How the Poor Man Gave His Money for Safekeeping

Once upon a time, there lived a rich man. Whoever wanted to save something would bring it to him and entrust it for safekeeping. In the same town, there lived a laborer. For fifteen years, he worked tirelessly, saving penny by penny, until he had gathered two hundred rubles. The laborer thought to himself, "How can I avoid losing or spending this money before I return to my wife and children? I’d better take it to that rich man and entrust it to him for safekeeping." So he took his two hundred rubles and handed them over to the rich man.

When the time came, the laborer prepared to return home to his family. He went to the rich man and asked for his money back.
"What money? When did you give me any?" the rich man shouted at him. "Get out of here!"
The laborer pleaded with him for a long time:
"Don’t ruin me and my whole family! We’ll starve to death. Have mercy, give me back my money." But it was all in vain. The rich man sent him away empty-handed. The poor man walked away, weeping.

In that town, there lived a very wise and kind woman. She saw the poor man in tears, called him over, and asked:
"Why are you crying, poor man?"
"I had saved two hundred rubles through hard work. I entrusted them to the rich man for safekeeping, but now he won’t give me anything back. He even beat me and threw me out."

The woman taught him what to do:
"I’ll go to the rich man and bring him all sorts of valuables, pretending I want to entrust them to him for safekeeping. As soon as I untie my bundle, you come in and ask for your money."

Then she instructed her servant:
"As soon as the rich man gives the poor man his money, run in and shout, ‘Hurry home, the master has returned!’"

She gathered all her valuables, tied them in a bundle, and carried them to the rich man. She entered and said:
"My husband is away, and I’m afraid robbers might attack me. So, I want to entrust these to you for safekeeping."

As soon as she untied her bundle and showed the rich man what she had, the laborer entered and began to plead:
"Please, give me back the two hundred rubles I entrusted to you for safekeeping."
"Take it, my boy. What do I need your money for?" said the rich man. He took out the money and handed it back to the poor man.
The rich man thought to himself, "If I don’t give him his money, this woman won’t trust me either, and she’ll take all her valuables back."

The laborer took the money and began counting it when suddenly the woman’s servant ran in and shouted:
"Madam, the master has returned! He’s waiting for you. Hurry home!"
"Oh," said the woman, "I’ll bring the rest later. Now I must rush home." And she tied up her valuables in the bundle again.

The poor man rejoiced, spread his arms, and began to dance. The woman also spread her arms and started dancing in a circle. Then even the rich man began to dance.
"Why are you all dancing?" asked the servant.
"The poor man is dancing because he got his money back. I’m dancing because my husband, whom I haven’t seen in so long, has returned. And why are you dancing?" the woman asked the rich man.
"I’m dancing because a simple woman like you managed to outsmart me!" said the rich man.

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How the Poor Man Gave His Money for Safekeeping

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