I’m Freya Sanchez, and on the very first day my boyfriend Julius Harris and I made our relationship official, he insisted on handing over his salary for me to manage. He said marriage was inevitable, and he’d only feel secure giving his money to his future wife. On our engagement day, Julius suddenly demanded I produce the $960,000 in savings I’d been managing for the past four years. He said, “I’ve been giving you $20,000 every month for four years—that’s $960,000 total. After daily expenses, there should be at least $800,000 left, right? I don’t want my parents paying for our wedding. How about we use my savings instead? $600,000 for the down payment on a new house, and $200,000 to buy you wedding gifts.” I was completely stunned. “But there’s not a penny of your money left!” Julius immediately flew into a rage. “You spent all $960,000!” His mother Monica Harris also erupted in anger: “What did you do with all that money? What shameful things have you been up to? This wedding is off!” Julius insisted on checking the accounts, so I immediately pulled out the receipts in front of everyone. But suddenly Monica panicked. On our engagement day, both Julius’s and my family and friends were present to discuss our wedding plans. Everything was going smoothly until one of Julius’s relatives said with a smile, “No wonder everyone says Freya’s great with money—she must have saved quite a bit for Julius over these four years, right? Now you’ll have enough for the wedding without either family having to worry about it.” I was completely confused, thinking, “I saved money for Julius?” Before I could react, Monica suddenly started wiping away tears. “Julius, my dear son. You’re so afraid of burdening us that you don’t want us to spend a penny on your wedding—you’ve saved up enough yourself. I’m so proud of you.” I didn’t understand what was happening. Julius’s relatives were all moved. Julius was also emotional and immediately took my hand. “I’ve been giving you $20,000 every month for four years—that’s $960,000 total. After expenses, there should be at least $800,000 left. I don’t want my parents paying for our wedding. How about we use my savings instead? $600,000 for the down payment on a new house, and $200,000 to buy you wedding gifts.” I looked bewildered, but he kept going: “Your family can handle the renovation costs and furniture—we can put both our names on the deed. $800,000 is just right. Freya, don’t think it’s too little—this is the most I can give you.” My parents Kevin and Julia Sanchez believed it, actually thinking Julius had $800,000 saved with me. Combined with his words, they looked at him with even more admiration. Julia even agreed on the spot to cover renovation and appliance costs. “Since Julius is being so sincere, of course we have no problem with that!” Envious voices surrounded us. “How wonderful—both families are so generous and easy to work with. Julius is really something—this couple’s going to have such a sweet life together.” But I couldn’t join in this enthusiastic atmosphere and pulled my hand from Julius’s grasp. “Are you sure you have $800,000 saved with me?” The relatives who had just been moved suddenly looked confused. Facing everyone’s stares, Julius paused for a moment, then straightened up. “Of course! $20,000 a month, that’s $240,000 a year, and $960,000 over four years. After expenses, getting back $800,000 isn’t unreasonable, is it?” I laughed bitterly. “So you’re saying your personal expenses for a whole year were only $40,000? An average of $3,000 per month? Julius, think carefully before you speak.” Only then did I fully realize how wrong this whole situation was. If I foolishly admitted to this $800,000 in front of all these people today, I’d never be able to explain myself later. Without even thinking, Julius blurted out, “Of course! I don’t smoke, I occasionally have drinks with friends—how much could I possibly spend in a month?” My expression darkened. “What if I told you that your money—there’s not a penny left?”
