Far away, in the thirtieth state, there lived a king and a queen; they had no children. The king traveled through foreign lands, to distant sides, and did not go home for a long time; At that time the queen gave birth to him a son, Ivan Tsarevich, but the king does not know about it.
He began to make his way to his state, began to approach his land, and it was a hot, hot day, the sun was so hot! And a great thirst came upon him; whatever you give, just to drink some water! He looked around and saw a large lake not far away; rode up to the lake, got off his horse, lay down on the ground and let’s swallow the cold water. He drinks and does not smell trouble; and the king of the sea grabbed him by the beard.
- Let me go! - the king asks.
“I won’t let you in, don’t you dare drink without my knowledge!”
- Take whatever ransom you want - just let him go!
- Give me something you don’t know at home.
The king thought and thought... What doesn’t he know at home? He seems to know everything, he knows everything,” and he agreed. I tried - no one keeps a beard; got up from the ground, mounted his horse and rode home.
When he arrives home, the queen meets him with the prince, so joyful; and as soon as he found out about his sweet brainchild, he burst into bitter tears. He told the princess how and what had happened to him, they cried together, but there was nothing to do, tears couldn’t fix the matter.
They began to live as before; and the prince grows and grows, like dough on sourdough - by leaps and bounds - and he grew up big.
“No matter how much you keep it with you,” the king thinks, but you have to give it away: the matter is inevitable!” He took Ivan Tsarevich by the hand and led him straight to the lake.
“Look here,” he says, “for my ring; I accidentally dropped it yesterday.
He left the prince alone and turned home.
The prince began to look for the ring, walked along the shore, and an old woman came across him.
-Where are you going, Ivan Tsarevich?
- Let go, don't bother me, old witch! And without you it’s annoying.
- Well, stay with God!
And the old woman walked away.
And Ivan Tsarevich thought about it: “Why did I curse the old woman?” Let me turn it over; old people are cunning and shrewd! Maybe he’ll say something good.” And he began to turn the old woman over:
- Turn back, grandma, forgive my stupid word! After all, I said out of annoyance: my father made me look for the ring, I go and look, but the ring is gone!
“You are not here for the ring: your father gave you to the king of the sea; the king of the sea will come out and take you with him to the underwater kingdom.
The prince cried bitterly.
- Don’t worry, Ivan Tsarevich! There will be a holiday on your street; just listen to me, old woman. Hide behind that currant bush over there and hide quietly. Twelve doves will fly here - all red maidens, and after them the thirteenth; they will swim in the lake; and in the meantime, take the last one’s shirt and still don’t give it back until she gives you her ring. If you fail to do this, you are lost forever; The sea king has a high palisade around the entire palace, for as much as ten miles, and a head is stuck on each spoke; only one is empty, don’t get caught in it!
Ivan Tsarevich thanked the old woman, hid behind a currant bush and waited for the time to come.
Suddenly twelve doves fly in; hit the damp ground and turned into red maidens, every single one of them indescribable beauty: neither could you think of it, nor guess it, nor write it with a pen! They threw off their dresses and went into the lake: they play, splash, laugh, sing songs.
Following them, the thirteenth dove flew in; she hit the damp ground, turned into a beautiful girl, threw off her shirt from her white body and went for a swim; and she was the prettiest of all, the most beautiful of all!
For a long time Ivan Tsarevich could not take his eyes off her; he looked at her for a long time and remembered what the old woman had told him; he crept up quietly and took away the shirt.
A red maiden came out of the water, grabbed her - there was no shirt, someone took it away; Everyone rushed to look: they looked, they looked, but they couldn’t see it anywhere.
- Don’t look, dear sisters! Fly home; It’s my own fault - I didn’t look enough, and I’ll answer myself.
The red maiden sisters hit the damp ground, became doves, flapped their wings and flew away. Only one girl remained, looked around and said:
“Whoever it is who has my shirt, come out here; If you’re an old man, you’ll be my dear father; if you’re middle-aged, you’ll be a beloved brother; if you’re my equal, you’ll be a dear friend!
As soon as she said the last word, Tsarevich Ivan appeared. She gave him a gold ring and said:
- Ah, Ivan Tsarevich! Why haven't you come for a long time? The king of the sea is angry with you. This is the road that leads to the underwater kingdom; walk on it boldly! You will find me there too; after all, I am the daughter of the sea king, Vasilisa the Wise.
Vasilisa the Wise turned into a dove and flew away from the prince.
And Ivan Tsarevich went to the underwater kingdom; he sees - and there the light is the same as ours; and there the fields, and meadows, and groves are green, and the sun is warm.
