Once upon a time there lived a husband and wife, and they had a donkey. The husband did not dare to leave the house after sunset, as he was very cowardly. When he absolutely had to go somewhere in the evening, his wife accompanied him, and she had to hold the edges of his clothes with her hands.
One day it turned out to be a very stormy day: it was dark and gloomy, and it was pouring rain. And the man said to his wife:
— I need to leave the house for a minute. Please come with me.
The two of them went out into the yard. His wife held him by the hem of his robe.
To encourage himself, he said:
- Yes, such a night is only for brave men.
- What a man you are! – the wife exclaimed contemptuously.
She pushed him, turned and ran into the house. Having entered, the woman locked the door, leaving her husband outside. He began to rage and scream:
- Wife! For God's sake, open the door and let me in!
“You’d rather die than go into the house,” she replied.
What could he do? He wandered dejectedly into the barn, lay down next to the donkey, and lay there until the morning.
As soon as it was light, he got up, harnessed the donkey and set off on a long journey - he went wherever his eyes looked.
The road led him to a big city. And he thought to himself: “Let me wander around here and take a closer look at the people. If they tell me: “You can stay with us,” I will move on. But if they refuse me a shelter, I’ll try to spend the night there to spite everyone.”
Everywhere this man went, he asked:
- Would you allow me to spend the night?
And everywhere they invariably answered him:
- Why not? Please come in.
“No,” he answered. - I won’t stay here.
So he wandered from house to house, and where people said:
- We will gladly accommodate you
He answered:
- No, I won’t stay here.
Finally he drove up to a house on the outskirts and knocked on the door. A woman's voice was heard in response:
-Who's there?
“It’s me,” he responded. – Would you allow me to stay with you?
The woman replied:
- No, we don't have enough space.
“But I’ll still stay,” he answered.
The woman screamed:
- I don’t allow it! I won't accept you!
He repeated as if nothing had happened:
- I'll stay here.
He drove into the yard, tied his donkey to the stove and sat down next to him.
When the sun set and dusk deepened, the sounds were heard: “Krap, krap.” It was someone's sandals creaking. Someone entered the room and sat down next to the woman. Soon the second one entered, and there was a place for him. A little later a third man entered. So the woman had three guests at once.
They pulled out several bottles of arak and began to drink and have fun. And the woman prepared for them a pot of pilaf, a pot of yaprakha and a pot of cubebe.
The fun grew, the guests exchanged jokes with the hostess, but they never had a chance to taste the dishes she had prepared: in the midst of the fun, the hostess’s husband unexpectedly appeared (he went to the mill and was supposed to return only tomorrow) and knocked on the door.
-Who's there? - asked the wife.
“It’s me,” he answered.
- Who came? – the lovers asked the hostess in a whisper.
“This is my husband,” she answered. “He went to the mill and returned at an inopportune hour.”
- What should we do? - they asked.
And her husband was a dyer, and there were three empty vats in the room. The woman commanded: - ---— Quickly climb into these vats and sit quietly until your husband falls asleep. Then I will open the door and let you out.
They climbed into the empty vats, and the woman opened the door to her husband.
His wife helped him bring in the bags of flour, then the couple sat down at the table.
“I’m hungry,” said the dyer.
- Really? – she was feignedly surprised. – Since you weren’t there, I thought: why should I cook dinner?
The woman cut the bread, brought some olives and water, and they sat down to dinner.
At this time, a stranger coughed, who was sitting in the yard with his donkey.
Hearing a cough, the dyer asked:
- Who is that coughing?
The wife said:
- Really? Oh, I forgot to say that a traveler came here, and out of mercy I allowed him to spend the night with us.
And at that very moment she thought:
“This man knows everything that happened here in the absence of my husband.”
The naive dyer, who believed everything he was told, said:
- If you have given shelter to this traveler, then invite him to the table.
And the woman invited him to share dinner with them. But he flatly refused:
- I won’t go.
With great difficulty we managed to persuade him to rise from the hard bed on which he lay. And when he finally got up and headed into the house, he took the donkey along with him.
Seeing the stranger leading a donkey into the house, the dyer shouted:
- Hey you! Leave the donkey in the yard!
“I don’t go anywhere without my donkey,” he answered.
- You're out of your mind! - the dyer shouted. “The room is carpeted, there are pillows on the carpets, and you want to bring a donkey here.”
“I can’t take a single step without my donkey,” he answered.
As he spoke, the woman, wanting to please the dangerous witness, said to her husband:
- Allow them to enter together.
And he came in with his donkey and sat down at the table. During dinner, this man suddenly slapped the donkey and said:
- Oh, unfortunate animal! Finally, leave me alone, let me have dinner!
And the owner asked him:
- What did the donkey tell you?
“He’s in trouble, that’s all,” the alien answered. “Wherever I go, I always have nothing but trouble because of this donkey.”
- But what did he say anyway? – the dyer continued to ask.
“He doesn’t give away secrets, but he knows all the secrets.”
- So what did he say?
- Let him perish along with all his family! - the guest exclaimed.
“No, you still have to find out what he wants,” the owner insisted.
Then the man bent down to the donkey and, after a short silence, said:
- The owner, he says that there is a kettle of yaprah in the corner, covered with a basket.
- Hey, wife! Is this true? - asked the dyer.
- Right! - she answered. “My older sister brought me a pot of yaprah.” I couldn’t get a bite in my throat without you, and I thought: “Let it stand until my hubby returns home.” But now everything has flown out of my head.
