Once upon a time there lived a king, and he had a daughter-bride of extraordinary beauty. And his neighbor, also a king, had three young sons. And all three fell in love with the princess.
“For me, you are all the same,” the princess’s father said to the brothers. “I cannot give preference to any of you.” But so that you don’t quarrel over my daughter’s hand, let’s do this. Go travel around the world. Whichever of you returns in six months with the best gift will become my son-in-law.
The brothers set off on a journey, and where the main road diverged into three, they parted.
One month passed, two, three, and the elder brother still did not find a gift worthy of the beautiful bride.
And now the sixth month had already passed, when suddenly the prince, staying in one very distant side, where he was staying in a hotel, heard a loud voice:
- Carpets, carpets of the most skillful work! The prince looked out the window, the merchant said to him:
– Would you like to buy a wonderful carpet?
“The only thing I’m missing is a carpet,” the prince grinned. “There are so many carpets in my palace that they are even laid in the kitchen.”
“But you won’t find carpets like this, with a secret, anywhere.”
-What is this secret?
“As soon as you sit on my carpet, it will fly into the air.” You can fly a hundred miles in a day!
The prince snapped his fingers in delight.
– This is exactly what I need! How much do you want, my dear?
- One hundred crowns, no more, no less.
“It’s dealt with,” said the prince and counted out one hundred crowns.
As soon as he stepped on the carpet, it took off like a bird into the clouds, flew over the mountains and valleys and landed near the osteria, where the brothers agreed to meet in six months. But his brothers weren't there yet.
The middle brother was still on his way. He visited many countries, but did not find a suitable gift. And then one day he met a traveling merchant who shouted:
- Telescopes, the best telescopes! Young sir, would you like to buy a spyglass?
- What do I need it for? - said the prince. - At home I have many telescopes of the best quality.
“I’m willing to bet that you don’t have a single telescope with such a secret as these,” said the merchant.
-What's special about it?
“With such a telescope, you can see everything that is happening at a distance of a hundred miles, and even through walls!”
The prince rejoiced:
– Then this is just for me! How much does it cost?
- Exactly one hundred crowns.
- That's a hundred crowns. Give me one pipe.
The middle brother bought a gift and hurried to the meeting place. There he found the first brother, and together they began to wait for the younger one.
And the youngest one spent six months looking for a gift, but he never came across anything suitable. Desperate, he set off on his way back, but then he met a fruit merchant who shouted:
- Salaman grapes for anyone! Buy Salama grapes!
The prince had never heard of Salaman grapes; he had no such thing in his homeland. So he asked the merchant:
-What kind of grapes do you have?
– Salaman grapes are the most delicious grapes, and they have wonderful powers.
-What kind of power is this?
– One grape brings a dying person back to life.
- How much do your grapes cost?
“I’ll give you a hundred crowns per grape, sir.”
The prince had three hundred crowns in his pocket, and he bought only three berries, carefully wrapped each one, put it in a box and went to where his brothers were waiting for him.
The brothers met and began asking each other who bought what.
- I? ... - says the elder. - Yes, so. One rug.
“And I’m a spyglass,” says the second one.
- And I - some fruit. “Nothing more,” said the third.
– Is there something now at our home and in the princess’s palace? - said one of them.
The middle brother took the telescope and, as if by chance, pointed it towards his home. Everything was the same there. He looked towards the neighboring kingdom, where their beloved’s palace was, and was horrified.
-What did you see? - the brothers asked.
– Do you know what I see? There are many carriages at our princess's palace, people are crying and tearing out their hair. And in the palace there is a doctor and a priest at the head of someone's bed... Yes, this is the bed of a princess! There she was, pale and motionless. She's dying!
- What should we do? After all, we have more than fifty miles left!
– Don’t worry, we’ll make it in time! - said the elder. - Quickly on my carpet!
The carpet instantly rushed them to the palace, flew through the window into the princess’s room and landed at her bedside.
The younger brother took three Salaman grapes from the box and put one of them into the princess’s pale lips. As soon as she swallowed the berry, she immediately opened her eyes. The prince, without wasting a second, gave her the second one. A blush appeared on the princess's face. And after the third, she took a deep breath and stretched. The princess was saved. Then the bride got out of bed and ordered the maids to bring the most beautiful dress.
Everyone was very happy, and the younger brother said:
- Well, I won! The princess will become my wife: if it were not for the Salaman grapes, she would die.
“No, brother,” objected the middle one, “if it weren’t for my spyglass and if I hadn’t told you that the princess was dying, the grapes would have been useless.” I will marry the princess.
“Sorry, brothers,” said the eldest, “no one can take the princess away from me.” What are your merits compared to mine? We arrived here on time on my carpet, not on a spyglass or on grapes.
To stop their quarrel, the king had to give the princess's hand to the fourth groom, who came to the palace without a gift.
Translated from Russian · original on wisdomlib.ru