Once upon a time there lived a rich khan; he had an only son, the handsome and daring Kairbek. Since Kairbek had long since passed adolescence, the khan, his father, began searching for a suitable bride for him. Messengers were sent everywhere with an invitation to come to the Khan's palace to everyone who had beautiful daughters, and to present these beauties to Kairbek for his choice. Soon the invited guests gathered, and before the eyes of the young khan a string of beautiful girls stretched out, each more beautiful and sweeter than the other. But none of them attracted the young man’s attention: he looked at the beauties with boredom in his eyes. After this, a feast was held in the palace, during which the old khan began to ask his son which of the beauties would be his desired wife.
- O father, do not be angry with me, but I cannot please your ears with my answer: all the girls you have collected in the palace are undoubtedly beautiful, but the freedom that I enjoy under the shadow of my native roof is even more beautiful for me; and if I am destined to marry and thus fulfill your will, then I would like to have a wife whose whiteness could compete with the sides of this bird, and the blackness of her hair with its tail. - At the same time, Kairbek pointed with his hand at the magpie sitting on the tree: “If there is such a beauty,” he continued, “then I will certainly get married.”
Hearing such words, the old khan was saddened, but, knowing the unyielding character of his son, he did not contradict him, but turned to his entourage and ordered them to look for a similar girl for Kairbek. One of the young men volunteered to go for a bride for the Khan’s son, but everyone began to laugh at his self-confidence.
- What? - he told them. – Are there many miracles in the world? I'll look, maybe I'll discover a miracle.
“Remember,” the old khan shouted menacingly to him, “you are voluntarily going on a search; If you return with nothing, I will not spare you, I will take your life!
“Your will, khan... I’ll try my luck, and then we’ll see,” the young man answered and, getting ready to set off, immediately set off. search for a miracle beauty.
However, his search was unsuccessful: the girl with a white face and black hair was nowhere to be found. The sad young man had already decided to go back and mentally said goodbye to life, but at that time he met an ancient old man. Having carefully looked at the sad face of the rider, the old man stopped and asked what misfortune had befallen him.
- Oh, good man! “How can I not grieve,” said the young man, “when in the prime of life I have to say goodbye to my life?” “And the young man told the old man in detail why he went and what awaited him in case of failure.
The old man thought, lowered his gray head low, then finally said:
– Don’t despair, my friend, such a girl really exists in the world; but the kingdom where she lives is very difficult to find, and even more difficult to get this beauty. If Kairbek himself tries his luck, then perhaps his search will be crowned with success. - And the old man told how to get to the place where the beauty lives, and warned about the dangers that should be encountered along this path.
The young man warmly thanked the old man and rushed back to the Khanate. Having returned, he told everything in detail to Kairbek and his father, the khan.
“My son,” said the old khan, having listened carefully to the young man’s story, “leave your idea!” You see for yourself that it is almost impossible; Better choose one of our girls, and we will all live happily and calmly.
But Kairbek, not heeding his father’s advice and requests, quickly began to prepare for a dangerous journey. Travel provisions were hastily prepared, bodyguards were chosen to accompany Kairbek, and when everything was ready, the young khan ordered horses to be brought for himself and for the young man who had obtained information about the girl, but not the ordinary ones on which his bodyguards rode, but special, fairy-tale horses dul-dul*, possessing supernatural strength and running speed. When all the preparations were completed, the travelers set off: Kairbek and his new comrade rode in front, and behind them were a long line of bodyguards, servants and horses loaded with provisions.
Burning with impatience to reach his goal as quickly as possible, Kairbek spurred his dul-dul more and more often, but the bodyguards restrained the young man’s ardor every time.
“Think, Kairbek,” they told him, “what good will it do if you gallop forward alone; True, your dul-dul will sooner carry you to your goal; but with what eyes will we return to your father and what will we answer to his question, where is his son? You've probably forgotten what your father is like when he's angry?
“My friends,” the impatient young man answered them, “perhaps you are right, but my desire to see the beauty as soon as possible has no limits, and it will be better if you let me and my friend go ahead.” Do not be afraid of your father's wrath; just tell him that I ordered you to return, and he won’t even lay a finger on you.
For a long time the bodyguards judged and decided what to do, but in the end Kairbek’s stubbornness broke the prudence of those around him, and they decided to let the khan’s son and his comrade go, providing them with a large supply of provisions.
Light as birds, the dul-dul rushed forward like an arrow, leaving the khan's possessions and retinue of bodyguards far behind. The area through which the travelers were traveling was beautiful: with the abundance of trees and flowers, it resembled a luxurious garden; The singing of birds and the murmuring of streams caressed the ears of Kairbek and his companion, and the subtle fragrance emanating from beautiful flowers flowed in a sweet stream into the chests of the travelers. The Khan's son and his comrade did not yet suffer a shortage of anything: they had enough provisions, and they quenched their thirst with the crystal water of fast-running streams.
