Hansel and Gretel

On the edge of the big forest, there lived a poor woodcutter, and his wife and two children depended on him. His son's name was Hansel, and his daughter's name was Gretel. Their family was already short of food and drink, and this year coincided with the skyrocketing domestic prices.

The woodcutter's family was even more deprived of food and could not even guarantee their daily bread. That night, the woodcutter was so worried that he couldn't sleep.

He lay in bed thinking hard, sighing and groaning again. Finally he said to his wife: "What should we do! I don't have any food, so how can I feed our poor child?"

"Listen to me. "Say, the child's father," his wife replied: "Early tomorrow morning we will take the children to a distant jungle

, light a fire for them there, and give them each They give each other a piece of bread, and then we pretend to do our work, leaving them there alone. They don’t know the way and can’t go home, so we don’t have to feed them anymore.”

"No, wife," said the woodcutter, "I can't do this. How could I bear to leave my child in the jungle to feed

wild beasts!"

"Hey, you idiot," his wife said, "otherwise, all four of us will starve to death!" Then she chirped again

and tried to persuade him endlessly. , in the end, he had no choice but to acquiesce.

At that time, the two children were too hungry to sleep, and happened to hear the entire conversation between their stepmother and their father. Upon hearing her stepmother's advice to her father, Gretel burst into tears and said to Hansel, "Now we are both doomed."

"Don't say anything, Gretel. "Wright," Hansel comforted her, "don't worry, I will find a way."

After the two adults fell asleep, he put on his coat, opened the back door and sneaked out of the room. . The moon was shining brightly at this time, and the bright moonlight made the white pebbles in the open space in front of the house shine like pieces of silver coins. Hansel knelt down and filled his coat pockets with white stones as much as he could. Then he went back to the house and said to Gretel: "Don't worry, little sister, just sleep well

God will be with us." After saying that, he replied Go to sleep on his little bed.

As soon as dawn broke and the sun had not yet jumped above the horizon, the woman woke up the two children, "Get up, get up, you

lazy idiots!" She shouted, "We are going into the mountains to chop firewood." As she said this, she gave a child a small piece of bread and warned them: "This is your lunch, don't eat it in advance." Drop it, because you will never get anything again."

Gretel took the bread and hid it under her apron, for Hansel's pockets were now full of white stones.

Then the whole family headed towards the forest. Hansel always walked for a while and then stopped and looked back at his home.

After walking for a while, he stopped and looked back at his home. When his father saw it, he said: "Hansel, why are you always looking back?

Concentrate on walking your way."

"Oh, Dad," Hansel He replied: "I am looking at my white cat. He is squatting high on the roof and wants to say 'goodbye' to me!"

"That's not you. "The kitten, little fool," said the stepmother, "that's the morning sun shining on the chimney." Actually, Hansel was not really looking at the kitten, he was quietly shining it on. He took out the white pebbles from his pocket and threw them one by one on the path he passed.

When they reached the depths of the forest, their father said to them: "Hey, children, go pick up some firewood, and I will light a

fire for you."

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Hansel and Gretel picked up many dead branches and piled them as high as a hill. When the dead branches were lit and the flames rose high, the stepmother said to them: "You two lie down by the fire and stay there while your father and I go to the woods." Chopping

Wood. As soon as the work is done, we will come to take you home."

So Hansel and Gretel sat by the fire and waited for their parents to finish. Come and pick them up again. By noon,

they had eaten their little piece of bread. Because they could always hear the bang and bang of the ax chopping down the trees, they believed that their father was nearby. In fact, what they heard was not the sound of an ax at all, but the sound of a dead branch tied to a small tree hitting the trunk under the blow of the wind. The brother and sister sat for a long time, so tired that their upper and lower eyelids began to fight. Not long after, the two of them fell asleep. When they woke up from their dreams, it was already a dark night. Gerald

Light was so frightened that she cried and said, "Now we can't find the way out of the forest!"

"Don't worry," Hansel comforted her and said, "When the moon comes out in a while, we will soon find our way out of the forest."

"

Soon, when a full moon rose, Hansel took his sister's hand and followed the white stones that glistened on the

ground like silver coins in the moonlight. They walked all night and returned to their father's house at dawn. They knocked on the door and it was their stepmother who opened the door. When she opened the door and saw Hansel and Gretel, she said: "Why did you sleep in the forest for so long? We thought you didn't want to go home!" "

The father was overjoyed when he saw the child. He felt very uncomfortable because he had coldly abandoned the two children.

