No, actually I appreciate your cynicism. Many Asians are used to being pessimistic. Like you, I am also pretty cautious to stay away from other Thai women's gold-digging missions."I'm getting a decent amount of stable income via online work, and and making more than what more locals in my area make."
I don't tell her how much she makes. I don't tell ANYONE exactly how much I make. I guess she assumes I make maybe around as much as a local government school teacher and assumes I'm just an ordinary guy on a middle-class Thai-level salary. She is absolutely fine with no new car, no new condo.
Thai women think like that if they're constantly comparing themselves to their friends. My lady doesn't talk much to even her own friends and family (which I all know about), even if it's by social media. She's an introverted insular type. She doesn't care that much about what other people perceive to be face-saving status-raising material goods.
We're living very frugally like the locals. She tells me not to spend too much of my money and is the complete opposite of the kind of gold-digging women who tells me to endlessly spend.
Actions speak louder than words.
Of course I've told her that I am extremely aware of all the Thai lady scams out there, and that I will absolutely take none of that. She has seen others act like that, and told me that she just can't imagine acting like that herself.
Like I said, I personally would not trust the majority of Thai women either. The ones you can trust more are the deviant ones who don't totally fit in. My lady tends to have somewhat anti-social tendencies with the average local gossipy Thai woman. I'm the person she talks to most in any given day. Now try finding another Thai woman like that. Many other Thais will trust their circle of gossipy friends more than their foreign husband. It's obvious that many of these gossipy Thai female friends often like to share gold-digging tips and other strategies to con men. I ask my girlfriend what she talks about with her friends, and she is quite candid with what they tell her. Now many other Thai women don't want their foreign husbands to have anything to do with their close circle of gossipy friends, because that's their social safety net, so to speak.