Hrvatski / C1
Lisica prevarila muža
Pokušavajući proći kroz ogradu, lisica je zapela u uskom otvoru. Nije mogla ni naprijed ni natrag. Stala je vikati i plakati, u strahu da će je netko zateći zarobljenu i ubiti.
Uto je u daljini ugledala čovjeka koji je dolazio upravo tim putem. Obuzeta strahom, smišljala je kako se izbaviti i kakvom bi nagradom mogla namamiti čovjeka da joj pomogne. Valjalo se osloboditi prije nego što naiđe netko pametniji i uhvati je.
Čim joj se približio, zamolila ga je da je izvuče, obećavši mu novčić za trud. Čovjek se dao prevariti. Oslobodio ju je, pustio iz ruku, pa tek onda zatražio nagradu.
„Gdje je novčić?“
„Imao si ga u ruci“, odgovorila je lisica. „Zašto ga nisi uzeo? Za moju bi kožu dobio novčić.“
Pripovjedač završava vlastitom malom pritužbom: i sam je došao i pomogao čovjeku osloboditi lisicu, ali ni on od svega toga nije dobio ništa.
English summary · includes the ending
A fox tries to pass through a fence, but the opening is too narrow. She becomes stuck and cannot move forwards or backwards. Frightened that someone will find and kill her, she begins to cry.
Then she notices a man approaching along the same path. She asks him to free her and promises him a coin for his work. She is afraid that a cleverer person might come along and catch her instead.
The man accepts her promise, frees her and lets her go. Only then does he ask where his coin is. The fox tells him that he has already had it in his hands. He could have sold her skin for that amount, but he has let her escape.
The promised reward turns out to mean the value of the fox herself. The narrator ends with another joke: he claims that he also helped to free her, yet received nothing either.
Adapted for Lejrbål from the credited source.
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