Many years have passed. One day the merchant happened to be in the same area, and again asked to stay at the same hotel, but he could not find it. He tried to strain his memory, thinking that he had gone wrong, but he came to the conclusion that he was at the right address. Still, the hotel he is familiar with does not exist. In its place stood a wide, new two-story building, surrounded by other buildings.
Suddenly a memory flashed in his mind: the Rebbe's night walk in the courtyard of the hotel. His tongue twisted in astonishment: the new construction matched the Rebbe's plan perfectly. Here, here are horse stables, and there is that building. Everything the Rebbe said to the gabbai was fulfilled. And of course the hotel itself has been rebuilt, many times larger and more luxurious.
Excited and amazed, the merchant asked the local people about the great change, and they told him that the owners of the hotel had become very wealthy and had built an entire kingdom on their land. Regret filled the merchant's heart. "The Rebbe's blessing was fulfilled, and the money he demanded from the hotel owners was returned to them twice as much," he thought.
He decided to set his sights on Tolna, and ask the Rebbe why he demanded such a large sum of money in exchange for his blessing, for if he could perform such a miracle, why did he need the money?
The tzaddik looked at him with his kind eyes, and answered: "See, this Jew had two hundred rubles. From time to time he would say to his wife: 'What will we do if we are expelled from here? We will lose our source of livelihood!' But he would immediately be comforted and say: 'At least we have two hundred rubles. With their help we will obtain a different source of livelihood.'
Whenever there was a financial concern in their hearts, the two would calm their fears with these two hundred rubles. Soon these two hundred rubles became the backbone of their security. Instead of throwing their trust in God, trust in money.
"I had to," the Rebbe continued, "cancel this 'idolatry' so that I could bless them and make them lucky. Then, when they succeeded in getting rid of their total dependence on their money, they were rewarded with God's blessing and the great wealth that awaited them."
