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All Chapters of The Girl Who Counted Every Dollar: Chapter 1 - Chapter 10

10 Chapters

Chapter 1

The day I was sent to The Transformation Camp, three cars belonging to the Faris family were parked outside the filming studio.My biological mother wore a white suit. Her eyes were red from crying.She crouched down and reached out to stroke my head.I took a step back. Her hand froze in midair, and her expression grew even more sorrowful. "Tara, Mommy isn't punishing you. I just hope you'll stop bringing up money every chance you get."I nodded. "Then who's paying for the ride here?"Her sorrowful expression cracked.Andrew stood beside her and let out a cold laugh. "Just look at yourself. What kind of behavior is that? Has this family ever let you go hungry or left you without clothes? You're always holding out your hand for money. Aren't you embarrassed?"I glanced at him. "Last time, you asked me to go up to the third floor and get your headphones. You still haven't paid me for that errand."Andrew laughed in disbelief. "You still remember that?""Debts need to be remembe

Chapter 2

Before long, the first round of tasks began.The production team gave each child 4 dollars and sent us to a nearby market to buy ingredients to prepare lunch for the elderly residents and children at the camp.Gina announced, "This isn't a financial literacy competition. It's a kindness challenge."The moment I heard the words "4 dollars," I immediately smoothed out the bills and checked to make sure none of the corners were torn.Lisa stood beside me and let out a quiet sigh. "Tara, don't do that. People will think you're obsessed with money."I looked up. "I am obsessed with money."Her eyes instantly turned red. "But money isn't the most important thing."I thought about it for a moment. "That's true. Life is more important."She froze, but the cameras failed to catch what I said next.The market was bustling with activity. The other children spent their money on hot dogs, bread, and juice. Meanwhile, Lisa shared her money with two children who couldn't afford everything th

Chapter 3

The second round was a simulated rescue mission.The production team had set up a mock disaster relief shelter. Each child received a budget of 10 dollars and had to select the most essential supplies from a provided list.Gina announced, "This challenge is about empathy."I sat at a small table and began by copying down the price of each item.[Fever medication: 2.4 dollarsAntibiotics: 3 dollarsNutritional liquid food: 1.6 dollarsShort-distance bus ticket: 2 dollarsTemporary accommodation voucher: 1 dollarBlanket: 2 dollarsTeddy bear: 1.6 dollarsColoring pencils and comfort cards: 1.2 dollars]I quickly crossed out several options.Beside me, Lisa raised her hand. "Excuse me, I'd like to choose a blanket, a teddy bear, and some coloring pencils."The psychologist smiled gently. "Why is that?"Lisa's eyes lit up. "If a child gets hurt, they'll definitely be scared. A blanket will keep them warm, a teddy bear will keep them company, and the cards will remind them that the

Chapter 4

Andrew was so furious that he cut off the connection.The livestream comments erupted in laughter before turning critical again.[Does she even have feelings?][She's like a debt collector in a little girl's body.][Andrew was right. Lisa's the one with a heart.][Sure, medicine is important, but does she have to be so nasty about it?]…Lisa walked over to me and held out her teddy bear. "Tara, you can have this. I hope that one day, you'll understand that being loved is more important than money."The camera zoomed in on her face, capturing her beautiful smile.I glanced at the teddy bear and asked, "Can I sell it?"Lisa's smile froze.I added, "The tag's still on. I could probably sell it for 80% of the original price."Someone on set couldn't hold back a laugh.Gina quickly tried to smooth things over. "Tara's just joking."I shook my head. "I'm not."The livestream comments went wild.-In the observation room, Janine covered her eyes. "How did she turn out like t

Chapter 5

There were several crumpled, worn-out receipts, a small ledger made of kraft paper, a card that read "Morning Glory Children's Hospital Volunteer Caregiver Certificate," and a handful of worn, handmade friendship bracelets.Andrew sneered, "What else is there to say now? Has the Faris family ever denied you money? Why are you hiding all this junk?"Janine's lips trembled. "Tara, if you need money, you can just ask Mom. Why have you been secretly saving all this?"I reached for the tin, but Gina held my hand down. "We're only taking a look."I protested, "You can't go through the ledger."But Lisa had already picked it up. With an expression of deep concern, she opened it to the first page and began to read softly."Lily, acute lymphoblastic leukemia, still needs 402 dollars."Jessica, kidney disease, 140 dollars for dialysis."Maddie, heart patch surgery, 2,600 dollars short."Noah, ambulance transfer, 104 dollars."With every line she read, the room grew quieter.I lunged f

