After a year the king had to go out into the battlefield, and he left the young queen in the care of his mother, saying, "If she has a child, support her and take good care of her, and immediately send me the news in a letter."
She gave birth to a beautiful son. The old mother quickly wrote this in a letter, giving the joyful news to the king.Now on the way the messenger stopped at a brook to rest. Tired from his long journey, he fell asleep. Then the devil came to him. He still wanted to harm the pious queen, and he took the letter, putting in its place one that stated that the queen had brought a changeling into the world. When the king read this letter he was frightened and saddened, but nevertheless he wrote an answer that they should take good care of the queen until his return. The messenger returned with this letter, but he rested at the same place, and again fell asleep. The devil came again and placed a different letter in his bag. This letter said that they should kill the queen with her child.
The old mother was terribly frightened when she received this letter. She could not believe it, and wrote to the king again, but she got back the same answer, because each time the devil substituted a false letter. And the last letter even stated that they should keep the queen's tongue and eyes as proof.
The old mother lamented that such innocent blood was to be shed, and in the night she had a doe killed, cut out its tongue and eyes, and had them put aside.Then she said to the queen, "I cannot have you killed as the king has ordered, but you can no longer stay here. Go out into the wide world with your child, and never come back."
The old mother tied the queen's child onto her back, and the poor woman went away with weeping eyes. She came to a great, wild forest where she got onto her knees and prayed to God. Then the angel of the Lord appeared to her and led her to a small house. On it was a small sign with the words, "Here anyone can live free."A snow-white virgin came from the house and said, "Welcome, Queen," then led her inside. She untied the small boy from her back, held him to her breast so he could drink, and then laid him in a beautiful made-up bed.
Then the poor woman said, "How did you know that I am a queen?"
The white virgin answered, "I am an angel, sent by God to take care of you and your child."
She stayed in this house for seven years, and was well taken care of. And through the grace of God and her own piety her chopped-off hands grew back.
The king finally came back home from the battlefield, and the first thing he wanted to do was to see his wife and their child.
Then the old mother began to weep, saying, "You wicked man, why did you write to me that I was to put two innocent souls to death," And she showed him the two letters that the evil one had counterfeited. Then she continued to speak, "I did what you ordered," and showed him as proof the eyes and the tongue.
Then the king began to weep even more bitterly for his poor wife and his little son. Until the old woman had mercy and said to him, "Be satisfied that she is still alive. I secretly had a doe killed and took the proofs from it. I tied your wife's child onto her back and told her to go out into the wide world, and she had to promise never to come back here, because you were so angry with her."
Then the king said, "I will go as far as the sky is blue, and will neither eat nor drink until I have found my dear wife and my child again, provided that in the meantime they have not died or perished from hunger."
Then the king traveled about for nearly seven years, searching in all the stone cliffs and caves, but he did not find her, and he thought that she had perished. He neither ate nor drank during the entire time, but God kept him alive. Finally he came to a great forest, where he found a little house with a sign containing the words, " Here anyone can live free."
The white virgin came out, took him by the hand, led him inside, and said, "Welcome, King," then asked him where he had come from.
He answered, "I have been traveling about for nearly seven years looking for my wife and her child, but I cannot find them."
The angel offered him something to eat and drink, but he did not take it, wanting only to rest a little. He lay down to sleep, covering his face with a cloth.
Then the angel went into the room where the queen was sitting with her son, whom she normally called "Filled-with-Grief."The angel said to her, "Go into the next room with your child. Your husband has come."
She went to where he was lying, and the cloth fell from his face.Then she said, "Filled-with-Grief, pick up the cloth for your father and put it over his face again."
The child picked it up and put it over his face again. The king heard this in his sleep and let the cloth fall again.
Then the little boy grew impatient and said, "Mother, dear, how can I cover my father's face? I have no father in this world. I have learned to pray, 'Our father which art in heaven,' and you have said that my father is in heaven, and that he is our dear God. How can I know such a wild man? He is not my father."
Hearing this, the king arose and asked who she was.She said, "I am your wife, and this is your son Filled-with-Grief."
He saw her living hands and said, "My wife had silver hands."
She answered, "Our merciful God has caused my natural hands to grow back."
The angel went into the other room, brought back the silver hands, and showed them to him. Now he saw for sure that it was his dear wife and his dear child, and he kissed them, and rejoiced, and said, "A heavy stone has fallen from my heart."
Then the angel of God gave them all something to eat, and then they went back home to his old mother. There was great joy everywhere, and the king and the queen conducted their wedding ceremony once again, and they lived happily until their blessed end.
