Ali Baba and the Forty Thieves

Once upon a time, long ago, in a Persian city, there lived two brothers—Kasim and Ali Baba. When their father died, they divided the money he left behind, and Kasim began trading expensive fabrics and silk robes at the market. He was skilled at praising his goods and attracting customers, and his shop was always crowded with people. Kasim grew richer and richer, and when he had accumulated a lot of money, he married the daughter of the chief judge, whose name was Fatima.

Ali Baba, on the other hand, did not know how to trade or make money, and he was married to a poor girl named Zeynab. They quickly spent almost everything they had, and one day Zeynab said:

"Listen, Ali Baba, we’ll soon have nothing to eat. You need to come up with something, or we’ll starve to death."

"Alright," replied Ali Baba, "I’ll think about what we can do."

He went out into the garden, sat under a tree, and began to think. Ali Baba thought for a long time and finally came up with an idea. He took the remaining money he had, went to the market, and bought two donkeys, an axe, and a rope.

The next morning, he went outside the city to a high mountain covered in dense forest and spent the whole day chopping wood. In the evening, Ali Baba tied the wood into bundles, loaded them onto his donkeys, and returned to the city. He sold the wood at the market and bought bread, meat, and vegetables.

From then on, Ali Baba would leave for the mountain every morning and chop wood until evening, then sell it at the market and buy bread and meat for himself and Zeynab. One day, as he stood under a tall tree, about to chop it down, he suddenly noticed a cloud of dust rising on the road all the way to the sky. When the dust settled, Ali Baba saw a group of riders galloping straight toward him, dressed in armor and chainmail; spears were tied to their saddles, and long, sharp swords gleamed at their belts. At the front rode a one-eyed man with a black beard on a tall white horse.

Ali Baba was very frightened. He quickly climbed to the top of the tree and hid among its branches. The riders approached the spot where he had just been standing and dismounted. Each of them took a heavy sack from their saddle and slung it over their shoulders; then they lined up, waiting for the one-eyed man—their leader—to give orders.

"Who are these people, and what’s in their sacks?" thought Ali Baba. "They must be thieves and robbers."

He counted the men, and there were exactly forty, not including the leader. The leader stepped forward and led them to a tall rock with a small steel door; it was so overgrown with grass and thorns that it was almost invisible.

The leader stopped in front of the door and shouted loudly:

"Open Sesame!"

Suddenly, the door in the rock swung open, the leader entered, followed by his men, and the door slammed shut behind them.

"What a wonder!" thought Ali Baba. "Sesame is just a little plant. I know oil is pressed from it, but I didn’t know it could open doors!"

Ali Baba really wanted to take a closer look at the magical door, but he was so afraid of the robbers that he didn’t dare climb down from the tree.

A little time passed, and suddenly the door swung open again, and the forty robbers came out with empty sacks. As before, the one-eyed leader walked at the front. The robbers tied the empty sacks to their saddles, jumped onto their horses, and rode away.

Then Ali Baba, who was tired of crouching in the tree, quickly climbed down and ran to the rock.

"What if I also say, 'Open Sesame?'" he thought. "Will the door open or not? I’ll try!"

He gathered his courage, took a deep breath, and shouted at the top of his voice:

"Open Sesame!"

Immediately, the door swung open before him, revealing the entrance to a large cave.

Ali Baba entered the cave, and as soon as he crossed the threshold, the door slammed shut behind him. Ali Baba felt a little scared: what if the door didn’t open again and he couldn’t get out? But he still went forward, looking around in amazement.

He saw that he was in a large room, and along the walls stood many tables set with golden dishes under silver lids. Ali Baba smelled the delicious aroma of food and remembered that he hadn’t eaten anything since morning. He approached one of the tables, lifted the lids off the dishes, and his mouth watered—the dishes were filled with every kind of food one could wish for: roasted chickens, rice pilaf, pancakes with jam, halva, apples, and many other delicious things.

