There lived a poor woman in the Trennelagi district. She had neither a stake nor a yard. So she and her son walked around the area and asked for alms. At first, they all begged in their parish and lived on alms, and then they came to the city of Trondheim. They searched from house to house until they came to the burgomaster.
The burgomaster was a kind and respectable man, one of the very first people in the city. And his wife was a match for him - from a wealthy merchant family. They had one and only daughter, and the burgomaster and burgomaster had no other children. So they had mercy on her and loved her for both - both for her son and for her daughter, and did not spare anything for her.
So a poor woman and her son came to their house, and the burgomaster’s daughter immediately became friends with the beggar boy. The burgomaster saw that the children got along so quickly and took the boy into his house. Let them play together! And so it happened: the children played together, walked and read together, and then went to school together. They were strong friends and never contradicted each other on anything.
One day the burgomaster stood at the window and saw: her daughter and a boy were walking to school, and on their way there was a big, big puddle. The children stopped. The boy first carries the basket of food across the puddle, then jumps back, picks up the girl, carries her across the puddle, puts her on the ground and kisses her.
The burgomaster became furious and shouted:
- This was still not enough! How dare the beggar’s son kiss our daughter, the daughter of the first people in the city!
Her husband tried to reason with her. He said all sorts of things: and no one, they say, knows where the chicks will build their nest and what awaits whom. The boy is kind and courteous, but doesn’t it happen like this: from a small sprout a mighty oak tree grows. Who is small today is great tomorrow.
Not really! Where there! The burgomaster does not care who he was, who he is and who he will become. One thing says:
“If the poor man is honored, no one knows how he will behave!”
And one more thing:
“Whoever is minted with a shilling will never be a daler.” You can't get from rags to riches!
She chases the boy:
- There is no reason for you to stay with us! Get out of the house now!
There is nothing to do. The burgomaster had to give his adopted son to the merchant shipowner: he came to Trondheim on his schooner and took the boy as a cook.
And the burgomaster said to his wife:
“I gave the boy to the merchant for a pack of tobacco!”
As soon as they began to pick out the anchors on the schooner, the shipmen looked and saw the burgomaster’s daughter running: her face was flushed, her curls were tousled by the wind. She took the ring from her hand and - where did the strength come from - broke it into two halves: one for herself, the other for her named brother; This is so that they can recognize each other if they ever meet.
The schooner set sail from the shore, how many days, how many nights it sailed - it’s impossible to count. And in the end she sailed to a distant overseas city, to foreign lands. And there was a fun fair there at that time. And what was there at that fair! On Sunday all the shipmen went to the fair, but the cook boy remained on the schooner.
He had just started preparing dinner when he heard someone calling him from the opposite side of the strait. He took the shuttle and crossed to the other side. He sees an ancient old woman standing on the shore and says:
“I’ve been waiting here for help for a hundred years, no less, screaming, yelling, wanting to cross to the other side, but no one heard me, no one except you responded. Will you take me to the other side?
- Why not transport it! - answers the cook.
- The reward is mine! - the old woman promises.
They crossed to the other side, and the old woman took him to her troll sister, who lived in the mountain next door. They walk along the road, the old woman says:
“When your sister starts asking you what to reward you with, don’t ask for anything except an old tablecloth—it’s on the bottom shelf in the supply.” This tablecloth is not simple, but self-assembled. Whatever food you want, everything will be given to you.
And so it happened. They came up the mountain. When the mountain troll found out that he had helped her sister, she said:
- Ask for whatever you want!
“I don’t need anything,” says the cook, “except for the old tablecloth that lies on the bottom shelf in the supply.”
“It’s no different, who gave you the idea,” said the mountain troll. - Well, okay, take the tablecloth!
“Thank you,” says the boy, “it’s time for me to go to the schooner to prepare the shipmen’s Sunday lunch.”
“It’s not your concern now,” the old woman interrupts him. “Dinner will cook itself while you’re gone.” Come with me, you will receive an even richer reward. For a hundred years, no less, I waited for help, screamed, yelled, but no one heard me, no one except you responded.
The old woman took him to her other troll sister, who lived in the forest next door. They walk along the road, the old woman says:
“When your sister starts asking you what to reward you with, don’t ask for anything except an old sword—it’s on the middle shelf in the supply.” This sword is not simple: if you put it in your pocket, it will turn into a knife, if you pull it out of your pocket, it will become a long sword again. And this sword is double-edged: if you threaten it with a black blade, everyone around you will die; if you wave it with a white blade, all the dead will come to life.
So they came to the forest. When the forest troll found out that he had helped her sister, she said:
- Ask for what you want!
“I don’t need anything,” says the cook, “except for the old sword that lies on the middle shelf in the supply.”
“It’s no different, who gave you the idea,” said the forest troll. - Well, okay, take the sword!
“Thank you,” says the boy, “but I have to go to the schooner.”
“You’ll still have time,” the old woman interrupts him. “Come with me, you’ll receive an even richer reward.” For a hundred years, no less, I waited for help, screamed, yelled, but no one heard me, no one except you responded.
The old woman took him to her third troll sister, who lived in the swamp next door. They walk along the road, the old woman says:
“When your sister starts asking you what to reward you with, don’t ask for anything except your grandmother’s old songbook—it’s on the top shelf in the storage room.” The songbook is not simple. If someone gets sick, you just need to take him in your hands and sing, and the illness is as if it never happened!
