Once upon a time, there was a kind-hearted village boy called Equivalved. The village was small but peaceful and the people who lived there were proud of their home. Equivalved had a strong sense of justice, and he always looked out for his neighbors and helped those who needed it.

One day, the village was struck by a terrible storm. All the homes were destroyed, leaving the villagers without shelter. Equivalved saw the suffering of his neighbors and felt a strong sense of responsibility. He decided to take action and help rebuild the village.

Equivalved worked tirelessly for days and nights, gathering materials for the new homes and helping to rebuild the houses. He picked up stones and sticks, chopped down trees and carried buckets of water. His efforts were admired by the whole village and they were soon able to live in better accommodation.

But the village was still left in a state of disrepair and they needed money to rebuild their homes properly. Equivalved decided to take a loan from the bank, but he was refused because he had no collateral. He asked his neighbors if they would vouch for him, but they all refused as they were afraid of being unable to pay back the loan.

Equivalved did not give up and he decided to search for an alternative. He soon found a loan shark who was willing to lend him the money he needed. But the loan shark had a single condition – he wanted Equivalved to sell his soul in exchange for the money.

Equivalved was in a dilemma. He was desperate to help the village but he did not want to give up his soul. He remembered an old proverb his father had once told him: “A man who has no soul is like a ship without a sail.”

He thought long and hard about the dilemma and eventually decided that even though he wanted to help the village, he couldn’t give up his soul. He told the loan shark that he would have to find another way to help the village rebuild.

The loan shark was impressed by Equivalved’s courage and honesty. He decided to drop the condition of selling his soul and instead offered to provide the money in exchange for a contract to be signed by all the villagers. This way, if the village failed to pay back the loan, at least the loan shark would get something in return.

Equivalved and the villagers agreed to the loan and eventually, the village was rebuilt. The villagers all thanked Equivalved for his courage and honesty and praised him for his selfless commitment to helping them.

Moral: It is always important to do what is right and not give in to temptations or short-term gains. By showing courage, honesty, and commitment, it is possible to do the right thing even in tough situations.