Ali Baba grabbed a chicken and devoured it in no time. Then he started on the pilaf, and after finishing it, he dug into the halva, but he couldn’t eat another bite—he was so full. After resting for a bit, he looked around and noticed an entrance to another room. Ali Baba went in—and had to squint. The room sparkled and glittered—there was so much gold and jewels inside. Golden dinars and silver dirhams lay in piles on the ground, like stones on a seashore. Precious tableware—goblets, trays, and dishes adorned with precious stones—stood in every corner. Bundles of silk and fabrics—Chinese, Indian, Syrian, Egyptian—lay in the middle of the room; sharp swords and long spears hung on the walls, enough to arm an entire army.

Ali Baba’s eyes darted around, and he didn’t know where to start: he tried on a red silk robe, picked up a golden tray and looked at his reflection, or scooped up handfuls of gold coins and let them trickle through his fingers.

Finally, he calmed down a little and said to himself:

"These treasures must have been stolen, and the robbers who were just here stored them. These riches don’t belong to them, and if I take a little gold for myself, there’s nothing wrong with that. After all, there’s so much here that it’s impossible to count."

Ali Baba tucked up the hem of his robe, knelt down, and began gathering gold. He found two empty sacks in the cave, filled them with dinars, dragged them to the door, and shouted:

"Open Sesame!"

The door immediately swung open.

Ali Baba stepped out of the cave, and the door slammed shut behind him. Thorny bushes and branches intertwined, hiding it from view. Ali Baba’s donkeys were grazing on the meadow. He loaded the sacks of gold onto them, covered them with firewood, and rode home.

By the time he returned, it was already night, and a worried Zeynab was waiting for him at the gate.

"What were you doing in the forest for so long?" she asked. "I thought wolves or hyenas had torn you apart. Why did you bring the firewood home instead of selling it?"

"You’ll find out soon, Zeynab," said Ali Baba. "Help me carry these sacks into the house, and don’t make noise so the neighbors don’t hear us."
Zeynab silently hoisted one of the sacks onto her back, and she and Ali Baba entered the house. Zeynab firmly closed the door behind her, lit a lamp, and untied the sack. When she saw the gold, she turned pale with fear and cried out:

"What have you done, Ali Baba? Whom have you robbed?"

"Don't worry, Zeynab," said Ali Baba. "I haven't robbed anyone, and I'll tell you what happened to me today."

He told her about the robbers and the cave, and when he finished his story, he said:

"Look, Zeynab, hide this gold and don't tell anyone about it. People will think we really robbed someone and will report us to the Sultan. Then he will take all the gold from us and throw us into the dungeon. Let's dig a hole and hide the gold there."

They went out into the garden, dug a hole by the light of the moon, placed all the gold inside, and then covered the hole with dirt again.

Having finished this task, Ali Baba went to bed. Zeynab also lay down, but she tossed and turned for a long time, thinking:

"How much gold did Ali Baba bring? As soon as dawn breaks, I'll count every single coin!"

The next morning, when Ali Baba, as usual, went to the mountain, Zeynab ran to the hole, dug it up, and began counting the dinars.

But there were so many that Zeynab couldn't count them all. She wasn't very good at counting and kept losing track. Finally, she grew tired of it and said to herself:

"Maybe I should measure the gold instead. But I don't have a measure. I'll have to ask Fatima for one."

Kasim and Fatima lived in the neighboring house. Zeynab immediately ran to them. She entered the hallway and said to Fatima:

"Please, lend me a measure for a little while. I'll return it to you today."

"Alright," replied Fatima, "but my measure is at the neighbor's. I'll go get it and give it to you. Wait here in the hallway; your feet are dirty, and I just laid out clean mats."

Fatima made all this up. The measure for measuring grain was hanging in its usual place—in the kitchen, above the hearth—and she hadn't changed the mats for about ten days. In truth, she was very curious to know why Zeynab suddenly needed a measure, as Fatima knew well that there had been no grain in Ali Baba's house for a long time. But she didn't want to ask Zeynab directly, not wanting Zeynab to think that Fatima was interested in her affairs. So she came up with a way to find out without asking. She smeared the bottom of the measure with honey, then brought it to Zeynab and said:

"Here, take it. Just make sure to return it intact and no later than sunset. I need it to measure lentils myself."

