Japan Shitakiri Suzume

tale:japan_shitakiri_suzume

A kind old man tends a sparrow whose tongue his spiteful wife has cut; visiting its home, he is offered a large basket or a small one and humbly takes the small, which proves full of treasure. The greedy wife demands the large basket and hauls it home stuffed with snakes and demons. Moral: a modest, kind heart is repaid; greed carries home its own punishment. — Japanese folktale