Moon, Mikhail Valerievich. Mikhail Moon: Collective combing of the mind is a pleasant thing Mikhail Moon what where when personal life

Member Name: Mikhail Valerievich Moon

Age (birthday): 25.02.1975

City: Gatchina, Leningrad region

Education: St. Petersburg State University, Faculty of Applied Mathematics and Control Processes

Family: married, has a son

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Radio host and trader Mikhail Moon is known to many primarily as one of the experts in the elite club “What? Where? When? ”, But what else is noteworthy in his biography?

Misha was born in the small town of Gatchina, located in the Leningrad Region..

Then his family moved to St. Petersburg, where he eventually graduated from gymnasium No. 171.

After school, the boy went to St. Petersburg State University, where in 1996 he received a diploma from the Faculty of Applied Mathematics and Control Processes.

Your romance with the game “What? Where? When?" the young man began as a child, when he looked forward to each issue and froze at the sound of Vladimir Voroshilov's voice. As soon as he entered the university, Mikhail immediately went to the club for sports ChGK called Kolomna.

It was there that Moon learned to take a punch, concentrate and go to victory without paying attention to anything around. It is in the sports version of “What? Where? When?" he played in the teams of such connoisseurs as Leonid Klimovich and Sergei Vivatenko.

On the big screen Mikhail first got in 1997 and immediately fell in love with the audience. They saw in him a very tactful, pleasant and incredibly erudite young man. The inquisitive mind of the young connoisseur was noted in 2002 by the presentation of the "Crystal Owl".

By the way, the connoisseur himself notes that he had a hand in obtaining owls by such connoisseurs as Dmitry Konovalenko, Rovshan Askerov and even Maxim Potashev.

In 2005, Moon announced that he was ending his career in the television version of the program, but cannot refuse the sports format. The connoisseur simply indicated his departure - the excitement was gone, and the slightly changed format of the program ceased to suit him. True, at that time, Mikhail noted that over time he could get bored and return, but so far this has not happened.

Since the same 2005, the intellectual was invited to the ranks of the board International Association clubs "What? Where? When?". Moon agreed and stayed with it until 2009.

Among other television programs in which Mikhail Moon was noted, one can single out “Own Game” of the sample on April 19, 1995.

It cannot be said that the intellectual club - only interest and occupation in Michael's life. There is a page dedicated to radio in his career - he is the host of two programs at once on Zenith radio.

These are “Football aggravation” and “Heading”. In serious professional activity Moon has such positions as:

• Trader JSC "Broker Firm Lenstroymaterialy";
• Trader of CJSC IC Energocapital.

On the this moment Mikhail is the director of the share markets department of Closed Joint Stock Company BFA.

The personal life of the connoisseur has long settled down - his wife's name is Anastasia Gusarova. This couple has a son.

, Leningrad Oblast, Russian SFSR, USSR

K:Wikipedia:Articles without images (type: not specified)

Biography

Graduated from gymnasium No. 171 of the city of St. Petersburg, in 1996 - St. Petersburg State University, Faculty of Applied Mathematics and Control Processes.

Worked as a trader in joint stock company"Broker Firm Lenstroymaterialy" and CJSC IC "Energocapital"; currently heads the Equity Markets Department at CJSC BFA.

"What? Where? When?"

Since 1991, he has been a member of various teams in a sports version. intellectual games"What? Where? When? "(until 1993 - in the team of Leonid Klimovich, then - in the team of Sergei Vivatenko). In the elite club since 1997.

In the autumn of 2002 he received the Crystal Owl prize. From 2005 to 2009 he was a member of the Board of the IAC.

In 2005, he announced his departure from the television club “What? Where? When?" , but did not stop participating in sports What? Where? When? . He again began performing in the TV club already in 2006. At the moment (November 2015) has a win-loss ratio in the club of 61.11% (36 games, 22 wins).

