Once upon a time there lived a very rich merchant. He had a lot of property, a lot of money and large herds. But he was incredibly stingy. If he had to spend one shai, it seemed to him that his heart was being taken out along with this copper coin.
The merchant had neither sons nor daughters: his wife was childless. But he kept saving and saving for someone unknown.
And then it happened that his wife became pregnant. And she once said to her husband:
“I’ve completely lost my appetite, I can’t take anything in my mouth.” But now I wanted a kebab. Send a servant to the herd for a lamb and order him to prepare a kebab.
The husband replied:
- You've obviously gone crazy. I cannot lose my lamb because of your whim.
The wife said:
- My husband, why are you so stingy? God will pay you back a hundredfold for this lamb. We have plenty of everything, but no children. Maybe God will give you a son.
Her husband answered her:
“Even if you were dying, I wouldn’t slaughter a lamb for you.”
“Don’t be stingy,” said the wife, “I ask you, because I’m not trying for myself, but for the child who should be born to us.”
- Why are you telling me fairy tales? – the husband answered, “Didn’t I myself dream that you would give me a son?” Still, I won't cut a lamb for you.
“In that case, for God’s sake, go to the market and buy me a piece of liver.” I will eat it, and perhaps your son will not wither away in my womb, for I have completely lost my appetite.
In short, the husband went to the market to buy some liver. He approached the butcher and inquired about the prices. The butcher said that the liver costs four shai. But, knowing the incredible stinginess of this man, he added:
“If you go to the Lower Bazaar, you’ll probably buy a liver there for three shai.”
The merchant thought:
- If I have already left the house and visited the market, why should I lose one shai? I’ll go down to the Lower Bazaar and buy a liver for three shai.
In short, he went to the Lower Bazaar and asked the butcher:
- How much do you want for the liver?
- Three shayas.
- It's expensive.
The butcher replied:
— At the Grand Bazaar, liver is sold for two shai.
The merchant began to think and said to himself:
I've already wasted so much time. I’ll go to the Big Bazaar and buy a liver for two shai.
Long story short, he went to the Grand Bazaar and started bargaining. When the butcher said that the liver cost two necks, he exclaimed:
- It's very expensive!
The butcher replied:
— If you want to buy cheaper, then go to the suburbs. They sell liver there for one shai.
The merchant scratched the back of his head, sighed and thought:
“I’ve already been on the road for so long, so I won’t spare any effort, I’ll go to the suburbs and buy a liver for one shai.”
Long story short, he went to the suburbs and soon saw the butchers.
— How much does a liver cost? he asked.
- One shai.
- It's very expensive.
Butcher said:
- Go to such and such a village, they will give you liver for free.
The merchant thought again and said to himself mentally:
“Now that I have come such a long way and am far from home, why don’t I visit this village again?”
In short, he went to this village. It was already evening when our merchant got to the market. And the butcher said to him:
“We only sell meat, and give the liver for free.” Take as much as you want.
- Amazing! – the merchant was delighted.
But at that moment he noticed that it was already dark. “I’ll spend the night here, and early in the morning I’ll take a few livers and go home,” thought the merchant.
Long story short, he knocked on one of the doors. The servants opened it for him. They saw a decently dressed man.
-Who are you? - asked the servants.
“I am a traveler,” he answered, “and I would spend this night in your house if you allowed me.”
The servants went to the owner’s wife (the owner himself was not at home) and told her:
— A decently dressed man is standing at the door and asking permission to spend the night.
The woman replied:
- Tell him to come in.
The servants opened the door, the merchant entered and said hello.
- Welcome! - said the woman.
Soon her husband came - a young, blooming man. He also greeted the guest, and they exchanged pleasantries for a long time. And at this time the merchant’s wife looked at the road and thought:
- The day has already passed, but he still doesn’t come. How much time do you have to spend at the market to buy a piece of liver!
The owner of the house sat down and quietly said to his wife in Turkish:
— First we’ll have dinner, and then we’ll beat you, or vice versa?
The woman also answered in Turkish:
- We have a guest, he is probably hungry, since he has traveled a long way. Let's eat first, and then we'll beat you.
The merchant understood Turkish and when he heard this conversation, his whole body trembled.
- Oh, woe is me! These people apparently planned to kill me at night, he thought.
“Order that food be served,” said the owner of the house.
The woman got up and soon, together with her servants, brought such exquisite dishes as are served only to kings.
- Please go to the table. “Share your evening meal with us,” the owner and his wife addressed the guest.
The merchant was hungry as a wolf, but his throat was constricted from fear, and he was unable to swallow even a bite. The owners persistently begged him, but he refused. In short, the merchant never sat down at the table.
