yellow fairy tale book

Chapter 28 Magic Ring (1)

Once upon a time there was an old couple who had a son named Martin.The old man's time has come, he kicked his legs and he died.He has worked hard all his life, but he can only leave two hundred florins to his wife and son.The old woman decided to save the money in case times got tough.But, alas!Hard days come and go.There is no more meat in the house.Who wants to go hungry when he has two hundred florins?So the old woman counted out a hundred florins to her son Martin Jr., and told him to go to town and give the hundred florins to the butcher's shop, to buy meat for a year.

Martin went to town.When he arrived at the butcher's shop, he found it in a state of chaos, with curses and dogs barking.He got into the crowd and found a deer caught by the butcher, tied to a stake, and whipped mercilessly.Filled with sympathy for the hound, Martin said to the butcher:

"Friends, why did you whip the poor dog so cruelly?"

"We hit him for good reason," they answered, "for he just ate a freshly slaughtered pig."

"Don't hit it," said Martin, "sell it to me."

"You can buy it if you want," laughed some of the butchers, "but a treasure like this costs a hundred florins, and I won't sell it for a penny less."

"A hundred florins!" cried Martin, "so be it, then, if you won't take less." He took the money out of his pocket, gave it to the butcher, and exchanged it for the deer, which His name was Shulka.

When Martin came home, his mother asked him, "Okay, what did you buy?"

"Shulka, a dog," replied Martin, pointing to the hound.The mother was furious and scolded him loudly for being ignorant!The family is running out of meat, and they still spend money to buy such a useless beast!

The next day, the mother sent her son to town again, and she said, "Look, here is the only florin we have, and use it to buy food. Today I have used up all the meat and flour in the house, and I will have nothing to eat tomorrow." It's gone."

Martin had just arrived in town when he saw a hideous-looking farmer leading a cat by its neck.

"Stop," cried Martin, "where are you taking the poor cat?"

"I intend to drown it," he replied.

"What evil has the cat done?" Martin asked.

"It killed a goose," replied the farmer.

"Don't drown it, sell it to me!" said Martin.

"Not for a hundred florins," replied the reply.

"Are you going to sell a hundred florins?" asked Martin. "Oh! Here is the money!" He gave the hundred florins to the farmer, who pocketed the money and went away, and Martin led the cat. , the cat's name is Vaska.

When Martin came home, his mother asked him, "What did you buy?"

"I bought the cat, Vasca," Martin replied.

"anything else?"

"There's no money for anything else," said Martin.

"You useless fellow!" His mother was furious, "Leave this house immediately and beg from strangers!" Martin did not dare to disobey his mother, so he set off with Shulka and Vaska to the nearest village to find a job .On the way, he met a rich farmer who asked him where he was going.

"I'm looking for a job," Martin replied.

"Come with me, then. But I will tell you that I hire without wages. If you will serve me faithfully for a year, I assure you, it will be very beneficial to you."

Martin agreed.For a year, he worked very hard, served his master very faithfully, and never rested himself.When it was time to pay, the farmer took him to the barn, pointed to the two full bags and said, "You can choose which bag to take."

Martin examined it. One bag was full of silver coins, the other full of sand.He thought to himself: "There must be some tricks here, I still want sand." He took the bag of sand and went out to make a living, and then went to find a new job.

He walked and walked, and finally came to a dense forest.When he entered the center of the forest, he saw a bonfire burning on a meadow. In the center of the bonfire, surrounded by flames, was a lovely young girl. Martin had never seen such a beautiful young girl.When the girl saw Martin, she called out:

"Martin, if you want to win happiness, come to my rescue. Put out the fire with your hard-earned sand."

"Really," thought Martin, "it makes more sense to save a man's life with sand than to carry it on his back, and how heavy that is!" He unhooked the bag from his shoulders and threw the sand all over the flames, The fire was immediately extinguished.Meanwhile, ah, look!The beautiful girl turned into a snake and jumped at him, wrapped her body around his neck, and said softly to him:
"Don't be afraid, Martin, I love you, and I will go into the world with you. But first, you must boldly enter my father's underground kingdom. When we arrive, remember—he will send you gold and silver , shining gems, don't touch any of these. You only ask him for a ring, a ring to wear on his little finger. This ring has magical powers, you just have to throw the ring from one hand to the other, and immediately Twelve young men have appeared, and at your command, they can complete any task, no matter how difficult, overnight."

With that, they were on their way.After walking for a long time, I came to a place where a huge boulder stood tall in the center of the road.Immediately, the snake came down from his neck, and as soon as it touched the wet ground, it immediately changed into the appearance of a lovely girl.She directed Martin to find a small opening in the boulder, just big enough for one person to pass through.Through this small hole, and into a long passage leading to the ground.After walking through the passage, you come to a vast land with a blue sky above.In the middle of the land stood a splendid palace, built of porphyry, with a roof of gold, and battlements.The beautiful girl pointed to Martin like a tour guide and said that this is her father's palace, where he rules the entire underground world.

The two entered the palace together, and the king received them very kindly.He turned to his daughter and said:

"My child, I have almost given up hope of ever seeing you again. Where have you been all these years?"

