My fists clenched and I shoved down my urge to throw some English mutterings her way. “I’m not a beggar—I have Andrew.”

She raised one eyebrow. Then the other.

“And unlike Hongbo, Andrew sees me. Didn’t you hear what he said about how he loves my organization, my neuroses that you claim aren’t attractive?”

Her lips pursed to one side. “That’s just one thing.”

“One thing you claimed was a problem. It’s not a problem for him—it’s a plus.” And there it was: the fracture in her wall, visible from the fact that she was now chewing on her upper lip even though it would remove some lipstick. I had to barge through and topple the walls now, freeing her—and subsequently me—from Hongbo’s hold. “It’s just one thing, but Hongbo doesn’t even know that about me, let alone have an opinion on it. He doesn’t know anything about me.”

“But you went on that date—”

“No, you tricked me into going on that date.”

She made a disapproving tsk. “I tricked you because you were too naive to see the golden opportunity in front of you. What’s that English saying? Something about a golden duck laying money nuggets?”

“Yup,” I said, even though Aesop was turning in his grave.

“You let that gold duck run away without even reaching a hand out to catch it!”

I sighed.

A mix of sadness and anger clouded my mother’s eyes.

“Hongbo didn’t learn a single thing about me that night,” I told her. Again. “He brought me to a strip club!”

“Boys will be boys.”

“Andrew doesn’t go to strip clubs.”

“How do you know?”

“Because he’s not a disgusting douchebag.”

She shook her head. “All boys do that. Some just hide it better than others.”

“So Bǎbá goes to the strip club?”

“I’m sure he does, but as long as he provides for our family, I don’t need to know about it.”

Jesus.

I tried another tactic. “Don’t you see the way Andrew looks at me? How much he cares?” I was paying a hefty sum for those professional glances.

“You still have a young person’s view on relationships. Sometimes financial stability is more important than other things, which can fade.”

“Well, Andrew’s family is well-off too. I’ve seen their house.” Man, was I desperate.

“They can’t be as well-off as the Kuos—their company went public.”