The Golden Twig

Once upon a time, there lived a merchant who had three daughters. One day, the merchant decided to travel to India for trade. His daughters began asking for gifts: one wanted a dress, another a shawl, and the youngest a golden twig. They also warned him:

"Father, if you forget our requests, your ship won't move from its spot!"

The merchant arrived in India, sold all his goods, and bought gifts for two of his daughters. However, he forgot to find the golden twig for the youngest. He prepared the ship for the return journey, and under fair weather, they raised the anchor. But the ship didn't budge.

The merchant sat on the shore, deep in thought. A peasant passing by said:

"I see the anchor is raised, but the ship isn't moving. Think, merchant, have you forgotten any promises?"

The merchant then remembered his youngest daughter's request and replied:

"I must bring back a golden twig. But where can I find it?"

The peasant showed him the way and instructed him to walk for exactly three hours. The merchant did as he was told. After walking for three hours, he began asking passersby about the golden twig, but no one knew. Then an old woman pointed to the royal palace and said:

"Go, son, to the palace. There you will find what you seek!" She also told him what to do.

The merchant was afraid; he didn't want to go to the king. But what could he do? There was no other way home.

"What do you want, good man?" the king greeted him.
"I wish to speak with your son."

The merchant was taken to the upper chambers, where the king's son warmly welcomed him, seated him, and treated him as a guest. The merchant told him everything without hiding anything. The young man then stood up and led the merchant to a room filled with portraits of various maidens.

"Is your daughter as beautiful as these?" he asked.
"My daughter is a thousand times more beautiful!" exclaimed the merchant.

The prince then took him to a small room where a single portrait hung. It was the portrait of a girl the prince had seen in his dreams, and since then, he had longed to find her and make her his wife.

"Is your daughter as beautiful as this?"
"That is her," the merchant replied joyfully.

The prince then gave the merchant a letter, a cup, and a ring, instructing him to give them to his daughter.

"Here is everything she asked for!"

The merchant was overjoyed and returned to the dock. As soon as he stepped aboard, the ship began to move and set sail for home.

When the merchant returned home, his daughters greeted him:

"Father, did you bring us what you promised?"
"Of course, I did!"

The merchant gave each daughter her gift. To the youngest, he gave the letter, the cup, and the ring.

The girl took the gifts, went to her room, and opened the letter. It read: "Pour water into the cup, drop the ring into it, and say three times: 'Come, come, my golden twig!' Immediately, the ceiling will open, a dove will fly in, dip into the water, and turn into a man!"

The girl quickly did as instructed. A dove flew in, bathed in the water, and turned into a man—the prince. They talked to their heart's content, and when it was time, the prince dipped back into the water, turned into a dove, and flew away. Before leaving, he gave his beloved a walnut.

The dove flew away, and the girl felt sad. She cracked open the walnut and found a dress adorned with stars. She put it on and looked stunning. Her sisters saw her and grew envious, questioning her, but she revealed nothing.

The next day, everything repeated. The youngest daughter poured water into the cup, dropped the ring, and said three times: "Come, come, my golden twig!" Again, the dove flew in, bathed, and turned into the prince. When they parted, he left her a hazelnut.

She cracked the hazelnut and found a dress even more beautiful than the first—embroidered with waves along the hem. She put it on, and her beauty shone even brighter. Her sisters grew even more envious but still couldn't find out her secret.

On the third day, the jealous sisters spied on her. They saw her take out the cup, drop the ring, and say the three magical words. They saw the dove fly in, bathe, and turn into a handsome young man. After they talked, the dove left her a fig, which contained a dress more beautiful than the previous two—embroidered with meadow flowers.

Overcome by envy, the sisters plotted an evil deed. They decided to invite their sister to the sea for a swim. On the way, one of them would lag behind, run home, unlock her sister's room with a stolen key, take the cup, and perform the ritual to receive rich dresses from the dove.

The next morning, they went to the sea. The eldest sister took a bag of pearls and pretended to accidentally spill them on the road.

"You go ahead, dears," she said. "I'll gather the pearls and catch up."

As soon as the girls were out of sight, she quickly swept up the pearls, put them back in the bag, and ran home. She unlocked her sister's room, took the cup, filled it with water, and dropped the ring.

Now, it must be said that the youngest daughter had a golden pin lying next to the cup. The eldest sister didn't know what to do with it and placed it on the cup. As soon as she said, "Come, come, my golden twig!" the dove flew in, tried to dip into the water, but pricked itself on the pin. Blood flowed from the wound, and the dove flew away. The sister was annoyed she didn't get a dress but thought, "At least the youngest won't get anything either!" and calmed down.

As if nothing had happened, the eldest sister joined the others at the sea and swam with them. When they returned, the youngest sister rushed to her room.

"Come, come," she said, "my golden twig, see how I look after swimming!"

She took the cup, but it was filled with blood! She cried and lamented:

"Woe is me! What have I done? Why did I leave my room unattended? It seems I must go abroad to find the golden twig!"

She went to her father and asked:

"Father, give me a foreign dress and prepare a ship. I will sail to India!"

The girl sailed to foreign lands and headed to the city, to the royal palace. Along the way, she saw an old mulberry tree with birds perched on its branches. The birds pecked at the berries and chatted:

"Ah, how sad for the poor prince! No one knows how to cure him; it seems he will die soon."
"The prince could recover if someone made an ointment from the mulberry berries and applied it to his wound."

The girl understood what the birds were saying; the golden twig had long taught her the language of birds. She immediately gathered the berries, prepared the ointment, and hurried to the city. Dressed in men's clothing, she approached the royal palace and called out:

"Good healer, good healer! Who needs a skilled healer?"

The king heard her and called from the palace:

"Hey, healer, can you cure my child?"
"I must see him first," the healer replied.

The girl entered the palace, and as soon as she saw the sick prince, she said:

"I will cure this young man! In eight days, he will be healthy and go hunting!"

The king was overjoyed, but the court physicians were furious:

"He's a fraud, not a healer! Drive him away!"

The youngest daughter applied the wonderful ointment to the prince's wound, and he immediately felt better. The next day, he improved even more, and in eight days, he went hunting!

The king was delighted and said to the healer:

"Ask for anything; I will spare nothing for you!"

The healer replied:

"I need nothing. Instead, throw a feast for the whole world."
"That's easy for me," said the king.

A grand feast was held for the whole world. In the midst of the festivities, the healer rose from the table and said:

"Your Majesty! I wish to tell you a tale."

The stern ruler clapped his hands, and the guests fell silent. The healer began the tale: Once upon a time, in a distant land, there lived a merchant with three daughters. The merchant decided to travel to India... He told the story in order. When he reached the part where the youngest daughter disguised herself as a man and went to find her beloved, he removed his healer's attire, revealing an extraordinarily beautiful girl. The prince rose, took the girl's hand, led her to his father, and said:

"This is the merchant's youngest daughter, my beloved and bride!"

Thus, a simple feast turned into a wedding celebration.

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The Golden Twig

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