Chapter 3 — My Sister-in-Law Is Not My Maid

I took a screenshot of the message and sent it to Gu Thanh Van. She replied immediately: Go consult your lawyer friend and find out what your exact ownership rights are regarding that house. Indeed. For that one-hundred-and-thirty-square-meter apartment, my parents contributed three hundred thousand to the down payment, and one hundred and fifty thousand came from my own savings. The monthly mortgage was eight thousand three hundred. Over five years of marriage, four thousand two hundred had been automatically deducted from my salary card every month. The property ownership certificate bore both of our names. I dug out the previous house purchase contracts and bank statements, took photos of them, and saved everything into an encrypted folder. That evening, I also did one more thing. I opened a job-hunting application and updated my resume. It was not because I genuinely wanted to jump ship at this exact moment, but rather to test my current market value. Within three days, direct messages arrived from six headhunters. Among them, one particular person caught my attention. A representative from the city's largest interior design firm, Jade Peace, personally reached out to ask if I would be interested in having a chat. I did not reply right away, but I saved the message. Retreat paths must be paved one step at a time. On the fifth day after Jade Moved into my home, my mother-in-law sent me a WeChat message.

Niem So, when are you coming back? Jade wants to eat the braised pork belly you make.

I stared at those words for ten seconds, then closed the chat box. She wanted to eat the braised pork belly I made. Three years ago, when I was pregnant and still boiling herbal soups, doing the laundry, and cleaning up after her, she had never once uttered a single word of appreciation. When I lay in a hospital bed following a miscarriage, she sat in my living room scrolling through short videos on her phone. Now, she wanted to eat the braised pork belly I made. I did not reply to this message, nor did I answer any of the subsequent texts sent by my mother-in-law. On Friday afternoon, after the company finished its monthly review meeting, the director asked me to stay behind.

Niem So, your state of mind hasn't been very good lately. Is something the matter?

I have some personal matters at home, but I am already handling them.

The director nodded.

Let me tell you something. Next month, there is an interior design bidding project for a large commercial complex, and the client specifically requested that you lead the design proposal.

Which project is it?

The Lang Dinh project in the eastern part of the city. One hundred and twenty thousand square meters, combining commercial spaces with a boutique hotel.

My heart skipped a beat. This was the largest commercial interior design project in the city this year.

I will take it.

The director smiled.

I knew you would. The client will come in on Monday for a preliminary discussion, so prepare yourself accordingly.

I returned to my desk, opened my computer, and created a new project folder. As I placed my hands on the keyboard, a sudden surge of clarity washed over me. Work belonged to me. Ability belonged to me. Money belonged to me. Whatever was happening inside that apartment had nothing to do with me. That evening, I went back to my small studio apartment, pulled a carton of milk from the refrigerator, sat down at my desk, and began researching the background materials for the Lang Dinh project. My phone chimed softly once. Tran Trac Vien sent a photo. It showed Jade sitting on the sofa in my living room cradling her pregnant belly, right next to my mother-in-law, who was grinning from ear to ear with her mouth wide open, while the coffee table was piled high with fruits and nutritional supplements. Attached was a text message: A real family should always be complete and together. When are you coming back? I turned the phone face down on the desk. A real family. In that house, there had never been a place for me. Three more days passed before I received an unexpected phone call. It was Tran Jade calling.

Sister-in-law.

Her voice sounded somewhat weak, considering her due date was fast approaching.

What is it?

Sister-in-law, are you angry with me?

I remained silent.

I know the last incident made you feel wronged, but I truly had no other choice. You know how Fang Chengyuan is—he doesn't care about household matters at all, and left all by myself...

Jade.

I interrupted her.

If your husband doesn't manage you, you can argue with him, throw tantrums at him, or divorce him. But you cannot keep intruding into my life over and over again.

The other end of the line fell silent for a moment.

Sister-in-law, I am not intruding...

You stayed in my house, used my belongings, let your mother order me around to wait on you, and I even lost a child because of you. What do you call this?

She said nothing. From the background of the other end, I heard my mother-in-law's voice echoing from afar:

Jade, who are you on the phone with?

Jade lowered her voice.

Sister-in-law, I really didn't mean to. This time I promise I won't cause you any trouble, please come back. My brother comes home with a terrible expression every single day, and he even smashes things around the house...

That is his problem, not mine.

I hung up the phone. After setting the device down, I noticed that my hands were completely steady. No trembling, no racing heartbeat, no lingering self-pity. There was only a very distinct, deeply calm realization. These people would never change. They would forever view my concessions as something owed to them, forever treating my boundaries as nonexistent. The only person who could ever change my situation was myself. That evening, I replied to the message from the representative at Jade Peace.

Would this weekend be convenient to talk?

The other party responded instantly: Saturday at three in the afternoon, at the Jade Peace headquarters. I will treat you to coffee. The offices of Jade Peace were located in the western creative industrial park of the city, housed entirely within a converted vintage industrial warehouse.