Their family lived together in difficulty again. But not long after, There was another nationwide famine. One night, the two children again heard their stepmother say to their father: "Oh! Everything that can be eaten has been eaten, and only this half of bread is left. What will you do next?

What will you do next? We still have to lighten the burden, and we must throw away the two children! This time we can take them deeper and further into the forest so that they can never find their way back. Only in this way can we save ourselves. "

Hearing that his wife said that she wanted to abandon the child again, the woodcutter felt very sad. He thought to himself, everyone shares the joys and sorrows, and shares the end together

A piece of bread is not Is it better? But like all men in the world, it is too difficult to say "no" to a woman, and the woodcutter is no exception. "Whoever takes the bridle must pull the cart" is the same principle. Since the woodcutter made the first concession to his wife, of course he must make the second concession, and he will no longer oppose his wife.

However, the children heard all their conversation, and when their parents fell asleep, Hansel got up from the bed again and wanted to

slip out the door. , went outside to pick up some pebbles like last time, but this time he found that the door was locked by his stepmother, but he had a new idea in his mind, and he comforted his little one. The sister said: "Don't cry, Gretel, don't worry, sleep well. God

will help us. "

Early in the morning, the stepmother grabbed the children from the bed. She gave them each a piece of bread, but it was much smaller than the last time

.

On the way to the forest, Hansel crushed his bread in his pocket, stopping now and then to scatter the crumbs

on the road. p>

"Hansel, what are you looking at behind so hard? "His father asked him when he saw that he was always lagging behind. "I'm looking at my little pigeon, which is standing on the roof and saying goodbye to me. "Hansel replied.

"You idiot," his stepmother cried, "that's not your dove, that's the morning sun shining on the chimney. ”

But Hansel still scattered his bread crumbs little by little on the road.

The stepmother led them away for a long time, and came to a place they had never seen before. In the forest they visited, there was another big fire like last time, and the stepmother said to them again: "Stay here, children, and take a nap if you feel sleepy. You have to go to a farther place to cut firewood. We will pick you up after the work is done. ”

At noon, Gretel shared her bread with Hansel, because Hansel’s bread had been scattered on the road.

Then they both Asleep. Until midnight, no one came to pick up the two poor children. It was dark when they woke up. Hansel comforted his sister and said: "When the moon comes out, it will be dark." We can now see the bread crumbs I scattered on the ground. They will definitely show us the way home. ”

But when the moon rose, they could not find any bread crumbs on the ground. It turned out that they were all eaten by those flying around in the woods and fields. The birds that went away pecked little by little.

Although Hansel was a little anxious, he still comforted his sister and said: "We will definitely find the way, Gretel. ”

But they could not find the road. Although they walked for a day and a night, they could not get out of the forest. They were already starving.

They were dizzy, because except for a few things they found on the ground, they could not get out of the forest. They didn't eat anything. They were so tired that they couldn't even move. They fell under a tree and fell asleep. It was the third morning after they left their father's house. They were deep in the jungle and had lost their way. If they could not get help, they would definitely die. At this moment, they saw a snow-white animal. A very beautiful bird stood on a branch of a tree and sang loudly. It sang so beautifully that the brother and sister couldn't help but stop and listen to it when it finished singing.

It spread its wings and flew in front of them, as if to signal them to follow it, so they followed it forward until they arrived in front of a small house. Park on the roof of the cabin.

Only then did they realize that the hut was actually made of fragrant bread, with thick cakes on the roof and bright candies on the windows.

"Let's open our bellies," said Hansel: "Now it's time for us to have a good meal. I want a small piece of the roof.

Gretel, you can eat the window, it must taste wonderful and sweet."

As he said that, Hansel climbed up and broke off a small piece of the roof to taste it. But Gretel stood in front of the window, chewing on the sweet window with her mouth. At this time, a voice suddenly came from the house:

"Chew! Chew! Chew! Chew!

Who is chewing my little house?"

The children replied:

"It's the wind, it's the wind,

It's the little doll in heaven."

They answered while eating , not disturbed at all.

Hansel thought the roof smelled particularly beautiful, so he took off another large piece; Gretel simply cut out a small round window and sat down on the ground

Enjoy slowly. Suddenly, the door of the house opened, and an old woman walked out tremblingly on crutches. Hansel and Gretel were so frightened that their legs trembled and the food in their hands fell to the ground.

The old woman shook her trembling head and said: "Good children, who brought you here? Come, follow me into the house

Go ahead, there is nothing here People will hurt you!"

