The old man longed for children. But he and his young wife had none, so he invited his nephew to live with them. This infuriated his wife, who had a vile temper. When her husband welcomed the young man with great affection, she turned pale with jealousy. Her eyes narrowed and her head flattened. And when she licked her lips, her nephew saw that her tongue was forked. From that day on, the young man spent as much time as possible with his uncle and tried to avoid his aunt. But she seemed to enjoy startling him, suddenly appearing when he least expected her.

　　One evening, the nephew returned to the house quite late. He lit a candle and started up the stairs. Halfway up, he tripped on what seemed to be a coiled rope. Imagine his horror when that rope uncoiled and slithered up the steps in front of him! Then he saw it glide across the hall and under the door of his uncle's bedroom.

　　"Wake up! Wake up" the young man shouted, and he knocked on the door until his knuckles hurt. But when his sleepy uncle finally let him in the bedroom, there was no snake in sight.

　　老人很想能有个孩子，但是他和年轻的妻子膝下无儿无女，于是就叫了自己的侄子来一起住。老人妻子的脾气很暴躁，但这样却把脾气暴躁的妻子给惹怒了。当她丈夫热情欢迎年轻人到来的时候，她却嫉妒得连脸都白了。她的眼睛很小，脑袋又扁又平，当她舔着嘴唇的时候，侄子发现她的舌头是分叉的。从他发现这些的那天开始，年轻人就尽可能多的陪着叔叔，同时尽量避免与婶婶碰面。但是婶婶似乎很喜欢吓唬他，总是在年轻人最不想见她的时候突然出现在他面前。

　　一天晚上，年轻人很晚才回来。他点了根蜡烛拿着往楼上走去，上了一半的时候被一卷类似绳子的东西绊了一跤。当时绳子自己展开并且就从他眼皮底下上楼去了，见到这一切他简直吓坏了。随后就见那股绳子穿过大厅从门底下钻进了叔叔的卧室。

　　“快醒醒！快醒醒！”年轻人大声喊着，同时用力敲着叔叔的房门，直到把手都敲疼了。但是过了很久，那他睡眼惺忪的叔叔才让他进去，而这时蛇已经不见了。