Pirin - Book II - Hairam the Queen

Chapter 4

Having being told so, I first consulted my ministers and advisors, in order to learn whether any of them knew about the chief cook Osondeljui's matter, but all of them shook their heads in denial.

Then I asked the man himself, having him summoned and brought before me. As soon as the court cook was before me, I spoke to him in the fashion: “Master Osondeljui, I learned, to my utter surprise and bewilderment, that you have been diserting your task of chief cook in the royal kitchen for a few days already, refusing to explain your reason for so doing with anybody who asked. Would you then like to kindly explain the matter to me?”

The chief cook closed his eyes and raised his chin proudly. “My Lord, my noblest of sovereigns, tell me, please: have you ever had any reason to complain about my service?”

“No, Osondeljui. Truth be told, I think there is no man nor woman, in this realm, who can compare with you, as far as the precious art of savours goes”.

“Thank you, Milord, and I am convinced of that, since you never even once refused my dishes, nor ever expressed any lack of enjoyment of the meals brought to your table”.

“What then?”

“Please, my noble sire, tell me once more: have you ever heard anybody in this court complaining about what was brought from my kitchen to the long tables of your banquets by hosts of slender handmaids and young pages?”

“Not at all, master, that was never the case, if my memory can be trusted”.

“What did you hear, instead, concerning the dishes I prepared?”

“You should indeed know that I only heard, and myself spoke, praises and compliments in great number. And never did I see any tableguest anxious to leave the table, as long as your prelibacies were served. On the contrary, may you take pride in this: I saw more than one person cleaning their plate so thoroughly they stole the job from the servants supposed to take care of polishing in the best of ways the tableware in smoothened quartz and the cutlery in refined silver, set with gemstones, which, as many as the stars in heaven, crowd my dining hall! Speak, then, in the Gods' name! Tell me once and for all, without further concealment, the reason for diserting your role”.

The chief cook sighed, turning his eyes left and right, then shaking his head in displeasure. “Your Highness, Sire Helewen, you should know that at the beginning of this week...” Osondeljui started, interrupting after only about a dozen words, overcome by emotion.

“Continue”.

“You should know that at the beginning of this week my art received the worst treatment one could imagine!”

“Alas, tell me who and how caused such offence”, I insisted.

“The person responsible, Milord, is a newly elected minister. I am talking about young Ercbadeim, who, thinking to be only heard by his colleagues, pronounced scornful words of vile derision toward my work. He ignored I chanced to pass through the corridors as he so spoke, therefore hearing the whole thing!”

“What did you hear out of minister Ercbadeim's mouth, master?”

“He said, and I am citing his precise words, that before being elected to his political role, he could taste a better cooking than the one he had been served by the court cook!”

“Therefore you quit cooking, is that so?” I asked.

“Not straightaway!” he denied.

“How so?”

“After spending a horrible night awake, doubting my talent and qualities, I came to the kitchen in the early morning, even before the Song of Dawn, and put myself to work in order to prepare such prelibate delicacies that may surpass everything I had made before. I can well say, then, may the Gods prove me wrong, that I never committed myself so much to the preparation of a meal! Without even counting upon the assistance of my apprentices, who had not come there yet, I undertook the meticulous cutting, shredding, peeling, seasoning, cooking, and stirring over lake fish, fruits, fowl, honey and cheese, liquors, and finely-savoured spices.

Eventually, I put everything into suitable earthenware-topped pans, and, as soon as it was time to serve lunch, I had everything brought to minister Ercbadeim...” the chief cook explained.

“And at the end of the meal you asked him about his impression?”

“No! I would be risking to appear anxious about his judgment! I abstained completely from any talk with the minister... but I hid myself behind the curtains, finely wrought, belonging to the drapes adorning the hall of feasts, and listened to the comments exchanged between tableguests”.

“Did you so managed to catch any comment pronounced by minister Ercbadeim concerning the dishes you had prepared for him?”

“Indeed, my King, you may well believe my word when I say I heard Ercbadeim repeating what he had stated the day before in the afternoon! He expressed himself, for the second time, by relating how he had eaten better meals before being elected to his political charge. At that point, so much bewildered by what I had just heard, I went back into the kitchen and threw the towel in, gave up the ensigns of the cookmasters guild, and came back to only observing the others at work in complete silence, never to touch a single ladle anymore...” Osondeljui concluded, his arms folded against his chest.

Being things so, I had the young minister Ercbadeim summoned to the audience hall, in the presence of the chief cook Osondeljui, in order to hear his version of the happening.

“Tell me, minister Ercbadeim, who are in charge of the roads of our Kingdom: does it correspond to truth that, thinking not to be heard by anybody except your colleagues, you pronounced words of spite toward our good chief cook in the royal kitchen, master Osondeljui, the expert in all savours and prelibacies?”

The minister was astounded. “I deny it, Milord. Never did I pronounce any word of offence toward the chief cook. May the Gods bear witness!”

“And yet”, I explained to him, “master Osondeljui laments you stated to have tasted better cooking before being elected to your political charge. Besides, he complains you repeated such words for two consecutive days. Do you deny that, minister?”