He comes to the sea king. The sea king shouted at him:
- Why haven’t you been here for so long? For your guilt, here is a service for you: I have a wasteland for thirty miles, both in length and across - only ditches, gullies and sharp stones! So that by tomorrow it would be as smooth as the palm of your hand, and the rye would be sown, and by early morning it would grow so tall that a jackdaw could bury itself in it. If you don’t do this, off your head!
Ivan Tsarevich comes from the sea king, and he is shedding tears. Tall Vasilisa the Wise saw him through the window from her mansion and asked:
- Hello, Ivan Tsarevich! Why are you shedding tears?
- How can I not cry? - the prince answers. “The king of the sea forced me to level ditches, gullies and sharp stones in one night and sow them with rye, so that by the morning of sleep it would grow and a jackdaw could hide in it.”
- It’s not a problem, there will be trouble ahead. Go to bed with God; morning is wiser than evening, everything will be ready!
Ivan Tsarevich went to bed, and Vasilisa the Wise came out onto the porch and shouted in a loud voice:
- Hey you, my faithful servants! Level the deep ditches, remove the sharp stones, sow the rye so that it will ripen by morning.
Tsarevich Ivan woke up at dawn, looked - everything was ready: there were no ditches, no gullies, the field stood as smooth as the palm of his hand, and there was rye on it - so high that the jackdaw would be buried.
I went to the sea king with a report.
“Thank you,” says the sea king, “for being able to serve.” Here's another job for you: I have three hundred stacks, each stack contains three hundred kopecks - all white wheat; By tomorrow, thresh all the wheat for me cleanly, down to a single grain, and don’t break the stacks and don’t break the sheaves. If you don’t do it, off your head!
- I’m listening, Your Majesty! - said Ivan Tsarevich; he walks around the yard again and sheds tears.
- Why are you crying bitterly? - Vasilisa the Wise asks him.
- How can I not cry? The king of the sea ordered me to thresh all the stacks in one night, not to drop the grain, and not to break the stacks and not to break the sheaves.
- It’s not a problem, there will be trouble ahead! Go to bed with God; morning is wiser than evening.
The prince went to bed, and Vasilisa the Wise came out onto the porch and shouted in a loud voice:
- Hey, you creeping ants! No matter how many of you there are in this world, all of you crawl here and pick out the grain from your father’s stacks cleanly.
In the morning the sea king calls Ivan Tsarevich:
- Did you serve?
- Served, Your Majesty!
- Let's go have a look.
They came to the threshing floor - all the stacks were untouched, they came to the granary - all the bins were full of grain.
- Thank you, brother! - said the sea king. “Make me another church from pure wax so that it will be ready by dawn: this will be your last service.”
Again Tsarevich Ivan walks through the yard and washes himself with tears.
- Why are you crying bitterly? - Vasilisa the Wise asks him from the high tower.
- How can I not cry, good fellow? The king of the sea ordered to make a church from pure wax in one night.
- Well, it’s not a problem yet, there will be trouble ahead. Go to bed; morning is wiser than evening.
The prince went to bed, and Vasilisa the Wise came out onto the porch and shouted in a loud voice:
- Hey you, hard-working bees! No matter how many of you there are in this world, all of you fly here and mold a church of God out of pure wax so that it will be ready by morning.
In the morning, Ivan Tsarevich got up, looked - the church was made of pure wax, and went to the sea king with a chill.
- Thank you, Ivan Tsarevich! No matter what servants I had, no one was able to please as much as you. For this, be my heir, protector of the whole kingdom; choose any of my thirteen daughters as your wife.
Ivan Tsarevich chose Vasilisa the Wise; They were immediately married and feasted in joy for three whole days.
No less time passed, Ivan Tsarevich yearned for his parents, and he wanted to go to Holy Rus'.
- Why are you so sad, Ivan Tsarevich?
- Oh, Vasilisa the Wise, I was sad for my father, for my mother, I wanted to go to Holy Rus'.
- This trouble has come! If we leave, there will be a great pursuit after us; the king of the sea will be angry and put us to death. We have to manage!
Vasilisa the Wise spat in three corners, locked the doors to her mansion and ran with Ivan Tsarevich to Holy Rus'.
The next day, early, messengers from the king of the sea arrive to raise the young people and invite them to the palace to the king. Knocking on doors:
- Wake up, wake up! Father is calling you.
- It’s still early, we didn’t get enough sleep: come back later! - one saliva answers.
So the messengers left, waited an hour or two and knocked again:
- It's not time to sleep, it's time to get up!
- Wait a little: let’s get up and get dressed! - another saliva answers.
