In ancient times, there was a powerful king who ruled a beautiful kingdom. A tree used to grow in it bearing golden apples. Despite that this magical tree grew at a very fast speed, its fruits of golden apples were decreasing day after day.
When the king learned of this matter, he ordered that one of his sons stay beside the tree every night to know where the golden apples were disappearing. The king had three sons. He insisted that they take turns watching that tree, one after another, for only three nights.
Indeed, the king sent his older son to stay beside the tree, but sleep overcame him in the middle of the night. In the morning, he found another apple had disappeared. The next night, the king sent his second son to guard the tree, but he did as his brother had done and fell asleep. In the morning, he found another apple had disappeared.
The turn came for the younger son who was determined not to sleep, but the king didn’t think he would do better than what his brothers had done. But he managed to stay awake throughout the night until he heard something striking with its wings in the air. He looked upward and found a large golden bird picking a golden apple and flying far away. The small prince tried to catch it but without avail, for it flew far away, but a golden feather fell from it.
The prince took it and went to the king, telling him about the golden bird. The king saw that a bird like this would do something great for the kingdom, and he asked his children to catch that golden bird. The older son went out, and while he was walking, he saw a fox sitting by the well. He took him and they killed him, but the fox prevented him from killing him on the condition that he advise him with a secret that would benefit him.
The older prince agreed. The fox said to him, “You’re now on the path of the golden birds. In this village, the birds fly at night.” The prince didn’t believe the fox because the village appeared poor to it, and he felt embarrassment that a fox would give advice to a prince. He tried to kill him, but the fox managed to escape.
The prince continued his path and found before him two tents. One was emanating smells, sounds of laughter and singing, and the other was mute with no sound in it. He chose to enter the tent with smells and forgot the matter of the bird. When the son was absent for a long time, the king sent his middle brother to guard the bird. When the prince went out searching for the bird, he saw the fox and told him the same as he had with his brother, and he too left and didn’t return.
The king was sad at the loss of his sons, so he didn’t send the younger son. But the younger son was loving for travel. He had passion for traveling, so he pleaded with his father to go out and guard the bird. After the son left his father, he found the fox on his path. He treated him with tenderness, and the fox advised him the same secret he had advised his brothers. The prince appeared grateful and thanked the fox, so the fox decided to help him and carried him on his back until there.
When the prince reached the village, the fox said to him, “Go from this path and you’ll find your mother. All her relatives are sleeping. He described a room to him to enter, where the golden bird stands in a wooden box. He warned him not to transfer the bird to the golden box.” Indeed, the prince reached the palace and took the bird, but he didn’t listen to the fox’s advice and put it in the golden box.
The bird screamed and woke all the relatives of the palace, so they arrested him and took him to the ruler who had ruled he be killed unless he could bring to them the golden horse. At that time they would forgive him and give him the horse freely. The son went out searching for the horse, and on his path he found the fox who had advised him on not implementing his advice. He said to him, “I’ll help you because you’re a kind-hearted prince. Take this path. At its end, you’ll find a stable with a brown horse. You’ll find the groom sleeping, and the golden horse beside him on a high shelf. But beware not to put the golden saddle on the horse.”
As usual, the prince didn’t care about the fox’s advice. As soon as he put the saddle on the horse, the horse screamed and woke the groom. They arrested him and took him to the ruler who had ruled he be killed unless he could bring the daughter of the golden palace. At that time they would forgive him and give him the horse freely. But the prince was kind-hearted, so he couldn’t refuse the princess’s request. So they threw him in prison and asked the king to do the removal of the mountain that covered the view from the city so the palace of the princess could be visible to him.
The prince went and kept trying for days but couldn’t do anything. The fox came and said to him, “Leave the matter to me, and you go to sleep. In the morning, the mountain had been removed.” The king was surprised at what had happened, executed and sent him, and forgave the prince for staying with him. On the path, the prince met the fox and said to him, “What did you do?” He said to him, “Go to the princess at the palace, and when you get the horse, take the princess and the horse, and flee. You must kill me after that.”
So he went to the palace where the golden bird was. With him the horse, and when he got the bird, he took the princess and the horse, and fled with them. You must kill me after that." He did as the fox said but refused to kill him, so the fox said to him, “I have two pieces of advice I warn you against: Don’t sit by the well rim, and don’t give money to any beggar.”
But when the prince passed by the village he had gone to, he found them ruled with exile because of their bad deeds, so he gave them money and exiled them from where they were. When the brothers sat by the well to drink from it, their brothers lay in wait for them and pushed them in the well. Afterward they took the princess and the horse and the bird, and went to their father. They claimed that they were the ones who had found the bird and had come with the horse and the princess, and the horse freely.
When he asked them about their brothers, they claimed they hadn’t seen them. The princess was very sad and remained silent. The bird also refused to sing, and the horse refused to eat. As for the prince, he was fine in that the well was empty, so nothing bad happened to him, and he returned safe after the fox’s loyal help to him. But he became ungrateful to one of the foxes, so he wouldn’t know his brothers by his matter and kill them.
When the prince reached his father’s palace, he knew the golden bird and began to enrich. The horse also began to eat and drink. As for the princess, she rejoiced greatly, talked and told the king what had happened. The king ruled to exile his sons for what they had done to their brothers. He made him the guardian on his shoulder and face from the princess. After a period, the prince went searching for the fox until he found him standing by his side.
The fox said to him, “If you want my reward, cut off my head.” The prince refused, but under the fox’s severe pleading, when he cut his head, the fox transformed into a beautiful prince. The prince recognized him. He said, “He’s my missing brother for years. Welcome, my brother.” The brother told the prince how he fell under the influence of a curse from one of the witches, but it ended by the favor of the prince. They all lived in happiness and peace in the presence of the golden bird that used to enrich the kingdom in the most beautiful form.
Translated from story: The Golden Bird