"All that I told thee is true，" replied she： "but thy case and my own are wonderful and thine and my history extraordinary. My name is Merjaneh and thy mother"s name was Abrizeh. She was gifted with such beauty and grace and valour that proverbs were made of her， and her prowess was renowned among men of war. Thy father was King Omar ben Ennuman， lord of Baghdad and Khorassan. He sent his son Sherkan on an expedition， in company with this very Vizier Dendan； and Sherkan thy brother separated himself from the troops and fell in with thy mother Queen Abrizeh， in a privy garden of her palace， whither we had resorted to wrestle， she and I and her other damsels. He came on us by chance and wrestled with thy mother， who overcame him by the splendour of her beauty and her valour. Then she entertained him five days in her palace，till the news of this came to her father， by the old woman Shewahi， surnamed Dhat ed Dewahi， whereupon she embraced Islam at Sherkan"s hands and he carried her by stealth to Baghdad， and with her myself and Rihaneh and other twenty damsels. When we came to thy father"s presence， he fell in love with thy mother and going in to her one night， foregathered with her， and she became with child by him of thee. Now thy mother had three jewels， which she gave to thy father， and he gave one of them to his daughter Nuzhet ez Zeman， another to thy brother Zoulmekan and the third to thy brother Sherkan. This last thy mother took from Sherkan， and I kept it for thee. When the time of the princess"s delivery drew near， she yearned after her own people and discovered her secret to me； so I went privily to a black slave called Ghezban and telling him our case， bribed him to go with us. Accordingly， he took us and fled forth the city with us by stealth towards the land of the Greeks， till we came to a desert place on the borders of our own country. Here the pangs of labour came upon thy mother， and the slave， being moved by lust，sought of her a shameful thing； whereat she cried out loudly and was sore affrighted at him. In the excess of her alarm， she gave birth to thee at once， and at this moment there arose， in the direction of our country， a cloud of dust which spread till it covered the plain. At this sight， the slave feared for his life；
so， in his rage， he smote Queen Abrizeh with his sword and slew her， then， mounting his horse， went his way. Presently， the dust lifted and discovered thy grandfather， King Herdoub， who， seeing thy mother his daughter dead on the ground， was sorely troubled and questioned me of the manner of her death and why she had left her father"s kingdom. So I told him all that had happened， first and last； and this is the cause of the feud between the people of the land of the Greeks and the people of Baghdad. Then we took up thy dead mother and buried her； and I took thee and reared thee，and hung this jewel about thy neck. But， when thou camest to man"s estate， I dared not acquaint thee with the truth of the matter， lest it should stir up a war of revenge between you.
