Chapter 1 — After Divorce, I Counted 10 Years as a Nanny

When my brother-in-law pushed the transfer agreement towards me, my hands were still covered in oil from the plate of shrimp that had just been peeled.

"Sister-in-law, sign it. Next year Lac Lac enters elementary school, the school district will change the boy's name first. Anyway, you and my brother don't have any children, leaving it blank would be a waste."

The entire dining room immediately fell silent. Luu Que Phan's mother-in-law sat in the chair, holding a bowl of longevity noodles, leisurely blowing hot air.

"It's one family, why divide it so clearly? You've been married to the Chu family for ten years, so what's yours, isn't it also the Chu family's?"

I raised my head and looked at my husband Chu Minh Xuyen. Ten years of marriage, this was the first time I looked at him closely in front of so many people. He didn't look at me, just drank the entire cup of white wine, his voice full of annoyance.

"Mom is celebrating her birthday, don't cause trouble. Sign first, go home and talk."

I laughed. That smile even makes me feel strange. I wiped my hands clean, picked up the pen, turned to the last page, and asked softly.

“Chu Minh Xuyen, are you sure you want me to sign right now?”

Chu Minh Huy's brother-in-law immediately intervened.

"Sister-in-law, there's nothing I'm not sure about. You've been in the house for so many years, and everything is my brother's. The house is in everyone's name. Furthermore, when a woman gets married, she has to turn to her husband's family."

That one sentence was like tearing ten years of my life apart and placing it in the middle of the table. I got up at five o'clock in the morning to go to the market. In winter, my hands were soaked in cold water and turned red, but they couldn't see. For three years, my father-in-law was bedridden. I toss and turn to clean. I woke up every two hours at night. My back hurt so much that I had to sleep with my head held up. They couldn't see. My husband's brother and his wife sent their children over, I took care of the elderly, raised children, cooked, picked up and picked up, tutored, and even held parent-teacher conferences, but they still didn't see me. What they see is that I don't go to work, I just stay at home, it's just that I "pay and stay at the Chu family's expense". Chu Minh Xuyen finally looked up, his voice losing patience.

“Lam Van, you know how to handle it.”

I put down my pen, my smile faded.

“Knowing moderation?”

“Okay, my family can sign, but I have one condition.”

The mother-in-law immediately frowned.

“What conditions?”

I looked at the whole table, every word was clear.

“First, calculate clearly the ten years I worked as an unpaid nanny for the Chu family.”

Chu Minh Huy slammed the wine glass on the table.

"Sister-in-law, what do you mean? Even if you're a family member, you're still calculating? You really make people cold!"

I nodded.

"It's really cold-hearted. So today, I don't want to pretend anymore."

I stood up, took off my apron and threw it on the back of the chair.

"This house is the dowry my father bought for me before getting married, the documents are in my name Lam Van. Your child goes to school, what does it have to do with me?"

“As for Chu Minh Xuyen, I just said to go home, no need to go home anymore.”

“Let's talk now, does the Chu family really consider me a daughter-in-law, or a nanny?”

Everyone's faces changed. The mother-in-law was the first to lose her temper. She slammed her chopsticks on the table, her voice high-pitched.

“Lin Van, today you intentionally didn't let me celebrate my life in peace, right?”

"I've been married here for ten years, but I haven't been able to give birth to the Chu family. Isn't it natural for this family to raise me and live for me? Isn't it natural for me to serve my parents-in-law?"

"Now Minh Huy's son needs to go to school. He goes to a house and won't take it out. Are you still human?"

As soon as the words ended, the string tightened in my heart for ten years, it finally broke. I looked at her, her voice was terrifyingly calm.

“You don't give birth to children for the Chu family, for whom, don't you understand in your heart?”

Chu Minh Xuyen's face immediately sank. I didn't pay attention to him, just smiled slightly.

"Don't people always say that I stay at home and enjoy happiness? So from today onwards, whoever likes this blessing will enjoy it."

Having finished speaking, I picked up my bag and turned to walk away. At first there was a suffocating silence, followed immediately by the chaotic sound of chairs scraping against the floor. Chu Minh Xuyen chased after me, one hand grabbed my wrist, his face darkened.

"What are you crazy about? Come back to me quickly."

The force of his hand was very strong, squeezing so much that my bones ached. I lowered my head to look at his hand, suddenly remembering ten years ago, when we had just gotten married, he used to hold my hand while crossing the street, afraid I would get hit by a car. It turns out there are people who don't know how to treat you well. It's just that later, they no longer want it.

“Let go.”

“You must definitely follow me home today.”

“Let go.” I raised my head to look at him, "If not, I'll call the police immediately."

Perhaps the words "report to the police" made him calm down a bit, his hand paused, and finally let go. But right after that, he lowered his voice and gritted his teeth as he said every word.

"Lam Van, don't be unreasonable. I've been at home for ten years and haven't earned a penny. If I leave you, where can I go?"

That sentence was like a basin of cold water pouring straight from my head to my feet. I looked at him and suddenly burst into laughter.

"Chu Minh Xuyen, have you forgotten? For the past ten years, your mother's medicine money, your father's diaper money, your children's tuition money, many of the expenses were taken from the card my father left for me."

His eyes wavered slightly. I continued talking.

"Also, that house is mine. If I really have to leave this house, the one who has no place to go is not me."

He couldn't say anything more. I pushed his hand away, didn't turn around and walked down the stairs. That night, I did not return to the Chu family. I sat on a bench outside the apartment complex, the wind blowing for two hours, until I discovered my phone had run out of battery. The autumn wind crept into my collar, but I didn't feel cold. Perhaps my heart was so cold that the wind outside was no longer significant. After ten o'clock, Chu Minh Xuyen called me seventeen times. At eleven o'clock, my brother-in-law sent a voice message, and as soon as I opened it, he was cursing me.

"Lin Van, don't be unreasonable. Today my mother was celebrating her birthday because you made her so angry that her blood pressure increased. Hurry back and apologize, otherwise don't blame us for being rude."

After listening, I conveniently added it to the blacklist. At half past eleven, the mother-in-law personally sent a long text message.

"Women who live day-to-day, the biggest taboo is being too strong. You married into the Chu family for so many years, I still treat you as my own child. Today I told you to transfer the house to Lac Lac because of this house. Now you make such a fuss, the neighbors know, it's you who will lose face."

I stared at the sentence "treat your child as your own child", almost laughing out loud. Any family with a biological child who has a high fever in the middle of winter still has to get up and pack dumplings for the whole family. What family considers their biological child but the mother-in-law twists her leg and forces her to kneel down for half an hour of massage while complaining about her weak arm strength? In a house where the child is considered biological, the brother-in-law brings the child to stay for two months, then finally takes the child away It lasted for two years. Everything about eating, studying, and eating was thrown at me, while the child's biological mother only went online to complain that "being a mother is so hard." I turned off my phone, raised my head and looked up at the sky. It was pitch black, not a single star. Exactly like my ten years. Early the next morning, I went to the house my father left behind. The house is located in the old neighborhood, not big, two rooms and a living room, the furniture is also old, it was my father's lifetime savings to buy for me. On the wedding day, Chu Minh Xuyen did not pay a single dong as a bride price, but because he was clever and coaxing, he made my father very satisfied. Then my father held my hand and said.

"The house papers are in your name not to guard against anyone, but to give you a way out. When marriage is sweet, everyone says there's no need to distinguish between yours and yours, but when you turn around, the only thing that can protect you is yourself."

At that time, I still found him too realistic. Now that I think about it, older people see more clearly than anyone else.