Verified textThe clerk was loyal. He gave him twelve thousand: "Go ahead, spend all the money, buy cattle." He went, for instance, to Ukraine. He arrived at acquaintances, two brothers. They lived separately, learned that he had a lot of money. They decided to kill him. He begs: "Take the money, don't touch me." He swore to them that he would tell no one. He told the master that robbers took the money in the forest. The master didn't believe him, exiled him. The power was theirs. The mistress pitied Andrey, she says after some time: "Find out how Andrey is living. If well, then he took the money. If badly: true, that he was robbed." They learned that he was living badly. They pitied him. Took him back.
He began to trade again, and they began to trust him in everything. Once he came across his robbers. They live very well, grew rich from that money. They say to him: "It's good that we didn't touch you. You are alive, and we got rich. Take your twelve thousand." He took it, bought cattle with it, drives many herds to the master, bought with that money which the master gave him, and with these. And the master became worried that he gave him a lot of money. He rode to meet him. He sees so much cattle. He doesn't know: whose is this, where from? Andrey says that all the cattle is his. The master doesn't believe: "Why so many?" Andrey says that those robbers met him, gave the money back. The master began to trust him even more.
Once the gentlemen gathered at a ball, started a conversation about loyal people.
The master says: "I have such a clerk who will never deceive me." Others don't believe. They say: "However loyal a clerk is, he still profits, even if a little." One made a bet with him: village for village. If the clerk doesn't deceive, he gives up the village; if he deceives — he takes the village. They decided on this, signed papers.
That master sent his maid to Andrey. She was very clever and beautiful. He ordered to somehow seduce Andrey. She came to him.
Conversation began, treats, she pleased him very much, his passion was aroused. She says: "I won't take money, but give me the golden horns from the bull." And they had a bull, on whose horns golden horns were also placed. He gave them. The deed was done. She took the horns and left. She arrived there, laid the horns on the table: "Here," she says, "I got the horns from him." They sent for the clerk. He thought and thought: how to say — and decided to confess honestly. He appeared. They ask him: "Did you give the horns?" He says: "Yes, I gave them. The mistress came, very beautiful herself, my heart couldn't bear it." — "Well," the master says, "good lad, that you confessed, you didn't deceive me. Through this I won the village."