Having made sure that the guest would not eat anything, the owner said to his wife:
“Prepare the bed so that our dear guest can sleep well.” He was probably tired from the road.
The woman stood up and laid out fluffy blankets, soft mattresses and silk pillows. The merchant lay down, but fear for his life prevented him from falling asleep. He didn’t even undress and, lying in bed, listened to what was happening in the next room. And then he couldn’t resist, he tiptoed to the door and looked through the keyhole. And what did he see?
The couple dragged a stuffed man on a rope from the back room and threw it on the floor. Then they armed themselves with sticks and began to beat the scarecrow and spit in his face. Then the husband dragged the stuffed animal to its original place.
When the merchant saw this, he was extremely surprised.
“Tomorrow I’ll definitely find out what’s going on here,” he decided and returned to his bed.
In the morning, when the owners woke up, the guest was already on his feet. Tea and coffee were served for breakfast, and the hosts persistently begged him to share the meal with them.
“Please eat,” they said. “You haven’t eaten anything for a long time.”
The traveler replied:
“I won’t touch anything until you answer my question.” What was going on here last night when I went to bed? Explain to me, and then I will eat your bread.
They told him:
- Sit down at the table, now we will answer your question.
- No, first you tell me, and only then I will sit at the table.
“I swear I’ll tell you everything,” said the owner. “Eat and drink, and then you will hear a curious story.”
In short, they ate and drank, and then the owner of the house said to his guest:
“You saw the stuffed man we beat and spat in his face.” First we had dinner, and then they beat him. Sometimes we do the opposite: first we beat them, and then we sit down to dinner. This is our custom, and we do not deviate from it.
Know,” continued the hospitable host, “that the man whose effigy is lying in the next room was very rich, had many goats, sheep and horses. But he was incredibly stingy and tortured this woman when she was his wife. If he had to spend one shai, this miser felt as if his heart was being taken away along with the copper coin. All the property and all the wealth that is now in our hands once belonged to him. But he himself did not use them and tormented everyone around him.
Finally, this man died,” the owner continued his story. “I married a widow and received all his property and all his wealth. Everything passed into my hands. Now we drink, eat and enjoy life. But in my wife’s heart there are still memories of the suffering and insults that she endured because of his stinginess. And we made a scarecrow in his image and likeness and every day we beat him and spit in his face.
When the merchant heard this story, he became thoughtful and said to himself: “Oh, woe is me! When I die, I must be treated like this."
He stood up and said to the owner:
- Lend me a hundred tomans, I will return them to you soon.
The owner took out a hundred tomans and gave them to the traveler. He took the money and went to the market. They sold rice, raisins, and plums here, and he bought several bales. And he bought everything he saw in large quantities. Then he hired porters and told them:
— Bring these bales to my house.
Fifteen porters carried the food he had purchased.
The porters knocked on the door of his house, and his wife came out to meet them. She saw fifteen strapping young men, exhausted under the weight of the load.
“Open the doors, woman,” said the porters, “We will now bring all these bales to your house.”
She replied:
- Apparently you have the wrong address. These bales are not ours. Find out whose they are and take them there.
The porters replied:
“Do you really think that we don’t know the owner of this house?” We know him well. These bales are yours.
The woman said:
-You're completely crazy! What headless people!
The porters replied:
“Oh woman, we swear that it was the owner of this house who bought all the bales, hired us and showed us the way.” He'll come here soon.
The woman said:
- Don't tell me stories! If you knew how many hours he spent buying a piece of liver for me, you wouldn't say that. He went to the market yesterday morning and has not returned yet. How could he buy so many different products instead of liver? In short, the man who hired you is not my husband.
She tried to persuade them to leave, but they did not listen to her. While the argument was going on, the merchant himself appeared. Seeing the porters standing at the door of the house, near the bales, he asked:
- Why don't you bring them home?
They replied:
- Your wife doesn’t allow it.
The merchant entered the house and asked his wife:
“Why don’t you allow the porters to bring the food supplies that I bought into the house?”
The wife said:
- My husband, what does this mean? You, who are so stingy that you spent the whole day buying a piece of liver, suddenly became so generous. Surely the sun has risen in the west and the hour of doomsday is approaching. Or maybe you sensed death approaching? Why did you suddenly spend so much money on groceries?
The merchant replied:
“Wife, don’t bother the porters to put everything in place, and then I will answer all your questions.”
When the porters left, he said:
- Forgive me, wife, for my stinginess. From today everything will be different. From now on you can eat and drink to your heart's content, buy beautiful dresses and jewelry, and give alms to the poor. I won't embarrass you in any way.
And he told her about everything that happened to him.
Translated from Russian · original on wisdomlib.ru