There was once a very rich man. He was a miser. He ate cheap food and spent very little money. He lent money to small shopkeepers at a high rate of interest. In this way, he earned a lot of money. There was once a very rich man.
Every morning he went out to see the shopkeepers and came home at midday. The miser had a watchman to look after his house. The watchman lived in a hut near the gate. He liked fish and his wife cooked it for him every day. The watchman told his wife, “Cook the fish before midday. Our master will be out then. He doesn’t eat meat or fish, and he will not like the smell of fish.”
One day the master came home early. He passed by the watchman’s hut and smelled fish. It was a good smell and he liked it very much. That afternoon, he called the watchman and asked him, “What were you cooking today?”
The watchman said quickly, “I quickly, “I won’t do it again, sir. Please forgive me.”
The watchman said, “Don’t be afraid. I am not angry. What was your wife cooking? today?”
The watchman said We were cooking fish.”
The miser said, “Please cook it every day. I like the smell very much.”
The miser said, “Please cook it every day. I like the smell very much.”
The watchman and his wife thought, “Our master is mad.” But they cooked fish every day.
After a month, one evening, the watchman and his wife came to see their master.
“Sir, you like the smell of fish,” the watchman said to his master, “so we cook it every day. But fish is not cheap. It is very expensive. It costs us a lot of money. I earn only thirty rupees a month. You ordered us to cook fish even though we cannot afford it. So please give us money for the fish.”
The miser thought for a while. Then he said, “Oh, all right. Wait here.” He went into his room and closed the door behind him. He took out some silver coins from a bag. He dropped them one by one on the floor. The watchman and his wife heard the tinkle of the coins and were very happy. They said, “He is going to give us all that money!”
After some time their master came out and sat down on a chair. He then asked the watchman and his wife, “Did you hear the tinkling of the coins?”
“Yes, sir, we did,” said the miser.
“Did you enjoy it?” asked the miser.
“Yes, sir,” said the watchman and his wife.
The miser then said, “All right. I enjoyed the smell of your fish and you enjoyed the sound of my coin. didn’t ask me for my money. Go away now.”