So they ate and
drank and made merry till the end of the day, when Abou Mohammed
gave Mesrour and each of his company five thousand diners; and on
the morrow he clad them in dresses of honour of green and
gold and entreated them with the utmost honour. Then said
Mesrour to him, 'We can abide no longer, for fear of the Khalif's
displeasure.' 'O my lord,' answered Abou Mohammed, 'have patience
with us till to-morrow, that we may equip ourselves, and we will
then depart with you.' So they tarried that day and night with
him; and next morning, Abou Mohammed's servants saddled him a
mule with housings and trappings of gold, set with all manner
pearls and jewels; whereupon quoth Mesrour in himself, 'I wonder
if, when he presents himself in this equipage before the
Commander of the Faithful, he will ask him how he came by all
this wealth.'
Then they took leave of Ez Zubeidi and setting out from Bassora,
fared on, without stopping, till they reached Baghdad and
presented themselves before the Khalif who bade Abou Mohammed be
seated. So he sat down and addressing the Khalif in courtly wise,
said to him, 'O Commander of the Faithful, I have brought with me
a present by way of homage: have I thy leave to produce it?'
'There is no harm in that,' replied the Khalif; whereupon Abou
Mohammed caused bring in a chest, from which he took a number of
rarities and amongst the rest, trees of gold, with leaves of
emerald and fruits of rubies and topazes and pearls.
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