grey fairy tale book

Chapter 21 Bronze Ring (1)
Once upon a time there was a king of a certain country, and around his palace was a huge garden.But although there are many gardeners and the soil is good, the garden neither blooms nor bears fruit, neither grass nor trees grow.

The king was very disappointed when a wise old man said to him:
"Your gardeners don't know how to do it—but since their fathers were cobblers and carpenters, what can you expect from them? How can they know how to grow your garden?"

"You speak very well," cried the King.

"So," continued the old man, "you should find another gardener, whose parents and grandparents did it, and soon your garden will be covered with grass and flowers, and you will have delicious food. What about fruit?"

So the king sent envoys to every town and village in the country, looking for a man who had been a gardener since his ancestors, and finally found one after 40 days.

"Please come with us and become the king's gardener." The messenger said to him.

"How can I, a wretched poor man," said the gardener, "go to the King?"

"What does it matter," they said, "here are new clothes for you and your family."

"But I still owe money to a few people."

"We'll pay you off," they replied.

The gardener was persuaded at last, and took his wife and son to follow the messengers to the king.The king was very happy to find a real gardener and entrusted him to manage the garden.He had no difficulty in bringing the royal garden into fruition, and in the course of a year it was so much improved that the king rewarded the new servant.

As you know, the gardener had a son, who was a rather handsome young man with a pleasant manner, and every day he brought the best fruit from the garden to the king, and all the most beautiful flowers to the princess.The princess was also extremely beautiful, and at the age of 16, the king began to consider that it was time for her to marry.

"My dear boy," he said, "you are of marriageable age, and I want to marry you to the Prime Minister's son."

"Father," replied the Princess, "I will never marry the Prime Minister's son."

"Why?" asked the king.

"Because I love the gardener's son," said the princess.

Hearing this the King was at first angry, and wept and sighed, saying that such a man was unworthy of his daughter.But the little princess was determined to marry the gardener's son.

Then the king asked his courtiers what to do. "To get rid of the gardener," they said, "you must do this: send two suitors into a far country, and whoever returns first will marry your daughter."

The king took this advice.The prime minister's son rode a fine horse with a purse full of gold coins, but the gardener's son rode a lame old horse with a purse full of copper coins, and everyone thought he would never come back .

Just the day before they set out, the princess saw her lover and said to him:

"Be brave and remember that I love you. Take this purse, it's full of jewels, use them well for the sake of loving me, and come back and propose to me as soon as possible."

The two suitors left the city together, and the prime minister's son galloped away on a fine horse, disappearing behind a distant mountain in a blink of an eye.After driving for a few days, he came to a spring and saw an old lady in rags sitting on a stone.

"Hello, young traveler," she said.

But the prime minister's son said nothing.

"Have pity on me, traveler," she added. "As you can see, I am dying of starvation. I have been here three days without getting anything to eat."

"Don't pester me, old witch," roared the young man, "I can't help you!" Then he walked away.

That same evening, the gardener's son also rode to the spring on a lame gray horse.

"Hello, young traveler," said the beggar woman.

"Hello, kind woman," he replied.

"Young traveler, have pity on me."

"Take my purse, good woman," he said, "and get on my horse, your feet are hard."

As soon as the old woman heard this, she climbed behind him onto the horse, and thus they came to the capital of a mighty kingdom.The prime minister's son lived in a luxurious hotel, while the gardener's son and the old woman lived in a beggar's shop.

The next day the gardener's son heard a great noise in the street, and it was the king's herald passing by, blowing his horn, and crying:

"Our Majesty the King is old and weak, and whoever can cure him and restore him to youth will reward him greatly."

Then the old beggar said to her benefactor:

"You must do as I tell you, and you may be rewarded by the king. You will go out of the city by the south gate, and there you will find three dogs of different colors. The first is white, the second is black, and the third is red. You You have to kill them, burn them separately, and collect the ashes. Put the ashes of each dog in a bag of the same color, and go to the palace gate and say loudly, 'I am a famous doctor from Janila in Albania .Only I can cure the king and restore him to youth'. The physicians will say, 'This is a liar, not a learned man'. They will try to stop them, but you will eventually overcome them. Then you ask for as much firewood as three mules can pull, a cauldron, and lock you and the sultan in a room. When the water in the cauldron boils, you push him in. Let him boil until the flesh and bones are completely separated. Then put the bones in their original places, and sprinkle the ashes of dogs in three bags respectively. In this way, the king will regain his life and become the same as when he was 20 years old. As a reward, You must ask for that bronze ring, which will give you all you want. Go, my boy, and remember every word I say."

The young man followed the advice of the old beggar woman.When he walked out of the city gate, he found three dogs of different colors, white, red, and black. He killed them and burned them, and then put the ashes into three bags.Then he ran to the palace and cried:

"I am the famous physician who has just arrived from Janila in Albania. Only I can heal the king and restore him to youth."

The physicians at first laughed at the strange traveler, but the sultan ordered him to be admitted.He sent them to bring a cauldron and a lot of wood, and soon the king was boiled in it.At noon the gardener's son put his bones back in their place, and as soon as the dog's ashes were sprinkled on the old king came to life, and found himself young and lively again.

"How shall I reward you, my benefactor?" he asked aloud, "shall I give you half of the treasure?"

"No," said the gardener's son.

"Marry my daughter to you?"

"Do not."

"Then take half of my kingdom."

"No. Just give me that bronze ring, and it will give me anything I want immediately."

"Alas!" said the King, "I have very much valued that magic ring. But I will give it to you." And so the King gave him the ring.

The gardener's son went back to bid farewell to the old beggar, and then said to the bronze ring:
"Get me the best ship, and I'll go on my journey. The hull is gold, the masts are silver, the sails are brocade. The crew is to be 12 noble-looking lads, dressed like monarchs. Steer the helm Nicholas. As for the cargo, diamonds, rubies, emeralds, and garnets."

Immediately there appeared a ship on the sea, exactly as the gardener's son had described.He set foot on a ship and continued his journey, and soon he arrived in a great city, where he lodged in a luxurious palace.A few days later he met his rival, the prime minister's son, who had run out of money and had to endure the humiliation of becoming a garbage hauler.The gardener's son asked him:

"What's your name? Who's your family? What country are you from?"

"I'm from a great country, and I'm the son of the Prime Minister. But you see how I've ended up doing such a dishonorable job."

"Listen, I don't know you very well, but I'm willing to help you. I'll send you a ship to bring you back to your home country, but on one condition."

"I'm willing to accept any condition."

"Follow me to my palace."

The prime minister's son followed the rich stranger without recognizing him.When they came to the palace, the gardener's son gave a signal to the servants, and they stripped the newcomer naked.

"Burnt this ring red," the master ordered, "and brand the seal on this man's back."

The servants complied.

"Well, boy," said the rich stranger, "I'll send you a ship to take you home."

On going out he took out his bronze ring and said:
"Bronze ring, listen to your master. Get me a ship, made of half-rotted wood, painted black, with rags for the sails. The sailors are weak and sick, and some are missing a leg, some are missing an arm, Some are hunchbacked, some are lame, clubfooted or blind, and most of them are ugly and full of scars. Carry out my orders!"

The prime minister's son boarded the dilapidated boat, but luckily, he finally returned to his home country.In spite of his pitiful appearance, he was received with joy.

"I have come back first," he said to the king, "now fulfill your promise and marry me the princess."

So everyone immediately started preparing for the wedding.The poor princess was both sad and angry.

(End of this chapter)