Chapter 14 — Mother's Boundaries

"If mother really goes to Thanh Hoa unit to cause trouble, things will be completely unfixable." "Aren't you heartbroken for mother?" "Then don't push her forward anymore." Luc Giai Giai shouted: "You pushed mother?" "Brother, now because of your sister-in-law, you blame me too?" Luc Minh Vien closed his eyes. "I don't blame you." "I'm telling you, stop cutting and editing videos, don't send those half-hearted words anymore." "Isn't that right, my sister-in-law?" There is evidence." "She just hasn't done anything completely." I sat on the sofa, raised my head and looked at him. This is the first time I heard this sentence from Luc Minh Vien's mouth. He finally admitted that it wasn't me who broke off the relationship first. Luc Giai Giai on the other end of the line laughed coldly. "Okay." "My husband and I agree." "A sister like you is redundant." "If something happens to your mother, don't regret it." The phone hung up. Luc Minh Vien stood in place, his face full of fatigue. I don't comfort you. Because your current discomfort is far less than the cold feeling I felt when I heard those words during the month of quarantine. At ten o'clock at night, it was his turn to take care of An An. He changed diapers, mixed formula, burped. Movements are still clumsy. The milk powder spilled a little, the diaper was askew once. But he didn't call me, nor my mother. At half past one in the morning, An An cried violently. Luc Minh Vien hugged her and walked back and forth in the living room, her forehead sweating. I heard movement, waited for a few minutes, still stood up and walked to the door. When he saw me, the first sentence was not resentment. He said: "Did you burp it wrong?" I walked over and adjusted An An's posture a bit. "Hands a little steadier." He followed. An An slowly stopped crying. Luc Minh Vien lowered his head to look at her, his eyes were very complicated. "Before, I really didn't know how difficult it was to take care of a child." I said faintly: "It's not that I don't know." "It's that I've never done it." He didn't refute. At six o'clock in the morning, not long after I fell asleep, my phone suddenly vibrated. A colleague of mine sent a text message. "Thanh Hoa, is your mother-in-law's family name Ma?" I immediately woke up. A colleague quickly sent another photo. In the photo, Ma Phuong Lan is sitting in the lobby on the first floor of my company. Next to it put a luggage bag. In her hand she held up a piece of paper. On the paper was written a line of large letters. "Unfilial daughter-in-law, please ask the unit to come forward and demand justice." I stared at that photo, my fingertips getting cold little by little. Luc Minh Vien also woke up. After seeing the screen, his face immediately turned pale. The next second, my leader called. 14The leader's phone rang three times before I answered the phone. I tried to keep my voice steady. "Director, sorry, I have disturbed the unit." The voice on the other end of the line was also moderate. "Thanh Hoa, don't rush." "Your mother-in-law is in the lobby, the receptionist has invited her into the reception room." "She was quite agitated, saying she wanted to see me." I closed my eyes. "I will handle it right away." The director paused for a moment. "Haven't you just recovered?" "Don't bring your child here." "If If necessary, I will let my administrative colleague stabilize her first." My heart felt sour. "Thank you, director." After hanging up the phone, Luc Minh Vien began to change clothes. His voice was tense. "I'm leaving." I looked at him. "What did you say when you left?" "Say she didn't mean that?" His movements stopped. "No." He raised his head to look at me, his eyes filled with blood. "This time I'm going to take her home." I asked: "Did you take her home?" He couldn't answer. I spoke for him. "Then she closed the door and cried." "She said she felt sorry for herself." "You said she was old." "Finally, he told me to stop leaving." Luc Minh Vien's face turned white little by little. I picked up the phone. "I'll go too." My mother immediately said: "No, you just finished your period." I said: “Mom, I'm not taking An An away.” “Mom, I'm at home

Look after me." "I'll go handle my own work." Luc Minh Vien said in a low voice: "I'll go with you." I looked at him. "Not with you." "I'm going to deal with what my mother caused." He nodded. "Okay." I changed into loose clothes and a scarf. Before I go out, I back up all my screenshots, camera videos, and chat notes to email. My mother stuffed a thermos for me. Her eyes were a little red, but she didn't stop. "Don't be afraid." I said: "I'm not afraid." But after getting in the car, my hands were still cold. It's not because Ma Phuong Lan caused chaos. But I suddenly realized that if a woman doesn't have any evidence, doesn't have the support of her mother's family, and doesn't have a sober unit leader, what kind of shape will she be forced into by this kind of housework? The car drove to the company, it was after eight o'clock. Right on rush hour to work. There were quite a few people gathered outside in the lobby. Ma Phuong Lan sat in the reception room, the door was not closed tightly. Her voice carried outside. "I didn't come to cause trouble." "I have no choice." "My daughter-in-law relied on her mother's family to have money, considering a mother-in-law like me an outsider." "I didn't invite me to her first month party, and the door didn't let me in." "I was so angry that I went to the hospital, and she didn't even come to look at me."