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An excerpt characterizing Moon, Mikhail Valerievich

“Many are pleased with your grace, only we don’t have to take the master’s bread,” said a voice from behind.
- Yes, why? - said the princess.
No one answered, and Princess Mary, looking around the crowd, noticed that now all the eyes she met immediately dropped.
- Why don't you want to? she asked again.
Nobody answered.
Princess Marya felt heavy from this silence; she tried to catch someone's gaze.
- Why don't you speak? - the princess turned to the old old man, who, leaning on a stick, stood in front of her. Tell me if you think you need anything else. I'll do anything," she said, catching his eye. But he, as if angry at this, lowered his head completely and said:
- Why agree, we do not need bread.
- Well, should we quit everything? Do not agree. Disagree... There is no our consent. We pity you, but there is no our consent. Go on your own, alone…” was heard in the crowd from different directions. And again the same expression appeared on all the faces of this crowd, and now it was probably no longer an expression of curiosity and gratitude, but an expression of embittered determination.
“Yes, you didn’t understand, right,” said Princess Marya with a sad smile. Why don't you want to go? I promise to accommodate you, feed you. And here the enemy will ruin you ...
But her voice was drowned out by the voices of the crowd.
- There is no our consent, let them ruin! We do not take your bread, there is no our consent!
Princess Mary tried again to catch someone's gaze from the crowd, but not a single glance was directed at her; her eyes obviously avoided her. She felt strange and uncomfortable.
“Look, she taught me cleverly, follow her to the fortress!” Ruin the houses and into bondage and go. How! I'll give you bread! voices were heard in the crowd.
Princess Mary, lowering her head, left the circle and went into the house. Having repeated the order to Dron that there should be horses for departure tomorrow, she went to her room and was left alone with her thoughts.

For a long time that night Princess Marya sat at the open window in her room, listening to the sounds of peasants talking from the village, but she did not think about them. She felt that no matter how much she thought about them, she could not understand them. She kept thinking about one thing - about her grief, which now, after the break brought about by worries about the present, has already become past for her. She could now remember, she could cry and she could pray. As the sun went down, the wind died down. The night was calm and cool. At twelve o'clock the voices began to subside, a rooster crowed, full moon, a fresh, white dew mist rose, and silence reigned over the village and over the house.
One after another, she imagined pictures of the close past - illness and the last moments of her father. And with sad joy she now dwelled on these images, driving away from herself with horror only one last idea of ​​​​his death, which - she felt - she was unable to contemplate even in her imagination at this quiet and mysterious hour of the night. And these pictures appeared to her with such clarity and with such details that they seemed to her either reality, or the past, or the future.
Then she vividly imagined the moment when he had a stroke and he was dragged from the garden in the Bald Mountains by the arms and he muttered something in an impotent tongue, twitched his gray eyebrows and looked restlessly and timidly at her.
“He wanted to tell me even then what he told me on the day of his death,” she thought. “He always thought what he said to me.” And now she remembered with all the details that night in the Bald Mountains on the eve of the blow that happened to him, when Princess Mary, anticipating trouble, stayed with him against his will. She did not sleep, and at night she went downstairs on tiptoe and, going to the door of the flower-room, in which her father spent the night that night, she listened to his voice. He was saying something to Tikhon in an exhausted, tired voice. He seemed to want to talk. "Why didn't he call me? Why didn't he allow me to be here in Tikhon's place? thought then and now Princess Marya. - He will never tell anyone now all that was in his soul. This moment will never return for him and for me when he would say everything that he wanted to express, and I, and not Tikhon, would listen and understand him. Why didn't I come into the room then? she thought. “Perhaps he would have told me then what he said on the day of his death. Even then, in a conversation with Tikhon, he asked twice about me. He wanted to see me, and I was standing there, outside the door. He was sad, it was hard to talk with Tikhon, who did not understand him. I remember how he spoke to him about Liza, as if alive - he forgot that she was dead, and Tikhon reminded him that she was no longer there, and he shouted: "Fool." It was hard for him. I heard from behind the door how, groaning, he lay down on the bed and shouted loudly: “My God! Why didn’t I go up then? What would he do to me? What would I lose? Or maybe then he would have consoled himself, he would have said this word to me. And Princess Marya uttered aloud that affectionate word that he had spoken to her on the day of his death. “Dude she nka! - Princess Marya repeated this word and sobbed tears that relieved her soul. She saw his face in front of her now. And not the face she had known since she could remember, and which she had always seen from afar; and that face - timid and weak, which on the last day, bending down to his mouth in order to hear what he was saying, for the first time examined closely with all its wrinkles and details.

