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quarters, and said their prayers. After they had talked for a while, one of the guests turned to ZhΓ­lin and began to speak in Russian.

β€œYou were captured by Kazi-Mohammed,” he said, and pointed at the red-bearded Tartar. β€œAnd Kazi-Mohammed has given you to Abdul Murat,” pointing at the dark one. β€œAbdul Murat is now your master.”

ZhΓ­lin was silent. Then Abdul Murat began to talk, laughing, pointing to ZhΓ­lin, and repeating, β€œSoldier Russ, good Russ.”

The interpreter said, β€œHe orders you to write home and tell them to send a ransom, and as soon as the money comes he will set you free.”

ZhΓ­lin thought for a moment, and said, β€œHow much ransom does he want?”

The Tartars talked awhile, and then the interpreter said, β€œThree thousand roubles.”

β€œNo,” said ZhΓ­lin, β€œI can’t pay so much.”

Abdul jumped up and, waving his arms, talked to ZhΓ­lin, thinking, as before, that he would understand. The interpreter translated: β€œHow much will you give?”

ZhΓ­lin considered, and said, β€œFive hundred roubles.” At this the Tartars began speaking very quickly, all together. Abdul began to shout at the red-bearded one, and jabbered so fast that the spittle spurted out of his mouth. The red-bearded one only screwed up his eyes and clicked his tongue.

They quietened down after a while, and the interpreter said, β€œFive hundred roubles is not enough for the master. He paid two hundred for you himself. Kazi-Mohammed was in debt to him, and he took you in payment. Three thousand roubles! Less than that won’t do. If you refuse to write, you will be put into a pit and flogged with a whip!”

β€œEh!” thought ZhΓ­lin, β€œthe more one fears them the worse it will be.”

So he sprang to his feet, and said, β€œYou tell that dog that if he tries to frighten me I will not write at all, and he will get nothing. I never was afraid of you dogs, and never will be!”

The interpreter translated, and again they all began to talk at once.

They jabbered for a long time, and then the dark man jumped up, came to ZhΓ­lin, and said: β€œDzhigit Russ, dzhigit Russ!” (Dzhigit in their language means β€œbrave.”) And he laughed, and said something to the interpreter, who translated: β€œOne thousand roubles will satisfy him.”

ZhΓ­lin stuck to it: β€œI will not give more than five hundred. And if you kill me you’ll get nothing at all.”

The Tartars talked awhile, then sent the servant out to fetch something, and kept looking, now at ZhΓ­lin, now at the door. The servant returned, followed by a stout, barefooted, tattered man, who also had his leg shackled.

ZhΓ­lin gasped with surprise: it was KostΓ­lin. He, too, had been taken. They were put side by side, and began to tell each other what had occurred. While they talked, the Tartars looked on in silence. ZhΓ­lin related what had happened to him; and KostΓ­lin told how his horse had stopped, his gun missed fire, and this same Abdul had overtaken and captured him.

Abdul jumped up, pointed to KostΓ­lin, and said something. The interpreter translated that they both now belonged to one master, and the one who first paid the ransom would be set free first.

β€œThere now,” he said to ZhΓ­lin, β€œyou get angry, but your comrade here is gentle; he has written home, and they will send five thousand roubles. So he will be well fed and well treated.”

ZhΓ­lin replied: β€œMy comrade can do as he likes; maybe he is rich, I am not. It must be as I said. Kill me, if you like⁠—you will gain nothing by it; but I will not write for more than five hundred roubles.”

They were silent. Suddenly up sprang Abdul, brought a little box, took out a pen, ink, and a bit of paper, gave them to ZhΓ­lin, slapped him on the shoulder, and made a sign that he should write. He had agreed to take five hundred roubles.

β€œWait a bit!” said ZhΓ­lin to the interpreter; β€œtell him that he must feed us properly, give us proper clothes and boots, and let us be together. It will be more cheerful for us. And he must have these shackles taken off our feet,” and ZhΓ­lin looked at his master and laughed.

The master also laughed, heard the interpreter, and said: β€œI will give them the best of clothes: a cloak and boots fit to be married in. I will feed them like princes; and if they like they can live together in the barn. But I can’t take off the shackles, or they will run away. They shall be taken off, however, at night.” And he jumped up and slapped ZhΓ­lin on the shoulder, exclaiming: β€œYou good, I good!”

ZhΓ­lin wrote the letter, but addressed it wrongly, so that it should not reach its destination, thinking to himself: β€œI’ll run away!”

ZhΓ­lin and KostΓ­lin were taken back to the barn and given some maize straw, a jug of water, some bread, two old cloaks, and some worn-out military boots⁠—evidently taken from the corpses of Russian soldiers. At night their shackles were taken off their feet, and they were locked up in the barn.

III

ZhΓ­lin and his friend lived in this way for a whole month. The master always laughed and said: β€œYou, IvΓ‘n, good! I, Abdul, good!” But he fed them badly, giving them nothing but unleavened bread of millet-flour baked into flat cakes, or sometimes only unbaked dough.

KostΓ­lin wrote home a second time, and did nothing but mope and wait for the money to arrive. He would sit for days together in the barn sleeping, or counting the days till a letter could come.

ZhΓ­lin knew his letter would reach no one, and he did not write another. He thought: β€œWhere could my mother get enough money to ransom me? As it is she lived chiefly on what I sent her. If she had to raise five hundred roubles, she would be quite ruined. With God’s help I’ll manage to escape!”

So he kept on the lookout, planning how to run

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