16 thTHE RUBY PRINCE Once upon a time . . . a beggar in faraway Persia had a stroke of luck . After a sudden flood , the fast - flowing river near the capital city shrank back to its old bed , leaving mud and slime behind it on the banks . In the dirt , the beggar caught sight of a sparkling red stone . He picked it up and hurried off to visit one of his friends who worked in the royal kitchens . " How many dinners would you give me for this shining stone ? " he asked the man hopefully . " But this is a ruby ! " exclaimed the cook . " You must take it to the Shah at once ! " So next day , the beggar took the stone to the Shah , who asked him : " Where did you find this ? " " Lying in the mud on the bank of the river , Sire ! he said . " Hmm ! " mused the Shah . " Now why did the great river leave such a treasure to you ? I ' ll give you a bag of gold for the stone . Will that do ? " The beggar could scarcely believe his ears . " Sire , this is the most wonderful day of my life , " he stammered . " My humblest thanks ! " Before the Shah locked the big stone in his treasure box , he called Fatima , his daughter and said : " This is the biggest ruby I ' ve ever seen . I shall give it to you for your 18 th birthday ! " Fatima admired the gem in her hand and happily threw her arms round her father ' s neck . " It ' s marvelous ! Thank you so much . I know it will bring me good luck ! " Some months later , on Fatima ' s birthday , the Shah went to fetch the ruby as promised . But when he lifted the lid of the box , he leapt in surprise , for out stepped a handsome young man , who smilingly said , " The ruby you want no longer exists ! I ' ve taken its place . I ' m the Ruby Prince . Please don ' t ask me how this miracle took place . It ' s a secret I can never tell ! " When the Shah got over his shock , he went into a towering rage . " I lose a precious gem , find a prince , and l ' m not allowed to ask the reason why ? " he roared . " I ' m sorry , Sire , " replied the prince , " but nothing and nobody will make me tell how I got here . " Furious at these words , the Shah instantly decided to punish the young man for his impertinence . " Since you ' ve taken the place of my ruby , " he thundered , " you are now my servant , I presume . " " Of course , Sire , " replied the young man confidently . " Good ! " exclaimed the Shah . " Then take my gold sword . I ' ll reward you with the hand of my daughter Fatima if you succeed in killing the dragon of Death Valley that ' s stopping the caravans from passing through the forest . " As it happens , many a brave young man had lost his life trying to kill the terrible dragon , and the Shah was quite sure that the Ruby Prince would share their fate . Armed with the Shah ' s sword , the Ruby Prince set off for Death Valley . When he reached the edge of the thick dark forest , he loudly called for the dragon to show itself . But the only reply was the echo of his own voice . He leant against a tree trunk and was about to drop off to sleep when the sound of snapping branches brought him to his feet . A frightful hissing grew louder and louder and the earth trembled . The terrible dragon was on its way . Before him the huge horrible beast reared with open jaws . Unlike all the other brave warriors who had gone before him , the prince stoutly stood his ground ; he took a step forward and struck first one heavy blow at the dragon ' s throat , then another , till at last the monster lay dead at his feet . When he returned to the palace carrying the dragon s head , the Ruby Prince was hailed as a hero . And so Fatima and the Ruby Prince were married and lived happily together . However , as time passed , Fatima became more and more curious about her husband ' s past . " I know nothing about you , " she complained . " At least tell me who you really are and where you once lived ! " But every time the Ruby Prince heard such remarks , he went white and said , " I can ' t tell you . You mustn ' t ask , or you ' ll run the risk of losing me for ever ! " But Fatima was tormented by the desire to know . One day , as they sat by the river that flowed through the Shah ' s gardens , Fatima pleaded with him to reveal his secret . White - faced , the young