Explore "Sorrow" by Alexander Nikolayevich Afanasyev on Textopian. Read with annotations and highlights.
Once upon a time, in a wretched village, there lived two peasants, who were own brothers. One was poor, however, and the other rich. The rich man settled in the town, built himself a fine house, and became a merchant. Sometimes the poor brother had not a crumb of bread and the children (each of whom was smaller than the others) cried and begged for something to eat. From morning to evening the peasant trudged away like a fish on ice, but it was all of no good.
One day he said to his wife: "I am going into the town, in order to beg my brother to help me."