City (St. Petersburg) 04.04.2005

Something, somewhere, for some reason, can “What? Where? When?" live your thirtieth birthday
This spring, the leadership of the TV company "Game" sat down at the gaming table of the program "What? Where? When?" instead of "experts" politicians and pop artists. Many did not like this - there was talk that the game, which turns 30 this year, has exhausted itself. Mikhail Moon, the owner of the Crystal Owl, who no longer participates in What? Where? When?".
- Why did you leave?
- There are several reasons for the fact that I finished playing. Firstly, I am convinced that any player should be able to leave in time and beautifully. A rather strange goal is to sit at the table with a spinning top for as long as possible. I have always wanted to participate in beautiful game, and not remain Koshchei the Immortal. Secondly, the time has come: I played intermittently for eight years. This, in my opinion, is enough. And thirdly, 2005 is a jubilee year, the title of master will be played. This is a race with a huge prize at the end. To take part in it without the desire to win is unsportsmanlike. And I'm not very interested in playing anymore.
- Why?
- For most connoisseurs, the game is an opportunity for self-realization. Right now, I'm more productive at work. As long as I felt the desire to sit down at the gaming table - then the game was. But the last one for me is “What? Where? When?" last summer proved that I was never able to tune in. Last time I had this when I had to play two days after the death of my dog. But here there was a completely different situation, when there was simply no internal incentive for the game.
- How many times it happened that a connoisseur left the club, and after a few years returned again.
- Maybe I'll come back. Everything can change. Would like to repeat this. After all, the greatest pleasure is to take a question. This is akin to the joy of Mendeleev from the table opened in a dream. I don't really like connoisseur terminology, but there are quite a few precise definition. When the team sorts through the versions, one suddenly pops up, and it becomes clear to everyone that it is she, in the club this is called a “click”. The moment of truth. For the sake of this moment, I advise everyone to play “What? Where? When?".
- Is it so easy to get there? How are players selected for the program?
- The right to form teams belongs to the heads of the TV company "Game". Sometimes they listen to the advice of experts, sometimes they act strictly against this advice. I don't know exactly how it is now. Previously, there was a more or less clear vertical and it was clearer how the selection took place.
- And How?
- Almost immediately after the release of the program, regional clubs began to appear all over the country. There people played for their pleasure, without any TV, without money. Then Voroshilov realized that he had provoked the movement of the masses. And the first congress of the International Association of Clubs “What? Where? When? ”, the so-called festivals began. They, in turn, replenished the first forge of ChGK personnel - the Brain Ring. It was a very high-quality screening, which took place almost in combat conditions. Filming of "The Brain" took place in inhuman conditions - four transfers a day. Players came to shoot every day. They didn't know if they would be allowed to play today or not, but they had to tune in every round because they could be called to play at any moment. Accordingly, it was a terrible psychological stress. Ten to the studio. Two shoots without a break. Then - lunch. Everyone runs to the dining room. There is only one dining room, and all three hundred people also have a break at the same time. So I had to run fast. Back to the studio, two more shots. Then - the hotel. Half a liter of vodka - to fall asleep, the next day - again the same thing. It was an existential high, and most players regret that they don't have to go through that again.
- Where did the "Brins" disappear to?
- "Game" refused "Brain-Ring", because none of the TV channels wants to buy it.
- And what is the secret of longevity of the “What? Where? When?"?
- Voroshilov is a genius. He largely determined the development trends of modern television. What we see now in the show of Larry Flynt and others - Vladimir Yakovlevich came up with long before them.
- Do you like what happens in “What? Where? When?" now?
