The bride's betrothal is a deception. Being deceived by the in-laws. Fairy Tale

Al dar was pleased that he had sold the bad sparrow to the rich man for fifty horses and thought to himself, "I hope that pesky fellow isn't chasing after me," so he hurried on and came to another mountain. At the foot of the mountain, he saw another village. As he looked at the village, he noticed: Sheep lying in the grass, Camels resting on the sandy ground. Horses grazing on the hillside, Goats clinging to the rocks. Seeing the animals, Al dar smiled and wondered, "What kind of fortune might this bring?" While watching, he spotted a herdsman standing by the horses. Thinking he should first find out the details from him before approaching the village, Al dar walked over to the herdsman. After greeting him and making some small talk, he asked:

— Whose livestock is this? Whose village is this? Who is the elder, who is the khan? Who is the best, who is the worst? Who is the rich, who is the poor? — He asked the herdsman to learn all the secrets of the village.

 — Oh, my dear! You’ve inquired thoroughly. But who are you? — asked the herdsman.

 — I am the son of the famous rich man, Mağlumbay. I have been wandering the world, leading fifty horses as a bride price, searching for a girl from my homeland. But I haven’t come across any beauty, — Al dar replied.

 — If you are a young man searching for a girl, there is a corral of girls at the house of a certain rich man in our village. There are girls of all kinds, each with her own charm. Among them, there is one who surpasses all others; she has captivating eyes and words that astonish. Her gaze is mesmerizing and enchanting. If you look at her, you’ll be spellbound. Even if you are wandering the world searching for a girl, you will surely settle for this one. She is the daughter of a noble, — said the herdsman. Although Al dar had lied about searching for a girl, the herdsman praised the girl so highly that he thought, "What if I see this girl? If I don’t like her, I can just leave. What do I have to lose? I’ll go find her," and he inquired about the rich man’s whereabouts before heading toward the village. Forgetting that he had set out to deceive, he truly began to act like someone who was in search of a bride. When he arrived at the outskirts of the rich man’s village, he shouted:

— Greetings! — The villagers saw him, a lanky figure, with a poorly constructed yellow horse carrying fifty horses behind him, sitting awkwardly atop it.

— Who is this? Go find out! — the rich man said, sending someone to inquire. The messenger approached and said:

“Safe travels,” — he greeted. — I am a guest here, passing through. I have something I urgently seek. I’ll share my story of searching for a bride. After our ancestors settled here, ask me, — without waiting for permission, he dismounted. The messenger hurried back to the rich man:

— There is a traveler who claims to be wandering the world. He says he is a guest. He has mentioned a girl.... perhaps, — he began to say when the rich man suddenly understood:

 — Hey, a guest is coming! Quick, lay out the carpets in the house! — he shouted. The poor rich man, who could not find a way to send his daughter out of the corral, rushed about to welcome Al dar and host him. As if saying, "Take your pick," he gathered his daughters in the house. It is said that when a Kazakh looks from the door, they are already seated at the head of the table, and before long, Al dar slipped into the house and turned lies into truths, as if God had struck the truth, charming the entire village and winning them over.

 — This one is a remarkable orator, a distinguished leader! — they concluded. He earned the title of "the son of the famous Mağlumbay." When they asked, "Which Mağlumbay?" he left them no chance to question further. Thus, Al dar deceived the rich man and sought to propose to his youngest daughter. Asking where the horses were, he brought fifty horses to the wedding.

— You can fill in the remaining gaps, — said the rich man, pleased with the bride price. But my daughter isn’t running away. I had three sons. They have been out herding the horses for a year now. They are still missing. I have no news of where they are. I have no one to send to look for them. What I ask of you is to find my sons and bring them back. Once they return, I will arrange my daughter’s wedding in the fall, — he said.

— All right, — Al dar replied, getting on his horse. "I will get the youngest beauty by this fall," he thought to himself happily. He traveled for months and eventually arrived at a large herd of horses. He spoke with the people there and learned they were the rich man's sons. After sharing his story, they embraced and reunited. It seemed that the rich man's sons were rather incapable. They had been unable to manage and drive thousands of horses back home and had been left in their place. Al dar helped organize the horses and drove them back to the village. The rich man was overjoyed upon the return of his sons and threw a celebration. One day, the rich man took Al dar aside:

— You gave me fifty horses for my youngest daughter. I already have many horses myself. I am not satisfied with that. You must make up the shortfall of the bride price. Find me a weight of gold equal to the weight of a horse. Otherwise, you cannot marry my daughter, — he said. As Al dar thought he had deceived the rich man, it turned out the rich man was the one deceiving him. Al dar thought, "He has put me into a bind," and slapped his thigh. Yet still he wondered:

— Have I been defeated by deception?

 — Fine, I will find you gold equal to the weight of a horse, — he said. — If you find it, very well. I will wait until this time next year. If you do not bring me the gold by this time next year, then you can give up all hope, — he said. Al dar tossed and turned all night. No matter how much he tossed and turned, he couldn’t figure out where to find the gold. He knew that ordinary tricks wouldn’t yield gold equal to the weight of a horse. Eventually, he fell asleep. In the morning, Al dar woke up to find himself lying out in the open. There was no sign of people around. It turned out the rich man’s village had left during the night, abandoning Al dar. Al dar was furious. Unable to contain his anger, he jumped into an excavated fire pit, rolling in the ashes and crying. He was angry not for having lost the girl, but for having been deceived by the rich man. As the saying goes, "A thief steals from a thief," he was driven to despair.