My Thrifty Mom

My mom had always been penny-wise and pound-foolish.

She jumped right in when she learned that others were making money by helping vendors stage fictitious sales.

We tried to talk her out of it, but she smiled smugly and said, "I can earn money without giving anything. Opportunities like this don't come around often."

In the end, she was scammed out of a million dollars.

We had to sell our house to pay off the debt, but she still refused to change her ways. Instead, she became obsessed with a new kind of online gambling, declaring she'd win enough money to buy back our house.

1

Our family was well-off, but my mom had one fatal flaw. She couldn't resist a bargain.

From free samples at the supermarket to free tissues on the street, or those $2 spa coupons...

Whenever she spotted such a thing, she just couldn't walk away.

Even though she'd been tricked more than a few times, she never tried to shake off it.

She genuinely enjoyed the thrill of scoring a bargain. Whenever she succeeded, it became her favorite story to share with the neighbors.

Recently, a friend pulled her into a group chat.

After the organizer sent small cash within the group, my mom started following along with the tasks.

At first, it was fabricating online sales, liking short videos, transferring money to designated accounts...

Every time she finished a task, the organizer would quickly return her principal and give her a bonus.

The bonuses ranged from about $5 to $500.

Since then, she'd brag to us about how much she'd made every day.

I tried to warn her to quit while she still hadn't lost anything. There was no such thing as a free lunch.

But she brushed me off, saying her friend had already moved on to intermediate tasks, earning thousands or even tens of thousands each time.

She even smiled smugly and said, "I can earn big money without giving anything. Opportunities like this don't come around often."

I couldn't find the words to retort, but my sister thought it was quite boring for our mom to idle at home, and that having something to do wasn't so bad.

Even if she lost a little in the end, it wouldn't be the end of the world.

Since I couldn't change their minds, I asked my dad to keep a close eye on my mom.

After all, my sister and I were both busy with work and couldn't be there for them all the time.

But I didn't expect that not long after, my mom came to me to borrow money.

Most of our savings were in fixed-term deposits, but my mom should still have had more than enough cash on hand.

She didn't have any big expenses, so why was she suddenly out of money?

After I expressed my confusion, she said with excitement she could hardly hide, "Sarah, I just snagged an intermediate task! I only need another twenty thousand to finish it."

The moment I heard that, I knew something was wrong. "Mom, how much have you already put in?"

She started counting on her fingers. "The task required finishing three fake orders at once. The first two cost sixty thousand, while the last one needs forty thousand. I already borrowed twenty thousand from your sister, so now I just need another twenty thousand from you."

I was in the middle of drinking water and nearly choked when I heard that, coughing uncontrollably. "Mom, are you sure you're not being scammed by the organizer?"

She looked annoyed. "Do you really think I'm that dumb? Don't worry. The money you lend me won't be for nothing. I'll pay you back with interest."

"Mom, that's not what I meant." I rubbed my forehead. "Just hold off on the tasks for now, okay? Wait until I get home."

I hurriedly took time off work and rushed home.

2

My mom looked pretty happy to see me.

When I asked about the task, she brushed it off. "Since you wouldn't lend me the money, I had to borrow it from someone else."

I felt a headache coming on. "Mom, didn't I tell you to wait for me?"

She exploded at my words. "Why should I wait for you? I worked so hard to get this task. If I had waited for you, I'd have missed it! It's said daughters are supposed to support their mother without conditions. But you're nothing like that. I can't count on you at critical moments.

I went through so much to bring you and your sister into this world. Even when the doctor told me to give up, I refused. And now you're treating me so coldly!"

Seeing she was about to launch into a tirade, I quickly tried to calm her down. "Alright, Mom, I am sorry."

She stopped, still looking a bit disgruntled.

I walked behind her and tried to butter her up by massaging her shoulders. "So, did you finish the task?"

She snorted with a smile.

"So you've got your principal and bonus back?"

She waved her phone proudly. "I got the bonus, ten thousand dollars! Isn't that much more than your monthly salary?"

I caught the flaw in her story. "What about your principal?"

"The principal? I made a mistake when I tried to withdraw it, so my account got frozen. The organizer said if I do a few more tasks, it'll be unfrozen. I used the bonus to pay back my friend. She's great. Not only did she help me make money, but she even lent me some. Now that you're home, just lend me ten thousand and I'll pay her back all at once."