- I do not know what would have happened if the "Game" had not chosen the current vector of development. After the death of Voroshilov, Boris Kryuk and Natalya Stetsenko found themselves in a monstrous situation. It's like being handed a Chinese Ming vase and offered to walk through a littered dark labyrinth without breaking it, because it is priceless. They had an enormous responsibility. So no one has the right to criticize what they are doing now.
- But they could refuse this responsibility.
And ruin everything? I believe that the game is valuable precisely because it lives. It seems to me that what we see today is unequivocally better care"What? Where? When?" from television. If the program were closed, it would be a disgusting monument to Voroshilov. I do not want and will not give an assessment of what and how Stetsenko and Kryuk did, but I am always on their side. The role of the keepers of the game fell on them like a ring on Frodo. This is a huge cross. And the fact that they continue to carry it is great. In whatever direction they turned with this cross.
- Nevertheless, the game has changed a lot, and not for the better ...
- I have a feeling that the game has acquired the format of the new time. She became very similar to the "Night Watch", "Turkish Gambit", "Weak Link" and even a little bit to the "Star Factory". But I can't say for certain that it wasn't inevitable.
- And how did you like the idea of ​​seating TV viewers and stars at the gaming table?
She looks disgusting to me. Take the question, you can experience this catharsis only in the game. It is valuable that during the discussion the team unites into a single organism, becomes something more than a meeting of six players. Because it is able not only to extract old knowledge, but also to create new ones. Voroshilov always emphasized this. Unfortunately, in the current series, I saw all the elements of “What? Where? When? ”, Except, in fact, the game. Everything was professional, except for those sitting at the table. They clearly couldn't get the buzz. Accordingly, they did not understand what the real “What? Where? When?".
- Honored experts occupy any positions in the "Game"?
- The only player who has taken a post in the TV company is Andrey Kozlov. All other official posts do not hold. Voroshilov initially took this position: never communicate with experts. And rightly so: tomorrow he will dip his face in the mud, and today he talks nicely with us.
- Hasn't it become more boring with the change of presenter?
- Ironically, Boris Kryuk, under Voroshilov, was just working with experts, talking with us. Naturally, when he became the leader, many tried to embarrass him, behaved with him even in a boorish way. But he proved at the very first games that this topic would not work. Periodically, it pops up, and again he has to dip someone in the muzzle into this very thing. But by and large, Hook passed Scylla and Charybdis successfully.
- They say you quarreled with Alexander Druz because he did not allow you to receive two "Crystal Owls". It's true?
- The truth is that Alexander Abramovich and I do not like each other. We have a certain mutual antipathy. And the "Crystal Owls" have nothing to do with it. My friend doesn't like me, doesn't like the way I play, and he, as a master, doesn't think that I deserve the main prize of the game. This is a completely normal position, and because of it we definitely did not quarrel. I wouldn't call it a conflict. I, for example, do not like Zyuganov and Khakamada. Maybe they don't like me either. Should I swear with them now, or what?
- You still received one "Owl". Does possessing it give anything?
- It seems to me that some experts I like respect me. Their attitude towards me is much better than the Crystal Owl. That is also why I left: if I began to go downhill, look pale, just serve my number at the table - I would be ashamed in front of these people.
- Do old players have jealousy towards young ones?
- Is it possible, except in Soviet films, that there are situations when old people rejoice at the new shift? Put yourself in the place of an old worker who used his wrench to turn nuts in one direction for fifty years, and then a young specialist came after vocational school and begins to turn them in the other direction. And after the shift, he goes to drink beer, while everyone goes to drink port wine. Only sentries forgotten in the guard are glad to see the shift coming. "What? Where? When?" - a completely normal get-together in which people who are forced to coexist in the same space unite into interest groups. And I would not divide connoisseurs by age. And jealousy of newcomers, of course, is always there. Perhaps even me.