"Thank you, Fatima," said Zeynab and ran home. She scooped all the gold out of the hole and began hurriedly measuring it, constantly glancing around.

The gold turned out to be ten measures and half a measure more.

Zeynab returned the measure to Fatima and left, bowing deeply to her. Fatima immediately grabbed the measure and looked inside. Suddenly, she saw a small, shiny circle stuck to the bottom. It was a brand-new gold dinar.

Fatima couldn't believe her eyes. She turned the coin between her fingers and even bit it to see if it was fake. But the dinar was genuine, made of pure gold.

"So this is the kind of 'grain' they have!" Fatima exclaimed. "They're so rich that Zeynab is measuring gold with a measure. They must have robbed someone and are pretending to be poor. I hope Kasim comes back from the shop soon! I'll tell him everything. He should go to Ali Baba and threaten him properly! Ali Baba will probably share with him."

Fatima sat by the gate all day, waiting for Kasim. When it grew dark, Kasim returned from the shop, and Fatima, not even letting him take off his turban, shouted:

"Listen, Kasim, I have news for you! Your brother Ali Baba is pretending to be poor, but it turns out he's richer than us!"

"What nonsense!" Kasim snapped. "There's no one richer than me on our street, or even in the whole neighborhood. That's why I was chosen as the market elder."

"You don't believe me?" Fatima was offended. "Well, tell me, how do you count your money when you tally up the evening's earnings?"

"I count it, of course," replied Kasim. "I stack the dinars and dirhams into piles and count them. When I reach a hundred, I bend a finger so I don't make a mistake. Why are you asking such silly questions?"

"No, it's not silly!" Fatima shouted. "You count dinars by tens and hundreds, but Zeynab, your brother's wife, counts them by measures. Here's what she left in my measure."

And Fatima showed him the dinar that had stuck to the bottom of the measure.

Kasim examined it from all sides and said:

"May I not be called Kasim if I don't find out where Ali Baba got this money. By trick or by force, I'll take it from him!"

And he immediately went to his brother. Ali Baba had just returned from the mountain and was resting on a stone bench in front of the house. He was very happy to see Kasim and said:

"Welcome, Kasim! You don't visit me often. What brings you here today, and at such a late hour?"

"Good evening, my brother," Kasim said importantly. "I've come to you with a great grievance."

"A grievance?" Ali Baba was surprised. "How could I, a poor woodcutter, offend the market elder?"
- "You are richer than me now," said Kasim. "You measure gold by the bushel. Here's what my wife found at the bottom of the measure she lent to your wife Zeynab. Don't deceive me: I know everything! Why did you hide from me that you've become wealthy? Did you rob someone?"

Ali Baba realized that Kasim had discovered his secret and decided to confess everything.

- "Oh, my brother," he said, "I never intended to deceive you. I only kept it from you because I feared thieves and robbers who might kill you."

And he told Kasim about the cave and the robbers. Then he extended his hand to his brother and said:

- "Oh, my brother, we are both sons of the same father and mother. Let us share equally everything I bring from the cave. I know how to enter it and how to protect ourselves from the robbers. Take half of the money and treasures—it will be enough for you for a lifetime."

- "I don't want half, I want all the money!" shouted Kasim, pushing Ali Baba's hand away. "Tell me quickly how to enter the cave, or I will report you to the Sultan, and he will order your head to be cut off."

- "Why are you threatening me with the Sultan?" said Ali Baba. "Go to the cave if you wish, but you won't be able to take all the money and treasures. Even if you spent a whole year hauling gold and silver from the cave, without resting day or night, you still wouldn't take half of what's there!"

He told Kasim how to find the cave and instructed him to remember the words: "Open Sesame!"

- "I won't forget," said Kasim. "Sesame... sesame... It seems like a plant, something like hemp. I'll remember."

