Once a wolf went fishing with a gossip fox. - Who will carry the basket? - asked the wolf.
“You,” answered the fox, “your tail is thicker than mine.”
She tied the basket tightly to the wolf's tail. The catch was plentiful. The wolf was dragging and dragging a heavy basket, the tail could not stand it and broke off.
“I’ll eat you,” said the wolf to the fox, “because you played such a joke on me!” - Have pity on me, my friend, my dear godfather! We’d better go with you to the forge, there they will make your tail stronger so that it doesn’t break off anymore.
By order of the fox, the blacksmith put a piece of iron on the anvil and, having heated it properly, applied it to the wolf at the place where the tail was torn off.
The wolf howled terribly in pain and ran headlong.
After some time, the fox ran into his godfather nose to nose on the road. The wolf shouted angrily:
- This time you won’t leave me, I’ll eat you! - Well, that's enough, Kutsy, my friend! Are you really going to take revenge on me for an innocent joke? Come with me, I know a place where excellent sausages hang. They probably taste much better than my tough, stringy meat.
The wolf helped the fox steal the sausages, and they dragged them into the forest.
“Now,” said the fox, “we need to hang them on the top of the oak tree.” After all, if we leave them here, other animals will gather and demand their share. Wouldn't it be better for us to set up a good storeroom, from where we can get supplies alone?
The wolf agreed, and the fox began to drag the sausages to the top of a very tall oak tree, and, having dragged them, began to gobble them up.
The wolf did not know how to climb trees and shouts to the fox:
- Give me my share! - Pick up my stubs, Kutsy! - Oh, you wretch! Yes, even if you are harder than tree bark, I will eat you if I catch you!
Then the wolf howled, and wolves from all over the forest came running to him.
He told them about the fox’s evil trick and asked them to help take revenge on her, and as a reward for their help he promised to share the sausages that the fox took. The wolves agreed. They decided to stand on each other's shoulders, resting their front paws on the trunk, and thus get to the top of the tree. And Kutsy will stand below and support the whole flock.
The wolves climbed on top of each other, and the top wolf had almost reached the place where the fox was sitting when she shouted:
- Blacksmith, blacksmith, bring the hot iron, attach Kutsem’s tail to his butt!
Hearing these words, Kutsy, who well remembered the hot iron in the forge, was so frightened that he immediately flopped down on all fours and took off running. All the wolves fell on each other and, angry with Kutsego, rushed after him and strangled him.
And the sly fox just chuckled, calmly finishing his sausages.
Translated from Russian · original on wisdomlib.ru