Once upon a time there lived a fisherman. One day he came to the river bank, threw a fishing rod into the water and caught a fish. The fish was not an ordinary one, but a Guldor fish, all covered with flowers from head to tail; There was nothing more beautiful than her in the world. The fisherman was delighted, took the Guldor fish off the hook and admired it, but it suddenly slipped out of his hands and swam away.
Since then, the fisherman has lost his joy. He left his home, built himself a shack near the river; day and night he sat by the water and fished. But never again did he come across the Guldor fish. So he died on the river bank.
This fisherman had a son. When he grew up, he said to his mother: “It’s time for me to do something.” Tell me what my father did and I will do the same.
“Oh, son,” his mother answered him, “don’t ask me what your father did.” Look for something else.
But the boy wanted to find out at all costs what his father was doing. Then the mother said, sighing:
“If you want to know what killed your father, look at the roof!” The son looked at the roof and saw his father's fishing rods.
“So my father was a fisherman!” he exclaimed. “And I want to fish too!” He took fishing rods from the roof, cleaned the rust from the hooks, and oiled them.
The next morning he told his mother:
- Bake me some cakes - I'm going fishing.
“Oh, son, don’t go to the river!” his mother tried to persuade him, but did not dissuade him; baked him some cakes and saw him off on his way. “Come back quickly, son!”
The fisherman's son came to the river bank and threw his fishing rod into the water. And immediately the fishing rod trembled and sank to the bottom. The young man pulled the fishing rod and pulled out a fish. The fish was not an ordinary one, but a Guldor fish, all covered with flowers from head to tail; the flowers on her scales sparkled under the rays of the sun; There couldn't be anything more beautiful in the world than her. The fisherman's son grabbed the fish, wrapped it in a wet scarf and ran home.
“Mother, look what I caught!” he shouted. “Look quickly - there’s the fish Guldor!”
The mother was surprised to hear this, but when she saw the Guldor fish, she was delighted with its beauty.
“No, such a fish cannot be boiled or fried,” said the mother. “Let’s let it into our house in the yard.”
And they let the fish Guldor into the house in the yard and began to admire how it swam there, all covered with flowers from head to tip of the tail, shining and sparkling under the rays of the sun.
They called the neighbors and showed them the Guldor fish. Everyone admired the fish until the evening, until the sun set and the fish went to the bottom to sleep.
Early in the morning, just before dawn, there was a knock on the gate. The fisherman's son opened the gate and saw in front of him the padishah's servants, armed from head to toe.
“Our master learned that you caught the Guldor fish, which is more beautiful in the world,” said the padishah’s servants. “Our master orders you to immediately deliver the Guldor fish to the palace.”
There is nothing to do: the fisherman’s son put the fish on a dish of water, covered it with a rag and carried it to the palace.
The padishah ordered the Guldor fish to be released into the house. In the clear water of the hauz, the fish began to swim back and forth, and the flowers on its scales sparkled under the rays of the sun. The padishah had fun looking at the fish and said proudly:
- No one in the world has such a fish Guldor! There is nothing more beautiful in the whole world than my fish Guldor!
The padishah ordered to make a beautiful octagonal hauz for the Guldor fish from multi-colored morocco leather, so that, taking it by the corners, it was possible, at the padishah’s request, to transfer the fish to any place. In the multi-colored morocco house, the fish seemed even more beautiful, and the padishah forced his servants to carry the fish with him everywhere.
One day a guest from a distant country came to the padishah. The padishah showed him the Guldor fish and said:
“There is nothing more beautiful in the whole world than my fish Guldor!” What more could I wish for?!
“May the padishah be even happier!” answered the guest from a distant country. “No one in the world has such a fish in a pool of morocco leather.” But the daughter
dishaha Chin-Mo-China is more beautiful than the fish Guldor. If you could sit here next to Princess Chin-Mo-Chin with gold earrings, then you would have nothing more to wish for!
The padishah got angry, called his wazirs and courtiers and ordered to immediately get him the princess Chin-Mo-Chin with gold earrings.
But the courtiers and wazirs only looked at each other and did not move, because no one knew where to find the princess Chin-Mo-Chin. Then they remembered about the fisherman’s son who caught the Guldor fish, and said:
- This is who should get the padishah a princess with gold earrings! After all, it was he who caught the Guldor fish.
They brought the fisherman's son to the padishah. The padishah ordered him to quickly get the princess Chin-Mo-Chin, who is more beautiful than the fish Guldor itself.