The next morning, Kasim saddled ten mules, loaded each with two large chests, and set off for the forest. He let his mules graze at the edge of the forest, found the door in the rock, and, standing before it, shouted with all his might:

- "Hey, Sesame, open the door!"

The door swung open. Kasim entered, and the door slammed shut behind him. He saw the cave filled with treasures and completely lost his mind with joy. He danced on the spot, then rushed forward and grabbed everything within reach—bundles of expensive fabrics, chunks of gold, jars and dishes, then threw them aside and tore golden swords and shields from the walls, scooping up handfuls of coins and stuffing them into his clothes. He dashed around the cave for an hour but couldn't take everything. Finally, he thought:

"I have plenty of time. I'll carry out sack after sack until I load all the mules, and then I'll come back again. I'll come here every day until I take everything, down to the last coin!"

He grabbed a sack of money and dragged it to the door. The door was locked. Kasim tried to say the magic words to open it, but suddenly realized he had forgotten them. He only remembered that he had to say the name of some plant. So he shouted:

- "Peas, open the door!"

But the door didn't open. Kasim grew a little frightened. He thought and shouted again:

- "Wheat, open the door!"

The door didn't budge. Kasim, now terrified, couldn't remember anything and shouted the names of all the plants he knew:

- "Oats, open the door!"

- "Hemp, open the door!"

- "Barley, open the door!"

But the door remained shut. Kasim realized he would never escape the cave. He sat on the sack of gold and wept.

Meanwhile, the robbers had robbed wealthy merchants and taken much gold and valuable goods. They decided to hide it all in the cave. As they approached the forest, the leader noticed mules grazing peacefully at the edge.

- "Whose mules are these?" said the leader. "There are chests tied to their saddles. Someone must have learned about our cave and wants to rob us!"

He ordered the robbers to be quiet and, approaching the door, whispered:

- "Open Sesame!"

The door opened, and the robbers saw Kasim trying to hide behind a sack of money. The leader rushed forward, swung his sword, and cut off Kasim's head.

The robbers left Kasim's body in the cave, captured the mules, and rode away.

Meanwhile, Fatima sat by the window all day, waiting for the mules to appear with chests full of gold. But time passed, and Kasim did not return. Fatima waited all day, all night, and in the morning, she ran weeping to Ali Baba.

Ali Baba said:

- "Don't worry, Fatima. I will go to the mountain myself and find out what happened to Kasim."

He immediately mounted his donkey and rode to the forest, straight to the cave. As soon as he entered, he saw his brother lying dead on the sacks of money.

Ali Baba carried Kasim's body out of the cave, placed it in a sack, and rode home sorrowfully, thinking to himself:

"This is what greed has brought Kasim to! If only he had agreed to share the money with me and hadn't wanted to take it all for himself, he would still be alive."
Ali Baba arranged a lavish funeral for Cassim but told no one how his brother had died. Fatima told everyone who accompanied Cassim to the cemetery that her husband had been torn apart by wild beasts in the forest.

When Cassim was buried, Ali Baba said to Fatima:

"You know what, Fatima? Sell me your house, and let's live together. That way, I won't have to build a new house, and you won't have to live alone in fear. How about it?"

"Oh, Ali Baba," said Fatima, "my house is your house, and everything I have belongs to you. Just let me live with you—I need nothing more."

"Well, that's settled then," said Ali Baba, and he, Zainab, and Fatima began living together.

Ali Baba made several more trips to the cave and brought back a great deal of gold, precious garments, carpets, and dishes. Every day, his kitchen prepared food not only for himself, Zainab, and Fatima but also for all his poor neighbors who had nothing to eat. When the neighbors thanked him, he would say:

"Come back tomorrow and bring all the poor with you. There's no need to thank me. I am feeding you with the money of my brother Cassim, who was devoured by wolves on the mountain. He was a wealthy man."

Soon, all the poor and needy began coming to Ali Baba's house for lunch and dinner, and the townspeople grew very fond of him.

That is what happened to Ali Baba, Zainab, and Fatima.