She took the brother and sister's hands, led them into her hut, and prepared a sumptuous dinner for them,

There is milk, sugar cookies, apples, and nuts. After the children finished eating, she made two small white beds for the children. Hansel and Gretel lay down on the beds and immediately felt that they had entered heaven.

In fact, this old woman is hiding a secret behind her smile. Her friendliness is just disguised to show them. She is actually an evil witch who specializes in seducing children.

Her house is made of delicious food. The house was built to trap the children in her trap. Once a child falls into her possession, she kills him, boils him and eats him. The witch's red eyes had poor vision and could not see far away.

But her sense of smell was as sensitive as that of a wild beast. She could smell people's scent from far away. As soon as Hansel and Gretel approached

she knew about her house. She laughed wildly with joy, and then sneered and made up her mind: "I will hold him firmly

Don’t let them run away”

The next morning, she got up before the children woke up. Looking at the red and round faces of the two little guys, she couldn't help drooling: "What a delicious meal!" Then she grabbed Hansel's little arm and pulled him He was carried into a small stable and locked up with a fence. Hansel yelled inside, but to no avail. Then, the old witch went over to shake Gretel awake and shouted at her: "Get up, lazy girl! Go get water and cook something delicious for your brother. He shut

In the stable outside, I will raise him until he is white and fat, and then eat him.”

Gretel burst into tears after hearing this, but she still had to follow the instructions. The old witch told her to go to work. As a result, Han Seer could eat a lot of delicious food every day, but poor Gretel only had crab shells to eat every day. Every morning, the old witch would walk tremblingly to the stable and call Hansel: "Hansel, please stretch out your finger and let me feel how fat you are." /p>

No!" But Hansel always gave her a small bone that he had chewed. The old witch with old eyes could not see clearly.

She really I thought it was Hansel’s finger! She felt very puzzled, why hadn't Hansel gained a little weight?

Another four weeks passed, and Hansel was still very thin. The old witch lost her patience and declared that she did not want to wait any longer.

"Come here, Gretel," she shouted to the little girl, "go and get water quickly! No matter whether he is fat or thin, I will definitely kill Han tomorrow

Ser, cook him and eat him."

The poor little sister was forced to fetch water to cook her brother. She was very sad along the way, with tears streaming down her cheeks.

Falling down one after another! "Dear God, please help us!" she shouted, "it would be better if we were eaten by wild beasts in the forest, then we would still die together!"

p>

While the old witch was away for a while, poor Gretel saw the opportunity and ran to Hansel and told him everything she had heard:

"We must run away quickly, because this old woman is an evil witch and she wants to kill us."

But Hansel said: "I know how to escape, because I have given the bolt to It's done. But first you have to steal her wand and the flute hanging in her room, so that if she comes after her, we won't be afraid of her.

"

After Gretel finally stole the wand and flute, the two children ran away.

At this time, the old witch came over to see if her delicious meal was ready. She found that the two children were missing. Although her eyesight was not good, she still saw the two children running away from the window.

She was furious. , quickly put on her boots that could walk several yards in one step, and she would catch up with the two children in a short while. Gretel saw that the old witch was about to catch up with them. She turned Hansel into a lake with the wand she stole, and turned herself into an old witch swimming in the lake. When I came to the lake, I threw some bread crumbs into the lake, trying to trick the little swan, so the old witch had to go back empty-handed. p>Seeing that the old witch was gone, Gretel used the magic wand to change herself and Hansel back to their original appearances. Then, they continued on their way until dark. .

Soon, the old witch caught up again.

At this time, the little girl turned herself into a rose in the hawthorn hedge, so Hansel was there. Beside the rose sat down a flutist.

"Good fellow," said the old witch, "I can pluck the beautiful one. Roses? ”

“Oh, yes. " Hansel said.

Then the old witch, who knew very well what the rose was, walked quickly to the hedge and wanted to pick it off quickly. At this moment, Hansel

I took out my flute and started playing it.

This is a magic flute. Anyone who hears the sound of the flute will dance involuntarily, so the old witch has to follow the sound of the flute.

It kept spinning, and the rose could no longer be picked. Hansel kept blowing until the thorns broke the witch's clothes. , and penetrated deeply into her flesh, causing her to scream. Finally, the old witch was firmly entangled with those thorns.

