Once, there lived a merchant who had a very long beard. People called him ‘Long Beard’. He had lost his wife and wished to marry Sara, his neighbour’s daughter.
Soon after their wedding, Long Beard had to leave for a trip. He said to his new bride, “You are the mistress of this mansion. Take this bunch of keys. You can invite your friends over. But never use this small key, which opens the room at the end of the corridor. You are forbidden to go inside that room. If you disobey me, you will be severely punished.”
Sara saw Long Beard’s dreadful eyes and was frightened. She promised not to open the room. After Long Beard had left, Sara called her friends. She showed them her expensive clothes, bags, jewellery and the beautiful mansion. But when one of her friends asked her about the room at the end of the corridor, she said, “I am not allowed to open that room.”
Her friends said, “How strange! You are the mistress of this mansion and you can’t enter that room.”
The next day, Sara wondered what her husband could be hiding. Her curiosity grew so much that she could not resist opening the room. She was shocked at what she saw. The room had a glass trunk full of frogs. One of the frogs called out to her and said, “We are Long Beard’s wives. He punished us for disobeying him by changing us into frogs. He is a wicked wizard.”
Sara trembled with fear and ran up to her room.
She suddenly noticed that the key had changed colour. She tried to wash it, but the colour did not change as it was a magic key.
The next day, Long Beard returned and asked for the keys. Sara returned the bunch of keys. Long Beard noticed that the small key had changed colour. He said, “I see that you have disobeyed me. Now, you will have the same fate as the inmates of that room.”
Sara cried for help, as Long Beard ran after her with his magic wand. Fortunately, her brothers heard her cries. When Long Beard was about to strike Sara with his wand, her brothers entered. They caught Long Beard and killed him. Sara released the wives from their spell by using Long Beard’s magic wand. Then, she divided Long Beard’s wealth among all and everybody was happy.
