Love vs status and money

When I have just moved to UK in 2006 my friend and I had a conversation in an Italian cafe in Leicester Square about staying in the UK. She was also Russian and she mentioned that she would even marry a random person for passport. I told I her I wouldn't do that because I take marriage seriously and I just don't see the point of it without love. I would rather obtain status and money through hard work, but marriage has to be a manifestation of love, infinite sexual attraction and relationship with your best friend for me. I am not no goody two shoes or a preacher of "no sex before marriage", life is an experience and it is different for everyone, restricted or freed by certain religious, spiritual views, morals or lack of thereof etc.  I just think that whatever you do before marriage is accountable to personal choices and even making certain mistakes, but marriage itself carries for me hope for eternal love, that is a magnetic force and has nothing to do with monetary values or status. When I was unlawfully detained while pregnant with my daughter fighting for my political asylum case, three men including my ex phoned me and offered to marry them for passport thinking they could have saved my situation with that and I turned them down. I did it consciously and even had a long argument with one of those men on the phone, when I told him I won't do it without love, he laughed and said he thought I was delusional without wishing me the best, guess he was hurt I didn't take the business deal. I took the hard way of proving my refugee status for the following two years, while being a single mother, but I won my case, I am independent and I am not tied to no one without love, unconditional love, even if the condition was British passport and financial stability. I chose to fight for my case until I won and wait for the best marriage I can have for LOVE.