Not in which kingdom, not in which state, well, maybe even in the one in which we live, there lived a king. The Tsar had three sons: Vasily, Fedor and Ivan. This father says to his sons:
- So, my beloved sons, I have become old, who of you three will do such a service for me? Which of you will go to distant lands, to the thirtieth kingdom, bring me living water and dead water, manege berries and rejuvenating apples, I want to rejuvenate.
He says to his eldest son Vasily:
- Well, Vasya, go, if you bring it to me, I will give you half the kingdom and then make you king for it. The son, of course, did not refuse.
“Well, father, get me a good horse from the stable, I’ll go, bless me.”
The father found a calm horse, the son collected food supplies and hit the road. He got out onto the wide road and drove off.
When he arrived at three rosstans, all the roads were divided into different directions, and on this road there was a pillar.
On the pole there is an inscription for each road:
“Take the first road, the right one - you will be killed; to take the middle road means to be married; If you take the left road, you will be rich.”
So, now he thought a little: “Why should I be rich, I’m not poor anyway; Why should I be killed? I’m still young. Come on, I’ll go medium.”
So he went out into the open field a little, and saw three tents standing. When he arrives at the tents, a girl and a young woman run out of the tent.
- Well done, well done, don’t rob the horse, come into the room, we’ll clean it up. Eat - don't get full, drink - don't get drunk and get ready to sleep with me, and don't wipe the spoons dry.
He comes, of course, into the room, they set the table for him, began to drink and feed him. When he has drunk and eaten, this same young lady comes, takes him by the hands and leads him to the second room. Leads him to the bed and says; - Well, lie down against the wall, and I’ll fall on the edge.
Well, he, of course, did not contradict, he fell against the wall, and she fell on the edge. As soon as he managed to hug her, she turned the lever, the bed opened, and he flew into the dungeon, into the cellar in general.
Here the king has been waiting for his son for a month, two, six months, and there is no news from his son, he has disappeared; and the king begins to get very bored. And so there was no trace of him. Now he returned to his second son, Fedor:
“Well, Fedya, maybe you’ll go, if Vasya has been gone for a year soon.”
Fedya did not refuse to go, he went. So they found him a calm horse, collected food supplies for him, and so he set off on his journey. Then he also comes to the Rosstans, to the three roads, like the first brother. Rosstani were divided into three parts: right, middle and left. “To go to the right means you will be killed; to go to the middle - to be married; If you go to the left, you will be rich.”
He thought: “Why should I be rich, I’m not poor anyway, why should I be killed - I want to live. Come on, I’ll go where the married man can be.”
And so I went. So he goes out into an open field and sees three tents standing.
When he drives up to the tents, he sees a young woman and a girl running out of the tent.
- Well done, well done, don’t remove the horse, we will clean it up, give it water and food, be calm, come into the room!
Now he entered the room, the girl sat him down at the table.
- Well done, well done, eat - don't get full, drink - don't get drunk, with me, with the beauty, get ready for bed and don't wipe your spoons dry.
She takes him by the hand, takes him into another room, leads him to the bed and says: - Well done, lie down against the wall, and I’ll lie on the edge.
So, of course, he fell down, he just managed to put his arm around her, she took it, turned the lever, the bed moved apart, and he flew into the cellar. When he flew into the cellar and went a little crazy, he stood up and saw his brother standing in front of him.
- Oh, brother Vasya, are you here?
- Yes, here, but what, did you also come to get married? And the wallpapers ended up together. The father is very bored and says:
- Well, to hell with them and with their rejuvenation, like no son was gone more than a year ago.
And he did not send his youngest son. But the son found out and came:
- Dad, bless me, I will go to perform your service and at the same time I will find the brothers. The father tells him:
- No, Vanyusha, I won’t let you down; You are the only one left, and you know who will be in charge after me, just as those brothers did not return.
His father doesn’t bless him, and his mother didn’t even let him say:
“We only have one son left, and we’ve both become old, I won’t let my youngest son go anywhere.” Well, the son began to say most of all:
- Bless, father and mother; If you bless me, I’ll go, but if you don’t bless me, I’ll go. I’ll bring some rejuvenating apples and find my brothers.
The mother began to cry, the father could no longer stand it and began to bless him. His mother also blessed him in the end (he will have a long journey). Then he himself went to the stables and found the best horse, the best of which there was none.
When he found the horse, led it to the porch, he came back home. He goes into the room to his father, to his mother. And he was blessed, said goodbye, and set off on his journey. He also drove out onto a wide road and reached Rosstany, where there was a pillar, there was an inscription on the pillar; He got off his horse and read the inscription:
“To go to the right means to be killed; on average to go - to be married; If you go to the left, you will be rich.”
“What do I need wealth for, I’m not poor anyway; Why should I go where someone who has been killed will be, I will go where someone who is married will be, nowhere else, like my brothers there, to help them out.”
So I came to the place where a married man should be. He arrives in an open field. From afar he sees three tents standing. He drove up to the tents, rode around one tent on the right side and saw horses, he himself said:
“Ours, the royal horses, well, and brothers, nowhere else but here,” and he himself rode up to the porch.
Now a girl and a young woman run out and say:
- Well done, well done, don’t remove the horse, we will remove it, go to the room!
He answered them like this:
“I am the owner of the horse, I will clean it, water it, feed it, and then go into the tent.”
He brings the horse to the same horses where his brother’s horses stood, and poured wheat on them all, and he himself goes into the tent.
A young woman comes running.
- Well done, well done, drink - don't get drunk, eat - don't get too full, get ready to sleep with me and don't wipe the spoon dry.
And he answered:
“If they die, they don’t jump, they eat, they don’t treat them, and they know how to wipe it off.”
Now it’s like this: she comes, takes him by the hands and takes him to bed. When she brings him to the bed and says:
- But, lie down, good fellow, against the wall. And he:
- No, in Rus' they sleep on the edge, not against the wall.
And they stood and argued for a long time. Finally, he took it and threw it against the wall, and he lay down on the edge and looked at what was going on in the bed. And she agreed to this and thought:
“He did not recognize my cunning.”
They lay in silence for a while. Ivan grabbed the lever (Ivan had no time for marriage, he needed to get his brothers). When Ivan grabbed the lever, the bed opened, and the young woman was already flying into the cellar, there they shouted:
- Well, I got it myself!
A thousand people are already sitting there, all suitors. Some of them sat there for more than ten years, they were very embittered and angry at her proposal, and they fully understood her trick. Then they rushed at her like tigers and tore her to shreds, and Ivan listened to it all. Then Ivan jumped out of bed, ran up to the second girl with a revolver and said:
- Your life ends if you don’t give me the keys to the cellar!
When he approached her and said, she was scared, she immediately gave up the keys, and just said:
- Spare my life, good man!
Now he took the keys, escaped to the dungeon and opened the dungeon.
- Well, brothers, come out, how many of you are there - every single one of you!
It was from there that they poured out, as if he couldn’t count how many. Finally, the brothers come out.
