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The Water of life (1)
Once upon a time there was a king who was ill, and no one thought his life could be saved. But he had three sons, and they were sad about this and went down into the palace garden and wept. Here they met an old man who asked the cause of their grief. They told him that their father was so ill that he would probably die, for nothing did him any good. The old man said:" I know of another remedy: it's the Water of Life. If e drinks some of that he'll recover. But it's difficult to find." The eldest brother said:" I'll find it all right." And he went to the sick king and asked his permission to set out and look for the Water of Life, for only that could heal him. "No," said the king, "that quest is too dangerous; I would rather die." But he kept on pleading till the king gave his consent. In his heart the prince was thinking: If I bring him the Water, I shall be my father' favorite son and inherit the kingdom.
So he set off, and when he had ridden for a while he met a dwarf standing in his path who called out to him:" Where are you riding so fast?" "You stupid midget," said the prince very haughtily, "that's no business of yours." And he rode on. But this had angered the little man, and he had wished evil on him. Very soon the prince found himself in a mountain gorge, and the further he rode along it the nearer the mountains closed in, until as last the path was so narrow that he couldn't ride a step further; it was impossible to turn his horse or even dismount, and there he sat imprisoned.
The sick king waited for him a long time, but he didn't come. Then the second son said:" Father, let me go out and look for the Water," thinking to himself: If my brother is dead, the kingdom will fall to me. At first the king wouldn't let him go, but in the end he gave away. So the prince set off along the same road as his brother had taken, and he too met the dwarf, who stopped him and asked him where he was off to in such a hurry. "You little midget," said the prince, "that's no business of yours." And he rode on without so much as looking round. But the dwarf put a curse on him, and he got stuck in a mountain gorge like his brother and could move neither forward nor back. That's what comes of being high and mighty.
When the second son didn't return either, the youngest offered to set out in search of the Water of Life, and in the end the king had to let him go. When he met the dwarf and the dwarf asked him where he was off to in such a hurry, he stopped to give him an answer and said, "I'm looking for the Water of Life, because my father's mortally ill." And do you know where it is to be found?" "No," said the prince. "Since you have behaved in a proper manner and not been arrogant like your two false-hearted brothers, I will give you information and tell you how to get the Water of Life. It springs up from a fountain in the courtyard of a bewitched castle; but you will not be able to make your way in unless I give you an iron wand and two loaves of bread. Strike on the iron gate of the castle three times with the wand and it will spring open; inside there are two lions with gaping jaws, but if you throw each of them a loaf they'll become tame. Then you must hurry and fetch some of the Water of Life before the clock strikes twelve, otherwise the gate will slam shut again and you'll be locked in."
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发表于 2016-7-10 17:26:25