" Then
he returned to his shop, where he busied himself with the sale of
his meats; and he yearned after his mother at Bassora and wept
over her and recited the following verses:
If thou demand fair play of Fate, therein thou dost it wrong; And
blame it not, for twas not made, indeed, for equity.
Take what lies ready to thy hand and lay concern aside, For
troubled days and days of peace in life must surely be.
Meanwhile, the Vizier, his uncle, tarried in Damascus three days,
then departed for Hems, and passing through that city, fared on
by way of Hemah and Aleppo and thence through Diarbekir, Maridin
and Mosul, making enquiries at every place he came to, till he
arrived at Bassora, where he halted and presented himself before
the Sultan, who received him with honour and consideration and
asked the reason of his coming. The Vizier related to him
his history and told him that Noureddin Ali was his brother,
whereupon the Sultan commended the latter's soul to the mercy of
God and said, "Sir, he was my Vizier for fifteen years, and I
loved him greatly. Then he died, leaving a son, who abode here
but two months after his father's death; since which time he hath
disappeared and we have never come upon any news of him. But his
mother, who was the daughter of my former Vizier, is still with
us." Shemseddin rejoiced to hear that his nephew's mother was
still alive and said, "O King, I wish to see her.
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