- Oh, brother, is that you?
- Yes, I am; Well, how's your marriage?
- Yes, okay.
- OK. And I came to look for you and saved you all.
When everyone got out and began to thank Ivan Tsarevich very much for saving their lives, they all went to the stable to get the horses together. When the brothers arrived, they took their horses:
“Wait, brothers, I’ll go into the tent yet.”
The brothers began to wait. He enters the tent, sees this young woman and says:
- Well, tell me where your powder magazine is, otherwise I’ll shoot you. She says:
- Just don’t shoot, I’ll give you the keys now.
He brings the keys to the powder magazine and gives it to him. He comes to the brothers:
- Brothers, come with me, take your horses, let's go to the powder magazine.
In a row, his brothers came with him to the powder magazine. Ivan opened the cellar and ordered his brothers to fill their pockets full of gunpowder, and he collected it himself. When they had filled all their pockets, he said to the brothers:
“Here I leave the cellar empty, and you shake the gunpowder out of your pockets on the way, and I will shake it.”
When they had ridden a kilometer away and emptied all their pockets, Ivan got off his horse. When Ivan got off his horse, he lit the gunpowder, the gunpowder began to move, less than five minutes later he reached the cellar, and their entire tent collapsed.
So they moved on. When they arrived at the same three roads again with their brothers, of course, Ivan got off his horse, erased this inscription, and said:
- It's all empty.
Now he says to his brothers:
- So who, brothers, now wants to go to where the richest of you will be? The brothers refused:
- Why should we be rich, we are not poor anyway.
Vasily and Fedor refused. Now he says again to his brothers:
“But no, brothers, we still need to explore the road, I’ll go now, just wait for me.”
So he got on his horse and rode off. He arrives at an open place and sees three shops standing there. He tied up his horse, poured some wheat on it and went around the store to see what good they had, to find out. Yes, he went into the first store: it was completely empty. He came out and spat. He went into the second one and looked - he was standing there, full of dirt. I went into the third store and saw that it was full of manure, and there was wealth somewhere. Then he comes to his horse, saddles it, sits down and rides off, and soon comes to his brothers. The brothers asked him:
- Well, what is this wealth, Ivan?
- And everything is empty there, brothers. Now let's erase the inscription.
Now Ivan jumps off his horse, erases the inscription and says the following thing to his brothers:
- So, brothers, tell me, who will go to where the murdered person will be? Fulfill your parents' word and amuse the old man. You seem to remember his order? Then the wallpaper brothers, as one, answered:
- No, Vanyusha, little brother, we don’t want to go to death, but you do as you want, but we want to live. Well, he then tells them:
- No, brothers, you don’t look at it that way, one of the three of us needs to go and fulfill his father’s task. The brothers categorically refused for the second time:
- We won't go. Then he said:
“Well, brothers, then I’ll go, wait for me in this place until I return.” Maybe I’ll go for a year or two, well, wait for me, don’t go home, I’ll still fulfill my father’s task if I’m alive. Wait up to three years.
So with the words he said goodbye to his brothers and set off on that road where no one could be alive.
So he rides along the road, and rides, rides, rides, rides, whether close, far, low, high, he rides and presses his road horse. Now he had traveled quite a distance; his food supplies and also horse fodder were depleted. Most of all, he began to care that there were no more horse reserves. “Soon there will be no good horses under me.
And I’ve been hungry for 24 hours myself. Then he sees a hut standing on a hill. “Well, okay, thank God, I’ll get there soon.”
He drives up to the hut, the hut spins on chicken legs, on a rooster's head. When he got off his horse and said:
- Hut, hut, turn your eyes towards the forest, towards me with the gate, I won’t last forever, I’ll spend the night for one night!
The hut remained.
He enters the hut and sees an old woman sitting on a chair. The old woman jumped up from her chair, began to cook in the frying pan with her nose, plowed the stove with her tongue, and her tits began to spring across the garden bed. Finally she spoke:
“Fu-fu,” he says, “I’ve never been to Rus', I haven’t heard the Russian spirit, but now I see and hear it.” I’ll eat, I’ll eat, well done, I haven’t eaten human meat for a long time. And he stands, there is no blood on his lips:
- Why, grandma, have mercy; cold, hungry and you immediately start eating. You would feed, give water, heat the bathhouse, steam the bones. It would make you feel better, old witch.
The old woman thought about it, set the table, gave her something to drink, fed her, and at that very moment she heated the bathhouse and evaporated it in the bathhouse. She steamed in the bathhouse, put her to bed, sat on a stool and began to ask:
- Tell me, good fellow, what kind of family, what tribe, what is their name and where are you going? He thought for a long time and said:
- - I am, grandmother, not the king’s son, not the king’s son, but Samson Samsonovich Samson’s son.
(He should have come up with an idea.) The old woman told him right away; - But Samson was my brother, my second; now he is dead, so you are my nephew. Tell me where you are going and I will do everything for you.
“Here, auntie, is where I’m going.” I’m going to a distant land to the beautiful princess for living water and dead water, for rejuvenating apples and manege berries.
- Oh, you, my nephew, although there are many people who go there, there are few people who come from here. Well, okay, stay with me for a day, I’ll think about it.
So he stayed with his aunt for a day, and his aunt said to him:
“Here, Vanyusha, I can’t help you much now.” We have already been assigned guards by the princess so that the raven does not spill and the young ones do not skip past. Yes, but I have to let you through, because you are my nephew, to hide from the princess.
Now she also tells him:
“Well, Vanyusha, now you leave your horse here, and I’ll give you mine, because you won’t be able to ride it.” That’s why I’m letting my sister find out, and she’s twice as bad as me. And at that time I will fatten your horse. But my horse knows the way.
Then he mounted his horse, said goodbye to his grandmother and rode off. Well, soon the road appeared to him. Now he sees a hut standing, he drives up to the hut, an old woman runs out, very angry, and says:
- Hey; servants, take this horse and lead it to ours. If it sniffs, then it’s relatives; if it lies, then it’s not ours.
Now he got off his horse and was led to her horses. Servants arrive:
- Grandma, let’s smell it.
- Well, okay, come into the hut, right, nephew.
Now Vanyusha comes into the hut, the old woman set the table, fed him, gave him something to drink, treated him to vodka, heated the bathhouse, steamed him, and put him to bed. She took a stool, sat down next to him and began asking for news:
“Where are you going, nephew, and are you heading the way?” Vanyusha answers:
- Auntie, you know what? I go to the beautiful princess for living and dead water, for rejuvenating apples and playpen berries, because I really need them.
She tells him:
- Well, okay, son, give it a day, I’ll think about it, and then I’ll tell you.
So he lived for a day, she said:
- Well, son, I can’t help you anymore, go to the third sister; I’ll give you a horse, she’ll tell you there.
So he left that horse, grandma’s, with her, and rode forward on the replacement one, saying goodbye to grandma.