I stopped massaging her, asking her in alarm. "Mom, don't you think you've been scammed? Your principal adds up to one hundred thousand, and now it's all frozen in that account. What if you can't get it back?"

She waved her hand and didn't think much of it. "No way. My friend's account was frozen before, too. She just did two more tasks, and it was fine."

The more I listened, the more convinced I was that my mom had fallen into a trap. "Are you sure your friend isn't working with the organizer to scam you?"

Becoming furious at my suspicion, she turned and glared at me, raising her voice. "Sarah, what do you mean by that? If you don't want to lend me money, just say so. Why are you insulting my friend? Do you think everyone is an idiot but you? I'm not that dumb to be deceived! I know you think I'm senile and would cause you trouble. I shouldn't have hoped I could count on you."

"Mom, that's not what I meant," I tried to explain, feeling helpless. "I just don't want you to lose even more."

"Lose? How could I possibly lose? You didn't say so when I was making money. Now that my account's frozen for now, you start to suspect it. I know you think I'm not educated enough to know better, don't you? You all look down on me..." My mom let out a tirade eventually without pause, while I sat there in despair.

Ever since we were kids, whenever we tried to question or criticize her, she'd always change the subject and start to find faults with us.

In her mind, she was our mother. She gave us life, so in her eyes, she would never be wrong.

Admitting she was wrong in front of us would be too humiliating for her.

I gradually became expressionless.

My dad came home from work and, hearing my mom's angry voice, rushed in. "What's going on? What happened?"

Hoping he would come to my rescue, I quickly explained everything to him.

He was stunned. "One hundred thousand dollars?"

He turned to Mom. "Jessica, how come you have that much money? Did you put all our spare cash into this?"

I added, "Mom also borrowed twenty thousand from Lexi and another twenty thousand from her friend."

Mom looked away and pouted. "But I got a ten-thousand-dollar bonus!"

"And what about the other ninety thousand dollars?"

Mom corrected him, "The principal is one hundred dollars. The ten thousand is what I earned."

"Fine. So when can you get the principal back?"

"I already told you. I made a mistake withdrawing, so my account's frozen. I just need to do two more tasks to unfreeze it."

Dad was beside himself with worry, pacing back and forth. "Can't you see you're being scammed?"

"My colleague's wife got scammed, too. She joined an online group that promised easy money for placing fake orders, which turned out to be a scam. She ended up losing fifty thousand."

3

"That's impossible. This is definitely not a scam." My mom insisted, flatly denying it.

My dad scratched his head, looking helpless. "I'm calling the police now. Maybe we can still get the money back."

My mom panicked and grabbed my dad by the waist. "Caleb, what are you talking about? Why call the police? I wasn't scammed! The account is frozen due to my own mistake."

My dad winced in pain. "Let go. Let go of me!"

"If you can't get your money back unless you keep doing their tasks, how is that not a scam? And we don't have any more money for you to keep doing these tasks," my dad added.

My mom didn't seem to care. "Don't we still have money in the bank?"

My dad grew anxious. "Jessica, that's our retirement fund and the wedding expenses for our two daughters. Don't use it."

"What do you mean? If I don't keep doing the tasks, then all my money will be gone. I see now, you just don't trust me. You and your daughter are on the same side. I've been married to you for over twenty years, but I'm still like an outsider."

The more my mom spoke, the more upset she became. Tears streamed down her face.

My dad let out a heavy sigh and started to comfort her.

At this point, I knew I couldn't just stand by and watch my mom lose more money. So I called the police.

When the officers arrived, my mom got even more agitated.

She pointed at me and called me ungrateful, saying I was cold-hearted. I just endured it.

The police spent a long time explaining things to her before she finally realized she might have really been scammed. She sat in the living room, crying until her eyes were swollen.

It was only after everyone tried to comfort her for a long time that she finally calmed down.

After the police left, I sat down next to her.

She turned away, refusing to speak to me. I sighed. "Mom, I took the day off just to come home and visit you. I have to leave soon."

She still wouldn't talk to me.

Left with no choice, I went back to my rented apartment.

I knew my mom was stubborn by nature. She didn't want to admit her mistakes in front of us.

But we all would make mistakes. Nobody was perfect.

We were family, and that meant we would look out for each other and forgive each other.

