There once lived a king, and he had a hunter. One day this hunter went hunting for game. He walked a lot, searched, but didn’t kill anything. I had already decided to return home when I saw a bird on a tree, shot an arrow at it from a bow, knocked it off the tree, picked it up and put it in my bosom. Suddenly this bird turned into a beautiful girl. The hunter was surprised when he saw her next to him.
- Who are you? - asks.
“I am the bird that you caught,” says the girl.
- So you should become my wife.
“Okay,” she says, “just don’t lead me to your king, know that he will take me away from you.” If you do, then this is what I will do: when we go to the king, I will turn into an ugly girl, then he will drive you and me away, and we will live together in your house.
The hunter agreed, and they went to the king... The king saw the ugly girl and said:
- Who handed it to you, what do you need it for? The hunter said:
- I took her as my wife.
The king did not like this, he drove away both the hunter and his wife, but as soon as they left the palace, she turned into a beauty again... The hunter and his young wife lived well and happily. Time has passed. The king found out that the hunter had a beautiful wife, called him and said:
- Either give up your wife, or get her, yes, no, never.
The hunter lowered his head and returned home sadly. He told his wife what the king ordered him. The wife said: “Go to the tree on which I was sitting, tie a broom from the branches, take it with you, it will lead you where you need to go.”
The hunter went, knitted a broom from tree branches, and placed it on the ground. The broom flew forward like the wind, and the hunter hurried after it. A broom led him to the underworld. The hunter found the king's father there and said to him:
- Your son sent me for yes, no, never. Teach me how to be.
The king's father said:
- Walk like this, everything is straight, you will come to the sea, cross that sea, you will see a house, ask the owner of that house, he will teach you where to find it, yes, no, never.
The hunter walked and walked and reached the sea. He sat astride his broom, crossed the sea, and landed on the other shore. He found that house, approached it, and saw a fire burning inside, no people to be seen anywhere.
He went inside, hid, and waited.
Three people entered, one shouted:
- Hey, servant, set up the table!
A servant appeared from somewhere and set up the table. - Come on, give me food and drink.
The servant served everything. All three ate and drank and left. The hunter thought: Come what may, I will demand food from this servant too, and he shouted:
- Hey, servant, serve food!
The servant brought the table, set it up, covered it, and set out food and drink. The hunter and the servant asked to sit at the table. They sat down, drank, and ate. The hunter drinks from one cup, the servant drinks from the other. We both ate. The hunter decided to leave and invited the servant to go with him.
Went.
They walked and walked and came towards a man holding a stick in his hands. They asked him what he needed a stick for?
“I want to sell,” he says.
-What is it good for?
- If you tell her: Beat her, she will beat you.
Buy this stick, hunter. There comes a hunter, hurries straight to his king. Came. The king asks:
- Brought yes, no, never?
“I brought it,” says the hunter, “Show me!”
The hunter said to the stick:
- Well, my stick! Go against the king, don’t kill, but beat him up so that he asks for death.
The stick attacked the king and let's beat him.
—Have you had enough?
- Yes!
- Maybe you want more?
- No!
“Are you going to take my wife away from me again?”
- Never!
The stick released the king.
The king said to the hunter:
- Well done, you treated me well, be happy with your wife.
He gave the hunter a rich gift and released him. The hunter returned to his young wife, told everything that had happened to him, and they lived happily together.
Translated from Russian · original on wisdomlib.ru