And soon he comes to the third aunt. As soon as I arrived at the hut, an old woman jumped out of the hut and said:
- Well, servants, take this horse to ours. As soon as it lays down, it’s not relatives; as soon as it sniffs, it’s relatives.
And he stands in one place. Here the servants come running:
- Grandma, the horse sniffed.
- Take her to the stable, give her wheat, and you, nephew, go into the hut.
Auntie also ran in, set the table, gave him something to drink, fed him, and at the same time heated the bathhouse, evaporated it, and put him to bed. She sat down on the chair herself.
- Well, tell me, nephew, where are you going?
- So, auntie, where I’m going. Maybe you, of course, know such a state. I’m going to the beautiful princess, I need to get living and dead water, rejuvenating apples, playpen berries.
“You know, nephew, there are many who go there, but few who come from here.” You know - I am the eldest of the sisters, so I have a lot of responsibility, I should not let anyone through. The raven didn’t fly past me, the fellow didn’t skip past me. Well, I don’t know how you, nephew, accidentally came to me.
- Well, what can you do, auntie, in times of trouble - not your mind. Please help.
- Well, okay, nephew, I’ll take all measures for you, maybe I’ll help.
Now the old woman sits down at the table and writes a letter to her brother (the brother lives there on the road, they have business here) When she composed this letter:
- Well, son, now guess what, he lives not far from me.
He picks up the letter and she says:
- Wait, son, I’ll tell you more, and then you’ll go. Here she says:
- That's it, son, come up a little and look, you will see a two-story house, and an old man will be lying against the wall, bent over twice, he was big. Get on your knees. When you kneel down, put the letter on your head and crawl next to him, but don’t give it from his hands, otherwise he will swallow you.
I walked up a little and saw a two-story house. I really looked and saw an old man lying down, bent over three times around the hut. The old man looked at him as he crawled on his knees and raised his head up.
When he raised his head up, he saw a letter lying on his head and took it in his hands. Then he stood up and said:
“Well, nephew, look, you son of a bitch, I’ll take you to the princess, but don’t tell me how I’m taking you.”
And he ordered them to go into the house.
He brought him into the house, brought him to the table, covered the tablecloth with bread, there was so much food on the table that he needed, there was everything in the world. He fed and gave him something to drink and said to him:
- Well, nephew, you know what: only we have two tablecloths, one for me, the other for the princess, and no one else has.
Now says:
- Well, okay, nephew.
Now she brings him a rooster.
- Sit on this rooster, he will carry you and bring you back. I know why you're coming. Now, just as she has a dead tea, she is sleeping. She came back from a party with her servants. But look, you prankster, if you do anything bad there, you won’t be able to fly away, she’ll grab you. You know, her tower stands in the sky, the bird doesn’t fly through an ambush, the hero doesn’t jump through, so it’s difficult to get there, and she has strings all around, and you’ll fly there calmly, well, if you do something wrong there, you won’t fly from there, the rooster won’t carry you, you’ll hit your heel on the wall, and then be careful. Then he sat on the rooster and said:
- Well, grandfather, thank you. Now I'll go.
And he disappeared. Here he is flying on a rooster. From afar he saw a tall tower. And all around there is a stone fence in the sky. He flies up to the fence, and the rooster speaks to him:
- Well, hold on, Vanyusha.
The rooster flew over the wall and dropped him into the garden. He came down from the rooster. When I came down from the rooster, I now picked up some berries and rejuvenating apples. The rooster told him:
- Move on.
He went. He comes to the wells, the rooster says to him:
– Here the water is alive and dead. Take as much as you want and drink first yourself, just not to excess.
He drank a little. The rooster picked up some bubbles and said to him:
- Well, if you want to watch the princess, then go, and I’ll wait for you.
So he went to stand in the room. When I went out into the room, I saw that there were about twelve of them lying there, and they were all naked. The princess herself was in the middle, she was such a beauty that there was nothing better in the world. Well, of course, when Vanyusha saw such a rarity, his whole face changed. “Well, no matter what happens, I won’t leave here.”
She was sleepy, of course.
And after all this, I quickly got ready to leave from there and guessed it was just to their dining room. When he entered the dining room, he saw a tablecloth there. He quickly wrapped it up and came to the rooster himself. The rooster says to him:
- But, Vanyusha, you probably said a lot there; If he said something wrong, then we won’t be able to fly.
The rooster has flown. Once the rooster got up, he couldn’t climb over. And the second one rose - he could not fly over, and the rooster said to Vanyusha:
- Well, Vanyusha, if we don’t climb over the third time, then our life will soon end. The princess will wake up soon.
Then the rooster used the last of his strength and finally flew over the wall, only Vanyushin’s heel touched the wall. At this time, the strings began to sing, the bells began to ring, the princess woke up and immediately felt that someone was with her.
“Eh, servants, quickly bring me a seven-legged mare, seven-verstvo, so that she can run seven miles and push the eighth – I’ll catch him anyway.”
As soon as she started moving, Vanyusha was already at his grandfather’s. Grandfather looked at him and said:
- Well, the prankster, he couldn’t resist, he played a prank. Now fly quickly on the rooster to your sister, and there you will take the horse from her, but leave the rooster, I will detain the princess.
And he himself rose to his feet to see how the princess would go. Here the old man looks - the princess is flying on a mare and shouts:
- Look, you old demon, how did you let such a falcon come to me, some kind of ignoramus I had, he watered the horse, but didn’t close the well!
“Yes, niece, I haven’t stood on my feet for forty years, but today I have.” The firebird flew across the sky and boasted that the Tsar Maiden had gained a belly, but my hand was not enough to reach him, not even a single arshin: it flew by like lightning.
At this time, Ivanushka was already at his grandmother’s, left the rooster and moved on. Only grandma asked:
- What did you do, son? And he told her:
“There’s no time to talk, grandma.”
Now the princess flies to her aunt and shouts:
- Look, you old witch, who did you miss? I'll burn you!
She answers:
- My dear niece. You don’t believe how I chased him; Let's go, look at my horse, it's covered in foam. So I was chasing him. But where was there to catch up as he flew across the sky.
She calmed down on this. When she saw the horse, she said:
- Well, let's drink, then I'll fly, and, anyway, I'll catch the scoundrel!
The old woman snatched the cup from the servants and said:
“I won’t believe anyone, I’ll bring it to the queen myself.”
And he carries it slowly, knowing that in the meantime, let the nephew move on. The princess got drunk and flew away. And at this time Ivan went from the second aunt to the third, so quickly that she did not have time to ask him anything. Of course, he took a replacement horse from her. So the Tsar Maiden now flies to the second aunt and shouted:
- Eh, old witch, tell me who drove by, otherwise you won’t live!
And he says all sorts of things, intimidates.
“My dear niece, you haven’t seen and don’t know how I chased after him.” Come on, let's go to my stable, see how my horse is driven.
The horse has already caught up quite well. She ran to the stable and looked - the horse was covered in soap.
- Well, okay, grandma, I see how he flew.
