This was all the merchant’s good; so he said, “O youth, I will play thee another game for the shop.”  Now the value of the shop was four thousand dinars; so they played and El Abbas beat him and won his shop, with that which was therein; whereupon the other arose, shaking his clothes, and said to him, “Up, O youth, and take thy shop.”  So El Abbas arose and repairing to the shop, took possession thereof, after which he returned to [the place where he had left] his servant [Aamir] and found there the Amir Saad, who was come to bid him to the presence of the king.  El Abbas consented to this and accompanied him till they came before King Ins ben Cais, whereupon he kissed the earth and saluted him and exceeded[FN#78] in the salutation.  Quoth the king to him, “Whence comest thou, O youth?” and he answered, “I come from Yemen.”

Then said the king, “Hast thou a need we may accomplish unto thee?  For indeed we are exceeding beholden to thee for that which thou didst in the matter of Hudheifeh and his folk.”  And he let cast over him a mantle of Egyptian satin, worth an hundred dinars.  Moreover, he bade his treasurer give him a thousand dinars and said to him, “O youth, take this in part of that which thou deserves! of us; and if thou prolong thy sojourn with us, we will give thee slaves and servants.”  El Abbas kissed the earth and said, “O king, may grant thee abiding prosperity, I deserve not all this.”  Then he put his hand to his poke and pulling out two caskets of gold, in each of which were rubies, whose value none could tell, gave them to the king, saying, “O king, God cause thy prosperity to endure, I conjure thee by that which God hath vouchsafed thee, heal my heart by accepting these two caskets, even as I have accepted thy present.”  So the king accepted the two caskets and El Abbas took his leave and went away to the bazaar.

When the merchants saw him, they accosted him and said, “O youth, wilt thou not open thy shop?” As they were bespeaking him, up came a woman, having with her a boy, bareheaded, and [stood] looking at El Abbas, till he turned to her, when she said to him, “O youth, I conjure thee by Allah, look at this boy and have pity on him, for that his father hath forgotten his cap in the shop [he lost to thee]; so if thou will well to give it to him, thy reward be with God!  For indeed the child maketh our hearts ache with his much weeping, and God be witness for us that, were there left us aught wherewithal to buy him a cap in its stead, we had not sought it of thee.”  “O adornment of womankind,” replied El Abbas, “indeed, thou bespeakest me with thy fair speech and supplicatest me with thy goodly words ...But bring me thy husband.”  So she went and fetched the merchant, whilst the folk assembled to see what El Abbas would do.  When the man came, he returned him the gold he had won of him, all and part, and delivered him the keys of the shop, saying, “Requite us with thy pious prayers."Therewithal the woman came up to him and kissed his feet, and on like wise did the merchant her husband; and all who were present blessed him, and there was no talk but of El Abbas.