“Put the yaprah on the table,” said the dyer, who believed his wife’s story. “We’ll eat it with gusto.”
The woman got up, brought a pot of yaprah and put it on the table.
“Taste the treat,” the dyer said to the guest.
They were about to eat, but the donkey’s owner shook his head again and said:
- What a thing you've seen! Hey, stop telling stories, you stupid animal!
- What did he tell you just now? – asked the owner, burning with curiosity.
“He said,” he answered, “that under the basket there is also a pot with cubebe...
- Hey, wife! Is this true? - asked the dyer.
- Yes, hubby. The donkey is right,” she replied. – My middle sister brought a bowl of cubebe. But you were not at home, and without you there is no pain in my throat. And I decided: “Let it stand until my husband returns.” And now I’ve forgotten. Here's the deal.
“Get up and bring it here,” the husband ordered. - We'll have a nice dinner.
The wife got up, brought the cubebe, and the owner said to the guest:
—Taste the treats!
They began to eat, but a minute later the donkey's owner shook his head again.
- What's happened? - asked the owner.
“I can’t imagine what I should do with this donkey,” answered the guest. “Because of him, I’ll probably have to wander around the world a lot more.” And wherever I go, this unfortunate animal does not give my heart a moment of peace.
- Tell me, for God’s sake, what did he say to you just now?! - exclaimed the dyer.
The guest put his ear to the donkey's muzzle and said, addressing the animal:
- Well, what else do you need?
Then he turned to the owner and said:
- The donkey says the following: “Under the basket there is also a bowl of pilaf.”
- Hey, is that true? – the dyer asked his wife.
“Yes, he’s right,” answered the wife. “My younger sister brought a bowl of pilaf, but since you weren’t at home, I completely lost my appetite.” Then I hid the bowl and thought to myself: “Let it sit until my husband returns.” And now, as luck would have it, everything flew out of my head...
“Well, bring the pilaf here too,” the husband ordered. - Let's try this dish too.
They began to eat, and that evening they had a magnificent dinner.
When they had dinner, the donkey spread his legs.
- Hey, you! - the dyer shouted to the guest. - Bring out your donkey, otherwise he will pollute my house.
“I won’t even think about it,” answered the guest.
- Hey, you! – the owner was indignant. “If you don’t take the donkey out right away, I’ll hit him with a stick.”
“If you have the audacity to hit my donkey with a stick, I will hit this vat with the stick and break it.”
The dyer was quick-tempered and did not like to be contradicted. He grabbed a stick and hit the donkey. Then the guest grabbed a club, hit the vat and broke it.
Seeing that his vat was broken, the owner became furious and rewarded the donkey with a second blow. The owner of the donkey did not remain in debt and broke the second vat with a blow of his club. The dyer swung his hand and hit the donkey a third time. The owner of the donkey broke the third vat with a blow of his club.
Looking around, the dyer saw behind him three slender young men standing inside broken vats.
- What kind of people are these? – the dyer asked in surprise.
“Your wife’s beloved,” answered the guest. “My donkey told me that they are hiding here.”
- What should I do with them? - asked the dyer.
“Do whatever you want with them,” he answered. “You are like an older brother and like a father to me, and consider me your younger brother or son.” Whatever you order will be done, I am always ready to serve you.
And they grabbed three timid young men and beat them, and then drove away the unfaithful wife.
After a short rest the dyer asked:
-Will you sell me your donkey?
- How can I sell it to you? – the guest answered. - He tells me all the secrets, and you say: “Sell me the donkey.”
“Still, sell it to me,” the dyer begged. “I’ll pay you any price for it.”
“Remember once and for all,” he replied, “that I have not the slightest expectation of selling it.” But since you and I became related, I would not like to waste words. How much will you give me for my talking donkey?
“If you give it to me, I’m ready to give you a thousand piastres,” said the dyer.
“How dare you offer me a thousand piastres for a talking donkey!” - he exclaimed.
- I'm ready to give two thousand.
- Agreed. There should be no misunderstandings between us. Count your money.
The naive dyer immediately counted out two thousand piastres. The donkey's owner hid the money and said:
- Now listen carefully to what I tell you. Since you hit him three times, he won’t speak for three days. I advise you to lock the donkey in a barn and not give him any food or water for three days. These days he must fast. Then you take him out, give him a good drink and food, and he will tell you all his secrets.
With these words, the guest left along with the money he received from the gullible dyer. He went to the market, bought various things and returned to his village.
He came home when it was already dark and shouted to his wife:
- Open the door!
She replied:
- I won’t think so. You can go back where you came from.
- Hey, wife, open the door! - he shouted a second time. - Look what God has rewarded me with. Look what I brought you!
But his wife didn’t believe him and didn’t open the door.
Then he climbed onto the roof and lowered a beautiful headscarf and a pair of sandals through the window on a rope. Convinced that he was telling the truth, the woman opened the door and her husband entered the room. She saw that he had brought a lot of things and also a wallet full of money.
“Where did you get all this, hubby?” – she asked.
He replied:
“Didn’t I tell you that I’m a real man?” And you kept saying, “No.” Now, I suppose, you’re convinced?
And the gullible dyer, who bought the talking donkey, brought him to the barn and left him there for three days without food or drink. The poor donkey died. When, on the fourth day, the dyer opened the barn, he saw the corpse of a donkey with its legs stretched up.
- Woe is me! - he exclaimed. “How cruelly this scoundrel deceived me, leaving me a dead donkey as an inheritance!”
Translated from Russian · original on wisdomlib.ru