About a month had already passed since they left the khan's possessions, and there was no end to their journey. Finally, the supplies of provisions were exhausted, and it was impossible to get food for themselves on the way: the fertile terrain through which they had so recently passed was long left behind, and around them lay a bare desert, covered only with scorched grass. The fleet-footed dul-duls were noticeably weakening - they were hungry and thirsty. Kairbek’s soul was gloomy and sad, and then one day he turned to his comrade:
– Listen, my friend: the time has come to think about how we can save ourselves from starvation.
“We should return before it’s too late—that would be the most prudent thing to do!” – the young man noted hesitantly.
- How? Now that we are perhaps already at our goal? Never! If the unknown scares you, then go back, I prefer death to shameful cowardice!
“In this case, one of us must sacrifice his horse, and since my dul-dul is weaker than yours, we will kill him.”
Kairbek agreed with the opinion of his comrade, and they killed the horse and continued their journey together on one dul-dul. And so, when the supply of horse meat ran out, when they both completely lost heart and were already mentally preparing for death, fate took pity, and they saw in the distance a dense, beautiful forest, tenderly beckoning them under its green arches. The travelers sighed with relief and mentally sent praise to Allah, who had taken pity on them.
To the great joy of Kairbek and his comrade, the forest was full of fruit trees. Beautiful juicy fruits were temptingly visible among the greenery and in such abundance that hunger was out of the question. But the exhausted travelers first of all needed water.
Soon the ringing whinny of the dul-dul announced the close presence of the source, and the comrades once again thanked Allah.
Several days of complete rest passed; Kairbek perked up again and turned to his comrade with these words:
“I’m strong enough, my dul-dul looks great too, and I don’t see any reason to stay in this forest anymore.” My plan is this: since you still have not fully recovered, then stay here and wait for my return, and I alone will continue the journey and, perhaps, will soon reach my goal; It’s impossible for us to go on the same dul-dul.
The comrade agreed with Kairbek, and they said goodbye.
Having left the forest, Kairbek saw in the distance a high hill, beautifully rising above the vast plain, and directed his horse to its top. Having ridden to the very top of the hill and looking down, the young man saw some animals deep in the ravine, but due to the distance, it was not possible to determine what kind of animals they were, and so Kairbek leaned heavily from his horse and began to peer. At this time his horse stumbled, and they both flew into the ravine. When he fell, Kairbek lost consciousness.
When he woke up, he saw in front of him a handsome old man lovingly caring for him, and himself lying on a neat bed in a wretched hut.
“Well, my son,” the old man said when he saw Kairbek’s gaze fixed on himself, “you got off cheaply, although you will have to heal for a long time: the chain mail you were wearing cut links into your body when you fell, and you had deep cuts on your body.” But be calm: I will heal your wounds and put you back on your feet.
-Who are you, good man? – Kairbek asked the old man.
- I'm a shepherd. When you were at the top of the hill, I and my herd were at the bottom of the ravine and saw your horse fall. I found you unconscious, and your noble horse with wounded legs: I managed to transport you on a cart to my hut, and now, as you can see, you are now on the road to recovery.
“I am eternally grateful to you, old man, for your kindness and care for me,” said the touched Kairbek, “but tell me, I pray you, is my horse alive?”
– Don’t worry, your fleet-footed horse is alive and waiting for its owner. Now tell me who you are, young man, and where you are going.
Kairbek told the old man in detail and frankly about the purpose of his journey and began to ask his advice on what to do next and whether it was possible to find the desired girl. After listening carefully to the young man, the old man said:
“I heard about your father’s possessions and now I know who you are; I won’t give any advice until you recover - now you need complete rest.
A month later, Kairbek’s wounds were healed with the help of some wonderful oil, and he himself felt vigorous and strong, as if he had never been sick.
“Now, young man, you are completely healthy,” the old man turned to him, “and I can already talk to you about your business.” The beauty you are looking for lives in the neighboring khanate; but take the advice of a friend and a wise old man: do not go further, turn around and return to your father’s domain. I would not want such a brave young man as you to die an inglorious death at the hands of an evil beauty. There were many daredevils who longed to take possession of the girl, but they all laid down their daring heads at her feet; already ninety-nine severed heads adorn the stakes of the Khan’s fence, and if you do not follow my advice, then your head will be the hundredth.
“Don’t be angry with me, good man,” Kairbek exclaimed, “but I cannot follow your advice.” You are kind and wise; I realize that you are right, but I will not return to my father’s house until I become the husband of a beauty. My desire to possess her is so great that I am ready to sacrifice even my head.
