The Sultan’s Cleverness

A Sultan was very fond of good food. Once, he heard that a certain Nawab employed a highly gifted cook named Habib. He sent one of his clerks to Habib and offered him a salary three times higher than what he was receiving.

A year passed. When the Nawab visited the Sultan, the two enjoyed lunch together. The host asked, “How do you find these dishes?”

“They are prepared quite well, my lord,” replied the Nawab.

The Sultan laughed. “They must be very good; they are prepared by your favorite cook!” He then confessed to luring the Nawab’s cook into his service.

The Nawab was surprised. “Is this his cooking? He should cook much better!” The next day, with the Sultan’s permission, the Nawab tiptoed towards the kitchen. To his amusement, he saw the cook relaxing and smoking a hookah while two other men cooked on his behalf. Clearly, Habib had appointed them for a small salary.

The Nawab returned to the Sultan to share his findings. “My lord, had you told me that you needed Habib, I would have transferred him to your household. But you tempted him with a much higher salary. This is the result,” he concluded.

“That will serve no purpose. He will feel aggrieved and will not put forth his best effort in cooking,” said the Nawab.

The Sultan sighed and admitted, “I made a blunder trying to be clever!”