As for the bandits, a few days later, they returned to the cave and found that the body of their enemy had disappeared, and the bags of money were scattered on the ground.

"Someone has entered our cave again!" cried the chieftain. "I recently killed one enemy, but it seems there are more! May I not be Hasan One-Eye if I do not kill anyone who tries to profit from our treasure. Brave bandits! Is there anyone among you who is bold enough to go to the city and find our offender? Let no coward or weakling take on this task! Only the cunning and skillful can accomplish it."

"O chieftain," said one of the bandits, "no one but me will go to the city and track down our enemy. It's no accident they call me Ahmed the Daredevil. If I don't find him, do with me as you please."

"Very well, Ahmed," said the chieftain. "I give you one day. If you find our enemy, I will appoint you as my deputy, but if you don't, you'd better not return. I will cut off your head."

"Don't worry, chieftain. Before the day is over, you'll know where to find your enemy," said Ahmed. "Wait for me here in the forest by evening."

He removed his bandit attire, put on a blue silk robe, red leather boots, and a skullcap, and headed to the city.

It was early morning. The market was still empty, and all the shops were closed; only an old shoemaker sat under his awning, laying out his tools and waiting for customers.

Ahmed the Daredevil approached him and, bowing, said:

"Good morning, uncle. You're up early for work! If I hadn't seen you, I would have had to wait a long time for the market to open."

"What do you need?" asked the old shoemaker, whose name was Mustafa.

"I'm a stranger in your city," replied Ahmed. "I arrived here only last night and waited until dawn for the city gates to open. My brother, a wealthy merchant, lived in this city. I came from distant lands to visit him, but as I approached the city, I heard that he had been found dead in the forest. Now I don't know how to find his family to mourn him together."

"You say your brother was a wealthy merchant?" asked the shoemaker. "A merchant was recently buried in our city, and I attended the funeral. The merchant's wife said he was torn apart by wolves, but I heard from someone that this wasn't true—that the merchant was actually found dead in the forest, headless, and secretly brought home in a sack."

Ahmed the Daredevil was overjoyed. He realized that this wealthy merchant was the man the chieftain had killed.

"Can you take me to his house?" Ahmed asked the shoemaker.

"I can," replied the shoemaker. "But what about my work? What if someone comes to the market and wants to order shoes, and I'm not here?"

"Here's a dinar," said Ahmed. "Take it for your trouble, and when you show me my brother's house, I'll give you another dinar."

"Thank you for your generosity!" exclaimed the delighted Mustafa. "It would take me a whole month of patching shoes to earn this dinar. Let's go!"

And the shoemaker led Ahmed to the house where Cassim had lived.

"This is the house where the murdered merchant lived. His brother lives here now," said Mustafa.

"That's the one I need!" thought Ahmed. He gave Mustafa a dinar, and Mustafa left, bowing and thanking him. All the houses in the city were surrounded by high walls, so only the gates faced the street. It was not easy to remember an unfamiliar house.

"I need to mark this house," Ahmed said to himself, "so I can recognize it later."

He pulled a piece of chalk from his pocket and drew a cross on the gate. Then he walked away, happily saying to himself:

"Now I'll remember this house and bring my comrades here tomorrow. I'll be the chieftain's deputy!"

As soon as Ahmed left, a servant of Ali Baba's named Marjane, a clever and brave girl, came out of the house. She was going to the market to buy bread and meat for dinner. As she closed the gate, she turned around and suddenly noticed the chalk cross on the gate.

"Who dared to deface our gate?" she thought. "Probably street boys. No, the cross is too high! An adult drew it, and that person is planning something evil against us. He wants to remember our house to kill or rob us. I need to throw him off track."
Marjana returned home, took out a piece of chalk, and marked crosses on all the neighboring houses. Then she went about her business.

Meanwhile, the robber ran to the cave and shouted:

"Listen, chieftain! Everyone, listen! I found the house of our enemy and marked it with a cross. Tomorrow I will show it to you."

"Well done, Ahmed the Daredevil!" said the chieftain. "By morning, everyone must be ready. We will hide sharp knives under our robes and follow Ahmed to the house of our enemy."