They live in different cities each of them have their own job. But the hour comes (and it comes four times a year) - and experts put on tuxedos, sit down at a round table with a top in the center and begin to solve questions. And after the game they return home again - wait for the next time. But, despite such a frequency of appearance on the screen, connoisseurs of "What? Where? When?" - the real TV stars.

Mikhail Moon is no longer called "a talented young player" or "the brightest connoisseur of the new generation." He has long been on an equal footing with the giants of the famous TV show - Potashev, Druze, Dvinyatin. We met with Mikhail in the office of an investment company, where he works as a trader in a division with beautiful name"Department of Mergers and Acquisitions", and asked him to answer questions not from viewers, but from our newspaper.

Trader

Mikhail, as I understand it, you also earn money here with your own mind?

Yes, mind and language (laughs). I work in the stock market - one of the few places where the intellect and abilities of a person turn into money without involving any additional tools.

And what are you doing?

Everything is very simple. I buy and sell shares on behalf of clients. Or I help them buy and sell.

Are there elements of the game, excitement in your work?

Certainly. An organic element of our profession is the concept of "risk". Risk is inevitable, it must be reckoned with, taken into account. Where there is risk, there is play. After all, any forecast is not one hundred percent. As well as any version in the game.

Does your TV popularity interfere with your life and work?

I am a phlegmatic and introvert by nature, and it is uncomfortable for me when they come up on the street and start to say something. But at work - it helps. When I get to know a client, and he already knows me by "What? Where? When?", the working relationship develops faster.

Connoisseur

What was the childhood of the connoisseur? Probably read smart books all the time?

My childhood was the most ordinary. But I really learned to read early. We had books at home with all kinds of puzzles, logical problems, I really liked them. Yes, even when I was five years old, I watched "What? Where? When?" and I had a firm conviction that this is mine, that I will definitely play. Then this feeling was forgotten.

And when did you return?

In my first year, when I started playing. What they show on TV is really the tip of the iceberg. There is a whole movement "What? Where? When?", In which thousands of experts participate. Russian and world championships are held. And the TV version is a cruel game: a lot of decent people and little space. But I was lucky - I went through the selection successfully, and for the first time I played successfully on TV. It was in the winter of 1997.

How many correct answers did you give then?

No one. But the number of responses is not the most important indicator. Any hypothesis or even half-hypotheses expressed during the team discussion can lead to the correct version. We call it a pass - like in football. The merit of the one who passes is no less than the one who gives the answer.

What is needed in order to "take" the question?

A very important factor is experience. In internal structure many questions are similar, the number of types is limited. How more people plays, the more often he gives the correct answer later. In most issues of the television "ChGK" logic is rarely applicable, subtle associative links must work there. Why sometimes a strong team loses and an unknown team wins? Because logic and knowledge are not enough. Something else is needed.

Illumination? By the way, where does it come from?

Illumination is the reaction of the brain to a stimulus. Anything can be an irritant - a team discussion, a leader asking a question, or the words of the captain: "Michael Moon answers." An associative chain has begun, it quickly unwinds, and you understand what's going on. It often happens that in the moment of discussion you already have the answer in your subconscious, and the main thing is to get to it.

How do you prepare for the game?

I try to get as much sleep as possible and limit myself from sensory sensations. I usually sit in a hotel room, if I watch TV, then video clips with muffled sound, if I read, then something relaxing. I hoard energy.

behind the scenes

After Voroshilov's death, many thought that the game would end there. Nevertheless, Boris Kryuk became the host:

And "What? Where? When?" became his full-fledged author's program. Under Kryuk, the game remained alive, it did not become a clone of the previous games. Recently I was rewatching old games - then the transfer went on for more than two hours! But then it was appropriate, such was the rhythm of life. Voroshilov was a great man. He subtly felt the nerve of the era, and at one time he realized that it was no longer possible to play on books - it would be false.

And experts began to play for money. And then they stopped again.

Because many games are played for money, and they play only because of them. And it's great that Hook turned it down.

It seems that the questions have become worse, there are more "knowledge".

Disagree. Any question can be answered. In addition to questions from the 13th sector. But this is an element of chance, normal in the game. It's like football: one team plays downwind, the other against the wind.

Mikhail, what kind of cat ran between you and Alexander Druz?

Well: (smiles and is silent for a very long time.) What can I say here?.. Maybe this is a factor of one city? It is no coincidence that the most irreconcilable rivals are Milan and Inter, Roma and Lazio. But there is no war between us. It will be necessary to play in one team - we will sit down and play. When we meet, we greet and shake hands. Someone may not like someone - this is normal.

So you won't tell?

- (He smiles again and is silent.) Yes, I can’t say that this is some kind of serious conflict. There were no scandals, we do not hurt each other on the sly. These conversations started after they wanted to award the “Owl” to me twice, and Sasha imposed his veto - but this is his right. I respect other people's opinions.

