Mind and Happiness

Once upon a time, there lived a poor boy, and to make matters worse, he was a bit simple-minded. More than once, he went to bed hungry because he couldn’t even earn himself a piece of bread. If it weren’t for the neighbors who remembered his late parents fondly and helped him, he would have starved to death. They would send him to the forest for firewood, tell him to fetch water, ask him to dig up the garden, or help during the harvest. He took on the hardest work because he wasn’t good for anything else. Time passed. Soon, a faint mustache began to appear on the boy’s upper lip. It was time for him to learn a trade, as all sensible people do. But learning didn’t come easily to him, so he never mastered anything.

One day, Wisdom and Happiness met in the middle of the road.

“Hello, my friend! What a pleasant meeting!” said Happiness. “It’s been a while since we last saw each other. How have you been? What have you been up to?”

“Oh, I’ve been wandering the world, teaching people sense and reason,” replied Wisdom. “Just now, I passed by a village and met a poor fellow whom both you and I had completely forgotten. He’s so unfortunate and foolish that I felt sorry for him.”

“You’re right, my friend!” said Happiness. “Let’s help him get on his feet.”

“Alright,” agreed Wisdom, “let’s help him. It’s truly a shame that we’ve forgotten about him.”

No sooner said than done. Wisdom and Happiness went to the village where the boy lived and peered through a hole in the leaning fence. Meanwhile, the boy came out of his poor shack, took his donkey, and headed to the forest for firewood. Then Wisdom whispered in his ear to cut down a large beech tree instead of gathering crooked branches and brushwood as he used to, which were worth only fifty groschen at the market. The boy walked from tree to tree until he spotted an old, dry beech. He rolled up his sleeves and began chopping. The tree fell, and gold coins poured out of a hollow where Happiness had placed them. The boy had never seen so much gold and didn’t know its value, but Wisdom advised him to hide it in a sack.

The boy loaded so much firewood onto his donkey that the poor animal’s legs nearly buckled. And since the boy wasn’t as foolish as before, he decided to go to the nearest town to sell the firewood at a higher price and find out what his yellow coins were worth. He arrived in town and got a good price for the firewood because it was dry and knot-free. Then he went to a goldsmith and showed him one of the coins. The goldsmith’s eyes gleamed greedily at the sight of the coin. He tossed the boy a few groschen and pocketed the gold. But the boy realized the goldsmith was trying to cheat him and said:

“I’m not selling my coin. It’s a keepsake from my late mother. I just wanted to know how much it’s worth.”

The goldsmith tried to persuade him to sell the coin, saying he would make a golden ring for his daughter. He offered the boy two handfuls of groschen, but the boy refused. Seeing so much money, the boy thought:

“This gold coin must be worth a lot. I won’t let myself be fooled. It’s shameful to lie, but even more shameful to let yourself be deceived. I’ll ask another goldsmith. If this one offers so much, another might offer even more.”

He took his coin and went around the market asking for its value. He visited one goldsmith after another, and each offered more than the last. Finally, the boy sold the coin to a moneychanger for a large sum, bought himself a nice coat and some other things, and returned home.

After some time, the boy loaded a sack of gold coins onto his back and set off to sell them from town to town. In one place, he was offered a thousand groschen for a coin, in another two thousand, and in a third, three thousand. Soon, he amassed a fortune, and there was still plenty of gold left in his sack. He bought himself a fine horse, elegant clothes, and went to the capital. There, he sold all the gold for a good price and became a very wealthy man.

Wisdom and Happiness followed him like shadows, helping him in every way. Wisdom advised him to become a merchant and rent a shop on the busiest street. The boy did just that. He filled his shop with all kinds of goods and started trading.

Whoever entered his shop marveled at the beautiful decorations and rare goods, but most of all, they liked the boy himself—wise and friendly. Soon, the whole city was talking about him. His shop was never empty because Wisdom taught the young merchant: “Sell cheaper, and you’ll have no shortage of customers. You’ll earn a good profit and gain a good reputation and respect.”

Even the king’s servants began buying everything their master needed from the boy’s shop. The king heard about the wealthy and obliging merchant. At the time, the king needed money to pay his army, so he sent his treasurer to the boy to ask for a loan. The boy gladly gave the treasurer as much as he asked. This happened many times. A year passed, and the boy never mentioned the debt. The king was amazed at the merchant’s wealth, as others demanded their money back monthly, with high interest.

One day, the king invited all the prominent people of the capital to a feast, including the wealthy merchant. The young man dressed in expensive velvet and brocade. He went to the palace and sat at the table with the other noble guests, as if he were some important lord. His importance didn’t spoil him, for he was wise, dignified, and as radiant as the sun.