- Yes, I can already see the firebird in the sky, where should I go after him? You see, I tried.
“I see, I see, okay, grandma, just wait, I’ll catch you anyway, but I’ll try.” Well, auntie, let me get drunk quickly, I can’t stand it, I have to fly.
The old woman scooped up some water and quietly handed it to her so that her nephew could fly on. And at this time Vanyusha had already left the third aunt, took his horse, and she set off from the second.
Soon she flies to the third aunt and shouts:
- Eh, you old cheat, you probably already know who just passed by, tell me, otherwise no good will come!
“My dear niece, you don’t see how I was chasing him, let’s go and see my horse in the stable and look me in the eyes.” I came and looked:
- Well, grandma, I see.
“Now look into my eyes: you see, I’ve already turned twelve years gray since I chased him.” Well, do you see now how I chased him?
- I see, I see, auntie (everyone has to deceive in their own way).
Well, aunt, now give me a drink quickly, I’ll catch up with him now anyway, I won’t trust anyone.
The old woman takes a cup of water and slowly, slowly gives it to the queen so that Vanyusha has time to travel further. And she set off in pursuit of Vanyusha. She didn’t chase very far when from a distance she began to see that some rider was riding ahead of her. And Vanyusha pushes his horse so hard that with all the urine the horse has, he flies at full tilt. And she screamed from afar:
- Eh, son of a bitch, you wanted to get away from me, now I’ll catch you, you won’t get away from me alive!
Before the princess had time to grab her at her border, Vanyusha managed to jump to her border, and she shouted:
“Wait, Ivanushko, wait, don’t leave me here, you know,” she cried, “Vanyusha, what he left me with.” Well, I’ll find you anyway, even in five years, wherever you are.
With the words the topic came back.
Soon Vanyusha galloped to the place where his brothers remained. Well, there were no brothers in that place. Vanyusha waited and waited and spread out the bread-salter tablecloth and began to have dinner. He had lunch and fell asleep. He didn’t even put away the tablecloths and fell asleep from such a long journey.
It wasn't long before the brothers arrived. They see that Vanyusha has arrived, his horse is standing there. When the brothers came to Vanyusha, they saw that Vanyusha was sleeping, and there was a tablecloth in front of him. The brothers happily sat down and ate, and said:
“We’ve never seen such a dinner at Father’s place.” This is what Vanyusha found in this world.
And right there in the bundle there lies tied up live - water and dead, apples are rejuvenating and berries are rejuvenating.
The brothers saw all this and began to say among themselves:
“That’s it, Vasya,” says the middle brother Fedka, “now listen to what Ivan got.” He will have a kingdom and a bread-salting tablecloth, but we have nothing now. Well, he’ll get up and tell his father everything when he goes, but we’ll say nothing now.
Now the elder brother Vasily speaks:
- Well, brother, we’ll wake him up now. And you saw - there is a big abyss there, and we’ll tell him that his father’s treasury fell into that abyss, and we’ll lead him. Now he will believe us. When we bring him to this abyss, he will bend down and look, and at that time we push him there, and he will fly away. And then it will all be left to us, one will have a bread-salting tablecloth, and the other will have a kingdom, so we will divide it.
That's what they decided on. Then at that very moment they began to wake up his brother:
- Eh, brother Vanyusha, get up, will you sleep for a long time? You've probably been asleep for a long time.
When the brother looked away, he saw his brothers and said:
- Hello, brothers.
- Hello, hello, Vanyusha. Well, tell me, how did you drive?
He answers them:
– Well, I’ll tell you a little, and I’ll tell you the rest at home. Even though I suffered a lot of trouble, well, I remained alive. Didn't tell them anything else.
- And I fulfilled the entire order of the priests.
- Yes, brother, that's right. But now, father, a misfortune has happened to us: the entire treasury has sunk into the ground. There is only one hole left. If you want to see it, we'll show you. He says:
- Well, then, let's go and have a look.
And together all three went to look at this abyss. When they came to this abyss, they said:
“Here, brother, look, that’s where the hole is.”
The brother bent over all his back, he wanted to look, the brothers ran up, they pushed him, and he flew into the abyss upside down.
When he flew upside down, and he no longer remembers where he is flying and which way. Well, after all, fortunately for him, such a thing happened: a dove and a dove caught him so that he would not fall to the ground and hurt himself. So he calmly descended to earth, and now he walked through that world, which was an underground state. He comes to the state on the edge of the city and asks to live with an old woman. And the old lady let him in. See, when he came to his grandmother, he began to ask for an apartment, she let him in and said:
-Who are you and where are you from?
- Grandma, I come from the other world.
This is how he answered her. When he came to the state, and saw that their state was very sad and stood under black mourning. And he began to ask his grandmother:
“Well, grandma, what is it with you, what is your state grieving about, how is it standing under black mourning, please explain to me, what’s the matter?”
Grandmother says to him in response:
- Oh, child, how would you know what’s going on in our city?
- What about it, grandma?
- Why, child, it’s such a thing with us now that it’s been three years since the snake has emerged from the lake and devoured everyone, and now it’s the turn of the king’s daughter to leave. And the king asks someone, well, who would just save her, and for this he gives him half the kingdom, and then marries her, and subsequently puts him in the kingdom.
“Well, grandma, yes, but if it had been possible, I would have gone, all the same.”
The grandmother did not say anything to him and ran quickly to the king.
Comes.
- Hello, Your Majesty, I came running to you for something like this, maybe you need it.
“Well, what’s the matter, grandma, maybe I need it, just tell me, don’t lie.”
Grandma's face changed.
“Your Majesty, you can’t lie, I came running here confused, Your Majesty, and I’ll explain what you need.”
- Well, tell me, grandma, what’s the matter?
- Here, Your Majesty, a man came to me, a native of the other world, he lives in my apartment, and said:
“Well, if I had to go, I would kill this snake.” The delighted king said to her:
“Well, thank you, grandma,” he immediately ordered to call this man to his place.
The old lady went home. Suddenly the royal ambassador arrives at the house and enters the house. He came to the house and asked:
– Will you come from the other world?
- I.
- Well, the king is asking you. Please come with me.
And he got dressed and went together. They arrived to the king. When he showed up to the king, saw the king, he immediately greeted him and asked:
- Hello, Your Majesty. Well, what's the matter, and why do you need me? He replied:
- Hello, a native of the other world. Well, can you do what I asked you to do? And Ivanushko says to him in response:
“Yes, Your Majesty, if there was a horse that could be ridden, then I would probably go and save your daughter.” But your Majesty, I’ll ask you this. And for saving your daughter, what will happen to me if I save her?
- Here’s what, listen, you come from the other world, I don’t know your name and patronymic, well, I’m asking; If only you kill the enemy, this serpent who devours people for three years, then I will give you a daughter in marriage and half a kingdom, and later I will make you king of the kingdom, I will not regret anything, just do such a favor. Then Ivan said this:
- Well, okay, Your Majesty, take me to the stable where there is a horse that can be ridden. The king thought for a while:
- Listen, a native of the other world, we have a horse that has not seen the light of day for twenty years, it is guarded by a groom, it does not let anyone in, and no one rides on it. When you come to the stables of this horse, the letters are not written in our way, maybe you, a native of the other world, will read and find out what is written there?