Julius said, “How is that possible? Freya, you’ve got to be kidding me.” In front of all our relatives, he struggled to maintain his gentlemanly composure. The first half of his sentence nearly cracked, while he forcibly lowered his voice for the second half. Monica also forgot about her dramatics and stopped her tears. Julia sensed something was wrong and asked me with a frown, “Freya, what’s really going on?” I pressed my lips together and raised my voice to ensure everyone present could hear clearly: “Julius does indeed hand over his salary to me every month on time, but the apartment we rent together for work convenience costs five thousand dollars a month…” Before I could finish, Julia immediately grasped the key point: “Even if you each pay half, Julius claims his monthly expenses are over three thousand dollars. After deducting that twenty-five hundred, the remaining money wouldn’t even cover drinks with his friends, would it?” Every member of the Harris family’s smile instantly froze. Julius’s face also showed some embarrassment, but he still tried to speak in a calm tone: “Freya, I know my monthly expenses might be more than that, but it’s impossible that I spent everything, right? Tell me the truth—how much of the money I gave you is left?” I shrugged. “Like I said, not a penny.” Realizing I was serious, Julius finally lost his composure and stood up from his chair: “You spent all nine hundred thousand dollars?” His sudden outburst startled me, leaving me momentarily stunned. The cold, ruthless man before me with his twisted expression was hard to believe was the same lover I’d spent four years with day and night. Monica completely exploded too, beginning to cry and shout: “You squandered all that money—what shameful things did you do? You two are not getting married!” The Harris family relatives also began whispering among themselves. “Julius is the most promising of the younger generation in the Harris family. How could someone who earns so much money in a year have nothing left?” “Looks like young people dating really is expensive. I’ll need to find a frugal wife for my son.” “Exactly. I used to think Freya was quite virtuous and good with money, but turns out she’s a gold digger.” Kevin and Julia’s faces darkened upon hearing these harsh words. But they knew my character and understood I wasn’t someone who spent money recklessly. Kevin quietly signaled to me: “Freya, clear things up right now. We won’t take advantage of anyone, but we won’t let anyone bully us either.” Sharp-eared Monica continued crying while speaking sarcastically: “Not taking advantage? A million dollars all spent—how much has your daughter enjoyed these four years with Julius? How could she possibly be at a loss?” Julia, being a decent person, couldn’t stoop to acting like a shrew, and her face flushed with anger: “Freya, even between close siblings, accounts should be settled clearly—you should understand this principle, right? Don’t give people ammunition to use against you! Since everyone’s here today, why don’t we settle the accounts in front of everyone!” Settle accounts? Of course we should. The Harris family relatives were all craning their necks, waiting for the show, so how could I disappoint them?
I pointed at Julius’s suit and said, “That suit you’re wearing is worth thirty-eight thousand dollars, your shirt is eighty-nine hundred dollars, those shoes are five thousand dollars, and even your tie is a designer piece worth over two thousand dollars. You have at least seven or eight outfits like this in your closet.” Immediately, whispered calculations filled the air around us, with some people even pulling out their phones to use calculators. The final conclusion was jaw-dropping: “My God, just these few outfits alone cost over four hundred thousand dollars!” Julius clearly hadn’t expected his expenses to be so astronomical. He lost some of his confidence, and even his parents stood there stunned. After a long pause, he finally managed to speak: “Some of those clothes were birthday gifts from you. You’re not planning to count those against me, are you? Using my money to buy me presents? That’s quite a stretch.” I was so angry I laughed: “When did I ever say I was counting those against you?” At most, I could only blame myself for falling for the wrong person and being too generous with him. After saying this, my gaze fell on his wrist. That watch was a Christmas birthday gift I’d given him this year. I had told him it only cost a few tens of thousands of dollars, when it actually cost hundreds of thousands. Before today, Julius and I had gotten along fairly well. Though he had some vanity and pretentiousness that came with his rural background suddenly becoming wealthy – which put him on a different level from me, a first-tier city only child – he didn’t have any other major flaws and was considerate toward me. Especially when it came to food, clothing, housing, and transportation, we were very compatible and had similar tastes. Unlike other rural guys who were penny-pinchers, he was quite generous with his spending. I just never realized his generosity came from spending all my money without any burden, as if I were an inexhaustible treasury. After tearing away this glamorous facade, our four-year relationship turned out to be so fragile. To protect his pride and dignity, I didn’t even dare reveal my true income and family background. When he said his monthly salary was twenty thousand dollars, I deliberately understated mine by five thousand. Looking back now, it was completely unnecessary! Noticing my gaze, he quickly pulled down his sleeve to cover the watch: “This was a Christmas birthday gift from you this year! This shouldn’t count either, right?” A wave of disgust rose in my chest: “I know, I’m not planning to count everything. I just want to ask you one more time – do we need to keep calculating this account? Will you admit that you have absolutely no savings from what you’ve earned while with me?” Julius shouted irritably: “Calculate! Of course we should calculate! Even if half of those outfits were bought by me, that’s only around two hundred thousand dollars, and those