midnight
This did not hurt him in the least ; on the contrary , the result was , that more people came to smoke their chibooks and buy tobacco at his shop than ever . Everybody was desirous of making the acquaintance of the Mussulman who would not so much as lay a hand upon a slave-girl whom he had bought with his own money , nay more , who did all the work of the house instead of her , just as if she had bought him instead of his buying her . In the neighbourhood of Patrona dwelt Musli , a veteran Janissary , who filled up his spare time by devoting himself to the art of slipper-stitching . This man often beheld Halil prowling about on the house-top in the moonlit nights where Gül-Bejáze was sleeping , and after sitting down within a couple of paces of her , remain there in a brown study for hours at a time , often till midnight , nay , sometimes till daybreak . With his chin resting in the palm of his hand there he would stay , gazing intently at her charming figure and her pale but beautiful face . Frequently he would creep closer to her , creep so near that his lips would almost touch her face ; but then he would throw back his head again , and if at such times the slave-girl half awoke from her slumbers , he would beckon to her to go to sleep again -- nobody should disturb her . Halil did not trouble his head in the least about all this gossip .