At the moment when the Queen of Beauty, as well as her son Agib, was weeping, the vizier Schemseddin Mohammed entered, and desired to know the cause of their affliction. His daughter informed him, by relating the mortification her son had met with at school. This account very much affected the vizier, who joined his tears with theirs; and who supposing from this, that the world entertained opinions not very favourable to his daughter’s virtue, felt extremely mortified. Being very much disturbed by this cruel reflection, he went to the palace of the sultan, and after having prostrated himself at his feet, he humbly entreated him to grant him permission to take a journey into the provinces of the Levant, and more particularly to Balsora, to seek his nephew Bedreddin Hassan; for he could not bear, that the whole city should suppose that a Genius had slept with his daughter. The sultan felt for the grief of the vizier, approved his intention, and gave him leave to execute it; he even wrote a letter of recommendation, in the most obliging manner, to the princes and nobles in whose dominions Bedreddin might be, to give their consent that he should accompany the grand vizier. Schemseddin Mohammed could not find words to express his gratitude to the sultan for all his goodness towards him. He could only prostrate himself a second time before this prince; but the tears which flowed from his eyes sufficiently proved his feelings. At length, he took his leave of the sultan, after wishing him every kind of prosperity. When he returned home, he immediately began to prepare for his departure, which was done with so much diligence, that at the end of four days he set off, accompanied by his daughter and by Agib, his grandson. They took the road to Damascus, and travelled nineteen days without stopping: but on the twentieth, being arrived in a beautiful meadow, at a little distance from the gates of that city, they alighted; and had their tents pitched on the banks of a river, which runs through the city, and renders the surrounding country very agreeable. The vizier Schemseddin Mohammed declared his intention of remaining two days in this beautiful spot, and that he intended on the third to continue his journey. He, however, allowed the persons in his suite to visit Damascus. They almost all availed themselves of this permission, some from curiosity to see a city they had heard so favourably spoken of; others to dispose of Egyptian merchandise, which they had brought with them, or to buy the silks and rarities it produced. The Queen of Beauty, wishing that her son Agib should also have the gratification of walking about this celebrated city, ordered the black eunuch, who filled the office of governor to the child, to take him there; and be very careful, that he did not meet with any accident.