“Yes, youth is always crazy,” the shepherd said, shaking his head, “but I feel sorry for you: you are so young and beautiful.” The future is hidden from us... Promise me at least to fulfill my advice: when you come to the beauty’s khanate, then stay in the house of her atalyk*, where her seven foster brothers, kind and smart young men, live, and they will help you.
Having warmly thanked the old man for his kindness and care, Kairbek drove on and was soon near the beauty’s palace. The old shepherd told the truth: the entire fence surrounding the palace was studded with the severed heads of daredevils. The young man felt terrible, but even here he remained firm in his intention.
Arriving at the house of the girl’s foster brothers, Kairbek lived with them for three days as a guest, without saying a word about the purpose of his visit and without calling himself by name. They, in turn, also did not question the newcomer about anything. On the fourth day the brothers said to him:
“Until now, you were our guest, and we did not dare ask you anything; Now you are our own person for us, and you have nothing to hide from us.
Kairbek told the young men everything frankly and asked for their advice and help.
“Oh, we feel sorry for you,” they said, “our cruel sister will destroy you; but if the severed heads did not frighten you, then we will not dissuade you and will help you with our advice. You see, our foster sister promised herself to marry only someone who would pass the test she had appointed, and that’s the whole problem: her tests are impossible for a mortal to complete due to their difficulty. For each newly arrived brave man, she has a new idea ready. Now - at least we know - she wants to compete in horse racing, and there is hardly anyone who has a horse that could compete with her horse in running speed. Only cunning can help here. You will have to figure out how to prolong the run so that her horse gets tired before yours; the fact is that her horse is only strong until he is lashed three times, and then weakens and becomes unfit to run. That's all we could tell you; Now it’s up to you to come up with a trick yourself to defeat your sister.
Kairbek thanked the beauty's foster brothers for their advice and began to prepare for the competition.
The beauty, having learned about the newly arrived daredevil, smiled insidiously and set a day for the race, and her entourage was already mentally dividing Kairbek’s horse and clothes among themselves, quite confident of his death.
And finally the day of the running competition arrived. Kairbek rode out on his dul-dul, which had managed to gain strength after several days of rest and good food. In the clearing behind the Khan's palace, Kairbek caught up with a beauty sitting on a beautiful snow-white horse. The girl immediately struck the young man with her appearance; She really had a face of extraordinary whiteness, and luxurious hair, like a black robe, covered her shoulders and back, and she was all so captivatingly beautiful that Kairbek’s heart beat with delight, and he vowed in his soul to do everything to take possession of the beauty.
“Listen to me, wonderful young man,” the girl turned to Kairbek with a charming smile, “from the palace fence to the boundary, which is far out in the field, we will ride together, and from the boundary we will race back, and if you fall behind, then this sword will blow off your head!”
And she pointed to the weapon hanging in a precious scabbard at her golden belt.
-Have it your way, beauty! – Kairbek answered obediently, and they drove off.
The path to the boundary seemed very short for the Khan’s son, and when the beauty, having reached the boundary, turned her horse, he turned to her with a question:
- How? Are you thinking of jumping from here?! Then I shouldn’t have taken such a long journey for such a trifle - I’m not a child to play with!
- Fine! - the girl answered, - we will go further, to the next boundary.
And they went again. Having reached the new border, the beauty turned her horse again, and Kairbek again turned to her with a request:
– In the country from which I came, the will of the guest is sacred; respect my request, let me go further - I will be ashamed to gallop from here, having traveled so little.
“In my country, the will of the guest is also sacred, and I cannot refuse your request; “Let’s move on,” answered the princess.
And they went again. At the third boundary, the beauty had already decisively turned her horse, but Kairbek turned to her again:
“I hope that you will fulfill my request now and go with me for one more stage.” In the country from which I came, the upper hand is always on the side of the man, and the women willingly yield to us, and we pay them for this with our love; prove that you are no worse than our beauties.
And this time the girl gave in to Kairbek’s request, only very reluctantly.
“You take too much advantage of my compliance,” she said, frowning, “but don’t let the stranger think that our girls are less amiable.” Let's move on; but know that this will be the last concession on my part.
“I swear to you, beauty, that I will no longer abuse your kindness,” Kairbek answered her. And they moved on. At the fourth boundary both stopped and turned their horses.
– Our competition will begin from here, get ready! - said the beauty.
Before Kairbek had time to blink an eye, the insidious girl hit her horse with a whip, flew forward like a bird and a minute later completely disappeared from sight. The swift-footed dul-dul of Kairbek, as if realizing that the success of the plan and the life of his master depended on him, rushed forward like an arrow, almost without touching the ground with his thin legs. At the third boundary, Kairbek caught up with the beauty who was resting there. Seeing the approaching young man, the girl again struck her horse with a whip and again disappeared from sight. At the second boundary the same thing happened again.
“So far everything is going well,” a satisfied Kairbek thought to himself.
The girl hit her horse for the third time, and she had to ride two more distances.
- Well, my beautiful dul-dul! Serve your master! - said the young man and affectionately patted the horse’s satin neck.
The noble horse, as if sensing Kairbek’s request, neighed joyfully and flew forward like a bird. The assumption of the Khan's son was fully justified: during the last stretch, the beauty's horse apparently weakened and began to run more slowly. Noticing this, Kairbek galloped up to the girl and, knocking the golden cap off her beautiful head, said mockingly:
- Well, where can you take on masculine feats! Can you, a weak woman, outwit the horseman?
The proud girl flushed from the insult, but controlled herself and humbly said:
“You outwitted me, young man, and here is my hand.” I promise you to be a faithful and loving wife, my lord. But even though I am a weak woman, as you said, perhaps the time will come when I will prove to you my strength. And now let's go announce our wedding to my loved ones.
Great was the amazement of all the courtiers when they saw Kairbek riding next to the beauty. Finally, a daredevil was found who broke the pride of their mistress!
A magnificent wedding was soon celebrated, and the young couple, surrounded by bodyguards and servants, went to the khanate of Kairbek's father.
The road along which they were traveling ran near two large dense forests in which sorceresses were said to live. And so, when the wedding train reached the first forest, a horseman with a gun in his hand appeared at its edge. Before Kairbek had time to take a good look at the unknown rider, a shot rang out, and a bullet, sent by the well-aimed hand of the unknown shooter, knocked the hat off the head of the young khan.
- Everyone stand here and wait for my return - I must punish the impudent one! - the enraged Kairbek shouted to his bodyguards.
They began to convince him not to take risks, but the young khan, without listening to them, rushed into the forest in the hope of catching up with the unknown horseman. And he seemed to be teasing him: showing up among the trees, he instantly disappeared, only to appear again a minute later in one side or the other of the forest; he was clearly escaping Kairbek's pursuit. But then the dul-dul rushed out into the clearing and almost overtook the rider at the small hut. Suddenly the pursued horse and rider disappeared from sight of the amazed Kairbek. “It’s true, this is one of those sorceress maidens about whom they told me,” he thought, “but it won’t be me if I don’t punish the sorceress in a worthy manner!” Jumping from his horse, he boldly entered the hut and found in it two women peacefully talking, one of whom was old and ugly, and the other young and dazzlingly beautiful. Wonderful hair made of silk and silver scattered in luxurious curls along her slender figure, and wonderful eyes shone like night stars. No matter how Kairbek was blinded by the beauty of the girl, he was not at a loss.
“Was it you, treacherous one, who shot at me?” – he asked menacingly, grabbing the beauty’s hand. The girl only laughed in response, showing her pearly teeth.
– Will you answer me? – Kairbek shouted furiously, wrapping the beauty’s luxurious hair around his hand. - Confess, or I will show you how to joke with me!
But the girl was still silent, casting mocking glances at the young khan.
- Well, you will remember me! – And he began to strike the beauty with a whip.
“You better confess, and I, I swear to you on the khan’s word, will take you as my wife!” – he turned to the beauty again.
“You guessed right: I shot to lure you; “You immediately attracted me with your beauty,” said the girl, “but remember your word to marry me.”
– Dzhigit never wastes words; now get ready to go, and upon arrival in my father’s khanate we will celebrate our wedding.
“I’ll be ready now, just let me say goodbye to the woman you saw here.”
-Who is this woman? – Kairbek asked. – Your mother or maybe your sister?
“I won’t tell you who she is,” the beauty answered with a laugh. “My youngest sister is so beautiful that you wouldn’t even want to look at me in her presence.”
At these words, the girl slyly exchanged glances with the ugly old woman.
Soon Kairbek and his bride joined the waiting train, and everyone set off on their further journey. In the evening, the travelers arrived at the second forest; here Kairbek ordered to stop for rest, and he himself, having separated from the bodyguards, wanted to offer an evening prayer to Allah; but at that very time his attention was attracted by a horseman riding towards him. “Who is he and what does a lonely traveler need from me?” – thought Kairbek.
The stranger, approaching the young khan, said to him:
“I have never seen such a nice horseman as you look; and it would be flattering for my vanity to experience strength and skill in single combat with you.
“Are you challenging me?” – Kairbek asked in surprise. - But who are you and where is your home?
“Who am I and where is my home, you don’t need to know, but rather answer, do you accept my challenge?”
“I’m used to fighting, knowing my enemy, but I don’t know you,” the young khan answered proudly and turned away from the horseman with contempt.
- You must be a coward! – the unknown young man remarked mockingly.
-Who gave you the right to insult me? My bullet will tell you that I am not a coward! Stand up, I accept your challenge! – Kairbek shouted with anger.
It was decided to fight with guns. When the enemies began to load them, it turned out that one enemy had only gunpowder in stock, and the other had only bullets; Then, without hesitation, they divided their supplies equally among themselves and, measuring out a distance of thirty fathoms in the clearing, began the duel.
Shots rang out, bullets buzzed, but both opponents remained safe and sound. Finally, Kairbek fired the last charge.
- Stop! - he shouted to the stranger. - The fight is over - I have no more charges.
But the stranger, as if not hearing the words of the young khan, took aim at him with a gun.
- You are not a horseman, but a robber! – Kairbek shouted menacingly and, drawing his sword, rushed at him. Deftly dodging the aimed weapon, the unknown young man instantly jumped on his horse and rushed into the forest. Kairbek, seeing this, jumped on his fleet-footed dul-dul and rushed after him. “Probably this is also a sorceress maiden,” he thought, “but I will pacify her!” During the pursuit, the same thing happened to him that happened in the first forest; only the girl he found in the hut was incomparably more beautiful than his bride, and her hair was made of pure gold and silver. She persisted for a long time, not wanting to confess; but when Kairbek swore to her that he would take her as his wife, the beauty admitted that she was the horseman in disguise and, in order to lure him to her, offered a duel.
- Do you really know me? – Kairbek asked her.
“How can I not know you when I am your fiancée’s sister and was present at your conversation with her?” - said the girl.
“So, that ugly old woman…” began the amazed Kairbek.
“And there is a girl who is currently standing here in front of you,” the beauty finished with a sly laugh.
Soon Kairbek and his second bride joined the waiting train.
“Well, did I tell you the truth,” asked Kairbek’s first bride, “that my younger sister is incomparably more beautiful than me?”
“I don’t know about anyone, but for me all three of you are beautiful,” answered a satisfied Kairbek.
- Thank you for your kind words! In due time we will all be useful to you! - said the brides and wife of Kairbek.
Now the wedding train continued its journey unhindered and soon reached the third forest, in which the khan’s son had left his exhausted companion.
The young khan ordered everyone to stop, and he went deeper into the forest, began to look for and call his comrade, and soon found him in a thicket of fruit trees. The young man couldn’t believe his eyes when he saw his comrade.
- Oh Kairbek! – he exclaimed joyfully. – Do I see you healthy and unharmed? - And he warmly began to hug and kiss his friend.
Kairbek told him in detail about his adventures and urged him to quickly get out of the forest.
Finally, everyone got together and quite safely arrived at the possessions of the old khan, where they immediately celebrated first the happy return of Kairbek, and then his wedding with two beautiful sorceresses. He was given a special palace to live in, separated from the palace of the old khan by a large clearing.
And at a time when Kairbek was blissful and indulged in complete peace, an unexpected thunderstorm gathered over his head.
Old Khan was so captivated by the beauty of his daughters-in-law that he decided to somehow take possession of them. Those close to him, noticing this, not only did not dissuade him from the vile undertaking, but even out of a desire to curry favor, they assisted him in every possible way with advice and kindled the old man’s desire. The most cruel ones suggested taking Kairbek’s life, while others said that first one should consult with a healer and do as he indicated. The called healer advised the old khan to pretend to be seriously ill and announce to Kairbek that only he alone could save his father from a fatal illness if he was not afraid to perform a difficult feat in order to take possession of the necessary medicine.
The old khan carried out exactly the advice of the healer: he went to bed and ordered his entourage to spread the news of his serious illness.
Soon rumors about the illness of the old khan reached the palace chambers of Kairbek. Loving his father dearly, the young khan decided to immediately go to the sick man and see for himself whether the rumors were true. Kairbek's wives began to stop him:
“Don’t go,” they told him, “and don’t believe the rumors!” Evil people want to set a trap for you.
“I didn’t think that you were such cruel women that you wanted to quarrel with me even with my father!” – he answered them with anger.
- O lord, how can you think this? “Loving you with all our souls, we warn you, since you are in danger of many troubles if you are not more careful,” the young khanshi answered sadly.
But Kairbek did not listen to them: sitting on a saddled horse, he rode to his father’s palace. Walking into the sick man’s bedchamber, he saw the old khan lying on an ottoman, covered with pillows, groaning and groaning, and next to him was a healer. The young khan became very sad, believing in his father’s illness, and began to beg the healer to make every effort to cure the khan.
“It is not in my power to cure your father,” answered the cunning healer.
- O wise old man! Is your knowledge powerless? Think, maybe you will find healing herbs that will save my father,” Kairbek begged the healer.
“You see, my friend,” the old man began in an insinuating voice, “there is, however, one remedy, but getting it is almost as difficult as plucking a star from the sky.”
- But does the khan, my father, have few faithful servants who are ready to go through fire and water to save his life? – Kairbek exclaimed hotly.
– Who doubts this? But the fact is that this remedy should not be obtained by slaves, but by the hand of a person close to the khan, his own son.
- So why are you silent, old man? Tell me what I need to do! And, I swear to you, there is no such feat that I would not accomplish to save my father! – Kairbek exclaimed hotly.
– O beautiful Kairbek, a noble heart beats in your chest, and your love for your father is commendable. Let it be your way. Go to the forest bordering the khan's possessions; wild boar lives there; meeting him is dangerous for a mortal: one wrong aim and the person dies; You must kill this boar with your gun. Three doves will fly out of the mouth of the lifeless beast; they must also be killed at the same time with one charge. Three sparrows will appear in place of the killed pigeons; and they must be killed with one shot. From these birds, when you return, you will have to prepare a dish with your own hands for the dying khan, and as soon as he tastes it, the disease will instantly disappear, and your father will get up healthy.
- The mercy of Allah is great - I hope he will help me get this remedy! - Kairbek exclaimed and immediately rode back to his palace to prepare his weapons and go into the forest.
The young khanshis, having learned about the feat Kairbek was about to accomplish, told him:
“The old medicine man told you the truth: a meeting with a wild boar is dangerous for a mortal; but we will help you, our lord. Take these guns; they are charged and charmed; keep them ready and everything will turn out well.
Arriving in the forest, Kairbek soon tracked down a huge boar. Approaching him as far as possible, the young khan killed the huge animal with a well-aimed bullet. At the same moment, three snow-white doves flew out of his mouth; Having a second gun ready, Kairbek killed all three pigeons with a well-aimed shot, from which three sparrows immediately flew out; from the third gun and these birds were immediately killed. Joyful and satisfied, Kairbek returned to the palace and hastily began preparing a medicinal dish.
Having learned that the difficult task had been completed, the old khan became indignant and attacked the healer with abuse.
- Don't worry, dear Khan! - answered the healer. “I still have one errand left for your son, and this time it is unlikely that he will survive.”
Then, calling Kairbek, the old man said to him:
- I'm pleased with you; but that’s not all: I forgot to tell you that food prepared from sparrow meat must be served with boiled millet, and this millet must be taken at night from an abandoned mill; there was just enough left for the meal.
“Now he will probably die,” the cunning healer thought to himself, “not a single living creature has ever returned from this cursed mill.”
Kairbek, before going to the mill, came to his wives and told them everything. Then the elder wife said to him:
– Don’t be afraid – everything will turn out well; just before leaving, learn my spell and repeat it all the time until you complete the order, and, in addition, take my gun with you; You will need it on the way back: evil people will be watching for you, and you should keep a vigilant look around.
Thanks to the learned spell, nothing bad happened to the young khan at the mill, and he, taking all the millet, went back.
By secret order of the insidious healer, arrows were placed in the bushes along the entire path from the mill to the palace - they were supposed to, if Kairbek survived at the mill, finish him off on the way. But, warned by his elder wife, Kairbek soon spotted the entrenched people and killed them all with his gun.
The annoyance and indignation of the old khan and the healer were great when they saw Kairbek unharmed with millet in his hands; but, in order not to give himself away, the old khan pretended to be delighted and, having tried a dish of sparrow meat and millet, announced that he had completely recovered. But the machinations of the old khan did not end there yet - he was strangled by anger, and his beautiful daughters-in-law were dreaming in his sleep and in reality, and finally, the distraught khan again called the healer and began to consult with him.
“It’s difficult to fight with your son,” said the healer, “he is not afraid of anything, and, besides, I guess, the beautiful Khanshis are helping him with their advice.” Cast aside all your hesitation and order him killed.
“No, I won’t dare to do that,” said the old khan, “come up with something else.”
“Okay, I’ll come up with an idea, but just give me your word not to interfere with my orders.”
“I agree, but just remember, you must not kill my son,” the khan remarked again.
– Don’t worry, he will remain alive, but he won’t bother you anymore.
After this, the healer ordered the servants to go to the palace to the young khan with orders to immediately report to their father. The younger wives, seeing off Kairbek, told him:
“You are in danger of great misfortune: evil people will tie your hands and then gouge out your eyes; but we will make sure that the ropes and towels with which they will bind you, no matter how strong they are, will instantly break at the slightest movement of your hands.
And indeed, it happened, as the young khanshas said: they wanted to gouge out Kairbek’s eyes, but, thanks to the magical help of his younger wives, he returned to them safe and sound.
The healer and his accomplices were furious with anger. They decided to try again to tie Kairbek and prepared an unusually strong rope for this. Going to the palace at the new call of his father, the young khan was stopped by his younger wife, who told him:
“Don’t be afraid, sir, and now everything will work out well; There is only one thing that you would not be able to tear - my towel, but I will never give it to anyone, and no one knows about it except you and me.
But in vain the younger khansha thought so: while she was telling Kairbek about the miraculous power of her towel, the healer’s servants, sent for the young khan, overheard her and reported this to their master.
And so, when Kairbek appeared at the palace of the old khan, the healer sent to the young khansha for a wonderful towel, which her husband allegedly demanded. But the servant returned with nothing. Then they sent again, and this time the messenger returned empty-handed and announced that the beauty had told him to say that only the ring taken from Kairbek’s finger would force her to send this towel.
- Well, now he is in our hands! – exclaimed the delighted healer. “You just need to quietly remove the ring from his hand.”
When he succeeded, he ordered the messenger to immediately gallop to Kairbek’s palace and present the ring to the younger Khansha, and in return bring a towel.
Great was the beauty’s amazement and grief when she saw her husband’s ring. Not daring to disobey the will of her master, she at the same time knew that now Kairbek would die and nothing could be done to prevent the misfortune.
And indeed, Kairbek, tied with this towel, was blinded; then the villains led him into the impenetrable thicket of a dense forest and abandoned him there to the mercy of fate. Kairbek lay for a long time in complete unconsciousness, and when he began to regain consciousness, someone’s whisper touched his ears: it was wild pigeons talking.
“Poor man,” said one pigeon, “cruel people have deprived him of his sight, and now he must perish.”
“Yes, unless he thinks of anointing his eyes with our droppings,” said another pigeon.
– But will he see as well? – asked the first one.
- Even better than before; only his eyes will change their color,” answered the second dove.
- May Allah instill this thought in him. - And the doves fluttered and flew away.
Kairbek listened to this conversation with greed, and as soon as the birds flew away, he began to grope for pigeon droppings on the ground and, having found it, anointed his eyes. At that same moment he became sighted again, and his eyes changed their previous black color to a beautiful sky blue, which further increased the beauty of the young khan.
- Oh Allah! Great is your mercy! – the touched young khan exclaimed, and tears of tenderness and gratitude streamed down his face. - But how treacherous are my wives! Caressing and reassuring me and assuring me of safety, they themselves destroyed me by giving the magic towel to my enemies! But I will repay them for their treachery!
Having waited until daylight, Kairbek began to look for a way out of the forest, intending to return to the khan’s possessions and take revenge on his wives.
As soon as the old khan got rid of his hated son, he immediately sent his bodyguards to his daughters-in-law with a notification about the sudden death of Kairbek and with an offer to move to his palace and become his wives.
After listening to the ambassadors, the young beauties exclaimed angrily:
“Tell the khan that the memory of our husband is sacred to us and a villain who raised his hand against his own son will never call us his wives!”
Hearing such an answer, the khan ordered to take the beauties from the palace by force, but the warriors sent by the khan for them did not return: they were all killed by the enchanted bullets of the beauties.
- And if so, then I will start a real war with the stubborn ones! - the khan shouted in anger and, having recruited a detachment of warriors, at the head of them he rushed across the plain to the palace of the beauties.
The young Hanshis, seeing the approaching detachment, jumped on their horses, opened the palace gates and quickly rushed out to meet the enemies, hitting them with deadly bullets from their magic guns*. Half of the detachment of warriors remained on the plain, and the rest, along with the khan, shamefully fled.
And from that time on, daily battles began, equally unsuccessful for the evil khan. His rage knew no bounds; Beside himself with anger and powerlessness, he brought out more and more troops against the stubborn beauties.
While these battles were taking place, Kairbek came out of the forest and headed towards the Khanate. Approaching the plain on which the palaces were located, he saw flags, red on his father’s palace, and black on his own. “Apparently, my father is very happy about my death if he put out a red flag,” thought the saddened Kairbek. But the black flag raised on the palace gates of the wives led the young khan to bewilderment.
- Why should they grieve if they themselves helped the villains destroy me? - he said bitterly and decided to go first to his father’s palace and see what was happening there without him.
