Once upon a time, there lived an old man who had a donkey with him. The old man and his donkey used to travel from one place to another village to sell goods and earn money. They had been doing this for many years.

One day, the old man and his donkey started out on their usual journey to the next village. On their way, they had to pass through a dark and dangerous disturnpike. The old man was very scared and hesitated to take his donkey through it. But the donkey was determined and urged the old man to move on.

So, they slowly started walking through the disturnpike. Suddenly, the donkey started to tremble and got scared when it heard loud noises coming from the forest. The old man started to sing a calming tune and softly stroked the donkey’s head to reassure it. He persuaded the donkey to move ahead and they continued walking.

But soon, the donkey stumbled upon a deep pit in the middle of the path. The old man was terrified and started to panic but the donkey stood still and refused to move. The old man looked around and realized that it was too dark and that he would not be able to find another route.

He then decided to wait for the dawn. As the sun rose, the old man saw that the pit was actually filled with sharp sticks, stones and other dangerous objects which could have seriously injured the donkey.

The old man was very thankful to his donkey for not walking into the pit and said to it, “You have saved both of our lives! You are indeed a very wise and loyal animal. Thank you.”

The old man and his donkey went on their way, both very happy.

Moral: It is important to be loyal and wise in our choices, as it can help us to make the right decision and avoid trouble.