THE GOLDEN BIRD

A king had a beautiful garden. In the garden was a tree. It grew golden apples.

The king always counted his apples. When they got ripe, one apple went missing every night! This made the king very angry. He told his gardener, "Watch the tree all night!"

The gardener sent his oldest son to watch. But at midnight, the son fell asleep. In the morning, another apple was gone.

Next, the second son tried to watch. He fell asleep too. In the morning, another apple was gone.

Then the youngest son said he would try. At first, the gardener said no. He was afraid something bad might happen. But finally, he let him try.

The young man lay down under the tree. At midnight, he heard a noise in the sky. A bird made of pure gold flew down! It was trying to eat an apple.

The young man jumped up. He shot an arrow at the bird. But the arrow did not hurt it. The bird just dropped one golden feather and flew away.

In the morning, they brought the feather to the king. Everyone said, "This feather is worth more than all our gold!" But the king said, "One feather is not enough. I need the whole bird."

The Oldest Son's Journey

So the oldest son set off to find the golden bird. Soon he came to a forest. There, he saw a fox sitting by the path. He got ready to shoot it with his bow.

"Don't shoot me!" said the fox. "I will give you good advice. I know you are looking for the golden bird. Tonight, you will find a village with two inns (that means places to sleep and eat). One inn looks pretty. The other looks poor and plain. Sleep at the poor one, not the pretty one."

The son thought, "What could a fox know about this?" He shot at the fox anyway, but missed. The fox ran into the woods.

That evening, the son found the two inns just as the fox had said. One was full of music and fun. The other looked shabby (that means old and messy). He thought, "Why would I stay in that ugly place?" So he went into the fun inn instead. He forgot all about the golden bird and his home.

The Second Son's Journey

Time passed, and the oldest son never came back. So the second son set out to find the bird. The same thing happened to him! He met the fox and got the same advice. But when he reached the village, he saw his brother waving from the fun inn. He went inside too — and forgot about the bird, just like his brother.

The Youngest Son's Journey

Time passed again. The youngest son wanted to try too. At first, his father said no. He loved his son and worried something bad might happen. But at last, he let him go.

On his way, the youngest son met the fox. He heard the same good advice. But he did not try to hurt the fox like his brothers did. So the fox said, "Sit on my tail. I will help you travel fast." The young man sat down, and off they went — so fast that the wind whistled through their hair!

When they reached the village, the young man listened to the fox. He stayed at the shabby inn and rested well.

In the morning, the fox met him again. "Now go straight ahead," said the fox. "You will find a castle. Soldiers will be sleeping outside. Walk right past them. Inside, you'll find the golden bird in a plain wooden cage. Next to it is a fancy golden cage. Do NOT put the bird in the fancy cage, or you will be sorry!"

The fox stretched out his tail again, and off they raced.

Everything happened just as the fox said. The young man found the bird's room. He also saw the golden cage and the three missing apples nearby. He thought, "It would look silly to carry this fine bird in such a plain cage." So he moved the bird into the golden cage.

But the bird screamed loudly! All the soldiers woke up and caught him. They took him to the king.

The next day, the court judged him. They said he must die — unless he could bring back the golden horse that ran as fast as the wind. If he did that, he could keep the bird.

Finding the Golden Horse

The young man set off again, feeling very sad. Then the fox appeared. "You see what happened when you didn't listen to me," said the fox. "But I will help you find the golden horse. Walk straight ahead to a castle. The horse's keeper will be sleeping nearby. Take the horse quietly. Use the old leather saddle (that's the seat you put on a horse) — NOT the golden one next to it!"

The young man sat on the fox's tail again, and off they went.

Everything went well. The keeper was sleeping with his hand on the golden saddle. But when the young man saw the horse, he thought, "It's a shame to use the old saddle. This horse deserves the golden one!" As he picked it up, the keeper woke up and shouted. Guards came running and caught him again.

The next morning, the court judged him again. This time, they said he must bring back a beautiful princess. If he did, he could keep both the bird and the horse.

Finding the Princess

The young man walked on, feeling very sad. The old fox came back. "Why didn't you listen to me? You could have had both the bird and the horse by now! But I'll help you one more time. Walk on until evening. You'll reach a castle. At midnight, the princess will go to the bathhouse. Give her a kiss, and she will agree to run away with you. But don't let her say goodbye to her parents!"

The fox stretched out his tail, and off they went again.

Everything happened just as the fox said. At midnight, the young man kissed the princess. She agreed to leave with him. But she cried and begged to say goodbye to her father. At first he said no. But she cried so much that he finally said yes.

The moment she went to say goodbye, the guards woke up and caught him again!

The King's Challenge

This time, the king said, "You may marry my daughter only if you can move the huge hill that blocks my window — and you must do it in eight days!"

The hill was so big that nobody could move it. After seven days, the young man had barely started. Then the fox came and said, "Go to sleep. I will do the work for you."

In the morning, the hill was gone! The young man happily told the king, and the king had to keep his word.

Escaping with All Three

The young man and the princess left together. Then the fox said, "Now we will get all three things — the princess, the horse, and the bird!"

"That would be wonderful," said the young man, "but how?"

The fox explained: "When you reach the king with the princess, he will be very happy. He will give you the golden horse. When you say goodbye to everyone, shake the princess's hand last. Then quickly pull her onto the horse behind you, and ride away fast!"

Everything went perfectly. Next, the fox said, "At the castle with the bird, I will wait outside with the princess. You go in and show the king the horse. When he sees it's the right one, he'll bring out the bird. Say you want to check if it's the real golden bird — then grab it and ride away!"

This worked too! They rode off together into a big forest with the bird, the horse, and the princess.

The Fox's Last Request

Then the fox said, "Please kill me now, and cut off my head and feet."

The young man said no — he would never do that. So the fox said, "Then let me give you one more piece of advice: Never pay to save someone from being hanged (that means saved from a rope punishment). And never sit down by a river." Then the fox left.

The young man thought, "That should be easy to remember."

He rode on with the princess until he reached the village where he had left his two brothers. There was a lot of noise and shouting. He asked what was happening.

"Two men are about to be hanged," the people said.

As he got closer, he saw the two men were his own brothers...