Ivan left the palace with the same words; They took him to this stable. When he came to this stable, he opened the first door, looked at the second, read the inscription: “This horse has been standing for twenty years, no one rides on it, there is no owner who can ride on it. First of all, when you need to ride this horse, then go into the third door, go to the manger and there, under the manger, tear off one half piece. Pass your hand under this ladle; there are two bottles there: one with red, the other with white. Drink a glass from one bottle, and drink two from the other. Then you will feel such strength in yourself that you can ride this horse.”
Ivan found out all this and now goes into the second stable, takes out the half-piece and takes out two bottles, and right under this half-piece there is a treasure sword, a sharp spear and a battle club, and heroic armor. So he did all this. He drank a glass from one bottle, two from another and took out a treasure sword, a sharp spear, a battle club and heroic armor, and got dressed. When he got dressed, he felt extraordinary strength in himself, he said to the groom:
- Well, now take out the horse, unlock all the locks now.
The groom did not have time to open six locks, well, the horse already sensed his master, broke the chains, broke through all the doors, six, and jumped out into freedom. And stood in front of him, rooted to the spot. He hit him on the steep buckets - the horse stood rooted to the spot. He saddled him, reined him in, jumped up and rode to the sea, where the snake stood out.
When he came to the sea, the princess was brought to the sea so that who knows what chance might happen so that the monster would not come to the city to demand people. He arrived and sat on a horse, but the princess was in a carriage and did not get out of it, she just cried.
“Now,” we think, “now I have come to die,” He looks. Once the water rose, the second time it rose, and the third time it rose, the fourth time the Serpent crawls out of the sea. He got out and said:
“What a merciful king he is, he sent me lunch with appetizers, he also sent someone from the other world, I have rarely dined like this before.” Thanks to him.
- It’s in vain, friend, to boast too early; don’t mess it up, but have time to drag it out. Well, although the pie is good as you go, look, you’ll choke, and you see the sweet candy in front of you, but you don’t know how to eat it.
Ivan says this to the snake in response to the following answer:
- Well, then why argue with you, let's leave?
- Let's.
And so they drove out onto a flat square. The princess watched and kept crying. So they separated and moved in together, Ivan Tsarevich cut off two of his heads. Let's go second. When they came together for the second time, he hit his last head with a spear and cut it into small pieces so that he had nothing left. And he himself galloped up to the princess and said:
- Well, beautiful princess, you are now saved.
She looked at him and threw herself on his neck.
“My dear native from the other world, I am yours, wherever you want, go with me there.”
He told her:
“Calm down, dear, now go home, and I’ll wait another day to see if the second one comes out, I’ll deal with him, and you don’t come again.”
Yes, when he killed the snake, galloped up to the princess, he asked her:
“Tell me, beautiful princess, what is more beautiful in the world, father?” How can I get to Rus'? She tells him; – Listen, coming from the other world, it’s easy for you to get to Rus'.
Father has a pipe, you whistle into it, three young men will jump out, they will carry you where you need to go and do whatever you want.
So Ivan remained waiting, and the princess went home. When she arrived home, her father saw her and ran into her arms.
- Well, how, daughter, were you saved?
- Saved. Well, the native stayed there, waiting another day, and he told me to go home, he said: “You don’t need to come here anymore.”
The delighted king said to his daughter:
- Well, daughter, you are now saved, and for your luck God sent a person from the other world, which means you are not destined. We will now wait for him until he returns.
Ivan waited for a day, there was no one, everything was peaceful, calm and quiet. He returned the horse and rode to the kingdom. He came to the kingdom, released the horse into the stable where it was, and said:
“Well, thank you, comrade, stay in the stable until I need you.”
The horse returned with its tail, curled its head and calmly went to the stable, and was led away by the groom who was only keeping it. And Ivan himself took off his heroic armor, put it in its old place and went to the palace.
When he came to the palace, the king was very happy and sat him in his place, where he always sat.
Here he says:
- My betrothed son-in-law. Well, choose anything: take my daughter, you want half the kingdom, whatever else you want - I’ll give it all to you.
- Your Majesty, I don’t need your half of the kingdom, and I don’t need your daughter, give me the tube that you keep, I really need it to get to Rus'. The king spoke:
- Okay, so be it, I’ll give you the pipe, but I’m the only one who can introduce you to Rus'. I will give you a rooster that will carry you to Rus'.
He received this tube from him and said:
- Well, now I’ve calmed down, which means I’ll end up in Rus'. Do you know, Your Majesty, why I took the straw? So that I can quickly get to Rus', or maybe my relatives are no longer there, or our kingdom has been surrendered, then I will come back here, will it be possible?
The king answers:
- Why isn’t it possible? You can, always come. And now you don’t use this tube, but I will give you a rooster on which you will fly out.
Now the king ordered the rooster to fly. The rooster has arrived. Ivan said goodbye to the king, as well as to the princess.
- Well, maybe I'll see you, wait for me shortly.
And with those words, he sat on the rooster and rode off. Well, the rooster dragged him for a long time, and finally he came out onto the edge from which he fell. And this magic rooster, when he got down, said to him:
“Listen, Ivan Tsarevich, if you need me, then take me with you, maybe I’ll be of some use to you.” Now Ivan answers him:
- Listen, Petya, I don’t need you now, well, maybe when I need you. Then the rooster said:
- Well, okay, Vanya, when you need me, remember me, and I will fly. He replied:
- OK.
And he went on his way, but his dress, as a person from the next world, was already different, and it was written on the back: “A person from the other world.”
It didn’t take him long to come to the kingdom, but the kingdom was already familiar to him, so he reached his kingdom. He comes to the kingdom and sees one passerby:
“Tell me, dear man, what is good in the kingdom, explain to me.”
A passer-by answered when he read his inscription:
- Yes, a native of the other world, fun is now beginning in the kingdom: the king hands over the throne to his eldest son Vasily, the feast begins, it is already underway.
“So tell me, good man, are they letting everyone down to the feast or not?”
“They’re letting them down, they’re letting everyone down, no matter who it is.”
- So, well, okay.
He moved on. So he enters the royal chambers and enters the feast. Of course, he sits down on the lower bench and sits quietly. There they provide wine to all guests, no one is deprived. And then they brought everyone around, it was already his turn, they brought it to him. He drank the charm, and again sits calmly. Then the king comes out from his place and says:
“That’s it, gentlemen, comrades, I would ask someone from the audience to tell me a story, to amuse me, an old man, I’m very interested in the story.”
Then Ivan thought a little and said:
- Well, okay, Your Majesty, if you need, I will tell you a very interesting story that concerns you.
