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Bawang Putih Bawang Merah
Bawang Putih Bawang Merah
with his daughter who was named Bawang Putih. This merchant's wife had long since passed
away. The merchant was very fond of his daughter. Because she was obedient and kind-
hearted.
One day, as he came home from travelling, he brought a woman and her daughter along with
him. He wanted to marry this woman. So, Bawang Putih now had a stepmother and a
stepsister who is named Bawang Merah.
When her father went to trade, her stepmother and Bawang Merah would treat Bawang Putih
like a servant. Bawang Putih did all the work that was ordered by her stepmother. She
cleaned the house, cooked, washed clothes, and looked for firewood. If Bawang Putih's work
went wrong, her stepmother would punish her by not feeding her.
Every morning, her stepmother and Bawang Merah took turns shouting,
"Lord, please help me. Why are they always evil to me?"
One day, Bawang Putih went to the river to wash clothes. She was sleepy and hungry, her
body was weak. While washing, Bawang Putih didn't realise that her stepmother's favourite
shawl had washed away. When she put all the clothes into the basket, she was surprised to
find her stepmother's scarf was not there.
"Mother's favourite scarf is gone... Oh no! It's drifting down the river... What should I do? I
daren't go home. Mother will scold me."
Finally, Bawang Putih decided to go back down the river to look for her stepmother's scarf.
In the middle of the road, she met a farmer who was washing his cow.
"Uncle, did you see a red scarf floating down the river?"
The farmer nodded and replied,
"Red shawl? Hmm oh yes I saw it. The scarf was taken by an old grandmother who was
washing her by the river. The old grandmother's house is on the mountain."
Bawang Putih immediately headed up the mountain. There, she found a wooden house.
Bawang Putih knocked on the door of the house,
Finally, it was time for Bawang Putih to leave for home. The grandma gave her the shawl.
"Bawang Putih, this is the red scarf you are looking for. Oh, I want to give you a gift. A
pumpkin for you, because you helped me. Choose which one you like."
On the table, there were both small and large pumpkins. Bawang Putih chose a small
pumpkin, because she also had to carry a basket full of clothes home.
"Where have you been Bawang Putih? How dare you go out without my permission?"
"Cut the pumpkin and cook it! We are starving because of you!"
Bawang Putih took the knife and split the pumpkin. What a surprise, the pumpkin was full of
sparkling and expensive jewellery.
The stepmother and Bawang Merah followed the old grandmother who went up the
mountain. As they walk, Bawang Merah complained about how far it was.
"Bawang Merah, be patient! Soon we will get even more jewellery than Bawang Putih."
"Mom, let's just open this pumpkin now, the old grandmother will not know."
"Yeah, let's open this. I'm also curious."
However, they were in for quite a surprise. Because inside the pumpkin were venomous
animals, such as snakes, scorpions, spiders and centipedes. They were both bitten by a snake.
"Oh, what is this?” “Where is the jewellery? Why did it have these animals inside? Ihhh"