' And he wept and groaned and repeated the
following verses:
Indeed, it sufficeth the lover the time that his tears have run;
As for affliction, of patience it hath him all fordone.
He who concealeth the secrets conjoined us heretofore And now His
hand hath severed that which Himself made one.
When he had finished, I said to him, 'O my lord, I would fain
return to my house; it may be the damsel will come back to me
with news.' 'It is well,' answered he; 'go and return to me
speedily with news, for thou seest my condition.' So I took leave
of him and went home. Hardly had I sat down, when up came the
damsel, choked with her tears. 'What is the matter?' asked I, and
she said, 'O my lord, what we feared has fallen on us; for, when
I returned yesterday to my lady, I found her enraged with one of
the two maids who were with us the other night, and she ordered
her to be beaten. The girl took fright and ran away; but one of
the gate-keepers stopped her and would have sent her back to her
mistress. However, she let fall some hints, which excited his
curiosity; so he coaxed her and led her on to talk, and she
acquainted him with our case. This came to the ears of the
Khalif, who bade remove my mistress and all her gear to his own
palace and set over her a guard of twenty eunuchs.
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