Chapter 1

I met Trevor Guthrie in college. We were campus sweethearts. In those years, the graduation season was often the breakup season. Yet the two of us supported each other all the way to marriage.

He often dreamed of saving one million dollars. He wants to travel around the world with me.

I was living inside the beautiful dream he had woven. Because of that, I turned my entire salary over to him. I only kept $100 for my expenses.

During the hardest times, I could not even bring myself to buy beef jerky. He and I lived on beans and rice every day.

Because he did not find life difficult, he assumed I did not either.

After a few years, we did manage to save a small amount. It was tens of thousands of dollars. When I saw that five-digit number in my savings, I convinced myself that all those years of scrimping were worth it.

One good break led to another, and I successfully applied for a job at a foreign company. I got a huge salary.

I suggested to Trevor that we could celebrate this good news in a restaurant.

He hesitated and said, “Eating out is too expensive. It’s not worth it.”

I said, “We hardly ever eat out. The two of us might just use $50 at most.”

Trevor became impatient.

“With that money, I can buy several pounds of meat at the supermarket. We wouldn’t get as much meat if we spent that amount eating out.”

Just like that, my first-ever celebration did not come to pass because he objected to it.

Seeing my disappointment, he volunteered to go to the supermarket to buy some meat. He said he would personally cook them for me to eat.

I decided to take what I could get and agreed.

As we were about to leave, Trevor said, “Transfer $50 to me first.”

I was stunned.

He said, “I put all my salary into our savings. I don’t have extra cash on me.

“Besides, you’re the one who wanted meat. So, it’s only right for you to pay for it.”

I was stunned.

Half out of spite, I took out my phone and transferred $50 to him.

After the money was transferred, he excitedly went downstairs to the supermarket. He bought a few pounds of pork and stewed it in a big pot.

The food was not as delicious as I had imagined.

Just then, I happened to scroll past a post on Instagram. A colleague who got into the company with me was showing off.

[I finally got into my dream company! My husband treated me to a fancy steak dinner to celebrate!]

The picture showed steak and red wine.

I frowned slightly.

Trevor leaned over and said, “Don’t envy other people. Both of our parents are from the countryside. We can’t count on them for anything in the future. We have to save up little by little on our own.

“When we have kids someday, we’ll need to save for them too. Money’s needed for everything. So, we need to save wherever we can now.”

He had a point.

Both of our parents were farmers. They have lived their entire lives on a small plot of land. They truly could not afford to support us.

We could only rely on ourselves for everything.

After thinking it over carefully, I decided not to dwell on this issue anymore.

On the day I got my first salary from the foreign company, Trevor suggested that I keep $100 as usual and hand everything over to him for managing the household.

I hesitated. Being past twenty-five, I needed to step up my facial skincare routine.

“$100 is way too little. That won’t even cover one bottle of serum.”

Trevor said, “You’re still young. You don’t need serums! We’re not movie stars. Who are you trying to look like a lass for?”

Just as I was about to speak, he added, “A family like ours can’t compete with other families’ generational wealth. You need to think about the future.

“I’ll leave you an extra $50. That way, you can get a few decent meals.”

He reasoned eloquently, and I could not come up with a proper argument to refute him.

I had no choice but to follow his advice and hand over my entire salary. I kept $150 for pocket money.

That day, I used the extra $50 he had let me keep to buy some snacks.

I took them home to share with him.

But he got upset instead.