were work necessities. If you say I have nothing left, where did all the money go? I really want to see what other tricks you can come up with besides these major expenses!” I nodded and pulled out my phone, opening my usual expense tracking app: “These are our daily living expenses. Rent is five thousand dollars a month, utilities, gas, tissues and other miscellaneous expenses are a thousand dollars a month, and in summer the electricity bill goes up another thousand. “Besides that, you can’t cook and I don’t have time to, so we handle breakfast and lunch at the office, and for dinner we either order takeout or eat at restaurants – that’s at least three to four thousand dollars a month. “And you don’t just occasionally go out drinking with friends – it’s at least ten times a month, and you ask me for money every time. On average, that’s five thousand dollars a month. You alone spend ten thousand dollars a month!” Julius gritted his teeth: “Fine, even if you give me ten thousand dollars a month, that’s four hundred and eighty thousand over four years, plus the two hundred thousand I spent on clothes, that’s less than seven hundred thousand total. But over these four years, I’ve given you nearly a million dollars! Where’s the rest of the money?” Just then, Monica suddenly looked panicked and pressed Julius back into his chair: “Julius, stop calculating!” Everyone could see this bizarre turn of events clearly—my parents and I were all watching in disbelief. Julius looked equally confused. “Mom, what are you doing? Of course we need to settle the accounts. How can we get married without clearing this up? You were just saying—” Monica quickly covered his mouth and gave Julia an awkward laugh. “We got a bit carried away earlier and said some inappropriate things. But with so much money involved, we were naturally anxious. Please don’t take offense—we didn’t mean to make a scene. We’re all family here, no need to keep separate accounts. Julius’s money is Freya’s money too, so there’s no need to be so precise about it. Everyone must be hungry, right? Let’s have the waiters bring out the food.” But Julius wouldn’t listen. He pushed Monica’s hand away. “Mom! How can we eat at a time like this? According to Freya, I don’t have a penny left. What am I supposed to use for the wedding? Your money? I can’t do that! If she doesn’t settle these accounts with me today, this isn’t over!” I immediately shot back, “Even if we do settle the accounts, I’m not marrying you anymore. I’m afraid if I marry into your family, I’ll be schemed against until there’s nothing left of me!” A sharp slap rang out, and the entire room fell dead silent. I clutched my burning cheek, staring in disbelief at Julius’s father, Derek Harris. Derek had been sitting there silently with a dark expression the whole time. I never expected him to suddenly lash out and deliver such a resounding slap. He cursed furiously, “You bitch! You took my son’s money to support some other man, didn’t you? Otherwise, how could you blow through $180,000? Julius marrying you would be our family’s misfortune!” His words were even more vicious than Julius’s and Monica’s. My parents snapped out of their shock, shielding me while shoving Derek. When Julius saw my father grab his dad by the collar, he actually stepped in to help, pushing my father to the ground. Seeing this, I couldn’t care about anything else. I rushed forward and slapped Julius hard across the face. “How dare you hit my dad! You bastard!” When Monica saw me hit Julius, she came at me, clawing and scratching. Julia naturally couldn’t stand by and watch. Forgetting all about maintaining her composure, she rushed forward and got into a tussle with Monica. The scene descended into complete chaos. What made it even worse was that relatives from both sides initially tried to break up the fight, but somehow it escalated into an all-out brawl. The room filled with curses and sounds of fighting. That bastard Julius even managed to kick me twice in the confusion. Just as the situation was about to spiral completely out of control, the restaurant manager burst into the private dining room with security guards. “Stop fighting! If you don’t stop, I’m calling the police!” Under the forceful intervention of the security guards, both sides finally stopped. We didn’t have many relatives here today, but Julius’s side had at least ten people. We took quite a beating—even Julia had scratches on her face. Julius spat a mouthful of bloody saliva on the floor, pushed back his sweat-soaked hair, revealing several scratch marks I’d left on his forehead. “Freya, I don’t think we should let it get this bad. We’ve been together for four years—how can we just turn on each other like this? Look, we don’t have to call off the wedding. I’ve thought of a solution. I still have over $200,000 with you—consider it my wedding gift to you. Have your parents use the money they set aside for renovations and appliances as a down payment for the house, and I’ll pay them back later. Let’s just pretend today never happened.” Never happened? He kicked me twice during the fight, both sides nearly fought to the death, and now right after the brawl, he wants to tell me it “never happened”? He was thinking way too simply! I screamed at him, “In your dreams! No way!” Seeing me curse at him, he dropped all pretense and yelled back, “Fine! Freya, you’re really something. We’re not getting married then! Transfer that $200,000 back to me right now, or this isn’t over!” Clutching my aching stomach, I shouted, “I’m sending you all the receipts right now. Open your eyes wide and look carefully—not only do you have nothing left, you actually owe me $100,000! If you don’t pay me back, this isn’t over! If you want to settle accounts, let’s do it now. If there’s anything you don’t understand, ask me right away. Let’s get this straight once and for all so you won’t come back to disgust me later!” With that, I sent over all the receipts and bank transfer records I had on hand. Just as Julius was about to check his phone, Monica suddenly knocked it out of his hands with a violent swipe.
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