bed. He prompted her, she opened her eyes, jumped up and started kissing him and said:
– Do I see you, my dear shooter Ondrej?
“Me,” he answered. “Let’s go to the hall now, we’ll have lunch at the reception, and I’ll tell you about my journey.”
When they entered the hall and sat down at the table, she asked:
- Well, did you, Ondrej the Sagittarius, get it, you don’t know what? He says:
- Got it.
Then Ondrej says:
Come on, matchmaker Naum, drink, eat, have fun, feed yourself, me and my wife! So she starts asking:
- Swat Naum, who are you, show yourself to me.
- No, Elena the Beautiful, I have never shown myself to anyone. I am such a spirit, no one sees me; I am that, don’t know what.
She didn't ask any more. Now Ondrej asks:
- So, matchmaker Naum, what are we going to do now, will you go to the king, or will you live with me?
Matchmaker Naum answers:
“No, Ondrei, I won’t go to the king, the king didn’t bother me, but you did, Ondrei the shooter, and I will serve you.” But we will deal with the king differently.
So the matchmaker Naum tells him:
- Well, Ondrej, take a straw, like a snorkel, and let’s go to the field. When we come to a clean field, whistle once.
So Ondrej takes the pipe and goes out into the open field. When he arrived on the field, he blew his whistle in a row, and so many troops appeared that he doesn’t know whether there was any loss or gain.
The main atamans rushed up to him and bowed to the waist.
– What do you want, Ondrej the shooter?
He doesn't know what to tell them. Then the matchmaker Naum Ondrei says:
- Order them to fire blank shells into the city and tell them to call the king himself or let him send an army.
Yes, when the king heard such a dangerous alarm, he was at a loss and did not know what to do. He sends twenty-five soldiers for reconnaissance, to find out what they need and what troops have arrived. When these soldiers arrived, Ondrej asked:
- Swat Naum, what should we do with these soldiers?
- Here's what: tie twenty people to the grass with their hair, and send five back, don't send us that many. Either send an army, or come yourself.
And so they did.
Twenty were tied up, and the rest were sent back with an answer. When the soldiers returned to the king and expressed their concern, the king became very thoughtful and did not know what to do. Finally, I decided to go myself.
When the king arrived on the field, Ondrei the shooter was already waiting for him and said to the matchmaker Naum:
- Swat Naum, what are we going to do with the king now? Matchmaker Naum answers:
“In my opinion, it’s simple to deal with him: execute him, and you can become king.” Ondrej answers:
- No, matchmaker Naum, I don’t intend to execute him, to remember the evil, but it’s better to do something else with him, and what he will say.
When the king approached Ondrei the archer, he was very frightened and began to ask for mercy.
- Ondrej the Sagittarius, do whatever you want with me, but don’t execute my head!
And I saw a huge army.
“I don’t need anything from you, whether you brought or didn’t bring anything.” I don’t need anything, just don’t execute me!
- OK.
“I’ll give you the throne, stand on the throne, and I’ll go down.” Well, he then said to the king:
- Well, okay, I’ll leave you life, but you’ll be a shepherd for forty children.
Then he whistled twice into the tube, and the army carried everything away. So they entered the royal chambers, the king calmly handed over all his affairs to him and he himself became a shepherd. Then Ondrej the Sagittarius ascended the throne and began to play the wedding. When this wedding ended, then, of course, he began to rule this kingdom until he was very old.
Translated from Russian · original on wisdomlib.ru