"We hear and obey you, chieftain," said the robbers, and they all congratulated Ahmed on his success.

Ahmed the Daredevil walked around proudly, saying:

"You'll see, I will be the chieftain's right-hand man."

He didn't sleep all night, waiting for dawn, and as soon as the sun rose, he jumped up and woke the robbers. They put on wide Bukharan robes, white turbans, and shoes with curled toes, hid knives under their robes, and set off for the city. Everyone who saw them said:

"These are Bukharans. They've come to our city to explore it."

Ahmed and the chieftain walked at the front. For a long time, Ahmed led his comrades through the city, and finally, he found the right street.

"Look," he said, "this is the house. Do you see the cross on the gate?"

"But here's another cross," said another robber. "Which house does our enemy live in?"

"And there's a cross on that house too! And on this one! And here's another! There are crosses on all the houses!" the other robbers suddenly shouted.

The chieftain grew angry and said:

"What does this mean? Someone outsmarted you, Ahmed! You failed your task, and you won't be robbing with us anymore. I will cut off your head myself!"

And when they returned to the forest, the cruel chieftain beheaded Ahmed. Then he said:

"Who else will take on the task of finding the house of our enemy? Who has the courage? Let no lazy or weak one attempt it!"

"Allow me to try, O chieftain," said one of the robbers, Muhammad the Bald. "I am an old man, and I'm not so easily fooled. And if I fail in my task, execute me as you did Ahmed."

"Go, Muhammad," said the chieftain. "I will wait for you until tomorrow evening. But beware: if you do not find and show me the house of our enemy, you will receive no mercy."

The next morning, Muhammad the Bald set off for the city. Ahmed had told the robbers about Mustafa, so Muhammad went straight to the market to see the old cobbler. He had the same conversation with him as Ahmed had and promised him two dinars if Mustafa showed him the house of the murdered merchant. Mustafa, delighted, led him right to the gates.

"I'll have to mark the house somehow," thought Muhammad. He picked up a piece of brick lying on the road and drew a small cross in the upper right corner of the gate.

"No one will see this except me," he thought. "I'll run back quickly and bring the chieftain here."

And he hurried back to his comrades. Meanwhile, Marjana was returning from the market. Seeing a man sneak away from their gate and run down the road, she realized something was amiss.

Marjana approached the gate, examined it carefully, and saw a small red cross in the upper right corner.

"So this is who's been marking crosses on our gates," thought Marjana. "Just wait, I'll outsmart you."

She picked up a piece of brick from the ground and marked the same crosses on the gates of all the houses on their street.

"Now try to find our house!" she exclaimed. "You'll fail just like yesterday!"

Meanwhile, Muhammad the Bald ran all the way without stopping and finally entered the cave, barely catching his breath.

"Come quickly!" he shouted. "I marked the house so well that our enemy won't escape now. Hurry up, don't delay!"

The robbers wrapped themselves in their cloaks and followed Muhammad. They hurried to reach the city before dark and arrived just before sunset. Finding the familiar street, Muhammad the Bald led the chieftain to the largest and most beautiful gate and pointed to the small red cross in the upper right corner.

"See," he said, "this is my mark."

"And whose is this?" asked one of the robbers, who had stopped at the neighboring gate. "There's a cross here too."

"What cross?" shouted Muhammad.

"A red one," replied the robber. "And on those gates too. And across the street as well. While you were showing the chieftain your cross, I checked all the neighboring gates."
- Well, Muhammad, - said the ataman, - so you were outsmarted too? Even though you're a good bandit, you failed to complete your task. There will be no mercy for you!

And Muhammad perished just like Ahmed. And so, the ataman's gang no longer had forty, but thirty-eight bandits.

"I must take this difficult matter into my own hands," thought the ataman. "My men are good at fighting, stealing, and plundering, but they are not suited for tricks and deception."