Then the king stood up from his seat and approached; - Ah, you are from the other world; Well, speak up. He didn't recognize his son, of course.
- Yes, Your Majesty, I will tell you, well, just listen carefully. Well, if anyone from the public crosses, then for the first time I will fine you a hundred rubles. The king told him:
- Well, a native of the other world, even two hundred, just tell me, I won’t regret it, just tell me, I’m too interested.
- For the first time - a hundred rubles, for the second - two hundred, and so on, I’ll add a hundred, otherwise I won’t say anything. Well, it will be very interesting for you, Your Majesty. Here he begins:
- Well, Your Majesty, listen, I will talk. Not in which kingdom, not in which state, well, maybe in the one in which we live, there was a king; the tsar had three sons: the first name was Vasily, the second Fyodor, and the third Ivan. And this king wanted to look younger. It was necessary to get living and dead water, rejuvenating apples and playpen berries. And so he said to his eldest son Vasily: “Here, son, fulfill this commandment of mine: if you go to the distant kingdom, to the thirtieth state, you bring me living water and dead water, rejuvenating apples and manege berries, I will endow you, give you half the kingdom and then make you king.” Now this eldest son Vasily agreed to go, they found him a horse, and he left. He left, he has been gone for six months already, the father was grieving, his son is gone. He says to his second son: “Well, then, Fyodor, what would you like?” He didn’t refuse, he went second. When the second one went, a year had already passed, no one was there, it was unknown where they had gone.
And the king listens to all this. Then the elder brother Vasily spoke:
- Stop listening to empty talk, father, this is all said by a person from the other world, maybe he’s lying.
Vasily couldn’t stand it, he spoke, of course, maybe he didn’t recognize him, but still he couldn’t stand it.
“Well, if I’m lying, then, Your Majesty, I won’t say any more - pay me a fine.” Then the king says to his eldest son Vasily:
“Well, that’s it, son, pay him the money, and you, my friend, tell me what will happen next; I have become very interested in your story.
And he received the money and continued further:
- Well, then, I’ll continue to talk. Then he had a third son, Ivan, and said: “Well, father, you, Mama, give your blessing, and I will go and fulfill all your tasks that you told your brothers.” The father says: “No, son, I won’t let you go, two of my sons left, you’re the only one left with me. There will be no one to rule the kingdom later.” But my mother didn’t let me speak. Well, he didn’t look at anything and began to ask more: “Father, bless me, and you, Mama, even if you bless me, I’ll still go.” The mother burst into tears and began to cry, and he began to ask his father. Finally, the wallpaper blessed him together, and he began to get ready.
Then Fyodor, the second brother, could not stand it:
- Stop listening to every lie, father. After all, all this he says is empty!
- Well, if I’m talking empty things, then I won’t say it, Your Majesty, pay me two hundred rubles, and I won’t talk for nothing.
The king ordered the money to be paid, and he began to speak further:
- Well, okay, then listen, Your Majesty, I’ll tell you more. Then the younger brother Ivan went to the stable, found himself a horse, said goodbye to his father and mother and set off. He rode for a long time, came to the rosstans, and at the rosstans there was a post, and three roads separated: to go to one - to be rich, to go to the second - to be married, to the third to go - to be killed. He began to think about which one to go to. “I wonder where the brothers went? Come on, I’ll go where the married man can be.” And I went.
The elder brother could not stand it; - Stop listening, father, it’s all lies, some person from the other world came to you, and you listen to him!
- That's what, sons, you don't want to listen, then pay fines, and you, a native, speak further, I am very interested in this story, how it will end.
Yes, they paid him the money, and he begins to speak forward:
- Ivan went on the road where a married man would be, he drives up to the square: there are two tents, he looks. “Here we go, brothers horses, ours, the king’s.” Arrives at the porch. Suddenly a girl and a young woman run out. “Well done, well done, don’t remove the horse, we will remove it, go to the room.” - “It’s none of your business, I’m the owner of the horse, I’ll clean it up.” He took the horse, took it to the place where the brothers were, poured wheat for them and went to the tent. He enters the tent, a young woman comes running and says: “Well done, well done, sit down at the table to eat, eat - don’t get full, drink - don’t get drunk, get ready to sleep with the young woman and don’t wipe your spoons dry.” He answers her:
“It’s like this with us: if they die, they don’t cry, they drink, they don’t treat them, as much as I want, I eat as much as I want. And it’s up to me whether I have a spoon in the morning or not.” He drank, ate, a young woman comes, takes him by the hand and leads him to the bed. So she says: “Well, now lie down against the wall, and I’ll fall on the edge.” - “No, here in Rus', men always sleep on the edge, and women at the wall.” And they argued. He takes her in his arms and throws her on the bed against the wall, and lies down on the edge. And both lie silently. Ivan kept looking as he lay down to see what this bed was, and saw that there was a lever that pulled the bed apart. Ivan thought a little, grabbed this lever, and as soon as he pulled it apart, the bed split in two, and it flew into the cellar. When she fell into the cellar, the embittered, well, suitors withered away, then they took her in a row and tore her into small pieces. Ivan jumped out of bed, came to the girl and said:
“Tell me now where the keys to the cellar are, otherwise I’ll shoot you.” Vasily could not stand it again:
- Stop listening, father. After all, he will tell you this for several days, and you will listen to everything, but our guests are busy with other fun, and you will still listen to some liar.
“Well, if I’m lying, Your Majesty, then I won’t tell you any more, pay four hundred rubles.”
The king ordered his son to pay the money and said:
- Well, a native of the other world, tell me more, your story has begun to touch me too much, more, and I want to hear everything to the end.
Ivan received the money and begins to tell the story:
- Yes, when Ivan approaches this girl, she says:
“Well, okay, just don’t shoot, and I’ll give it to you.” He takes the keys, approaches the dungeon and began to let everyone out, and he stood at the door. And the suitors began to come out in twos, threes, and tens, as if to get out as quickly as possible. Finally, he looks - two fucking brothers came out. “Oh, oh, brothers, are you getting married here?” - “Yes, yes, brother, and did you get here?” - “Yes, I got it.” His comrades thanked him and everyone went to the tents, and he and his brothers also went to the horses, where their horses stood. They took the horses, saddled them, bridled them and came again to the tent where this girl was sitting. So he said to the brothers: “Brothers, I’m running to the tent now, and you wait for me here.” He jumped up and went into the room. It turns out that he pointed a pistol at her and said: “Give me the keys to the powder magazine, otherwise I’ll shoot you.” She hands him the keys. I received the keys and went to my brothers. "Let's go, guys." They arrive where the gunpowder magazines were located. Ivan jumped off his horse and opened the cellar. “Get down, get your pockets full of gunpowder.” And he also began to dial with it. They jumped on their horses, and he said: “Well, brothers, start pouring out the gunpowder.” And he left the cellar empty. And so they began to pour in until they had enough gunpowder. Finally, Ivan said: “Wait a little, I’ll get off.” He got down and lit a match, the gunpowder ignited. The gunpowder reached this cellar and it all burned, collapsed and flew into the air, and the brothers drove forward. They arrived on the same road where these rosstans were divided into three parts, he said to the brothers: “Well, brothers, who wants to go to where the rich man will be?” The brothers refused. “We won't go. If you want, go." So Ivan immediately got on his horse and rode off. He arrives and sees that there are three shops standing. He got off his horse and went to see what kind of shops they were. I looked - the first one was empty, the second one was full of dirt, and the third one was filled with manure. And he got on his horse and went to his brothers. I came to my brothers and erased both inscriptions that it was all empty. Then he says to the brothers: “Well, who wants, brothers, to go on that road, where to be killed?” The brothers categorically refused: “If you want, go to obvious death, well, we don’t want to, we still want to live, it’s better to go home.” Then Ivan said: “No, brothers, I will not do anything to disobey my father’s commandment; death, then death, and I’ll bring everything he ordered.”