man replied , " I can ' t ! " But Fatima only pleaded more : " Oh , please ! Please tell me ! "" You know I can ' t . . . " The Ruby Prince hesitated , gazing at his dearly loved wife and gently stroking her hair . Then he made his decision . " I don ' t want to see you suffer like this . If you really must know , then I ' ll tell you that I ' m . . . " At the very second he was about to reveal his secret , a huge wave swept him into the river and dragged him under the water . The horrified Princess rushed vainly along the bank , crying loudly for her husband . But he had vanished . Fatima called the guards and even the Shah himself ran up to comfort her . But the Princess became very depressed , for she knew that her foolish questioning had been the cause of the tragedy . One day , her favorite handmaiden hurried up to her . " Your Highness ! " she exclaimed . " I saw the most amazing thing last night . A host of tiny lights appeared on the river , then a thousand little genies draped the river bank with flowers . Such a handsome young man then began to dance in honor of an old man who seemed to be a king . And beside the king stood a young man with a ruby on his forehead . I thought he was . . . " Fatima ' s heart leapt : could the young man with the ruby be her husband ? That night , the Princess and her handmaiden went into the garden and hid behind a tree close to the water ' s edge . On the stroke of midnight , tiny lights began to twinkle on the river , then a stately old man with a white beard , dressed in a golden robe and holding a scepter , rose from the water . In the young man beside the throne , Fatima recognized her husband . Covering her face with her veil , she left her hiding place and gracefully began to dance . Wild applause greeted her at the end . Then from the throne came a voice . " For such a divine dance , ask us whatever you wish for and it will be granted ! " Fatima tore the veil from her face and cried , " Give me back my husband ! " The old king rose to his feet . " The King of the Waters of Persia gave his word . Take back your husband , the Ruby Prince . But do not forget how you lost him and be wiser in future ! " Then the waters opened once more and closed over the King and his Court , leaving Fatima and the Ruby Prince on the bank , reunited and happy at last . / / Vocabulary / / / shrink If cloth or clothing shrinks , it becomes smaller in size , usually as a result of being washed . < 천 등 이 > 오그라들 다 , 줄어들 다 slimeSlime is a thick , wet substance which covers a surface or comes from the bodies of animals such as snails . 진흙 ( 달팽이 · 물고기 등 의 ) 점액 ( 粘液 ) 더러운 [ 언짢 은 ] 것 , 악취 나 는 것 museIf you muse on something , you think about it , usually saying or writing what you are thinking at the same time . 명상 하 다 , 묵상 하 다 , 숙고 하 다 , fetchIf you fetch something or someone , you go and get them from the place where they are . ( 가서 ) 가지 고 [ 데리 고 , 불러 ] 오다 impertinenceIf someone talks or behaves in a rather impolite and disrespectful way , you can call this behaviour impertinence or an impertinence . 건방짐 , 뻔뻔 함 , 주제넘 게 굴 기 , 무례 , 버릇없 음 snapIf something snaps or if you snap it , it breaks suddenly , usually with a sharp cracking noise . 홱 잡 다 , 잡아채 다 , 긁어모으 다 hissTo hiss means to make a sound like a long ` s '. 쉿 , 쉬쉬 하 는 소리 ; 슛슛 [ 솨 ] 하 고 나 는 소리 rearWhen a horse rears , it moves the front part of its body upwards , so that its front legs are high in the air and it is standing on its back legs . 똑바로 세우 다 , 일으키 다 , 들어올리 다 , 솟 게 하 다 tormentTorment is extreme suffering , usually mental suffering . 고통 , 격통 , 고뇌 pleadIf you plead with someone to do something , you ask them in an intense , emotional way to do it . 변호 하 다 , 변론 하 다 ; 항변 하 다 ; horrifiedIf someone is horrified , they feel shocked or disgusted , usually because of something that they have seen or heard . 겁 에 질린 , 충격 받 은 ; 공포 를 나타내 는 genie ( 아라비아 동화 에 나오 는 ) 요정 ( 妖精 ) , 마귀 ( jinn ) drapeIf you drape a piece of cloth somewhere , you place it there so that it hangs down in a casual and graceful way . 낙낙 하 게 덮 다 , 꾸미 다 , < 옷 등 을 > 우아 하 게 걸치 다 ;// 100 권 읽 기 출석 체크 퀴즈 / / / Q . Shah 는 언제 Fatima 에게 루비 를 주 기 로 약속 했 나요 ? 출 첵 게시판 에 머리말 100 권 읽 기 " 로 출석 체크 하 세요 ^^ - 카페 에 많 은 도움 이 된답니다 . 출석 체크 게시판 에 답 달러 가 기