Thereafter, when Ulu came home from the day’s hunt, he found the fire already made, the kettle already bubbling.  When he lifted the lid, a perfectly cooked, piping-hot meal was ready for him.  Every day, the food was there, and he could always eat his fill.  Naturally, Ulu became curious.  One day, he set off for the mountains as usual but soon turned around and secretly returned home.  As he drew near he saw smoke coming from his chimney, and as he peered in the window, he saw a beautiful young woman preparing the meal.  While she cooked, she cleaned so that everything was as neat as could be. The girl finished and turned to go, and Ulu could see that she had a dark face and two large eyes that sparkled like two clear, deep wells.  She left the house quickly.  Ulu went in, ate, and then sought out Salaka.

Shaja did not recognize the beautiful young girl in the mirror.

After he had told her all the things that he had seen, Salaka said, “You have killed the monster for the Qiakala people, you have done good for your people.  You are our bravest baturu, our greatest hero.  You are to take this woman for your wife; she is the one chosen for you by the Sable God.  That woman is called Akumi, the daughter of Bigan from the Holdun tribe.  She must take the bravest baturu as her husband, as is their custom.  Tomorrow I will take you there.”

As Ulu went home, he saw that Akumi was still there cleaning and cooking, so he remained outside until she had finished.

Seeing him there, Akumi called to him, “Why do you stand outside in the yard? Come in.” Ulu came into the house.  Akumi noticed that he was silent and called to him, laughing, “Why do you stand around like that? Eat your supper!”

Ulu and Akumi were married when they returned to the village.  And they lived long and happily in the Qiakala people’s territory.

Manchurian Cinderella

Manchurian tales are not always so different from European and American stories.  They share in a series of international folktale themes, one of the most common of which is the Cinderella tale type.  The Manchurian Cinderella is named Shaja, and this tale is one of many similar stories found in the area.