The guests began eating and drinking. After a while, the queen and her daughter appeared to greet the guests. As soon as the princess saw the young man, she fell in love with him. When they returned to their chambers, the girl confessed to her mother that she wanted to marry the young merchant.

“Oh, my dear daughter, don’t think of such a thing,” replied the queen. “Your father has decided to marry you to a prince so you can live in luxury and rule. This young man may be rich, but he’s of common birth. He’s not a match for you.”

The princess burst into tears:

“Believe me, dear mother, I’ve fallen in love with him. I want to marry him. If you don’t agree, I’ll throw myself from the tower or hang myself, and you’ll be to blame.”

With that, the princess locked herself in her room and wept bitterly.

The queen thought it over. As soon as the guests left, she told her husband about their daughter’s wish.

They both went to the princess and tried to persuade her to abandon the idea. But the princess kept crying and repeating:

“Either him, or I’ll die.”

The king was moved by his daughter’s tears and said to his wife:

“Well, dear queen, if that’s the case—let’s marry her to this merchant, as long as our princess is alive, healthy, and happy. It doesn’t matter that he’s not of royal blood.”
— Since you agree, great king, let it be as you wish. Come here, my daughter, kiss your father's hand.

At once, the princess jumped up, cheered up, opened the door, bowed to her father and mother, and kissed their hands, as was customary.

They immediately ordered the young merchant to be summoned. The young man arrived, learned what was happening, bowed, and said:

— Gracious king, gracious queen, I thank you for the great honor. But have you thought everything through? Will you not regret it later? After all, I am not of noble birth.

— It matters not that you are of common birth; now you will be of royal blood, for fortune has favored you. Now put on this golden ring and live with my daughter in peace and love, — said the king.

The young merchant rejoiced, bowed deeply to the king and queen, and put on the wedding ring.

The princess's dowry had long been prepared, and without delay, a royal wedding was held a week later. Important guests from all corners of the land were invited to the palace; musicians were called, and long tables were set.

On the wedding day, Wisdom and Fortune met outside the palace.

— Where have you been, brother? — shouted Fortune. — Look where our young man has soared! Today he becomes the king's son-in-law. See how I've taken care of him? No wonder the old folks say: "Mother, let me be born lucky, and don't worry about me!"

— Well, brother, — replied Wisdom, — if it weren't for my advice, he wouldn't have soared so high.

— So, in your opinion, he owes everything to you? — Fortune grew angry. — The king himself said he's giving him his daughter because fortune favored him, not because he's smart.

They began to argue and quarreled.

— If that's the case, — I leave him to you. You'll see how he ruins everything!

Having said this, Wisdom abandoned the young man at the very moment when the newlyweds entered their bedchamber.

The young man, until now so clever and sensible, became as foolish as he had been before. When they were left alone with the princess, he suddenly swung and—smack!—slapped her. The stunned bride wanted to ask why he had hit her, but before she could open her mouth, he struck her again—smack! smack! The princess burst into tears. No one had ever laid a finger on her before, and this made her even more upset. She ran to complain to her father and mother.

The king immediately sent for the groom. He began questioning him, but the young man spouted such nonsense that the king realized at once that his son-in-law had lost his mind.

— Dear queen, — said the angry king, — do you see what has happened to the wealthy merchant? As soon as he became the king's son-in-law, he lost his head.

— Perhaps he's dizzy with joy, — sighed the queen. — Maybe he'll sleep it off and regain his wits by tomorrow.

— Maybe he will, if fortune doesn't abandon him. But if he doesn't regain his senses, tomorrow I'll order him to be given a hundred lashes and banished from the palace.

Fortune saw that things were going badly, and its heart grew heavy: all its efforts had been in vain. Fortune realized that it could do nothing without Wisdom's help and went in search of its brother. It searched and searched until it finally found him.

— Have mercy, brother, — pleaded Fortune, — help the young man; he's disgraced himself. I admit my fault and promise never to part from you again.

Wisdom had already grown tired of being angry. It turned and went to the young man, who immediately became clever again.

The groom stood before the royal throne and bowed low. The king asked him why he had struck the princess three times. But the young man already knew what to say.

— Great king! When my father was dying, he gave me this instruction: "I am dying, my son, and you will be left all alone in the world. When you marry, your wife's parents will become your father and mother. You must respect and love them as your own. And I also charge you: on the first night after your wedding, strike your bride three times. The first time—so she will remember her wedding for the rest of her life; the second—so she will respect her parents; and the third—so she will respect and love you." That is why I struck my wife, not because I was angry with her.

Hearing these wise words, the king sighed with relief and praised his son-in-law before the entire court for his wisdom and kind heart. The king and queen accepted the young merchant as their own son. And the young couple lived happily in the palace, and they probably still live there to this day.

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Mind and Happiness

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