Then the elder brother Vasily spoke again:
“Stop listening, Father, now he’s started lying and lying like that, and you keep listening.”
The father spoke:
- Pay the money, six hundred rubles. And you, rogue, speak further.
It began to affect my father more. He received the money and saw his mother crying. She came, sat down next to me and said:
- Well, you rascal, speak, speak, and I will listen.
He looked at his mother, could hardly keep himself from crying, and then began to tell:
- So, then he said goodbye to his brothers and said: “Well, wait for me in this place until three years, and then go home, which means I’m not alive.” And I went, of course; he left. It was difficult, difficult for Ivan Tsarevich, he was near death several times, but happiness still did not leave him. And he went to the thirtieth state and got living and dead water, rejuvenating apples and playpen berries, and returned from there. He arrived at the same place where the brothers promised to wait for him. But there were no brothers. Well, he was exhausted from such a long journey, of course, he wanted to sleep. He had a bread-salting tablecloth with him, opened it, ate it and left it open in the same place where he started to sleep. Suddenly these brothers come and look at this brother sleeping, and a tablecloth-bread-salter is open in front of him. With joy they sat down, ate and said: “We have never seen such dinners in our kingdom. So Vanyusha, he did everything, got living water and dead water, rejuvenating apples and playpen berries...” Then the elder brother could not stand it again:
“Come on, father, now he’s completely lying, he’s lying out of spite.” And, mom, do you see how he lies? Mother and father wallpaper began to ask him:
“You rogue, let’s talk further, and you, brothers, give me the money, eight hundred rubles, whatever you take from anywhere, pay.”
And he received the money and began to talk further.
Mother still sat, listened, wiped away tears, and he continued to tell the story:
“The brothers ate, drank and said: “He will get everything, he got everything, and he will receive half the kingdom, and after our father’s death, that’s all, but we will have nothing, we’ve been traveling for three years, we will have nothing.” What do you think, brother? - “That’s what I think, brother. But you and I were walking recently, there was an abyss, so let’s wake him up, let’s say that his father had a misfortune, his treasury with money fell through. When he walks with us, bends his entire back, we will push him there, he will fly, and you and I will share this wealth and go home.” - “Get up, brother, you’ve been sleeping long enough.” The brother rolled his eyes and said:
"Hello, brothers." - “Hello, hello, brother. Well, tell me how you got back?” “Now it will take me a long time to tell you, but we’ll talk at home. Now it’s better to go, we’re already late, we’ve been on the road for three years. I got everything, everything that was needed for the priest, and carried out his orders. Now let's go." Then the elder brother Vasily spoke: “But this is what, Vanyusha, a misfortune happened to our father: the entire treasury with money fell through, only one hole appeared. Come on, Vanya, let’s go, have a look, and take an interest in the murdered father.” Vanyusha agreed. Went. When they come to this abyss, his elder brother pushed him at that time, and he flew into the dungeon, into the state.
Now the elder brother, sitting at the table at the feast, speaks:
“Well, father, now you see how he’s lying, now he’s lying out of spite, forbid him not to speak anymore.”
Then the mother, sitting next to him, began to cry bitterly, what happened to her son, but she still did not know. The father wiped his eyes with a handkerchief and said:
-And you, you rascal, speak further. It affects me very much, and speak to the end. . He received the money.
- Well, okay, let me tell you more. Now he, poor thing, has flown. He flew and flew, fortunately, of course, a dove and a dove caught him and did not allow him to fall to the ground. They lowered him lightly to the ground, and he went into the underground state and entered the kingdom. He comes to the kingdom and sees that the entire kingdom is under black mourning. He went to spend the night with an old woman and began to ask her: “What is going on in your kingdom, grandmother, is it very sad?” The grandmother says to him: “Oh, you, child, if only you knew, for three years now the snake has been devouring people. And now it was the turn of the king’s daughter to go. He will eat it. And so the king calls for someone to save her, for this he will give up half his kingdom and his daughter in marriage.” Then Ivan said to his grandmother: “Well, if there was a good horse, and the king called me, then I would kill this snake and save the princess.” And the old woman immediately disappeared and ran to the king and explained. He comes to the king and says:
“Your Majesty, I came to explain: some person from the other world came to me, and he boasts that he will save your daughter, if only he had a good horse.” When the king listened to the grandmother’s conversation, he immediately ordered this native to be summoned to his place. Now the king sent one of his servants, and he comes to Ivan and says: “Here’s what, a native of the other world: since you boast, the king asks you to come.” Now Ivan got dressed, let's go. "Hello, Your Majesty." - “Hello, a native of the other world. Well, if you promise to save my daughter, then tell me - can you or not?” - “Your Majesty, well, if you give me a good horse that I can ride on, then I will save your daughter.” - “Yes, I will.” I have a horse that no one can ride; it is kept by one groom; he doesn't allow anyone else. And for this I will give you half a kingdom and a daughter in marriage.” Now they were led in a row to the stables. He took this horse, read the signature, did everything that was written, got dressed and rode to the sea. When he arrived at the sea, the princess was already there, and he, without getting off his horse, waited for the snake to come out. That's when the water stopped for the first time, the second and third time - the snake came out, and they had a battle. Ivan killed this snake, and returned back to the kingdom. When Ivan came back to the kingdom, then the king sat him down in his place and said: “Well, son-in-law, what do you want, do you want the kingdom, do you want to take my daughter, what do you want?” “No,” he said, “I don’t want to get married.” Then he began to say: “That’s what, Your Majesty, I would like to fly to Rus', where I am from, I don’t need anything else from you.” The king agreed to this. Then the king said to him:
“Well, don’t worry about it, if you did such a good thing to me, then whatever you want, when you return, I will put you in the kingdom, and I will take you to Rus'.” And he gave him a rooster. Ivan immediately sat astride a rooster and flew to Rus'. And he flew to Rus' and went to his state. Then the elder brother said:
- Again, father, how long will you listen to this story? Yes, he will never finish, he better shut up!
