A grateful landlord promised to waive his two young female tenants' rent for a year after they selflessly returned the GBP 12,000 they found inside the rented home.

Young Huang Lu and Long Yiping, third-year nursing students currently interning at North Lake Hospital in Xinyu, in Jiangxi, China, had recently moved into a newly rented house closer to their workplace.

The two had been cleaning the home when they suddenly came across a red plastic bag at the top corner of a room cabinet on the night of January 2.

Upon inspection, they found a substantial amount of cash inside. Despite the temptation, they chose to turn the money over to the police.

After a thorough count by the police, it reportedly amounted to CNY 110,000 (GBP 12,178).

Huang told local media: 'We were preparing to clean the bedroom ceiling when we saw something resembling garbage in the corner of the cabinet wall.

'When I climbed up to retrieve it, it turned out to be a bag, and when I opened it, it was full of money.'

'I was anxious at that moment and didn't even have time to change out of my pyjamas; I went to the police station to report the incident.'

Police investigated the mysterious find and after a short while, they were able to confirm the money was left as an inheritance by the landlord's deceased parents.

The landlord, named Liu, was informed of the finding and the entire sum was returned to him.

Liu, reportedly feeling deeply grateful for the students' honesty, decided to waive the girls' rent for one year as a show of thanks.

He said: 'These two girls are very kind for returning the money to us.

'Our family has agreed to waive their rent for a year.'

And Long expressed: 'Being honest is important; if it's not ours, we don't take it.'

The hospital and school also praised the two students for their honesty.

Wu Lei, Head Nurse of the Comprehensive Surgery Department at North Lake Hospital, remarked: 'Huang Lu and Long Yiping are always diligent and responsible in their work, showing great care for the patients with a wonderful attitude.'

Xie Xiaochun, the hospital's director, stated: 'The hospital has decided to commend these two nurses throughout the entire hospital, and their honesty will be considered in evaluations and commendations.'