Player

I already understood that you are not indifferent to football:

Yes, I love football very much. I think - and I think rightly so - that I am well versed in football. I even consider myself a football analyst. I understand what is happening on the field, who is running where and why they are running there.

I'm afraid many people think the same way as you.

But for me this is confirmed by the fact that I play at a bookmaker and quite successfully.

So you still play on the sweepstakes?! And what else?

At the university I played a lot of cards, preference.

And also successful?

Yes. Almost always won. But I'm not a gambler, rather, a pragmatic one. If I lost, I wouldn't play. When I start doing something, I have an incentive to do it professionally. I am pleased not that I win money (especially since I bet very little), I am pleased with the fact itself - I am a professional, I understand this, and winnings are an objective indicator of this.

Help "AiF"

Michael Moon. Born February 25, 1975 in Gatchina. Graduated from St. Petersburg State University, Faculty of Applied Mathematics and Control Processes. In "What? Where? When?" has been playing since 1991. Since 1997 in an elite club. Winner of the "Crystal Owl" (2002) Married, in March 2002, son Andrey was born.

Boris Kryuk about Mikhail Moon (from an interview with Ogonyok magazine):

":For "What? Where? When?" The optimal question is the one to which the connoisseur does not know the answer, but by comparing his knowledge and feelings in a minute he finds this answer. I think that in this sense, Mikhail Moon is simply a phenomenal player. I think he would lose in "His game". In knowledge, he could not compete. But at solving questions, Moon is one of the best."

Dedicated to Olga.

© Mikhail V. Zhukovin, 2015

© Daria Astasheva, cover design, 2015

Editor Olga Zhukovina

Corrector Julia Milova

Created in the intellectual publishing system Ridero.ru

Chapter 1

high above endless forest village was located. She was on a mountain ledge that had the shape of a piece of cake. This mountain had a strange property: no one could say exactly where it began and where it ended. Both in height and width. The summit was hidden behind a dense layer of gray fog. It also hung over the entire forest, so many called it the "dome". True, someone thought that these were ordinary clouds, but even the most menacing clouds someday blur, and this gloomy flooring never dissipated, except perhaps in rare moments of the sun. Therefore, in this village, in this small world, separated on one side by an endless mountain, on the other by an impenetrable forest, and from above by a gray wavy veil, it was always cloudy during the day and starless at night. It was very difficult to dream here.

The houses of the village were located along the edges of the ledge. Most of them have long since collapsed, the rest warped due to rotten boards in the walls. Some houses were located close and propped up each other, others stood alone on the edge in front of the abyss itself. All the inhabitants dreamed of only one thing: to leave or that something would change, and such dilapidation of the buildings seemed to tell the inhabitants that, fortunately, it would not be possible to live like this for a long time anyway.

In addition to the houses in the village, a chain carousel was located right in the center of the ledge, and next to it was a carriage. If the attraction was here a long time ago, then a luxurious carriage arrived in the village this winter. She was dragged here without horses, in an incomprehensible way, by a lady of respectable size, hung with jewels, and a coachman.

The woman's name was Madame Kilda. She once owned large quantity cutting workshops precious stones and, in general, secured a comfortable old age. But at the age of sixty, she did not want to live in peace in her luxury house in the kingdom of Elter the Fifth and watch from the numerous windows how the lilac blossoms and the fountain, built by special order, bubbles up. On the contrary, the passion for increasing wealth captured her headlong. She traveled to distant countries, founded new workshops, checked the old ones and, of course, tried not to miss a single more or less pretentious meeting of rich people. She was also invited to royal weddings, and for soirees, and for balls - everywhere she was a welcome guest, because she knew how to win over. The benefit from all these not very interesting events for her was achieved simply. Appearing in exquisite jewelry created in her workshops, she invariably found herself in the center of attention of all women who immediately pounced with questions about where she bought such luxurious jewelry. Thus, Madame Kilda received many new wealthy clients. In a word, her wallet was getting heavier, but she was not going to stop.

