One of the servants of Amr Lays had escaped. People went after him and brought him back. The minister had a grudge against him and ordered his execution to prevent other servants from doing the same. The servant bowed his head to the ground before Amr and said:
"Whatever happens to me, as you wish, is just. What claim can a servant make? The judgment belongs to the master.
But since I have been nurtured by the bounty of this household, I do not want you to be burdened with my blood on the Day of Judgment. Allow me to kill the minister, and then you can order my execution in retribution, so you will have killed justly."
The king laughed and asked the minister, “What do you think?” The minister replied, "O Lord of the world! For God’s sake, free this impudent fellow with the alms of your father’s grave, so he does not bring calamity upon me. The fault is mine, and the saying of the wise is valid:
When you fight with a clod-thrower, You foolishly break your own head.
When you shoot an arrow at the enemy, Know that you are in his target."
