Section 1
Once upon a time, there lived a destitute widow who had a sole son. She managed to support both herself and her son until he reached the age of confirmation, however, at that point, she informed him that she could no longer provide for him, and he would have to venture out into the world to earn his own livelihood.
The young boy ventured into the world, and after traveling for a day or so, he encountered a stranger. "Where are you headed?" the man inquired. "I'm going out into the world in search of employment," replied the boy. "Would you like to join my service?" asked the man. "Well, why not! It's as good with you as with anyone else," responded the lad. "You will find it to be a favorable position," said the man. "You'll simply keep me company and do nothing else."
Thus, the young boy accompanied the man to his home, where he was provided with an abundance of food and drink. He had very little to do and enjoyed a comfortable existence, however, he noticed that he never encountered another person in the vicinity of the man's dwelling. One day, the man disclosed to the lad, "I will be absent for eight days, leaving you alone here. However, it is imperative that you refrain from entering any of these four rooms during my absence. "If you do, I will take your life upon my return," warned the man. "No," replied the lad firmly, "I will not enter any of the rooms."
However, after the man had been absent for three or four days, the lad couldn't resist the temptation and entered one of the rooms. As he looked around, he found nothing remarkable except for a shelf positioned above the door, upon which rested a thorny twig. "This must be something that I am not supposed to see," thought the boy.
When the eight days had passed, the man returned and inquired, "You haven't entered any of the rooms, I presume?" The lad responded, "No, not at all." Well, we shall soon find out," declared the man as he proceeded to enter the room where the lad had been. "I see that you have indeed been there," remarked the man. "And now, you shall pay with your life."
The lad cried and pleaded for his life, managing to escape with his life intact. However, he received a severe beating as punishment. Once the ordeal was over, they reconciled and resumed their friendship as if nothing had happened.
Some time later, the man departed again, this time planning to be away for a fortnight, prior to leaving, he instructed the lad not to set foot in any of the rooms he had not previously entered, however, he permitted the lad to enter the room where he had been before. Once again, the same scenario unfolded, with the lad waiting for eight days before finally entering the second room. Inside, he found nothing remarkable except for a shelf above the door, upon which rested a piece of rock and a water jug. "This seems to be another object of fear," thought the lad to himself.
When the man came back he asked the lad if he had been into any of the rooms.—No, not likely, the lad hadn’t been there!— When the man came back, he asked the lad if he had entered any of the rooms. "No, not likely," the lad replied, feigning innocence, "I haven't been there!"
But the lad pleaded and begged for himself once more, and he managed to escape with another severe thrashing, one that pushed him to his limits. After recovering from the physical effects of the punishment, he resumed the same comfortable life as before, surprisingly, he and the man became the best of friends once again. Some time later, the man had to embark on another journey, this time, he informed the lad that he would be away for three weeks, and with a stern warning, he made it clear that if the lad were to enter the third room during his absence, there would be no possibility of him escaping with his life.
After fourteen days had passed, the lad could no longer resist his curiosity and surreptitiously entered the third room. Inside, he discovered nothing except a trap-door in the floor.
As he lifted the trap-door and peered into the room below, he beheld a large copper kettle sitting there, vigorously boiling and bubbling, strangely, there was no fire to be seen beneath it.
The boy couldn't resist the temptation and thought it would be amusing to test if the contents of the kettle were hot. He impulsively dipped his finger into the boiling liquid but, to his surprise, when he pulled it out, his finger was completely gilded. Despite his efforts to scrape and wash it off, the gilding remained stubbornly in place. In an attempt to conceal the gilded finger, the boy wrapped it with a rag, when the man returned home and inquired about the boy's finger, the lad explained that he had suffered a severe cut. However, the man tore off the rag, revealing the true nature of the gilded finger.
