' 'What then wouldst thou have,
O light of my eyes and fruit of my entrails?' asked she. 'If thou
desire aught beside kissing and embracing and entwining of legs,
do what pleases thee; for, by Allah, none hath any part in us.'
'It is not that I desire,' rejoined he; 'but I would fain
acquaint thee with my true history. I am no merchant, but a King,
the son of a King, and my father is the supreme King Suleiman
Shah, who sent his Vizier ambassador to thy father, to demand thy
hand for me in marriage, but thou wouldst not consent.' Then he
told her his story from first to last, nor is there any profit in
repeating it, and added, 'And now I wish to return to my father,
that he may send an ambassador to thy father, to demand thy hand
for me, so we may be at ease.' When she heard this, she rejoiced
greatly, because it fell in with her own wishes, and they passed
the night on this understanding. But by the decree of Fate, it
befell that sleep overcame them that night above all nights and
they slept till the sun had risen. Now at this hour, King
Shehriman was sitting on his chair of estate, with his amirs and
grandees before him, when the chief of the goldsmiths presented
himself before him carrying a large box, which he opened and
brought out therefrom a small casket worth a hundred thousand
dinars, for that which was therein of rubies and emeralds and
other jewels, beyond the competence of any King.
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