The Investigation Begins
Previously: To investigate the mystery of Princess Suvarna, Prince Vikramaditya and his clever friend Dhruvdev have reached Swarnapur, the capital of Chandangarh, in disguise. Both have assumed new names to keep their identities secret. Now, moving forward...
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The two friends reached Swarnapur in the evening and sat down to rest on the banks of the Sobti River. They watered their horses and let them graze with long reins, then spread their saddle cloths and sat down. They began to converse while gazing at the golden glow of the setting sun.
Dhruvdev said, "Friend, I have heard many descriptions of Swarnapur’s morning beauty; now I shall see it with my own eyes at dawn tomorrow."
The Prince interrupted, "By all means, see it! But now, spare a little thought for the task for which we have come here—namely, the Princess's mystery!"
Showing mock annoyance, Dhruvdev said, "Oh friend! At least let me breathe a sigh of relief. We have ridden for miles to reach Swarnapur; isn't your heart satisfied yet? Now that we have arrived, we shall not return without completing the mission."
The Prince smiled gently, "Alright, alright, if you scold me like that, I shall cry right now! If my tender heart gets hurt, there will be trouble."
Dhruvdev teased with a twinkle in his eyes, "Oh my! This princess-like delicacy of yours! Will you look at the Princess, or will she look at you? Anyway, now you go rest in some inn and give me leave. Why delay the purpose for which we have come so far!"
The Prince was about to say something, but Dhruvdev stopped him, saying, "No, you will not come along. This is a foreign kingdom, and we are unfamiliar with the ways here. First, let me test the waters; only then shall we think of a plan. I can do this task better alone. Until then, you rest and see what miracle your friend performs in the blink of an eye."
The Prince realized that arguing at this time was futile, so he said, "Fine, as you wish. I am going to the 'Shivdham' inn we saw on the way. I will stay there under the name 'Jivandas Singh,' and you leave from here as 'Muhbola Singh.' Meet me at that same inn soon with some good news."
Saying this, the Prince mounted his horse and departed.
After the Prince left, Dhruvdev alias ‘Muhbola’ stood there thinking for a few moments, then took a deep breath and simplified his attire further so that he looked like a curious traveler from a distant land.
He headed toward the busiest crossroads of the city, where crowds gathered at the shops of betel-sellers and confectioners in the evening. Muhbola saw a group of elders sitting outside a betel shop by the roadside, consuming tobacco.
Muhbola spoke, “Ram-Ram, Kaka! May I also sit here for a bit?”
An elder looked him up and down and said, “Sit, son. You look like you've come from a far-off land... will you have some tobacco?”
At Muhbola's innocent remark, all the elders burst into laughter.
One elder said, “Son, she is a mother; she couldn't watch you do wrong. Don't eat it; this tobacco isn't a good thing anyway.”
Muhbola nodded seriously and moved the conversation forward, “This city is very charming, Kaka. I reached today and my heart was gladdened to see it. It is even more beautiful than I heard. I only heard some strange tales about the royal family here... but I can't believe them, Kaka.”
Another elder cut in, “Oh, let it be, brother. People always say something or the other. Our King is like a god. We have seen this for generations. Now, regarding the family, there is some problem, but that happens in every family. They are big people, so the problem is also big.”
Muhbola took a deep breath, “So it's true that the Princess has tied a blindfold, and hasn't told the reason to anyone?”
The elder said, “The news is correct. The King must know, but if it's a big matter, why would they tell everyone? Who knows, maybe the matter is so big that we small folk wouldn't even understand it.”
Then another elder shared his knowledge, “Those who work in the palace say—and we all heard it too—that the King's Guru had come, and he is making the Princess perform some special penance. Because since that day, the Princess has tied the blindfold, and the King and Queen have forbidden everyone from asking anything.”
One elder expressed doubt, “Oh, these are all just stories. Does such a penance even exist?”
The other scolded him, “Why can't it exist? He is the family preceptor; he must have thought of something. When wisdom is lacking, one shouldn't make things complicated by asking too many questions. If there wasn't something special, would it be like this? They are all educated, learned, and wise people; they must have thought of something. Now, don't talk nonsense.”
Muhbola thought that he had found out quite a lot. The experience and opinions of these elders were valuable; now he should stop the conversation before they started arguing among themselves. So he said, “Let it be, Kaka, big people, big matters... the truth will come out someday. Tell me, Kaka, is there anything special to eat here? I am feeling a bit hungry.”
An elder said, laughing, “Son, that yellow shed you see there is Sahidev the confectioner's shop. Eat the lassi and jalebi made by him, and you won't forget them your whole life. Your stomach will be full, and your heart will be happy. Go... go... otherwise, they'll run out.”
Now, once jalebi was mentioned, it was impossible for Muhbola alias Dhruvdev to stop. He took leave of the elders and headed toward Sahidev the confectioner's shop.
There too, using his tactics, he connected several other important links—such as the Princess's fear of fire since childhood, the fire incident on her seventeenth birthday, and the tying of the blindfold the very next day. When he felt he had gathered enough information in his quiver and that the Prince might be worried about his return, he headed toward the 'Shivdham' inn. While returning, he also took a clay cup of lassi and fresh jalebis for the Prince.
'To be continued....'
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In the next part: 'Muhbola' trapped the elders of Swarnapur in his web of words, but will the clues found at Sahidev the confectioner's shop lead to the Princess's real truth? Where will this secret investigation by 'Jivandas' and 'Muhbola' lead them through the closed doors of the palace?
To find out, keep reading...
[If you haven't started reading 'Suvarna' yet and are not acquainted with the story's hero, here is the link to the first part of "Suvarna the Saga"
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✍️ From the pen of ‘Nishabd’
🖌️ Images created with the assistance of Gemini, ChatGPT, & Copilot
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