And so, the next morning, Hassan One-Eyed, the ataman of the bandits, went into the city himself. The market was in full swing. He found Mustafa the cobbler and, sitting down beside him, said:

- Oh, uncle, why are you so sad? Is there not enough work?

- I haven't had any work for a long time, - replied the cobbler. - I would probably have starved to death if fate hadn't sent me help. The day before yesterday, early in the morning, a generous man came to me and told me he was looking for his brother's relatives. And I knew where his brother's house was, so I showed him the way, and the foreigner gave me two whole dinars. Yesterday, another foreigner came to me and again asked if I knew his brother, who had recently died, and I led him to the same house and again received two dinars. But today - it's already noon, and no one has come to me. It seems the deceased has no more brothers.

Hearing Mustafa's words, the ataman wept bitterly and said:

- What luck that I met you! I am the third brother of the murdered man. I came from the Far West and only yesterday learned that my dear brother was killed. There were four of us brothers, and we all lived in different countries, and now we have gathered in your city, but only to find our brother dead. Take me to his house, and I will give you as much as my brothers did.

- Very well, - the old man said joyfully. - Does he have no more brothers?

- No, - the ataman replied with a heavy sigh. - There were four of us, and now there are only three.

- It's a pity there are so few of you, - said old Mustafa and also sighed. - Let's go.

He led the ataman to Qasim's house, received his payment, and left. The ataman counted and memorized how many gates there were from the corner of the street to the gates of the house, so he didn't need to mark the gates. Then he returned to his comrades and said:

- Oh, bandits, I have come up with a trick. If it succeeds, we will kill our enemy and take all the wealth he took from the cave. Listen to me and do everything I command.

And he ordered one of the bandits to go to the city and buy twenty strong mules and forty oil jars.

When the bandit brought the mules loaded with jars, the ataman ordered the bandits to climb into the jars. He himself covered the jars with palm leaves and tied them with grass, poking holes in the top for air so the men wouldn't suffocate. And into the remaining two jars, he poured olive oil and smeared it on the other jars so that people would think all the jars were filled with oil.

The ataman himself dressed as a wealthy merchant and drove the mules into the city. Evening was falling, and it was getting dark. The ataman headed straight to Qasim's house and saw a cheerful and friendly man sitting at the gate. It was Ali Baba. The ataman approached him and bowed low, touching the ground with his hand.

- Good evening, honorable merchant, - he said. - I am a foreigner from a distant land. I have brought a supply of expensive oil and hoped to sell it in your city. But my mules are tired from the long journey and moved slowly. When I entered the city, it was already evening, and all the shops were closed. I walked all over the city to find a place to stay, but no one wanted to take in a foreigner. And then I passed by you and saw that you are a friendly and hospitable man. Would you allow me to spend one night at your place? I will place my jars in the courtyard, and tomorrow morning I will take them to the market and sell them. Then I will return to my country and tell everyone about your kindness.

- Come in, foreigner, - said Ali Baba. - I have plenty of space. Unload your mules and feed them, and then we will have dinner. Hey, Marjana, chain the dogs so they don't bite our guest!

- Thank you, honorable merchant! - said the ataman of the bandits. - May your wishes come true, as you have fulfilled my request.

He led his mules into the courtyard and unloaded them by the wall of the house, carefully removing the jars so as not to injure the bandits. Then he bent down to the jars and whispered:

- Sit quietly and don't move. Tonight, I will come out to you and lead you into the house myself.

And the bandits whispered back from the jars:

- We hear and obey, ataman!

The ataman entered the house and went up to the room where a table for dinner was already set. Ali Baba was waiting for him, sitting on a low bench covered with a carpet. Seeing the guest, he called out to Marjana:

- Hey, Marjana, order a chicken to be roasted and prepare plenty of pancakes with honey. I want my guest to be pleased with our hospitality.

- I hear and obey, - said Marjana. - I will prepare it all myself, with my own hands.

She ran to the kitchen, quickly kneaded the dough, and was about to start frying when she suddenly realized that the oil had run out and there was nothing to fry with.