So they came to the swamp. When the swamp troll found out that he had helped her sister, she said:
- Ask for what you want!
“I don’t need anything,” says the cook, “except for my grandmother’s old songbook, which is on the top shelf in the storage room.”
“It’s no different, who gave you the idea,” said the swamp troll. - Well, okay, take the songbook.
“Thank you,” says the boy. - Now I have to go.
Farewell!
He sailed on a schooner, and the shipmen were still at the fair. He then decided to test the tablecloth and see what it was good for.
At first the boy spread only the edge of the tablecloth. He looks - there is everything on the table: all sorts of food - eat as much as you want, and snacks, and snacks, and intoxicating drinks.
The boy tasted a piece of this, a piece of that, and fed the rest to the dog. She ate to her fill and went to bed.
The shipbuilders returned from the fair and the skipper said:
- Where did the dog eat so much? Her belly is very, very thick, and she's spread out like a hog.
- Yes, I fed her bones! - the cook answers, - Well done, guy, and don’t forget the dog! - the skipper praised.
The boy laid out a self-assembled tablecloth, and, out of nowhere, all sorts of food appeared on the table - both snacks and snacks - and intoxicating food appeared. Never before have shipmen feasted like this.
The boy also wanted to test the sword. He was left alone with the dog, threatened it with a black blade - and the dog fell dead on the deck. He turned the sword over, waved the white blade - the dog came to life and wagged its tail. But he hasn’t had a chance to try out the songbook yet.
They swam and swam, covered many lands by sea, and had success in everything, until the storm broke out. They were carried along the sea for many days. The storm finally subsided, and the schooner moored to an unknown shore in foreign lands. Nobody knew what kind of country it was. But soon they heard on the schooner: a great misfortune had happened in the country - the royal daughter had fallen ill with leprosy.
One day the shipbuilders gathered on deck. The king came here to the schooner and asked:
- Can anyone heal the princess?
- Who can do this? We have no doctors! - the shipbuilders answer in one voice.
- Is there anyone else on the schooner except on deck? - asks the king.
- Yes, there is one ragged boy here! - said the shipmen.
- Call him here! - ordered the king.
The cook came on deck.
- Maybe you can heal the princess? - asks the king.
- Why not heal! - answers the cook.
When the skipper heard this, he became terribly angry and scurried around the deck like a dung beetle in a bowl of tar. He was afraid that the guy had taken up his own business and now he would not get out. So he says to the king:
“It’s not worth it, Your Majesty, to listen to children’s speeches!”
“Nothing,” says the king, “with age comes wisdom, and from a boy a man grows.” Since the cook has decided to heal the princess, let him try his hand. Quite a few sweatshirts were already there, but then everyone retreated.
The boy took his songbook, and the king took him to the princess. The cook sang her a song - the king's daughter raised her hand, sang another - she sat down on the bed. As soon as he sang the third, the princess rose to her feet, as if she had never been ill.
The king was delighted and granted the savior half of the lands in his kingdom and a daughter in addition.
“Okay,” the guy agrees. - Half the lands in the kingdom, so be it, I’ll take it, it’ll do. Very grateful! But I can’t take the king’s daughter as my wife. I made another promise.
He remained in that country, and he got half the kingdom. And soon the war began. The guy also went to war. He grew up and, believe me, he did a great job with the black blade of the sword. He did not give his people into slavery to the neighboring king. Foreign warriors dropped like flies; The royal army defeated the enemy. The guy started waving a white blade. The fallen enemies came to life and came under the command of the king: the guy gave them life! The king’s warriors became visible and invisible, and there was nothing to feed them. The guy had to pull out the self-assembled tablecloth, and then no one lacked anything: everyone ate their fill and got drunk.
The guy lives with the king for a year, lives for another, and then suddenly he misses the burgomaster’s daughter. He equipped four schooners and sailed to Trondheim, where the burgomaster lived. The schooners entered the Trondheim Fjord, and the shipmen began firing their cannons. It rumbled in the city, it thundered so loudly that half the windows broke. Then the burgomaster went down to the harbor and saw: the decoration on the schooners was royal, and the owner himself was dressed to the nines: his dress was embroidered with gold from top to bottom.
The burgomaster invites an unfamiliar nobleman:
- Welcome to my house for dinner!
- With pleasure! - he says.
He came to the burgomaster's house; They seated him at the table - on the right hand was the burgomaster's daughter, on the left was the burgomaster herself. Everyone is sitting, talking, eating, drinking. The guy got clever and threw half of the ring into the cup of the burgomaster’s daughter, so much so that no one except her noticed. She immediately understood everything and left the room as if she needed to go to the kitchen. And just outside the door, she immediately fitted both halves of the ring to each other.
The mother was alarmed: was her daughter really up to something? She took a moment and went out to get her.
- Do you know, mother, who our guest is? - asks my daughter.
- How should I know? - answers the burgomaster.
- Yes, the one whom my father gave for a pack of tobacco! The burgomaster's eyes rolled back in her head and she fell unconscious. The burgomaster himself came out here, and when he heard what had happened, he did not grieve.
“There’s no need to make a fuss,” says the guy who was traded for a pack of tobacco. “I’m taking as my wife the girl I once kissed on the way to school.” - And he said to the burgomaster’s wife: - Do not disdain beggar children - no one knows what they will become; Over the years, wisdom comes to a person and a man grows out of a boy.
Translated from Russian · original on wisdomlib.ru