O folk of this realm， if any forswear his governance And look for another， I hold him none of the faithful few When the Vizier had made an end of his speech， the King bade him draw near and showed him the utmost honour then seating him by his own side， he smiled in his face and made him a gracious reply. They conversed till the time of the morning-meal， when the attendants brought in the tables of food and they all ate till they were satisfied， after which the tables were removed and all who were present withdrew， with the exception of the chief officers； which when the Vizier saw， he rose to his feet， and after complimenting the King a second time and kissing the earth before him， spoke as follows： "O mighty king and august prince， I have travelled hither and am come to thee upon an errand， wherein is profit and good and prosperity for thee； and it is that I come as ambassador to thee， seeking the hand of thy noble and illustrious daughter， from the most just， loyal and excellent King Suleiman Shah， Lord of the Green Country and of the mountains of Ispahan， who sends thee many and rare presents and gifts of price， ardently desiring thine alliance. Art thou， then，minded to him as he to thee？" And he was silent， awaiting a reply. When the King heard his words he sprang to his feet and kissed the earth respectfully before the Vizier， to the amazement of the bystanders， whose minds were confounded at his condescension to the ambassador. Then he praised Him who is the Lord of glory and honour and replied， still standing， "O mighty Vizier and illustrious lord， hear what I say. Verily we are of the subjects of King Suleiman Shah and are ennobled by his alliance and aspire ardently thereto. My daughter is one of his handmaids， and it is my dearest wish that he may become my stay and my support in time of need." Then he summoned the Cadis and the witnesses， who took act that King Suleiman had deputed his Vizier his proxy to conclude the marriage， and King Zehr Shah joyfully consented on behalf of his daughter. So the Cadis drew up the marriage contract and offered up prayers for the happiness and prosperity of the contracting parties； after which the Vizier arose and fetching the gifts and rarities and precious things that he had brought with him， laid them all before the King， who betook himself to the equipment of his daughter， honourably entreating the Vizier and feasting great and small； and they held high festival for two months， omitting nought that could gladden heart and eye. When all was ready that was needful for the bride，the King caused the tents to be pitched without the city and they packed the bride"s clothes and jewels in chests and loaded them on mules and camels. Now he had provided his daughter with Greek handmaids and Turkish slave-girls and great store of jewels and precious things， and had let make for her a litter of red gold inlaid with pearls and jewels， which within was as one of the chambers of a palace and without as one of the pavilions of Paradise， whilst its mistress seemed as she were of the lovely hours. Moreover， he furnished her also with twenty mules for the journey and brought her three parasangs forward on her road，after which he bade her and the Vizier farewell and returned to his own city in peace and gladness. Meanwhile， the Vizier and his company fared on by forced marches， traversing plains and deserts and staying not day or night， till they came within three days"
journey of King Suleiman"s capital， when the Vizier despatched a messenger to acquaint the King with their arrival. The messenger hastened forward till he reached the King"s presence and announced to him the coming of the bride， whereat he rejoiced and bestowed on him a dress of honour. Then he bade his troops don their richest apparel and sally forth in grand procession， with banners flying， to meet the princess and her company and do them honour， and let cry throughout the city that neither cloistered damsel nor honoured lady nor infirm old woman should fail to go forth to meet the bride. So they all went out to meet her and the chiefest of them vied in doing her service， meaning to bring her to the King"s palace by night. Moreover， the grandees agreed to decorate the road and stand on either side， whilst the bride should pass by， clad in the robes her father had given her and preceded by her eunuchs and serving-women. So at the appointed time， she made her appearance， surrounded by the troops， these on her right hand and those on her left， and the litter ceased not going with her， till they drew near the palace； nor was there any one but came forth to gaze upon the show. The drums beat and the lances were brandished， the trumpets blared and the banners fluttered and the horses pranced， whilst fragrant odours breathed around， till they reached the gate of the palace and the pages entered with the litter through the private gate. The place shone with its splendours and the walls glittered for the lustre of its ornaments. When the night came， the eunuchs threw open the doors of the bride-chamber and stood on either hand； whereupon the bride entered， among her damsels， like the moon among stars or a pearl of matchless beauty in a string of lesser pearls， and seated herself upon a couch of alabaster inlaid with pearls and jewels， that had been set for her there. Then came the King in to her and God filled his heart with love of her； so he did away her maidenhead， and his trouble and disquiet ceased from him. She conceived by him the first night， and he abode with her well-nigh a month， at the end of which time he went forth and seating himself on his throne of state， dispensed justice to his subjects， till the months of her pregnancy were accomplished.
