In ancient times there lived an old and cruel Shah in his palace. As many stars there are in the sky, so many innocent heads flew down from the shoulders in that state, only because a man bowed to the Shah not so low, or looked at him not so faithfully. Wide rivers of tears there were shed by relatives of the victims, - so cruel was that ruler.
The old Shah had forty wives. Most of all he loved his wife whose name was Sarvigule (this name means, Shadow of the Flower). She was young, smart and beautiful like a gazelle. Her eyes were as dark as night, and her lashes were as long as arrows. Her incomparable beauty and her supple body could break any heart! There was only one bad thing - Sarvigule was capricious, lazy and vindictive. One day she said to the Shah:
"Your poet names you the brightest flower of the big garden. But I do not want to be just your shadow. My name does not match with my position, - neither my beauty nor my mind. Oh, my Lord, forbid people to call me by this name."
Thus the Shah issued an order, "Every resident of the kingdom must know and understand this: from the time the word goes out, it is prohibited to call the wife of the Shah by name Sarvigule. Everyone, who pronounces this name, will be punished by cutting off his tongue. His throat will be flooded with the molten tin."
The heralds of the Shah rode to all corners of the country to inform people about his new order.
Sarvigule had been rejoicing at her power over the people, and more than that at her power over "the beard of the Shah," but it did not last long.
Once Sarvigule felt unhealthy. She sent away all of her slaves and lay down in a pavilion, woven of the curling red roses. There passed an hour, then another, but the queen did not call any of her slaves. One of them looked into the pavilion, and found out that Sarvigule had already died!
In the short run, all the inhabitants of the palace had known about the death of Sarvigule. But there was not any brave man, who would dare to tell the king this sad news, because the queen had not yet got a new name, and the old name could not be pronounced. However, if the Shah learned that he was not informed of the death of his beloved wife, his anger would be even more terrible.
All viziers, sages and courtiers were rushing in fear about the palace, not knowing how to tell the Shah such horrible news. Suddenly one of the young maidservants said:
"I will go and tell the Shah about what happened."
"Hey, you, where are you going?" - was surprised a supreme vizier. "So many venerable elders of the whole city can't solve this complicated problem! And you, a tiny slave, how could you make a silk purse out of a sow's ear? Get out of here!"
But she did not listen to anyone and ran to the Shah. And all the courtiers and sages followed her on tiptoe.
The Shah was sitting on a golden throne, and two black men were fanning his face with large fans. The sweet maidens charmed the ears of the Shah with the marvellous songs. Lovely dancing girls entertained him with the oriental dancing. But Father of the Faithful was bored and yawned loudly.
The maidservant came to the carved doors and said in a low voice:
"Shadow of the flower fell on the ground. She has faded in the shadow of the flowers. What to do now?"
Having heard these words, the Shah woke up instantly and then it sank into his mind what had happened. For a long time he was beside himself with his grief, and when calmed down, he ordered to bury Sarvigule...
All courtiers began breathing freely when such a complex affair ended up without consequences. The Shah summoned the maid, that informed him and said:
"It was you, who had brought me the news of Sarvigule's death! You are a smart girl; you are smarter than all the wise men of my country. Give me a half of your mind and your intelligence, and I'll give you a half of my wealth. You will be my principal wife!"
The maidservant answered the Shah:
"Your Majesty, thank you for your great gift, but I do not need it. I am much richer than you."
The Shah became furious, thunders and lightnings fell down from his eyes:
"Hey, you, don't forget with whom you are talking! I am a sovereign and my desire is a law! If I want, - I give wealth, If not - execute! You are just an insignificant slave."
"Forgive me, Your Majesty, if I was rude to you. But even a half of my mind, I would not change for all your wealth! Now I am richer than you, because of my sharp mind. Yes, I am a slave, but I have no need in your protection. If I become your wife, I will be a double slave. Why do I need your jewellery? Without it, I have been living better. All envy and sorrow in the world was born from wealth!"
The Shah could not make up anything in response. He lowered his head and said nothing...
![The Maidservant [Славянский Владимир Владимирович]](/img/s/slawjanskij_wladimir_wladimirowich/themaidservant/themaidservant-1.jpg)