Chapter 6

[Lisa was the one who insisted on reading it just now.][Tara was practically frantic, but she kept reading anyway!][Don't rush to defend her. Exposing a minor's private information is a serious matter.][The production team is at fault too. They knew the child didn't want them looking inside, but they forced it open anyway.]…George's face had turned livid.Desperate to contain the damage, he immediately contacted the hospital and the children's guardians to verify everything live."Our production team will take responsibility. If Tara's money really went toward legitimate charitable causes, we'll issue a public statement to clear things up."I immediately spoke up. "Don't show their photos."Gina froze.I repeated myself, "Don't show the hospital rooms. Don't show their faces. Don't read out their full names."The social worker on the other end of the phone fell silent for a moment. When she spoke again, her voice was thick with emotion. "Tara, are you there?"I nodded

Chapter 7

It was as if Lisa had finally found an excuse to defend herself.I lifted my head from Margaret's embrace. "I told you."Janine froze. "When did you tell me?"I looked at her. "The second day after I came home. You took me shopping for dresses. I asked if you could give the money you were going to spend on a dress to a child who needed surgery. You said little children shouldn't lie to trick people into giving them money."Janine's face turned deathly pale. Her lips moved, but no words came out.I turned to Paul. "You said it too. I asked if I could get paid in advance for appearing on the show. You said children from the Faris family shouldn't talk about money all the time."Paul shut his eyes.Andrew spoke in a much softer voice. "What about me?"I flipped to the last page of my ledger. "You gave me 40 cents. I transferred it. The note said, 'Brother's errand fee.'"Andrew's face went white.The livestream comments showed him no mercy.[Andrew spent all that time insulting

Chapter 8

I looked at her, but I didn't feel as satisfied as I'd expected. I just found the whole thing noisy. People shouldn't cry so loudly in a hospital. They might disturb the other patients.The truth spread quickly. The accounts that had called me a gold digger the day before were now lining up to apologize.Of course, some people still refused to admit they had been wrong.[Donating money is a good thing, but demanding it isn't exactly right either, is it?][The Faris family wasn't wrong to want to teach her a lesson. They just took it too far.][Lisa is still a child. It's not like she did it on purpose.][Stop cyberbullying Lisa. She's always been kind.]…After seeing those comments, Lisa tearfully bowed to me during the livestream. "Tara, I'm sorry. I really didn't mean any harm. If I've hurt you, I'm willing to donate my own allowance too."Even her tears looked beautiful.Janine instinctively took a step forward as if to embrace her, just as she'd done countless times befo

Chapter 9

Paul's voice was hoarse. "Yes.""You're not just saying that to preserve your reputation?"He fell silent for a few seconds. "I used to care too much about my reputation. But from now on, I'll learn to do what's right."I considered his words for a moment. "Put it in the contract."Someone in the conference room couldn't suppress a laugh.But Paul nodded solemnly. "Done."Janine sat across from me, her eyes red throughout the meeting. She pushed a small box toward me. "Tara, Mommy got this for you."I opened it and found a bank card and a gold bracelet inside.She hurried to explain, "I'm not asking you to donate them. They're for you. I had no idea you'd been giving all your money away to other people. From now on, you need to save a little for yourself too, okay?"I examined the gold bracelet. It was quite shiny. I could probably get a good price for it if I sold it.As if she'd read my mind, Janine burst into tears again. "Tara, could you please not think about selling it?

Chapter 10

Janine held the microphone as tears streamed down her cheeks. "I'm sorry. I spent 9 years looking for you, but after you came home, I never took the time to truly get to know you."I wanted a daughter who would cling to me and depend on me. So whenever you asked for money, I felt embarrassed. But I never stopped to ask why you needed it so badly."She broke down in tears.If this had happened three months ago, I probably would have handed her a tissue. Now, I simply sat there.Margaret sat in the front row of the audience. She had once told me that just because someone cried didn't mean it was my responsibility to comfort them.Paul picked up the microphone as well. "Tara, I've used money to solve all kinds of problems, yet I looked down on you for talking about it. That was hypocritical of me."From now on, the foundation's financial records will be made public on an ongoing basis. Our family will no longer use the foundation for publicity."I asked, "Have you put that in writi

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