An Unexpected Find

As twelve-year-old Hari ventured into the forest on the hills near his village, he experience a starnge mix of fear and curiosity. Children were forbidden to go there due to the presence if 'witches' according to the village elders but he never believed it for he had a rational mindset.
His family was poor, they owned only a small earthen hut and a piece of land in their village which produced just enough crop for their own consumption, leaving no excess. Yet, his parents wanted him to study and bring prosperity to their midst so he went to school. In the afternoons, when the village people relaxed he used to roam around because he believed in learning beyond the classroom. That day, he had a starnge urge to go explore the forest.
There were only birds and small animals like snakes, mongooses, mice and squirrels in the forest. Since it was a hilly region, there were a few small caves in the vicinity. He enjoyed the cool breeze that wafted through the gaps in the canopy and his eyes loved the greenery all around. 'I should have come here long before!', he exclaimed.
Absorbed in the beauty, he had not noticed that dark clouds had gathered. It was winter and it did not rain usually in the winter so he was utterly shocked when there was a rumbling. 'It was sunny!', he exclaimed indignantly just as a large raindrop touched his hand. There was a cave nearby on the hillside and he made a dash for it, just as the rain began to intensify, tripping and bruising himself. No sooner did he enter the cave than it began to rain cats and dogs—he would have been soaked to the bone had he still been out there. Nervously, he glanced about the cave in the little light that trickled in through the entrance, looking out for snakes or harmful insects but did not see any.
Relieved, he moved even deeper in the cave, which was only large enough for three skinny boys like him to fit in. His feet touched something protruding from the ground. He bent down and examined that it was a corner of a metallic container. Using a fallen branch of a tree, he began to dig the sandy soil and uncover the container. It was hard work but he finally succeeded. He threw the lid open, after noting that the lock had decayed and what he saw  completely baffled him—quite a large number of round, heavy objects that shined even in the little light. He knew enough of science to know that gold never tarnishes and so he was convinced that he was touching gold when he ran his fingers through the chest.
By then the rain had stopped and, closing the chest, he picked it up with some difficulty for it was heavy, and began carrying it towards his village. It took him a few minutes to reach the edge of the forest from where he saw that the villagers were running helter-skelter, apparently searching for him. As he entered the village with a wide grin on his face, his parents and the other villagers rushed at him, with the intention of teaching him a lesson for disappearing like that but they all stopped, dumb-mouthed when he opened the lid and showed them his find. 
On ending his tale of how he got it, his parents hugged him and the other children cheered for him. Though they were not allowed to keep much of the coins, they were handsomely rewarded by the Government which eliminated all their financial worries for the completion of their son's education. Hari grew up to be a famous archaeologist associated with the ASI and went on the unearth loads of lost treasures across the country. However, we can be sure that his first find on that rainy winter day, in a cave near his village will always occupy a special place in his heart!