Chapter 29 A Dowry Saved for Her

Annie was afraid that Fiona would worry, so she quickly comforted her, "You're just losing weight for your wedding."
Fiona frowned and lectured her, "You're already as thin as a rail. Why lose more weight? Listen to me; you must eat three bowls of rice at every meal from now on!"
Joseph chuckled, "If she eats three bowls of rice per meal, Annie will become very fat."
Fiona hummed twice and said confidently, "No matter how fat my Annie is, she still looks good."
Joseph nodded in agreement and asked Fiona if they could go try on makeup.
Distracted by Joseph's interruption, Fiona forgot about scolding Annie and dragged her to the dressing room.
They tried on their wedding day makeup at the bridal shop before going through the wedding ceremony process at the hotel.
After finishing everything, Joseph took Fiona and Annie out to dinner before returning them home.
Once home, Fiona rested for a while before packing things up.
Joseph had bought a house for them after getting married; Fiona would move into it once they were married officially.
"Annie," said Fiona with a smile. "When I move into our new home, you'll take care of this place. I trust you'll take good care of our home."
For Fiona, this two-bedroom apartment felt like her family's property, with Annie looking after it. She felt relieved knowing that someone trustworthy was watching over it.
"Okay," replied Annie with a smile as she took clothes from Fionas hands one by one, folding each piece neatly.
Fiona picked out some commonly used clothes from the closet without packing anything else. She planned on returning often to visit Annie even though she was marrying Joseph soon enough. Annie noticed what she did but didn't say anything.
After helping Fiona pack her clothes, Annie smiled and said, "I have a wedding gift for you."
Fiona asked softly, "What is it?"
"Wait here for a moment." Annie turned around and went back to her bedroom. She opened the drawer and took out a bank card before handing it to Fiona.
"This is the dowry I saved up for you. Keep it with you always."
Women should have some private money of their own when they get married. Annie had divided her salary into several parts over the years: one part was returned to Brandon, another was kept as daily expenses, and this last part was saved up as Fiona's dowry.
Fiona was shocked when she saw the bank card. She thought that Annie wouldn't have much money left after paying off Brandon's debt. She even planned on giving more money to Annie, but she didn't expect that Annie would save up a dowry for her instead.
It must be because she lived frugally, saving every penny possible. That explained why she looked so thin; she must've endured many hardships to save this money. Fiona touched Annie's cheek gently and said, "You've suffered so much."
But Annie just smiled softly in response." I earn a high salary, and I don't spend much normally. So I can still save some money. This isn't much. Take it quickly."
Fiona pushed away the bank card handed by Annie." I can't take this. I'm older than you; you're my younger sister. It's only natural that an elder sister prepares a dowry for her younger sister. So how could my younger sister give me a dowry? That doesn't make sense."
Annie knew that Fiona wouldn't accept it but didn't insist anymore. Instead, she put the card directly into Fiona's suitcase.