For the third time the messengers arrive:
“The King of the Sea is angry, why are they cooling off for so long?”
- We'll be there now! - answers the third saliva.
The messengers waited and waited and let's knock again: no response, no response! The door was broken down, but the mansion was empty.
They reported to the king that the young people had run away; He became embittered and sent a great pursuit after them.
And Vasilisa the Wise with Ivan Tsarevich are already far, far away! They ride greyhound horses without stopping, without rest.
“Come on, Ivan Tsarevich, fall down to the damp ground and listen, is there any pursuit from the sea king?”
Ivan Tsarevich jumped off his horse, pressed his ear to the damp ground and said:
- I hear people’s rumors and horse tramping!
- They're after us! - said Vasilisa the Wise and immediately turned the horses into a green meadow, Ivan Tsarevich into an old shepherd, and she herself became a peaceful lamb.
The chase comes:
- Hey, old man! Have you seen a good fellow galloping here with a red maiden?
“No, good people, I haven’t seen it,” answers Ivan Tsarevich, “I’ve been grazing in this place for forty years, not a single bird has flown past, not a single animal has prowled past!”
The chase turned back:
- Your Royal Majesty! We didn’t run into anyone on the way, we only saw a shepherd tending a sheep.
- What was missing? After all, it was them! - the sea king shouted and sent a new pursuit.
And Ivan Tsarevich and Vasilisa the Wise have been riding greyhounds a long time ago.
- Well, Ivan Tsarevich, fall down to the damp ground and listen, is there any pursuit from the sea king?
Ivan Tsarevich got off his horse, put his ear to the damp earth and said:
- I hear people’s rumors and horse tramping.
- They're after us! - said Vasilisa the Wise; she herself became a church, turned Tsarevich Ivan into an old priest, and horses into trees.
The chase comes:
- Hey, father! Didn't you see a shepherd pass here with a lamb?
- No, good people, I haven’t seen it; I have been working in this church for forty years - not a single bird has flown past, not a single animal has prowled past.
The chase turned back:
- Your Royal Majesty! Nowhere were they found a shepherd with a lamb; Only on the way did they see the church and the old priest.
- Why didn’t you destroy the church and capture the priest? After all, it was them! - the sea king shouted and he himself galloped after Ivan Tsarevich and Vasilisa the Wise.
And they went far.
Vasilisa the Wise speaks again:
- Ivan Tsarevich! Fall down to the damp ground - you won't hear the chase!
Ivan Tsarevich got off his horse, put his ear to the damp earth and said:
“I hear people’s rumors and the horse’s tramp more than ever.”
“It’s the king himself who’s galloping.”
Vasilisa the Wise turned the horses into a lake, Ivan Tsarevich into a drake, and she herself became a duck.
The king of the sea galloped to the lake and immediately guessed who the duck and the drake were; hit the damp ground and turned into an eagle. The eagle wants to kill them to death, but it didn’t work out that way: whatever doesn’t fly apart from above... the drake is about to hit, and the drake dives into the water; The duck is about to hit, and the duck dives into the water! I fought and fought and could not do anything. The king of the sea galloped to his underwater kingdom, and Vasilisa the Wise and Ivan Tsarevich waited for a good time and went to Holy Rus'.
Whether it was long or short, they arrived in the thirtieth kingdom.
“Wait for me in this little forest,” says Ivan Tsarevich to Vasilisa the Wise, “I’ll go and report to my father and mother in advance.”
- You will forget me, Ivan Tsarevich!
- No, I won’t forget.
- No, Ivan Tsarevich, don’t talk, you’ll forget! Remember me even when two doves begin to fight at the windows!
Ivan Tsarevich came to the palace; his parents saw him, threw themselves on his neck and began to kiss and pardon him; In his joy, Ivan Tsarevich forgot about Vasilisa the Wise.
He lives another day with his father and mother, and on the third he plans to woo some princess.
Vasilisa the Wise went to the city and hired herself as a worker at a malt mill. They began to prepare the bread; she took two pieces of dough, made a pair of doves and put them in the oven.
- Guess, mistress, what will happen from these doves?
- What will happen? Let's eat them - that's all!
- No, I didn’t guess!
Vasilisa the Wise opened the stove, opened the window - and at that very moment the doves started up, flew straight into the palace and began to beat on the windows; No matter how hard the royal servants tried, they could not drive them away.
It was only then that Ivan Tsarevich remembered about Vasilisa the Wise, sent messengers in all directions to question and search, and found her at the bakery; He took the white people by the hands, kissed them on the sugary lips, brought them to their father, to their mother, and they all began to live together, live well, and make good things.
Translated from Russian · original on wisdomlib.ru