Page:The Book of the Thousand Nights and One Night, Vol 8.djvu/290

278 So the officer sought out the boy and said to him, ‘The king bids thee to him, that good may betide thee from him and that he may ask thee a question; then shalt thou return in peace to thy dwelling.’ ‘What is the king’s occasion with me?’ asked the boy, and the officer said, ‘My lord’s occasion with thee is question and answer.’ ‘A thousand times hearkening and a thousand times obedience to the commandment of the king!’ answered the boy and accompanied the officer to the palace. When he came into the presence, he prostrated himself before God and saluting the king, called down blessings on him. Wird Khan returned his salutation and bade him sit. So he sat down and the king said to him, ‘Knowst thou who talked with thee yesternight?’ ‘Yes,’ answered the boy, and the king said, ‘And where is he?’ ‘It is he who speaketh with me at this present,’ replied the boy. ‘Thou sayst sooth, O friend,’ rejoined the king and bade set him a chair beside his own, whereon he made him sit and called for meat and drink.

Then they talked awhile and the king said, ‘O vizier, thou toldest me yesternight that thou hadst a device wherewith thou couldst fend off from us the malice of the King of Hind. What is this device and how shall we contrive to ward off his mischief from us? Tell me, that I may make thee chief of those who speak with me in the realm and choose thee to be my vizier and do according to thy judgment in all thou counsellest me and assign thee a splendid recompense.’ ‘O king,’ answered the boy, ‘keep thy recompense to thyself and seek counsel and policy of thy women, who counselled thee to slay my father Shimas and the rest of the viziers.’ When the king heard this, he was confounded and sighed and said, ‘O dear boy, was Shimas indeed thy father?’ ‘Yes,’ answered the boy; ‘Shimas was indeed my father and I am in truth