- What a disaster! - cried Marjana. - What should I do now? It's already night, and there's no oil to buy anywhere. And the neighbors won't have any either, they're all asleep. What a disaster!

Suddenly, she slapped her forehead and said:

- How foolish of me! I'm upset that there's no oil, but here, under the window, are forty jars of oil. I'll take a little from our guest, and tomorrow at dawn, I'll buy oil at the market and refill the jar.

She lit a lamp and went out into the courtyard. The night was dark and cloudy. Everything was quiet, except for the mules by the well, snorting and jingling their bridles.

Marjana raised the lamp high above her head and approached the jars.

And as it happened, the nearest jar was the one with oil. Marjana opened it and began to pour the oil into her jar.
And the robbers were already very tired of sitting hunched up in the jars. Their bones ached so much that they could no longer endure it. Hearing Marjane's footsteps, they thought that their leader had come for them, and one of them said:

"Finally, you've come, leader! Quickly let us out of these cursed jars and allow us to deal with the master of this house, our enemy."

Marjane, hearing the voice from the jar, nearly fell from fear and dropped the lamp. But she was a smart and brave girl and immediately realized that the oil merchant was a villain and a robber, that his men were sitting in the jars, and that Ali Baba was in mortal danger.

She approached the jar from which the voice had come and said:

"The time will come soon. Be quiet, or the dogs will hear you. They've been let off their chains for the night."

Then she went to another jar and asked:

"Who's there?"

"It's me, Hasan," replied a voice from the jar.

"Be ready, Hasan, I'll free you soon."

This way, she went around all the jars and discovered that thirty-eight jars contained robbers, and only two jars were filled with oil.

Marjane grabbed the jar of oil, ran to the kitchen, and heated the oil over the fire until it boiled.

Then she poured the boiling oil into the jar where the robber was sitting. He didn't even have time to scream—he died instantly. Having dealt with one enemy, Marjane moved on to the others. She boiled the oil and poured it over the robbers until she had killed them all. Then she took a frying pan, cooked many golden pancakes, arranged them beautifully on a silver platter, drizzled them with oil, and carried them upstairs to the room where Ali Baba and his guest were sitting. Ali Baba continued to entertain the leader of the robbers, and soon the guest was so full that he could barely move. He lay on the cushions, his hands folded on his stomach, breathing heavily.

Ali Baba saw that the guest was satisfied and wanted to amuse him. He called out to Marjane:

"Hey, Marjane, dance for our guest the best of your dances."

"At your service, master," Marjane replied with a bow. "Allow me to go and fetch a veil, as I will dance with it."

"Go and return," said Ali Baba.

Marjane ran to her room, wrapped herself in an embroidered veil, and hid a sharp dagger underneath it.

Then she returned and began to dance.

Ali Baba and the robber leader watched her, nodding their heads in delight.

And then, in the middle of the dance, Marjane began to move closer and closer to the leader. Suddenly, like a cat, she leaped at him and, swinging the dagger, plunged it into the robber's heart. The robber let out a loud cry and died.

Ali Baba was stunned with horror. He thought Marjane had gone mad.

"Woe is me!" he cried. "What have you done, you madwoman? A foreigner has been killed in my house! Shame and disgrace upon me!"

Marjane fell to her knees and said:

"Hear me out, master, and then do with me as you wish. If I am guilty, kill me as I killed him."

And she told Ali Baba how she had learned about the robbers and how she had destroyed them all. Ali Baba immediately realized that these were the same robbers who had come to the cave and who had killed Kasim.

He lifted Marjane to her feet and shouted loudly:

"Get up, Zeinab, and wake Fatima! We were in mortal danger, and this brave and clever girl saved us all!"

Zeinab and Fatima immediately ran in and hugged Marjane tightly, and Ali Baba said:

"You will no longer be a servant, Marjane. From this day on, you will live with us as our own sister."

And from that day on, they lived peacefully and happily.

More fairy tales

• The Evil Wizard
• The Lazy Craftsman
• The Magic Box
• The Tale of the Clever Doctor
• The Tale of the Ebony Horse