Many years ago, they say, there lived an old man with his son. The old man's wife died a long time ago. The guy was stupid, but a brave and strong man.
One day the old man, leaving his son at home, went down the river near which he lived. He walked and came to people. Their urasa (the ancient dwelling of the Yakuts) rose slenderly on the top of the hill. The old man got down from the animal he was riding on and entered the urasa. An old man was sitting here with his daughter. He entered the urasa, took off his mittens and hat.
- Home, hello!
- Hello, passing person! Do you have any news?
“There’s nothing special,” he answered and sat down in the place of honor, opposite the door. He sits, looking out of the corner of his eye at the girl sitting in the left front corner. He thinks: “How beautiful she is, like the shining sun after the rain. But isn’t she stupid, like my son?” He has a desire to test his thought.
At this time, the girl gets up and begins to prepare food. I chopped the meat and cooked it. She put it on a plate, brought it and placed it in front of the old man. The old man says:
- You, girl, how many ladles did you put on my plate?
— I don’t know how many ladles I put in. If you had told me how many steps you made your deer take on the way from home to home, then I would have answered then.
The old man thought: “The girl turns out to be smart.”
The next day the old man brings Erbekhtei's stupid son Bergen and says: “If we old men married our children, what would it be like?” The old owners, the girl’s father and mother, after thinking, agreed, and they themselves moved in with distant relatives.
The old man, Erbekhtey and the smart girl lived together for a long time, they say.
One day, the old father and Erbekhtay Bergen go hunting. Only the smart girl, the guy's wife, stays at home.
The old man, walking down the river, meets people of a different kind, with whom he has been at enmity since birth. Having grabbed him, they tie him to a tree and light a fire under the tagan (Tagan is a hook above the hearth for hanging cauldrons). They decided to choke him with smoke.
The old man asks: “Listen to my last word.”
People agree.
The old man begins:
— My only son remains at home. Tell my son these words: “I have lost my strength, turned into a lump, I’m rolling around, struggling with young leaves.” And also say: “Let the son, having heard my words, cut down the tops of two birch trees growing in the very north. Then let him look straight to the west, there will be a pine forest with countless trees. Let him cut off the tops of all these trees and bring them to me. If my son doesn’t know how to cut them, then the white stone that lies under my bed will help. If he cannot understand my word, then a sharp knife lying under his pillow will help, tell him that I said so.”
The heroes consult. Their leader says:
“Well, bring these words to the guy quickly!” and sends two heroes. When the two heroes came to the house, the guy was not there, only his wife was sitting.
The heroes ask:
-Where is the old man's son?
“Uh, he’s not here now, wait a little, he’ll come!” she answers.
The heroes agree. Soon the guy comes.
“Boy, your father with us sent you a message, listen!” And they convey to the guy all the old man’s instructions.
Then the guy’s wife quietly says to him:
- “A sharp knife under your pillow”, or your mind - that will be me. Boy, listen carefully! “I’ve lost my strength, turned into a lump, I’m rolling around, fighting with young leaves” - this means that your father was tied to a tree. “My son, having heard my words, let him cut off the tops of two birches standing in the very north” - this means you must cut off the heads of these two heroes. “Then let him look straight to the west, there will be countless pine trees, let him cut off the tops of them all and bring them to me” - this means that you must kill all the warriors of these heroes. “If my son does not know how to cut them, then there is a white stone under my bed, it will help” - this is his father’s sharp sword. “If my son does not understand the meaning of my words, then a sharp knife lying under his pillow will help,” it will be me, your smart wife.
The guy agrees:
- Okay, I understand everything!
From under his father's bed he snatches a sharp sword and cuts off the heads of two heroes. Then he goes and kills all the warriors, unties his father and removes him from the tree. Saves him just before his death.
This is how the old man escaped death with the help of his clever daughter-in-law, they say.
Translated from Russian · original on wisdomlib.ru