The news that Leela Devi had been thrown out of her home by the foster child she had raised for years spread rapidly through the small neighborhood in Lucknow. People were filled with pity, blame, and curiosity. Everyone knew that Leela Devi was very humble. Her husband had died early, and she had no children of her own. So she adopted Arjun—abandoned at the Hanuman temple near Aminabad Bazaar—when he was just a few months old. The entire neighborhood praised her “blessed” behavior, as the child grew up healthy, intelligent, and well-educated.

But as he grew up, Arjun changed. Since he had a stable job in Gurugram and a large network of acquaintances, his personality gradually became arrogant. He began complaining about his poor hometown and speaking rudely to his mother. Arjun renovated the house that Leela Devi had spent years building, adding another floor, and then transferred ownership of the land to his name. She remained silent, thinking that if her son had the willpower, he would have trusted someone in the future.

The incident occurred on a rainy afternoon. Neighbors saw Arjun shouting:

“Get out of here, Mom! This is my home, I don’t want to live with someone who keeps interrupting me. I’m tired!”

Leela Devi was stunned. Her eyes were blurred, her hands were shaking, and she quietly left the house that once echoed with laughter, clutching an old cloth bag. Those outside thought only one thing: “Ungrateful adopted son!” No one knew that in that bag she held a shocking secret—the secret of a wealth worth over 76 crore rupees, which she had quietly amassed and kept hidden for many years.

Few knew that Leela Devi was more than just a simple village woman. When she was young, she traded timber, and then, when Gomti Nagar and the suburbs were still affordable, she started investing in land. The profits were substantial, but she didn’t flaunt them: she still wore the same sari and lived simply. She distributed her wealth across various banks, placing gold bars in the bottoms of rice pots, in cracks in the walls, and even in small boxes behind the prayer room. Watching her adopted son grow up, she thought: “Everything will be his.” But as time passed, she saw Arjun losing his innocence. He said things that hurt her:

“What do you think of teaching me business?”

“Why do you keep such small things? Let me handle it!”

Once, she tried to give Arjun a small amount of money. As a result, he squandered it all on gambling and impulsive investments. From then on, she kept quiet, never mentioning the money. She thought she would return it only when she truly needed it.

But the day Arjun drove his mother away came sooner than she expected. She left with a small bag, a few gold bars, and a few savings accounts. People thought she was penniless, but she remained silent. Deep inside, she grieved for her son and wondered: had she raised him under too much protection, forgetting to teach him gratitude?

After being thrown out of the house, Leela Devi moved into the home of an old friend in Aliganj. Rumors spread, and everyone accused Arjun of filial piety. He was arrogant, believing he had done the right thing. He boasted to his friend:
—“Now the house is mine. I have no property other than this house; I can do whatever I want.”

But life doesn’t go according to plan. One day, Leela Devi suddenly appeared at the bank and asked to deposit over 70 crore rupees into the Shishu Seva Trust, a charity for orphans. She had wanted to leave most of her wealth to children like Arjun in the past—but the difference was that she would teach him gratitude.

This news reached Arjun. He was stunned, unable to sleep the entire night, thinking: “So that simple mother has so much wealth… and I threw her out of the house?” The spacious house suddenly became cold and meaningless.

The day Arjun came looking for her, Leela Devi simply looked at her son with sad eyes:

“Money can be lost and earned again. Once a mother’s love is lost, no one can buy it back.”

These words were like a knife piercing his heart. Arjun burst into tears, feeling small for the first time in years. His mother, whom he had considered a burden, turned out to be a complete embodiment of sacrifice.

But the story doesn’t end with the 76 crore rupees figure, but with a lesson about greed and ingratitude. Sometimes, the most precious thing we hold isn’t wealth, but true feelings for the person who raised us.

Arjun thought an apology would be enough. But Leela Devi wouldn’t forgive easily. The pain of being rejected by her own adopted son wouldn’t subside overnight. She quietly settled into a small house on the outskirts of Barabanki, watering the garden in the morning, reading books in the afternoon, and lighting incense sticks for her husband at night. She gave most of the 76 crore rupees to a trust; she kept only a small portion for her old age.

Hearing this news, Arjun felt as if he were on fire. He felt both regret and guilt. “If I hadn’t driven Mother away that day… if I had known how to take care of her… would things have been different?” But the word “if” remained.

Arjun visited his mother several times. Sometimes bringing flowers, sometimes buying supplements, sometimes simply waiting at the gate. Leela Devi still maintained her distance. She didn’t hate him, but she wanted him to understand: love can’t be bought with gifts, and certainly not with tears shed lately.

As time passed, Arjun began to change. He stopped messing around, worked hard, and lived simply. His friends were shocked, his colleagues couldn’t understand; only he knew: everything stemmed from one greatest loss—the loss of his mother’s trust.

One afternoon at the end of the year, a cold breeze blew, and Arjun went back to his mother’s small house. He sat waiting, this time with only his heart. When Leela Devi opened the door, mother and son looked at each other, eyes filled with tears. No hugs, no words of apology. But that silence eased Arjun’s heart.

Perhaps forgiveness doesn’t mean forgetting, but rather giving each other a chance to move on. Only time will tell whether Leela Devi opens her heart or maintains her distance.