- Well, okay, we won’t say the end, if you don’t want to listen, but send the money two thousand rubles. The king ordered the money and said:
- Well, you rascal, tell me to the end, what happened to this Ivan?
And the mother still sat, listened, and wiped her eyes with a handkerchief.
- Then he came to this state and came to you for an honorable feast and sits here next to you, this rogue with you. I am your son, the younger Ivan Tsarevich.
Then the mother stood up from her chair, began to cry, and hugged her son together with his father. And the father said:
“Guests, you sit, and I’ll leave with my son for a while and come back right away.”
And together he and his son went into a special room, and his mother with him. They took him into a special room, dressed him like a king, and went back to the feast. This is what the father says:
- Well, my dear son. You've been confused on the road for a long time. Here I give you the throne, sit down and I will order you, my eldest son Vasily, to give up the throne if Ivan wishes. Ivan spoke:
- No, father, I don’t want to. If Vasily sat down, let him sit, and I will have the kingdom that is due, but I don’t want this, let him continue forward.
The brothers both extended their hands, thanked him for the past, that he did not remember any evil, and began to continue the feast forward.
This feast ended, the elder brother ascended the throne, and Ivan began to live under the kingdom.
A year has passed, Ivan is still single, still living and partying. His father tells him:
- Listen, Vanya, it’s time for you to get married.
“Dad, I still don’t have time for a bride, but I can handle it, and then I’ll get married.”
Well, the middle brother Fedor felt ashamed, he went up to Ivan and said:
- Well, Vanya, I want to get married, do you know how I can get married?
- Well, I'll marry you.
I remembered the rooster and flew in; sat down and flew into the underworld. They flew to the underground state, the king was immediately delighted that his son-in-law had returned and wanted to get married, and they arranged a feast in a row. They arranged a feast, and all three flew out together to show off their brother’s bride to their father.
When my father saw such a rarity, he was overjoyed, they again arranged a feast and began to have fun. Then both brothers shook hands with him and said:
- Well, listen, Vanyusha, you suffered a lot, now you should get married.
- No, brothers, wait a little, they are ready to marry.
Suddenly they saw three ships coming, they stood at the pier and laid out carpets all the way to the royal palace. And now the ships are giving the alarm.
- King, hand over the culprit. If you don’t give it up, then I’ll come myself, burn all the houses, and take you for granted? Now he says to his eldest son Vasily:
- Well, son, you already went, you probably did something mischievous. Go, go.
Now the eldest son Vasily Tsarevich got ready and went to the ship. He comes to the ship, then two stern boys run out, stand, and the princess herself comes out, that is, the princess. These boys run up to their mother and ask:
“Mummy, mummy, isn’t this our daddy?”
“No,” he answers, “this is your uncle.”
- What, mummy, do you want to do with him? She answers:
- Here’s what, sons, give me a treat.
Now they take two pieces of pop (this is the name of the cable, well, it’s still the same thing), and let’s whip it. Well, they combed it, and barely left the ship.
So the uncle came home, and she gave the king even more anxiety. The Tsar says to his second son Fyodor:
- Well, son, maybe you’ve done something, go. he got dressed and went to the ship. When he approaches the pier, the ship, two stern boys and she herself run out. They say:
“Mummy, mummy, isn’t this our daddy?” She doesn't give up:
- No, guys, not this one. This one is an uncle. Treat like the first one.
They also took two pieces of rop and began to scratch the uncle. They combed it so much that my uncle didn’t even remember how he went home.
He comes home, and she begins to sound the alarm even more, asking:
- Give back kindly, king, to the guilty, do not send those who are not needed!
The king came to his youngest son Ivan and began to cry:
- Well, son, you probably did everything there, your tricks, there’s nothing left to do, you have to go. I feel sorry for sending you away. Well, go, there is nothing to do, you have to go.
Then Ivan stood up, said goodbye to his father and mother, and went and said:
- Dad, this is all mine. I walked around there and she called me.
With these words he went out to the ship. On the way, he went into a tavern, got drunk and rolled around in the mud, and after that he got dirty with tar and then got dirty with feathers, and then he went to the ship like an eccentric. He approaches the side of the ship, two stern boys run out and ask:
- Mama, mamma, is such an eccentric really our dad?
She tells them; - Yours, your daddy. Take him by the arms, lead him calmly to the ship, put him to bed in the cabin.
When they brought Ivan onto the ship, they at the same time pulled off the cloth, turned the ships, and set off. She comes to him herself, at that time she changed his clothes and washed him, he woke up already when he was close to her kingdom.
When she comes to him and says:
- Look, Vanyusha, you thought about running away from me, no, you won’t. What have you done, look what your two sons were like when you were with me.
She sat down with her sons and next to him. We started having lunch and started asking about his adventures, where he was at that time. He began to talk about it. He explained everything, everything that happened to him until he came to her on the ship. She then says to him in response:
- Well, Ivan Tsarevich, it means that we were destined, you managed to approach me and you can own me.
And at this time the ships sailed towards the city and approached the pier. The prince with his princess and his sons went to the palace and entered. When they got there, she gives him the throne:
- Well, Ivan Tsarevich, you can teach my throne and become king.
Ivan Tsarevich received the throne, became king and lived with her for a year. Well, it all seems foreign to him, as if everything is not his own, not native and unfamiliar. And he began to often remember his father and mother and how he would like to see them. And he said more than once:
- Elena the Beautiful, let's go to our kingdom, we'll live there in our state. She responds to him by saying:
- No, I won’t go. Because you don’t have what I have in your state. Firstly, there are no gardens like mine, living water and dead water, rejuvenating apples and manege berries.
Then she added to him:
“And if you can take me to your state without me knowing, then I’ll just agree and go.”
He spent the second year without telling her anything, and one fine night they fell asleep.
When he was in the dungeon, the king gave this tube for saving his daughter, he remembered that there was such a thing, he would have to try it. As soon as the princess bent down, he jumped off at twelve o’clock at night, pulled out this tube and whistled. When he blew the whistle, three young men jumped out.
- What do you need, Ivan Tsarevich, you feed for a long time, but don’t give work?
He answers these guys:
- That's it, guys, I'll give you a service, do this service for me, if you can do it, you'll be great.
- Well, which one?
- But on this very night, everything so that the kingdom would be carried away to our state along with us, and everything that is in the state, so that everything would be there.
The guys looked at each other:
- Well, Ivan Tsarevich, although it’s difficult, well, we’ll do it.
I went to bed myself. When they woke up the next morning, his wife woke up, looked around the area, and saw that she had already found herself in another country. Although everything is with her, everything is different. She came to him and said:
- Well, well done, Vanyusha, you still knew how to get me, you know how to control me, you managed to bring me to your homeland.
Then he called his father and mother and his brothers. And they had a feast. They started having a wedding then. And everyone rejoiced at this wedding: mother and father, most of all they rejoiced over their grandchildren.
After all this, Ivan Tsarevich and his wife began to live until a ripe old age, and soon their parents died.
Translated from Russian · original on wisdomlib.ru