On that ill-fated summer day, Madame Kilda received a special letter. Early in the morning, a messenger brought in a golden envelope an invitation from the Emperor of the Canyonlands. She was invited to the unveiling of a huge marble statue of the Emperor of the Canyonlands. The event was supposed to start in the evening of the same day and could easily last a week. In addition to the holiday itself, it carried a lot of benefits in the form of rich guests. Unfortunately the Canyonlands weren't too close, at least two days' ride with good horses. By the evening of the party, Madame Kilda did not have time in any way. Among other things, the courier, who was too late with the invitation, was to blame, of course. It happened because of a hurricane that overtook him on the way, but the lady didn’t care much. Having received from her curses in an amount worthy of creating a small dictionary, he tried to rush away as soon as possible. The lady immediately called her best coachman.

"How long do we need to get to the Canyonlands?" she asked excitedly.

“At least two days, ma'am.

"You have to be tonight!"

– with the most fast horses We won't get there until the day after tomorrow...

Madame Kilda swore and began to wander up and down the luxurious living room with numerous paintings, which she secretly considered not very beautiful from everyone, but bought, because they were said in society that they were delightful works of art.

- And if through northern forest.. – the lady asked, calming down a bit.

The coachman was in no hurry to answer. He stared into her eyes for a few seconds, but Madame Kilda by all indications was not joking.

“Excuse me, mistress, but it’s better to dig a tunnel through hell…”

The lady threw a heavy load at the coachman table lamp. He, thanks to the reaction and experience of communicating with the lady, dodged.

- Do I look crazy? the lady screamed.

- No, what are you! Are you just talking about... Northern Forest... Ghost Forest? To go there just like that, without an army... Yes, even with an army... It's... It's not worth doing, you understand?..

Madame Kilda trotted along with her short thick legs and very quickly reached the coachman.

– Do you think I'm so stupid?.. Haven't heard all these legends?.. – she hissed.

“Of course you heard…” the coachman whispered, looking down at the lady, afraid to move.

“I also heard about animals that instantly dig into the body and torment for a long time, and you are still alive ... and about tall giant trees, behind which you can’t see the sky ... and that it’s impossible to get out of there, because there is not a single correct map of the forest ...

The lady looked at the coachman, and then burst out laughing.

- So healthy, but you are afraid, like a little girl! I know dozens of people who got out of this cursed forest and nothing happened to them! We will cross it in a straight line in a few hours and we will be on the spot. Not a single animal can catch up with our horses ...

The lady went to the closet and began to quickly gather. The coachman sighed heavily. He knew the tone of the last phrase of the mistress well - it was an order. And yet, although there was no chance, the driver tried to insist on his own.

“Those people, lady… Who, as you say, got out of the Forest… They hardly came and left on foot or in a carriage. Have you heard about the train to the Fair?

The lady kept going.

“Come on, tell me what kind of trains and the Fair are,” she said mockingly. – Maybe there will be something to amuse people at the evening. The next tales are always welcome!

The coachman realized that they would not take him seriously, but it was impossible to retreat.

- There is a city in the Forest that is unlike any other ... It is called the Fair. They say that if your life has come to a standstill, you don’t know who to be, what to do, you don’t feel joy and sadness, then you should go there. But the journey is very dangerous. Only one train goes to the Fair, and no one knows which station it leaves from, which route it takes, and where you can buy a ticket for it. Only by chance do people become passengers of this strange train. There is no other way to get into the Forest… if you want to stay alive… Do you understand, mistress?

The coachman again showed a remarkable reaction (the hanger passed the target) and went to the stable to harness the best horses. Just in case, I said goodbye to all the other horses. Then it was time to hug the horse breeders. They did not hide their surprise at such behavior of the usually calm, self-possessed coachman.

The transport was soon ready. The lady, with the help of the maids, collected the luggage, then gave them instructions on housekeeping (“So that everything would shine upon arrival!”) And got into the carriage. Hugging the suitcases with dresses and jewelry, Madame Kilda gave a signal to the coachman, and the horses drove at full speed. No one had an explanation for where the lady had rushed off in such a hurry, and why the coachman was so heartbroken. So it remained forever a mystery where the lady and the coachman disappeared, having rushed away one morning.