Her being stubborn would only bring harm to herself and us who truly care about her.

4

Right before the holiday, my cousin suddenly reached out to me, asking what my mom had been up to lately.

I was completely confused.

She said her mom had been investing money with mine, and they'd put in a lot. She was worried, so she came to ask me.

I fell silent.

I hurriedly called my mom. She took a long time to answer.

I asked anxiously, "Mom, you left that group chat, right?"

"Of course. If I didn't, you and your dad would probably have me thrown in jail by now, wouldn't you?"

I ignored her sarcasm and tried to confirm it again, "Mom, promise me you'll stay away from those online scams. My cousin just asked me what you and Aunt Lucy have been investing in lately. I have no idea what's going on."

My mom was silent for a moment and then hung up impatiently after lashing out at me. "Enough. Just mind your own business."

I frowned, my hand still gripping the phone long after the call ended.

My mom's attitude made me uneasy as if she were hiding something from us.

I messaged my dad, telling him to keep a close eye on my mom.

But no matter how careful we were, we still couldn't prevent what happened next.

One night, my dad called my sister and me, asking us to come home immediately.

My heart sank the moment I heard his voice.

My mom was on the sofa, crying her heart out, and she could barely breathe. I hurried over to comfort her and help her calm down.

My sister looked completely lost. "Dad, Mom, what's going on?"

My dad was livid with anger. "Let your mom explain."

Through her tears, my mom said, "Caleb, what do you mean by that? I just wanted to earn money for our family.

Our two daughters are grown now. They'll get married one day. If we can throw them a grand wedding, people won't look down on them."

My dad paced the room with his hands behind his back, his face long. "I warned you before. The loss of the hundred thousand is a lesson for you. But you didn't learn it. You even dragged your sister into this. Now look, both our families have lost money. Tell me honestly, how much did you borrow? Now the debt collectors won't stop calling me."

After listening to my dad's words, I stared at my mom in disbelief.

She sobbed, "Just two hundred thousand."

"How much did you talk your sister into investing?"

"Three, three hundred thousand."

It was such a bolt from the blue that my vision started to blur. "Mom, you lost another five hundred thousand? Aunt Lucy is still sick. Those three hundred thousand should be used for her medical treatment!"

My sister was stunned. "Mom, how could you do this? You're putting Aunt Lucy's life at risk!"

Hearing our accusations, my mom screamed, "Why are you blaming everything on me? If it weren't for you two, would I have gotten involved in scams? I'm not young anymore. Don't you think I want to just enjoy my retirement in peace? Whenever something goes wrong, you all blame me. Why are you so ungrateful? I should have had an abortion back then, as the doctor instructed."

My sister and I turned pale.

When my mom was pregnant with us, her health was fragile, and the doctor said carrying twins would be dangerous. She was advised to abort at least one child.

But my mom refused, insisting on keeping us both.

So ever since we were little, whenever we upset her, she'd bring up this to accuse us of being ungrateful and heartless and not appreciating how hard it was for her to give birth to us.

My dad was furious. He stepped in front of my sister and me. "Why are you blaming your mistakes on them? You chose to give birth to them, so you should take responsibility. Don't act insane!"

My mom's face turned red. "Fine. You're all on the same side. I'm always an outsider. I've been so caring to you over all these years, but none of you appreciate that. Now I make one mistake, and you all won't let it go. Since that's the case, I'll just leave, okay?"

She stormed toward the door, pausing at the doorway. When she realized none of us tried to stop her, she turned angrier.

Just as she turned the handle, my dad grabbed her arm.

A flash of a smug smile crossed her face. "Why are you stopping me? Aren't you all blaming me?"

My dad rubbed his forehead. "Where do you put the card with all our savings? Tomorrow, we need to withdraw all the money to pay off the debts."

The smile vanished from my mom's eyes. "No."

"Why? Your sister needs her medication. Without money, how will she get treatment? And if the debt collectors keep calling, it might affect our daughters."

"Absolutely no."

My mom stood her ground.

"If Lucy really needs money, her daughter can help her. As for the online loans, let Sarah and Lexi pay them back."

"Are you out of your mind? Our daughters have only been working for three years. Most of their money is in that bank card. How much cash do you think they actually have?"

My mom remained silent.

As I looked at her expression, a terrible thought crept in. "Mom, did you put the money from that card into those tasks, too?"