He was not afraid of being recognized, firstly, because he was not blind, and secondly, his entire dress was so torn and dirty that no one in these clothes could recognize him as the former brilliant handsome man. And indeed, when Kairbek entered the courtyard of the Khan's palace, no one paid attention to him; Seeing this, the khan's son boldly approached the soldiers and servants and began to talk to them. When he learned from the soldiers about the attacks of the old khan on the palace of the beauties, Kairbek immediately had the idea of sneaking with them into the possessions of his wives and punishing them for their treachery. Turn to the soldiers, he told them:
- Take me with you - I’m a good shooter and will be useful to you during an attack.
But they didn’t even listen to him. However, he pestered everyone so persistently with his request that, finally, his request was reported to the old khan; The khan, due to the fact that he had few people willing to fight with the beauties, immediately expressed his consent, and the unrecognized khan’s son thus joined the detachment of warriors.
The next day after this, at sunrise, the warriors of the old khan formed into regular ranks and moved across the plain to the palace of the beauties; At the head of the warriors was Kairbek. Before they had time to reach the middle of the clearing, the gates of the palace of the younger khan opened and three beauties, armed from head to toe, quickly rode out on beautiful horses and attacked the khan’s warriors. The battle began to boil, but, as usual, it did not last long: soon the attackers were lying on the ground, thrown from their horses, and only one Kairbek was still fighting with the beauties. When they saw the blue-eyed handsome man, the young khans simultaneously had the same thought: “Isn’t this our husband?”, and only the blue eyes of the warrior did not allow their guess to turn into complete confidence. At the end of the battle, the khan’s warriors, seeing with what courage their new comrade fought and repelled the attack, began to treat him with respect.
The next day the battle began again, and, just like the day before, again all the warriors were thrown off their horses, only Kairbek continued to fight and penetrated almost to the gates of the palace of the beauties.
- But this is our husband! - the young Khanshi said after the battle and decided to finally make sure of this the next morning.
“At the end of the battle, when he begins to pursue us, we will let him into the yard; two of us must immediately lock the gate, and the third will give him a lash; if he is really our husband, he will certainly blush greatly with anger, and then we will not let him out of the palace, otherwise we will kill him and throw his body over the fence - that’s my advice to you! - said the eldest khansha.
– Your advice is good, we accept it; “Only the lash must be inflicted by the hand of the youngest of us,” said the other two khanshas. That's what we decided.
The next morning the usual battle took place again, still unsuccessful for the old khan. Kairbek, involved in the battle, moved closer and closer to the palace gates and finally entered the courtyard. Then the two older khanshas instantly slammed the gates, and the younger one hit Kairbek with a whip. Angry color filled the entire face of the young khan.
- Oh, so you really are our husband! – the beauties exclaimed joyfully and rushed to hug Kairbek. But he angrily pushed them away and said threateningly:
- How? Cruel women, have you lost so much shame and conscience that even now you continue your vile game with me?!
- Oh Kairbek, come to your senses! What are you saying about us, your faithful slaves? Didn't we warn you from danger and save you from certain death so many times? – the beauties exclaimed with sobs.
- Yes, they saved me so that later they would more accurately destroy me! Didn't you give my villains a magic towel that I couldn't tear, and thereby gave my enemies the opportunity to blind me? Perhaps you will deny this in your shamelessness? – he asked angrily.
- Oh my lord! - exclaimed the younger wife. “How could I disobey your order and not give the towels when your ring was given to me?”
- My ring? – Kairbek exclaimed and at these words he looked at his hands. - Allah! I don't have my ring! This means that my villains took it down... Oh, how guilty I am to you, having these unworthy suspicions! Forgive me generously my unbridled anger and forget my insults! – And Kairbek began to hug the beauties and tell them in detail what happened to him after he went blind.
“But tell me,” he again turned to the young khans, “why did my youngest wife hit me with a whip?”
“Forgive me, my lord, that I dared to raise my hand against you,” the younger Khansha said with fear, “but we needed to make sure whether you were really our husband.”
- So what?
- The color of anger covered your face; “You’re the only one who expresses indignation like that,” the beauty answered.
Having calmed down and talked, Kairbek began to consult with his wives on what to do next: whether to stay and reconcile with his father or flee to another country.
“Don’t hope for reconciliation with your father,” said the beauties. “Sooner or later the old khan will destroy you and take possession of us; It’s better to collect our wealth and move to another place.
As the beautiful khanshis advised, this is what the young khan did: taking all the jewelry and surrounding himself with faithful bodyguards and devoted servants, they moved to another country and lived there happily and richly.
And the old khan, finding his son’s palace empty, could not bear the grief and died, without causing anyone to regret his death.
Translated from Russian · original on wisdomlib.ru