The King of Cockroachland sent out his men to take possession of the villages. The soldiers came to one village,--and there the fools jumped out to look at the soldiers and to marvel at them. The soldiers began to take away the grain and the cattle: the fools gave it all up, and did not resist. The soldiers went to the next village, and the same happened. The soldiers walked for a day or two, and everywhere the same happened. They gave up all they had, and nobody resisted, and they invited the soldiers to come and live with them: "If you, dear people," they said, "have not enough to live on in your country, come and settle among us." The soldiers walked and walked, but no army was to be found; everywhere people were living, and feeding themselves and other people, and they did not resist, but invited them to come and live with them. The soldiers felt bad, and they came back to the King of Cockroachland. "We cannot fight here," they said, "so take us to some other place: war would be a good thing, but this is as though we were to cut soup. We cannot fight here." The King of Cockroachland grew wroth, and commanded his soldiers to march through the whole kingdom, and destroy villages and houses, and burn the grain and kill the cattle. "If you do not obey my command," he said, "I shall have you all executed." The soldiers became frightened, and began to carry out the king's command. They started to burn the houses and the grain, and to kill the cattle. And still the fools did not resist, but only wept. The old men wept, and the old women wept, and the children wept. "Why do you offend us? Why do you destroy the property? If you need it, take it along!" The soldiers felt ashamed. They did not go any farther, and the whole army ran away. XII. The old devil went away,--he could not get at Iván by means of the soldiers. The old devil changed into a clean-looking gentleman, and went to live in Iván's kingdom: he wished to get at him by means of money, as he had done with Tarás the Paunch. "I want to do you good," he said, "and to teach you what is good and proper. I will build a house in your country, and will start an establishment." "All right," he said, "stay here!" The clean-looking gentleman stayed overnight, and the following morning he took a large bag of gold to the market-square, and a sheet of paper, and said: "You are all of you living like pigs. I will teach you how to live. Build me a house according to this plan! You work, and I will show you how, and will pay gold money to you." And he showed them the gold. The fools were astounded: they had no such a thing as money, and only exchanged things among themselves, or paid with work. They marvelled at the gold and said: "They are nice things." And for these gold things they began to give him what they had and to work for him. The old devil rejoiced and thought: