Story No. 15

A man's young and beautiful wife died, but the decrepit mother in law, on account of the dowry, went on living in the house. The man was sick to death of her conversation, yet saw no way to escape living beside her, until a group of acquaintances came to console him. One of them asked: How are you bearing the loss of your dear wife? He said: Not seeing my wife is not as hard on me as seeing her mother. The rose was carried off and the thorn stayed behind; the treasure was taken away and the snake remained. To fix your eyes on the tip of a spear is sweeter than looking at the faces of your enemies. Better to be cut off from a thousand friends than to have to look at a single enemy.