Chapter 2

After the wedding, the three of us returned to our new home.

Yes, three of us - me, Jack, and my mother-in-law.

In my previous life, Jack and I had planned to buy a house for his mother in the countryside.

But after seeing our new apartment, she changed her mind and insisted on living with us.

The apartment my parents gave me as a wedding gift was a large luxury flat, more than spacious enough for three people.

Unable to withstand my mother-in-law's fuss, I agreed to let her stay.

But that decision nearly drove me to depression.

She was incredibly petty, raising her voice to argue with me over the slightest things.

Whenever I talked back, she would throw tantrums, using every underhanded trick in the book.

She even spread rumors in the neighborhood that I was a terrible daughter-in-law, making it impossible for me to show my face in the community chat group.

Finally, unable to bear it any longer, I moved with Jack to the smaller apartment he had bought with his own money.

Now that I think about it, I was such a fool.

This was clearly a scheme cooked up by mother and son, forcing me to live in a small apartment where I would be cheated on, while my mother-in-law enjoyed the spacious flat.

This time around, I planned to deal with my mother-in-law first.

"Mother, I've been thinking about what you said before. You're absolutely right - we shouldn't let outsiders benefit from our resources," I said sweetly.

"From now on, I'll give you the money we would have spent on a housekeeper, plus some extra for household expenses. You can manage everything."

My mother-in-law agreed joyfully, even praising me for being good with money.

I smiled coldly inside, waiting for her to make a mess of things.

On my mother-in-law's first day in charge:

For breakfast, lunch, and dinner, the meals were far from what I had requested.

Breakfast: soy milk and fried dough sticks. I said nothing.

Lunch: noodles with sauce. I remained silent.

Dinner: plain porridge with pickled vegetables. Still, I kept quiet.

The next morning, the cycle repeated.

Breakfast: again, soy milk and fried dough sticks, even less than yesterday.

I stood at the dining table, looking coldly at my mother-in-law. "Don't you think you owe me an explanation?"

Feeling emboldened by Jack's presence, my mother-in-law didn't even bother to feign embarrassment. She was brazenly self-righteous.

"Soy milk and fried dough sticks are good enough for breakfast. All that fancy stuff you told me about, I can't remember it all."

"Back when Jack and I were poor, we ate even worse than this. People should learn to be content."

Ignoring her, I turned to Jack. "Jack, is your mother suggesting that I should suffer along with you? Is that it?"

"I married you, and I can't even have a decent meal. Is that what you're saying?"

Jack looked uncomfortable and was about to explain when his mother cut him off sharply.

"You're just a spoiled princess! What's wrong with soy milk and fried dough sticks? Didn't you eat them yesterday? Did they poison you?"

This time, I didn't let Jack speak either. "Fine, I can eat it. But since we're cutting back on expenses, give me back the extra money for groceries."

At the mention of money, my mother-in-law jumped as if stung, her eyes bulging. "With transportation and labor costs, there's no extra money!"

I crossed my arms and stared at her directly, spelling it out clearly. "Transportation doesn't cost that much, and labor is your salary, which isn't included. If every meal is going to be at the level of soy milk and fried dough sticks, you need to return at least $700 to me."

As my mother-in-law tried to argue, Jack suddenly interrupted loudly, "Mom! Listen to Lily."

Jack didn't understand his mother as well as I did. To her, money was more important than her son's words. She couldn't hear a thing he said.

Sure enough, my mother-in-law burst into tears, pointing at us and shouting.

"I've never seen such a daughter-in-law, demanding money from her elders! The woman you married is too much, and now even the son I raised with my own hands doesn't side with his old mother. What a disgrace to the family!"

She waved her arms wildly, crying and complaining as if we had committed some terrible crime.

As this farce unfolded, I went to our room to get my bag.

Jack stopped me. "Lily, where are you going?"

"Home," I replied.

"This is your home," he insisted.

I laughed coldly, giving him a wordless look, then glancing at the old woman who was still wailing nonstop.

Jack couldn't withstand my mocking gaze and let go of me helplessly.

Before leaving, I sneaked a glance at my mother-in-law on the floor. Beneath her fake crying, I caught a glimpse of a sly, satisfied smile.

Hah, laugh while you can. Your time for real tears will come.