"My father," she answered, "I owe my life to this young man who saved me in the hour of my life."

When the king heard this, he turned to Martin with a grateful smile, and said, "To reward you for your bravery, you can choose my gifts as you like. You can take as much gold, silver, and precious stones as you want."

"Thank you, great king, for rewarding me well," replied Martin, "but I don't want gold, silver and precious stones, and if you want to reward me, then, I beg, take off the ring on your little finger and give it to me." .I think of your generosity every time I see it and give it to my bride when I get married."

So the king took the ring off his finger and gave it to Martin."Take it, good young man," said he, "but on one condition—you must not reveal to anyone that it is a magic ring. If you do, you will immediately meet with misfortune."

Martin took the ring, thanked the king, and went back the way he came, to the world.When he returned home, his mother was still there, and the mother and son lived happily together.They live carefree, without borrowing or lending.But one day, he suddenly thought that it was time to get married.Furthermore, he should choose a very noble wife, in short, the king's daughter.But he didn't think he would propose, and decided to let his mother do it.

"You must go to the king," he said to his mother, "and ask his permission to marry my daughter to me."

"What are you thinking, my child," said the old mother, "why don't you marry a girl of our own rank? That would be more suitable. You send me, a poor old woman, to court, don't you?" Appropriate. It's not worth it for me to do such a stupid thing."

"Don't be afraid, good mother," said Martin; "trust me, and it will be all right. But you must get an answer before you come home."

So the mother, unable to resist her son's will, limped to the palace, and entered the courtyard undisturbed.There is a stone step in the courtyard, which must be climbed to reach the king's palace.The top of the stone steps was full of courtiers.When the courtier saw an old woman in disheveled clothes, he stopped her, explained to her, and cooperated with various gestures to make her understand that she was strictly forbidden to climb the stone steps.However, the old woman couldn't understand what they said, and she still walked up the stone steps without any scruples, determined to convey her son's words.At this time, several courtiers came and grabbed her arms and dragged her down.The old woman cried out, and the king heard the cry and went out on the balcony to see what was going on.He saw an old woman struggling and flailing her arms, still yelling that she would not leave until she saw the king.The king ordered the old woman to come up to him.The old woman was taken to the magnificent palace.The king reclined on a pile of rich purple cushions, surrounded by courtiers and attendants.The King asked her in a low voice, "So, old lady, what do you want me to do for you?"

"I have come here," said Martin's mother, "please your Majesty don't be angry—I have come—to propose."

"Is there something wrong with this woman's head?" said the king, frowning, evidently angry.

But Martin's mother boldly replied: "If the King will listen to me patiently and give me a straight answer, then there is nothing wrong with my head. Oh, King, you have a lovely daughter to be married. I have a son who is young and wise, and if he marries the princess, you will have such a fine son-in-law as you will never find in the whole kingdom. There is nothing he cannot do. O king, now, please Tell me, will you marry my daughter to my son?" The king's face became darker and darker, and his body tensed more and more after hearing this unexpected proposal.But he suddenly thought: "I am the king, so I can't be angry with this poor woman." All the courtiers and attendants felt that the king's face turned to be happy, the frowns were untied, and the lines on the corners of his mouth were smoothed. Very puzzled.They heard the king answer the old woman in a mild but mocking tone:

"If your son is really as smart and capable as you say, let him build a palace, facing my window, within 24 hours. This palace must be connected with my palace by a crystal bridge On both sides of the bridge, trees must be planted with golden apples and silver apples, and on the branches there must be birds from heaven. On the right side of the bridge, there must be a church with five golden bell towers. Your son and my daughter We are married in this church. We have a wedding feast in the newly built palace. But if your son cannot do this, I, as a just and wise king, will have to order you both to be executed. Before you die, put your whole body Pitched and feathered. I will execute your executions in the marketplace for the amusement of my courtiers."

After the king finished speaking, a smile appeared on the corner of his mouth.The courtiers and squires all laughed, at the stupidity of the old woman, and at the cleverness of the king.They whispered, "How fun it would be to see them both covered in pitch and feathers! It's like asking a boy to grow a beard on the palm of his hand to complete such a task in twenty-four hours!"

At this moment, the old lady was really terrified.She asked in a trembling voice:
"Oh, King, is that really your answer? Must I answer my son with that?"

"Yes, old lady, that is my order. If your son will do as I say, I will marry my daughter to him. If he fails, then you both go to the asphalt barrel and go to the Go up the stake!"

The old woman wept continuously on the way home.When he saw Martin, he told him what the king had said.Mother sobbed and said:
"Didn't I tell you, son, that you should marry a girl of your own rank? If so, I wouldn't have to suffer. I told you it wasn't worth going to court. Well now, we They'll have to be tarred and feathered, and they'll have to be tied up to stakes in the market and burned. It's horrible!" she cried with grief.

"Don't be afraid, good mother," replied Martin, "believe me, you'll see, and everything will be all right. Go and sleep!"

Martin went out of the gate, took off the ring, and threw it from one hand to the other, and immediately twelve young men appeared, asking him what he wanted.Martin told them the king's orders, and they answered that all that the king had said would be done in the morning.

(End of this chapter)