[THE END]
格林童话《没有手的姑娘》（下）
一年以后，国王不得不出征战场。他将年轻的王后托咐给母亲，说：“假如她生了孩子，请好好照顾她，同时尽快把消息告诉我。”
后来姑娘果真生了个健康漂亮的男孩，国王年迈的母亲立刻将这一令人振奋的消息写在信上派人给国王送去。但送信人在路上的一条小溪边歇息。长途旅行累了，他睡着了。再说那个恶魔一直想伤害好心的王后。这时，他将另一封信放进信使的口袋里，上面说王后生了一个妖怪。国王收到信后十分震惊，而且百思不得其解。他回信要大家仍悉心照料王后，一切等他回来再说。送信人带着国王的信往回走，又在来时歇息的地方打了个盹。恶魔又把另一封信装进信使的口袋，上面要他们将王后和她生的孩子处死。
国王的母亲见信后大惊失色，简直不敢相信。因此又写了一封信给国王，可是没有回音。因为恶魔每次都把信换了。最后一封信上要求把王后的舌头和眼睛挖出来留作服从国王命令的见证。
国王的母亲哭了，她不愿意看到无辜的人被杀害。于是她趁天黑时杀了一头鹿，留下了舌头和眼睛。然后对王后说：“我不愿按国王的命令杀你，但是你不能再住在这儿了。带着孩子走吧，别再回来。”
可怜的妇人把孩子背到背上，含泪离开了王宫。她来到一座大森林里，跪下来向上帝祈祷。天使来到她跟前，把她领到一座小屋前。那里挂着一块牌子，上面写着：“一切免费。”一位雪白的侍女从屋里走出来说：“欢迎你，王后。”然后将她引进屋里。她将孩子从王后背上解下来，抱到她怀里让孩子吃奶，随后将孩子放到一张做得极其精致的小床上。
可怜的妇人问：“你怎么知道我是个王后。”
白侍女回答说：“我是个天使，上帝派我来照顾你和孩子的。”
王后在这里生活了七年，受到很好的照顾。由于她虔诚地信仰上帝，因此上帝让她被砍断的双手又长了出来。
国王终于从战场归来了，他的第一个愿望就是看看他的妻子和儿子。
他年迈的妈妈哭着对他说：“你这个坏傢伙，为甚么写信要我杀那两个无辜的人？”她拿出那两封被恶魔换了的信给国王看，接着说：“我已经照办了。”说着拿出舌头和眼睛作证。
国王为可怜的妻子和儿子痛哭流涕，伤心的程度远超过他母亲。老母看他哭得实在可怜，就对他说：“别哭了，她还活着。我悄悄地杀了一头鹿，取了那些证物。实际上我把孩子绑到你妻子的背上，让她到野外谋生，要她别再回来，因为你信上似乎对她很恼怒。”
国王说：“只要我亲爱的妻子和儿子没被杀害或饿死，走遍天崖海角我也一定要找到他们，否则我不吃也不喝。”
于是国王找了七年，他找遍了每一个石缝、每一个山洞，但还是没有找到，他想她准是因为缺衣少食死了。寻找过程中，他不吃也不喝，但是上帝在暗中帮助他支撑着。最后他来到了大森林，看到了小屋和上面挂着的“一切免费”的牌子。
白衣侍女走出来，拉着他的手将他领进屋子说：“欢迎光临，国王陛下。”又问他从何而来。
国王回答说：“我出来寻找我妻子和孩子已经七年了，我几乎找遍了每一个地方，可就是找不到。”
天使请国王吃点肉、喝点酒，国王甚么也没吃，说只想休息一下。他躺下，将一块手帕遮在脸上睡了。
天使走进王后和她儿子“悲伤”住的房间。对她说：“带着孩子出去吧，你丈夫找你们来了。”
于是王后带着儿子来到国王睡觉的地方，手帕从国王的脸上滑落到地上。王后对儿子：“悲伤，去把你父亲的手帕捡起来，盖到他脸上。”
孩子走过去，捡起手帕盖到国王脸上。国王在睡梦中听到了这句话，便很高兴地让手帕再次滑落到地上。
可孩子不耐烦地说：“亲爱的母亲，你怎么叫我用手帕盖住父亲的脸？我在这世上不是没父亲吗？我已经学会祈祷'我们在天之父'，你不是说我父亲在天国吗，是仁慈的上帝，现在怎么又说这陌生人是我父亲？他不是我父亲。”
国王一听，马上坐了起来，问他们是谁。王后回答说：“我是你的妻子，他是你的儿子'悲伤'。”
国王看到王后那双自然生长的手，说：“我妻子的手是银子做的。”
王后回答说：“仁慈的上帝让我又长出了一双手。”
天使走进内室，拿出那双银手给国王看。这时国王才确信这就是他亲爱的妻子和儿子，他亲吻了他们，高兴地说：“这下我心中的石头算是落地了。”
上帝派来的天使和他们一起吃了最后一顿饭。随后国王带着妻儿回到王宫，见到了老母亲。全国到处一片欢腾，国王和王后再次举行了婚礼，从此永远幸福满足地生活在一起。
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