' The King
reviled her and commanded her to be taken back to her chamber:
then he turned to Taj el Mulouk and said to him, 'Woe to thee!
Whence art thou? Who is thy father and what hath emboldened thee
to debauch my daughter?' 'Know, O King,' replied the prince,
'that if thou put me to death, thou wilt repent it, for it will
be thy ruin and that of all in thy dominions.' 'How so?' asked
the King. 'Know,' answered Taj el Mulouk, 'that I am the son of
King Suleiman Shah, and before thou knowest it, he will be upon
thee with his horse and foot.' When King Shehriman heard this, he
would have forborne to kill Taj el Mulouk and put him in prison,
till he should know the truth of his words; but his Vizier said
to him, 'O King of the age, it is my counsel that thou make haste
to slay this gallows-bird, that dares debauch kings' daughters.'
So the King said to the headsman, 'Strike off his head; for he is
a traitor.' Accordingly, the headsman took him and binding him
fast, raised his hand to the amirs, as if to consult them, a
first and a second time, thinking to gain time; but the King said
to him, 'How long wilt thou consult the amirs? If thou do so
again, I will strike off thine own head.' So the headsman raised
his hand, till the hair of his armpit appeared, and was about to
smite off Taj el Mulouk's head, when suddenly loud cries arose
and the people closed their strops; whereupon the King said to
him, 'Wait awhile,' and despatched one to learn the news.
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