One afternoon, Akbar and Birbal were telling each other jokes. Both of them were laughing heartily. Since Akbar spent a lot of time with Birbal every day, he saw through his wit and intelligence. In fact, Birbal was impressed at how Akbar saw through his witty attitude so soon. Birbal said, “Your Majesty, I am afraid that soon my title of the most witty and intelligent person in your kingdom would be taken away from me by you.” Akbar laughed and said, “Birbal, don’t you know I have been conspiring against this since day one of your presence in the kingdom?” Both of them laughed even louder and other courtiers too laughed with them.
Suddenly, a guard came in the court and greeted the Emperor. He told him that a man with his two sons was waiting outside. Akbar ordered the guard to send them in. The man came in with his two sons. One looked very intelligent and active. The second looked very lazy.
Akbar asked, “What brings you here? Is there any problem with you?” The man seemed to be stressed. He said, “Yes, my lord. I am a merchant. These two boys are my sons. This is Ali and this is Hassan. Ali is a very smart boy and responsible too. He is good at whatever he does. But Hassan is the opposite of his elder brother. He doesn’t have any interest in anything but playing. He is unable to handle anything with responsibility. Now, I am in a dilemma as I have to leave for another village for trade. I don’t know whom shall I give the charge of my shop and the warehouse.”
Akbar listened to the man’s words with concentration. He tried to analyse the situation in the best possible way. However, he was unable to come up with any solution. He called Birbal and said “Birbal, the situation is a simple one yet it is tricky. What do you suggest?”
Birbal said, “Your Majesty, don’t worry. I will handle this situation.” Then he looked at the man and said, “My friend, why don’t you give the charge of the shop to Hassan and of the warehouse to Ali?”
The man was surprised to listen to Birbal’s words. He said, “But Birbal Raja, wouldn’t Hassan ruin the business? How can I leave the shop under him? Or maybe I could leave everything for Ali.”
Birbal said, “This will sour the relation between the two. A warehouse is important for every business. If it is well taken care of, then even if the shop is not properly managed, it wouldn’t cause you much loss. But if the warehouse isn’t in safe hands, then you can lose your entire wealth.”
