The Fisher Wolf
Once upon a time, in the depths of a whispering oak forest where silver-colored streams babbled, there lived a cunning fox. While the freezing winter winds swept through the valley, the hungry silver-furred wolf began to patrol the forest in order to find food. The hungry wolf, arriving at the shore of the lake, observed the fox who was singing merry songs and feasting on fresh fish. The proud wolf, whose mouth was watering, watched with great envy how effortlessly the fox was hunting. The giant wolf, slipping with slow steps through the bushes, appeared right under the fox's nose and growled majestically. — "O little one, by what magic do you catch such delicious fish in this deserted icy water?" asked the wolf. The fox, narrowing his eyes cunningly, bowed with great respect and decided to carry out the treacherous plan in his mind.
— "Ah, mighty wolf, for this you have no need at all of a rod or a net," said the cunning fox. — "If you dip your tail into the freezing water and wait patiently, the fish will stick to your fur one by one," he added. — "When you feel pain and weight, do not move at all, because this shows that the fish are multiplying," he said. The greedy wolf, who naively believed the fox's sweet words and his seductive power of persuasion, immediately sat down in the shallow part of the river. He dipped his long and bushy tail into the clear water in the freezing cold and began to wait impatiently. The north wind, growing harsher through the night, covered the surface of the river with a thick and transparent layer of ice. The wolf, who took the relentless ache in his tail for a rich booty of fish, smiled proudly and waited for the morning.
As dawn broke and the sun lit up the snowy hills, the wolf tried to stand up in order to pull out his enormous fortune. But when he realized that his tail was completely buried and locked in the ice, he began to thrash about in terror. Although he pulled with all his strength, the frozen river did not let go of his tail, and the wolf groaned with pain. Just then the cunning fox, passing merrily beside him, burst into laughter and moved away toward the depths of the forest. The proud wolf, left helpless, paid the price of his hungry ambition and his blind greed in pain in the icy water. Those who blindly believe sweet words that promise easy gain are doomed to become victims of their own greed. There is no mercy without toil.