第73章

I conjure thee by an oath not to hide from me aught of thy lady's affairs； for haply Allah shall help me to further her wishes and make easy by my hand that which is hard.'When the slavegirl heard these words she said，'O my lord，indeed a secret is not lost whereof thou art the secretist； nor shall any affair come to naught for which thou strivest. Know that my heart inclineth to thee and would interest thee with my tidings，but do thou give me the letter.'Then she told him the whole story，adding，'Allah is witness to whatso I say.'Quoth he，'Thou hast spoken truly，for I am acquainted with the root of the matter.'

Then he told her his tale of Ali bin Bakkar and how he had learned his state of mind； and related to her all that had passed from first to last，whereat she rejoiced； and they two agreed that she should take the letter and carry it to Ali and return and acquaint the jeweller with all that happened. So he gave her the letter and she took it and sealed it up as it was before，saying，'My mistress Shams alNahar gave it to me sealed； and when he hath read it and given me its reply，I will bring it to thee.'Then she took leave and repaired to Ali bin Bakkar，whom she found waiting，and gave him the letter. He read it and writing a paper by way of reply，gave it to her； and she carried it to the jeweller，who tore asunder the seal[206] and read it and found written therein these two couplets，'The messenger，who kept our commerce hid，Hath failed，and showeth wrath without disguise；[207]Choose one more leal from your many friends Who，truth approving，disapproves of lies.

'To proceed： Verily，I have not entered upon perfidy nor have I abandoned fidelity I have not used cruelty neither have I out off lealty no covenant hath been broken by me nor hath lovetie been severed by me I have not parted from penitence

nor have I found aught but misery and ruin after severance I know nothing of that thou avouchest nor do I love aught but that which thou lovest By Him who knoweth the secret of hidden things none discover I have no desire save union with my lover

and my one business is my passion to conceal albeit with sore sickness I ail.This is the exposition of my case and now all hail！'When the jeweller read this letter and learnt its contents he wept with sore weeping，and the slavegirl said to him，'Leave not this place till I return to thee； for he suspecteth me of such and such things，in which he is excusable； so it is my desire to bring about a meeting between thee and my mistress，Shams alNahar，howsoever I may trick you to it. For the present I left her prostrate，awaiting my return with the reply.'Then she went away and the jeweller passed the night with a troubled mind. And when day dawned he prayed his dawnprayer and sat expecting the girl's coming； and behold，she came in to him rejoicing with much joy and he asked her，'What news，O damsel？'

She answered，'After leaving thee I went to my mistress and gave her the letter written by Ali bin Bakkar； and，when she read it and understood it，she was troubled and confounded； but I said to her，'O my lady，have no fear of your affair being frustrated by Abu alHasan's disappearance，for I have found one to take his place，better than he and more of worth and a good man to keep secrets.' Then I told her what was between thyself and Abu alHasan and how thou camest by his confidence and that of Ali bin Bakkar and how that note was dropped and thou camest by it；and I also showed her how we arranged matters betwixt me and thee.'The jeweller marvelled with much wonder，when she resumed，'And now my mistress would hear whatso thou sayest，that she may be assured by thy speech of the covenants between thee and him；so get thee ready to go with me to her forthwith.'When the jeweller heard the slavegirl's words，he saw that the proposed affair was grave and a great peril to brave，not lightly to be undertaken or suddenly entered upon，and he said to her，'O my sister，verily，I am of the ordinary and not like unto Abu alHasan； for he being of high rank and of wellknown repute，was wont to frequent the Caliph's household，because of their need of his merchandise. As for me，he used to talk with me and I trembled before him the while. So，if thy mistress would speak with me，our meeting must be in some place other than the Caliph's palace and far from the abode of the Commander of the Faithful； for my common sense will not let me consent to what thou proposest.'On this wise he refused to go with her and she went on to say that she would be surety for his safety，adding，'Take heart and fear no harm！'and pressed him to courage till he consented to accompany her； withal，his legs bent and shivered and his hands quivered and he exclaimed，'Allah forbid that I should go with thee！