This. At this time, Gretel returned to her original form and walked home with Hansel. After walking a long distance, Gretel was exhausted, so they approached. They found a hollow tree on the grass in the forest and lay down in the hole. Just as they were sleeping, the old witch who finally escaped from the thorn bushes chased them again. Coming up. As soon as she saw her wand, she grabbed it triumphantly and immediately turned poor Hansel into a deer. After he came, he saw what had happened and threw himself on the poor little animal and cried. At this time, tears kept flowing from the deer's eyes.

p>

Gretel said: "Don't worry, dear little deer, I will never leave you. "

As she spoke, she took off her long golden necklace and put it around his neck, then pulled off some rushes and braided it into a straw rope

, lassoed the fawn's neck, and took the poor fawn with her wherever she went.

Finally, one day they came to a hut. Gretel saw this hut. There was no one to live in, so he said, "Let's just stay here." ”

She gathered a lot of leaves and moss to make a soft little bed for the deer. Every morning, she went out to pick some nuts and berries to satisfy her hunger. She gathered a lot of leaves and grass for her brother. She put the leaves and grass in her hands to feed the deer, and the deer jumped happily beside her. At night, when Gretel was tired, she would rest her head on the deer's body and sleep. How happy would their life be if poor Hansel could regain his original shape? >They lived in this way for many years. By this time, Gretel had grown into a young girl. One day, the king happened to come here to hunt when the deer heard the sound echoing in the forest. When the horns sounded, the hounds barked, and the hunters shouted, I couldn't help but want to see what was going on. "Oh, sister," he said, "let me go to the forest." Come and have a look, I can't stay here any longer. "He kept begging, and finally she had to agree to let him go.

"But," she said, "you must come back before dark. I will close the door to prevent those hunters from entering. If

you knock on the door and say, 'Sister, let me in. ’ I knew it was you who came back. If you don't speak, I will close the door tightly. "

Then the deer jumped and ran away. When the king and his hunters saw the beautiful deer, they came

to chase him, but they They couldn't catch him, because every time they thought they were close to catching him, he would jump into a tree and hide in the bushes.

When it got dark, the deer ran back to the hut. He knocked on the door and said, "Sister, let me in!" So Gretel

opened the door. He jumped in and slept soundly on his soft bed.

The next morning, the hunt began again. As soon as the deer heard the horns of the hunters, he said: "Sister, open the door for me.

I must go out."

The king and his hunters met When we saw this little deer, we immediately started hunting again. They chased him all day, and finally surrounded him, and one of the hunters shot him in the foot. He limped back home with great difficulty.

The hunter who shot him followed him and heard the deer say: "Sister, let me in." He also saw the door open. The deer quickly closed it again after entering. So the hunter went back and reported to the king what he had seen and heard. The king

said: "Then let's hunt again tomorrow."

When Gretel saw that her dear fawn was injured, she was very frightened. However, she still cleaned the wound for him and applied some herbs. The next morning, the wound had healed. When the horn sounded again,

The little thing said again: "I can't stay here, I have to go out and have a look. I will be more careful and won't let them catch me.

"

But Gretel said: "I'm sure they will kill you this time, I won't let you go."

"If you lock me up. If I were here, I would die of regret," he said. Gretel had to let him out. She opened the door with a heavy heart, and the deer ran happily into the forest again.

As soon as the king saw the deer, he loudly ordered: "You must catch him today, but no one of you is allowed to hurt him."

However, when the sun went down, they Still couldn't catch him. So the king said to the hunter who had stalked the deer: "Then take me to the hut now."

So they came to the hut, and the king knocked on the door. And said: "Sister, let me come in."

After the door opened, the king walked in, and saw standing in the house the most beautiful girl he had ever seen in his life.

Gretel was very frightened when she saw that it was not her fawn but a king wearing a crown. But the king took her hand very kindly and said, "Will you come with me to my castle and be my wife?"

"Yes. "Yes," said Gretel, "I can go to your castle with you, but I cannot be your wife, because my fawn must be with me, and I cannot be separated from him."

"Well," said the king, "he can go with you and never leave you, and he will have whatever he wants

."

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At this moment, the deer jumped in. So Gretel put a straw rope around his neck, and they left the hut together.

After the king carried little Gretel onto his tall horse, he ran towards his palace. The little deer followed happily

behind them. Along the way, Gretel told the king everything about her. The king knew the old witch, so he sent someone to call her and ordered her to return to the human form of a fawn.

When Gretel saw that her dear brother had returned to his true self, she was so grateful to the king that she readily agreed to marry him. They

lived happily like this, and Hansel became the king's palace minister.