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"Once upon a time
there lived a King who had three sons. And that King had an elder
brother who was emperor in another country, a far-away one. And the
name of the Emperor, that is the King's brother, was the Green
Emperor; and the Green Emperor had no sons, but only girls. Many years
have passed since the two brothers last met. And the cousins, that is
the King's sons and the Emperor's daughters, have never seen each
other. Thus, it happened that neither the King knew his nieces nor did
the Emperor know his nephews, as the country where the King lived was
at one of the Earth's ends, and the country where the king lived was
at the other end.
But let's not get away
from our story, and start telling it.
Now, the Emperor, being
close to his death, wrote to his brother, the King, and told him to
send his most ingenious to make King after his death. Hearing this,
the Emperor called his sons and told them:
' This is what your uncle
wrote. Which one of you thinks he is worthy of ruling such a large and
rich country has my permission to go, so that I fulfill your uncle's
wish.'
Hearing this, the older
one from the three sons says:
' Father, I believe I am
entitled to go, as I am the oldest one from your sons; so please give
me money and clothes for the journey, weapons and horses and I shall
be on my way." |