The minister seemed to have figured it all out now.

“I do not deny at all, Milord”.

I stared for a few seconds at the young minister, trying to realize whether he was abusing my patience, but a serene, untroubled look never left his face. Since Ercbadeim was not speaking anymore, I decided to break the silence: “Minister, as you certainly know, the laws of our country allow everybody to express their opinion, even concerning one's taste, therefore I am not charging you with any offence. Nonetheless, a man was offended by your statement, therefore depriving us of his esteemed service. You may well appreciate how I might wish to solve the matter. And so I ask you: is it true you did not like the cooking prepared in this palace?”

“I deny it, Milord. I doubt it is possible to find a better table to sit, as far as delicacy and richness of savours goes, as well as the taste in the combination of flavours, and the mastery of seasonings”.

“Are you then retracting your statement? Or do you wish to make fun of this court and myself?”

Minister Ercbadeim shook his head, smiling in amusement: “Never, my excellent Sire, would I dare to disrespect you! Nonetheless, I am afraid, my words have been completely misunderstood, by the chief cook Osondeljui, in the first place, and then by yourself, who keep by his version. You should actually know, in fact, that my intentions were quite different, as much as the meaning of what I said to the other honourable ministers, my colleagues. I was explaining to them how, indeed, since I have been elected to my chair, although I may sit at the King's table, it is difficult for me to savour the dishes there served, since rarely does my mind now follow my palate in its enjoyment of meals. Indeed, an evergrowing amount of issues, botherings and worries crowd my thoughts all the time, keeping me from the chance to properly savour the prelibacies of the table, or the company of so many distinguished tableguests! Before being elected, instead, when I had no responsibilities, even a mere grape, taken off its cluster and eaten in the shadow of a porch, would give me more pleasure than I am able to taste now, since my head was free to follow my mouth in its savouring”.

Having listened to both statements, I pronounced myself thus: “ I hope both of you learned something from this unpleasant misunderstanding. You, master Osondeljui: do you think it right to give up what makes you appreciated by everyone, and your King in the first place, in order to focus the whole of your efforts and talents over the only contrarian? Does the love you feel for your occupation entirely depend on what is thought and said about you? You shall then learn how the judgment of other people is ever changing and mutable, therefore one cannot rely upon that whether he does or not what nature spontaneously guides you to. As a consequence, I invite you to resume as soon as possible your late charge, retrieving the ensigns of your guild, until you are the one who wish never to practice the art of savours anymore!”

Then I turned to the minister: “And you, honourable Ercbadeim, should learn to handle your everyday worries better. The ones putting their troubles above their head are like the man who, instead of sitting upon his cart, holding both reins and whip in his hands, lies himself upon the ground, letting the cart come over his back. The man who brings his troubles upon the table at lunch is like those who sit upon thornbushes in order to get berries. Remind yourself how a man must be able to his problems, and, in order to do so, he must himself, first of all, be sated, rested, and sound, as far as possible. Worries and troubles are similar to parasites in that they shall try every way to weaken you, depriving you of food, slumber, and health, so that you may lack the energy to face them. And that is not all, but the more they shall take energy from you, the harder they shall get. Be wise, instead, and learn to get strong, in order for your troubles to weaken, and you prevail”.

The singer

CHAPTER V

In another occasion, a man called Bineharanur, who had been working for several years as an ironsmith, specializing in horse-shoe forging and other tools connected with horse breeding, came before in the audience hall. I welcomed him benevolently, asking him what had brought him to ask for my counsel.

“Noble sovereign, excellent Helewen, I have been doubtful for a while concerning my inoccupation”.

“And how is that, master Bineharanur? What is the reason for doubting?”

“I am not certain anymore I am satisfied and well with my job”, he revealed me, tiresome.

“Would you like to take a break in order to decide the way to lead your life in the future? Is that the reason why you have come?”

“Actually, I am not even certain about that”, he added.

“And how may I assist you, then?”

“The thing is, Your Majesty, I am indecided. I found myself at a crossroad and cannot decide which path to follow”.

“Please, explain yourself”.

“My doubts arose in the occasion of your birthday celebrations, Sire, when teams of finely caparisoned horses roared in their gallop through the paved streets of the city, riding around the royal citadel, spurred by wonderful knights in golden armours, white cloaks, and crested helmets, as jugglers performed in each square in their daunting feats and swirls, and musicians blew their horns. Upon that day, as everybody, I was walking down the streets in the utter bewilderment before so many marvels. So it befell, though, that I heard a song, trying to make some room for itself among the many shouts of the feasting crowd. I tried hard to listen better to the singer, and soon I was so much taken by the excellent song I forgot any other sound. Eventually I managed to see the source of the song. My eyes caught the sublime singer, standing upon a stone platform, thence to fascinate the audience by the delightful, warm notes of his voice. Beside him, a choir of voices as celestial as his were heard, accompanying his refrains. Out of a sheer instict, I too started singing. I knew the words of the songs, therefore, without even thinking, I had started chanting them, along with the choir”, the ironsmith related, in so doing exhibiting an exuberant emotion.