A mother-in-law screamed insults at her daughter-in-law, accusing her of being a tycoon’s mistress, only to collapse in stunned silence upon learning that the arrangement had been forced by her own son
PART 1: CURSES BENEATH THE LEVEL-FOUR VERANDA
In a poor city, where winding alleys year after year sank in the musty smell of dampness and hardship, that small family had once lived in a numb sort of tranquility. The husband was a gentle manual laborer carrying a frail body, year-round struggling against the agonizing pain of a critical illness hidden deep within his chest. The daughter-in-law worked odd jobs day by day, bearing the weight of a tattered roof and a young son growing up.
Then, a sudden storm struck when medical treatment costs skyrocketed to a colossal sum beyond the reach of anyone in this poor neighborhood. In the darkest days, when the husband’s life was down to days, the daughter-in-law suddenly changed. She began to be absent from home frequently, donning luxurious outfits, stepping down from expensive cars driven by a notorious tycoon of this region.
Nonsensical rumors quickly spread through every alley. The mother-in-law shifted rapidly from skepticism to extreme fury. In the eyes of the elderly woman, the daughter-in-law she once cherished now transformed into an ungrateful wretch willing to trample on family morals to chase after wealth and glory, abandoning the husband wasting away awaiting death on a rotted bamboo bed and their innocent child.
The anger erupted on a sultry afternoon. When the luxury car pulled up right at the alley entrance and the daughter-in-law stepped out, the mother-in-law rushed out in broad daylight, pointing straight at her face and screaming, tears streaming down in humiliation:
“You promiscuous, ungrateful woman! My family is poor, but we aren’t shameless. You lived with him for years, and now that he’s dying, you take this defiled body to follow rich men for wealth! You aren’t worthy of being a wife, let alone a mother to my grandson! Get out of this house right now!”
The whole poor neighborhood gathered to watch, contemptuous gazes and whispered gossips pointing straight at the daughter-in-law. She stood frozen, without a single explanation, her spine curved beneath the desolate evening breeze.
PART 2: THE CURTAIN OF TRUTH TORN APART
The daughter-in-law did not cry. She slowly bent down to pick up her handbag knocked away by the mother-in-law onto the muddy ground. The contents inside scattered, and amidst that mess was a thick dossier carefully clipped with an old rubber band.
Not letting the mother-in-law manage to hurl further scolding remarks, she slowly pulled out a health examination paper with the glaring red seal of the central hospital, along with a civil agreement contract signed with a bloody thumbprint.
The moment the mother-in-law glanced at the numbers and bold letters on the paper, her complexion shifted from anger to pale gray, then turned completely white without a drop of blood.
THE MOST CLIMACTIC PART OF THE STORY – PAUSED TO READ MORE IN THE COMMENTS
The atmosphere around the poor neighborhood suddenly froze in a leadenly heavy silence. The daughter-in-law raised her head, the corners of her lips stained with blood from biting hard, and delivered a hoarse, choking voice that echoed sharply into the mother-in-law’s soul:
“You only smell money and betrayal, but have you ever wondered why he is still breathing today? Over all these years, the so-called ‘luxurious appearance’ or my late-night absences were actually me having to kneel at the feet of that tycoon, accepting to be a shadow mistress just to trade for every dialysis fund to save my husband! This contract… was written and begged for by your own beloved son, who would rather watch his wife suffer humiliation than leave behind his mother and innocent orphan son!”
The mother-in-law staggered backward, her trembling hands dropping the dossier into the mud. She clutched her chest, gaping without being able to utter a word as the ruthless, bitter truth began to devour her inner soul…
