YAN BOARDING Book Complete Document Hausa Novels Ayshatuo.txt
<p>The Next Day: The Emir’s Secret Journey</p><p>At dawn, after performing the Fajr prayer, Emir Abdulsamad summoned his trusted servant—the one who always accompanied him in his carriage. He informed him that they would be traveling that morning.</p><p>After the morning prayer, he also informed his palace attendants that he would be going on a tour of the city to check on the well-being of his people.</p><p>Since this was a common practice of his, no one suspected anything unusual. As soon as they left, they took the road leading to Katsina.</p><p> </p><p>—</p><p>Meanwhile in Katsina</p><p>Amadu had already informed everyone that Basira's wedding would take place the following day, immediately after the Zuhr prayer at the mosque.</p><p>Basira, however, remained silent. Ever since the tragic incident, she had barely spoken. She didn’t even ask who the groom was. Instead, she simply stood up and went inside her room.</p><p>Amadu’s wife, Karima, followed her and found her sitting quietly on the iron-framed bed.</p><p>She asked, “Basira, don’t you want to get married?”</p><p>Basira shook her head, indicating that wasn’t the issue.</p><p>Karima sighed and said, “Basira, it’s time to let go of the pain. It has been one month and two weeks since that terrible incident. You and I haven’t even had a proper conversation since then. You don’t talk unless absolutely necessary. Don’t you see that it’s time to move forward?”</p><p>Basira forced a small smile and then stood up. To Karima’s surprise, she started packing her belongings into a suitcase.</p><p>Karima sighed heavily and walked out of the room. She felt deep pity for the girl, and what troubled her even more was that Amadu refused to tell Basira who her groom was. Karima worried that Basira might be married off to someone who would mistreat her. The only relief in this situation was that Basira had not gotten pregnant from the assault, as her menstrual cycle had already come before the incident.</p><p>Basira continued packing silently. Once she was done, she took a bath and lay down on her bed, closing her eyes. Strangely, she couldn’t even think.</p><p>Soon, sleep overtook her—a deep, heavy sleep.</p><p> </p><p>—</p><p>The Emir Arrives</p><p>Around noon, Emir Abdulsamad and his servant arrived in Katsina. The vehicles of that time were not as fast as modern cars, so their journey took much longer.</p><p>Since they had never been to Amadu’s house before, they had to ask for directions. Luckily, Amadu had already informed them of the neighborhood, as street names were not yet commonly used.</p><p>Even with this information, they struggled to locate the house. It wasn’t until they started asking for “Basira’s house” that people recognized the place.</p><p>They finally arrived around 1 PM, where they found Amadu anxiously waiting outside, scanning the horizon in all directions.</p><p>The moment he saw them, he let out a sigh of relief. He had feared that something had gone wrong.</p><p>The Emir didn’t even enter the house. Instead, he said, “Let’s go to the mosque immediately. Let’s conclude the marriage so I can return home. Leaving the palace without a solid excuse is a serious issue.”</p><p>Amadu nodded in agreement, and they all headed to the nearby mosque, where Amadu had already spoken to the Imam.</p><p>After the Zuhr prayer, the marriage ceremony took place.</p><p>The Imam served as the guardian for Emir Abdulsamad, while Amadu acted as the guardian for Basira. The marriage was solemnized with a dowry of 200 naira.</p><p>Thus, Basira became the wife of the Emir—without even knowing it.</p><p> </p><p> </p>