“Well, why are you standing like a pillar!” shouted the padishah. “Go!” Or I'll have your head cut off!
The young man said goodbye to his mother and went to an unknown place. He walked for a long time. He saw an old kaush lying on the road and kicked it away. Suddenly a large ant ran out from under the caush and said:
- Thank you for helping me free myself. Kaush crushed me, and I already thought that I was finished. Take my mustache. In difficult times, set it on fire, and I will come to your aid.
The young man thanked the ant and tied the gift into the corner of his belt scarf.
A few days later the fisherman's son came to a wide river. Above the river, with one foot on this bank and the other on that, stood a giant.
He asked the fisherman:
-Where are you coming from, wanderer?
- I am coming from the country of the Turkestan padishah.
“Do you know the young fisherman who caught the Guldor fish?” asked the giant.
- I am that same fisherman.
“I’ve been waiting for you!” the giant exclaimed joyfully. “I’ve been standing above the river for many years, and it was predicted that I could only leave the place when the fisherman who caught the Guldor fish freed me.” Now, finally, I'm free! Where are you going?
“I’m going to look for the princess with golden earrings, the daughter of the padishah Chin-Mo-Chin,” answered the fisherman. “Will you help me cross the river?”
The giant leaned towards the river and began to drink water. Soon there was not a single drop left at the bottom, and the fisherman freely walked along the dry bottom to the other shore. Then the giant released the water back and went with the fisherman.
They walked and walked, and after a few days they came to the foot of the hill. There stood a hero with a ketmen in his hands. He hit it with a ketmen and immediately removed half of the hill, and then filled it up again. The travelers came closer and greeted the keeper.
“Where are you from and where are you going?” he asked.
“I’m going from the country of the Turkestan padishah to look for the princess with gold earrings, the daughter of the padishah Chin-Mo-Chin,” said the fisherman’s son.
“Oh, if you are from the country of the Turkestan padishah, do you know the young fisherman who caught the Guldor fish?” asked the ketmen man.
- I am that same fisherman!
“Finally you have come!” cried the hero. “I overlooked your eyes, looking at the road and waiting for you.” For many years now I have been standing here, either filling up this hill or tearing it up. It is predicted to me that this will happen until the fisherman who caught the Guldor fish frees me. Now I can put the ketmen on my shoulder and go with you.
The fisherman's son was delighted to have such a strong comrade and continued on his way together with the two heroes.
They walked and walked and after a few days they saw a tall minaret from afar.
- Hey, fisherman! This is where you need to go! Here is the city of the padishah Chin-Mo-Chin!
They came closer and saw: the top of the minaret goes into the very sky. It all sparkles with multi-colored stones that are embedded in its walls. At the top of the minaret a drummer walks with a drum. Below is a guard with a saber in his belt.
Approaching the gray-haired guard, the fisherman's son politely greeted him. The old man asked:
- Who are you, where did you come from and what do you want?
“I came from the country of the Turkestan padishah for a princess with gold earrings,” said the fisherman’s son.
“Many young men like you came for our princess, but they all left with nothing!” said the guard.
“Father, please tell me how I can see the padishah?” said the fisherman’s son.
- I'll unlock the doors. There on the wall you will see an inscription sealed with the seal of the padishah. These are three tasks that must be solved by anyone who wants to get the padishah’s daughter. Read and think: are you able to do this? Then go up the minaret, beat the drum three times and wait.
The fisherman's son read the inscription, ran up the stairs, grabbed a club and hit the drum so hard that it shattered. The deafening crack of the drum woke up the padishah, and he ordered a drummer to be brought to him immediately.
“Hey, well done, apparently you weren’t afraid of my conditions, since you started beating the drum!” the padishah said to the fisherman. “Thousands of people tried to fulfill my wishes, but they couldn’t.” You are still young - I advise you to abandon your plans.
“Let it be what it will be!” said the fisherman’s son. “It’s not in my nature to retreat.” I want to get a princess with gold earrings.
“But have you realized how difficult my tasks are?” - said the padishah. “Think: you have to sleep in my red-hot copper bath for the whole night—that’s the first thing.” You must overtake my fastest camel - that's the second thing. You have to sort a bunch of different grains into varieties in one night - that’s the third thing.
“Everything is clear,” said the fisherman’s son. “I have only one request.”
- Speak.
- I have two comrades with me - can I not be separated from them?
“I don’t care who will be with you,” said the padishah, “as long as my demands are met.”
The padishah ordered the fisherman and his comrades to be led into a red-hot copper bath. The fisherman could not stand the heat and shouted:
- I'm burning!
But the bogatyr-water-farmer filled his belly full of water in advance. He began to pour water over the bathhouse. It cooled down, and the heat did not harm anyone.
The night has passed. At dawn they opened the bathhouse and were surprised: the fisherman and his comrades were alive and unharmed.
Rumor quickly spread among the people that a fisherman from Turkestan had solved the padishah’s first problem.
The next day, the padishah ordered a servant to be placed on a fast camel and given him a waterskin. He gave another wineskin to the fisherman and said:
- From this place, at the same time as the camel, you must go eight miles to the river, get water and return back before him.
At a sign from the padishah, the camel rider and the foot fisherman went to the river. The boatman went with them. As soon as they left the city, the ketmen-maker struck twice with the ketmen and raised a high hill in front of the camel. While the camel struggled up and down, the fisherman managed to run to the river and fill his waterskin. When he returned, the catman quickly scattered the earthen mound, and the fisherman came to the padishah several hours before the camel.
And again, rumor spread among the people that the Turkestan hero had fulfilled the second condition of the padishah.
On the third day, the padishah ordered a measure of wheat, barley, oats, and corn to be mixed and said to the fisherman:
“Tonight, before dawn, sort out these grains and put them in piles.” Make sure not a single grain ends up in the wrong pile!
“Only ants could do this work,” people said.
These words reminded the young man of the ant that he freed from under the caush on the road.
When night fell and everyone had left, the young man untied the knot of his waist scarf, where the ant's whisker was hidden, took it out and burned it. At the same moment, a crack opened in the ground next to him, and ants quickly crawled out of it. There were thousands of them, and they quickly began to take away the grains.
In the morning, taking his vasirs with him, the padishah went to the fisherman and was surprised that his third task was completed. The news of this quickly spread everywhere, and the people rejoiced that the fisherman from Turkestan carried out all three orders of the padishah.
Then the padishah ordered to dress the young man in expensive clothes and prepare for the wedding.
- About the padishahs! I am a poor man and will choose my own bride. And I must take the princess with the gold earrings to the padishah of Turkestan.
Padishah Chin-Mo-Chin liked these words, and he ordered many servants and a whole caravan of gifts to be equipped with his daughter.
Having received the princess with gold earrings, the fisherman's son and his comrades set off on their journey.
They drove and drove and reached a high hill. Ketmeshtsik hit the ketmen once or twice - and the hill was no longer there: a flat road lay in front of them.
“Now, friend, let’s say goodbye,” the ketmeshtsik said to the fisherman. “I was glad to serve you.” Be happy and remember me!
The young man was upset - he did not want to part with such a faithful friend, but he could not contradict him.
A few days later, the fisherman's son reached a wide and deep river with his caravan. The water farmer put one foot on one bank, the other on the other, bent down to the river and began to drink water. Soon there was not a single drop left at the bottom of the river. Along the dry bottom, the fisherman and his caravan crossed to the other side. Then the water farmer released water back into the river and said:
“I won’t go any further with you—I’ll stay on my land.” Glad I could be of service to you. Be happy and remember me!
It was a pity for the fisherman’s son to part with this friend, but he could not force him to leave his native place.
The padishah arranged a magnificent meeting for Chin-Mo-Chin's daughter and immediately announced that he would marry the princess with gold earrings. We celebrated a rich wedding. The next day, the padishah seated the princess with golden earrings next to him on a golden throne and asked his vasirs:
- Well, now I have nothing more to wish for?
“Now you have nothing to wish for,” answered the wazirs, “no one in the world has such a princess with gold earrings!”
And on the third day, Princess Chin-Mo-Chin became bored with the Turkestan padishah. She began to get angry, cry and stamp her feet, and kicked the padishah himself out of the room. To calm her down, the padishah ordered that the Guldor fish, covered with flowers from head to tail, be brought to her in a morocco house, all of which was nothing more beautiful in the world.
But the princess with the golden earrings screamed even louder, stamped her feet even harder, grabbed the Guldor fish and threw it into the street.
Then the fisherman’s son found her, wrapped her in a scarf and went to the river.
“It’s better for you to swim deep at the bottom than to amuse the padishah and princess Chin-Mo-Chin,” said the fisherman’s son and threw the Guldor fish into the fast river.
Translated from Russian · original on wisdomlib.ru