In a corner of the riverbank village, Soleman and his wife Mariam lived in a small hut. Soleman worked as a daily laborer. On days when he found work, food was cooked on the stove. On days without work, they would spend the night surviving on just water. Mariam had one desire—to wear a gold ring. But in a household where they struggled to make ends meet, a gold ring was a far-fetched dream.
One rainy morning, as the water of the Teesta River began to lower, Soleman was walking along the riverbank picking up twigs. Suddenly, a bright light flashed in his eyes from the sand. Curious, Soleman started digging in the sand and found a beautifully crafted heavy gold ring. A precious red stone was set in the ring. When he brought the ring home and gave it to Mariam, she burst into tears of joy and wore the ring on her finger, wandering around all day. But Soleman felt no peace. He was thinking that it must belong to some rich person.
The next day, as soon as Soleman went to the market, he heard that a valuable royal ring, belonging to the grandfather of the wealthy landowner from the neighboring district, had been lost during a boat accident. Whoever returns it will be greatly rewarded. Initially, Mariam didn’t want to give up the ring. She said the river had taken everything from them, so the river had given them this ring. But Soleman convinced her that their happiness would not come from the tears of others.
Soleman took the ring to the landowner's house. Tears came to the landowner's eyes when he saw his family heirloom intact. He was so impressed by Soleman's honesty that he gifted him five bighas of farmland, a brick house, and a job as the manager of his farmhouse. When Soleman returned home and told Mariam everything, she realized her mistake and felt proud of her husband’s integrity. With the first month's salary from working on the estate, Soleman had a beautiful pure gold ring made for Mariam from one of the city's largest shops. When Mariam wore that ring, purchased with her husband’s honest earnings, her smile was brighter than the most precious diamond in the world.
