Chapter 8 — On my wedding night, I kicked my husband's entire family away

“Auntie always said I ruined her son.”

“But have you ever thought… your son became like this, not because I didn't marry him, but because you never taught him to become a person who can stand on his own.”

"Auntie taught him to listen to his mother, taught him to get married to support the whole family, taught him to believe that money, a house, even a woman's patience... are all natural things that must be given to you to use."

"Now that I'm leaving, it can't stand... it's not me who broke it, but auntie who failed to raise it."

Chu Tu Van opened his mouth, but couldn't say a word. Chu Tu Bach stood next to him, as if he had been slapped, his whole body stiffened. I suddenly felt tired. Even hatred... is lazy. Because for people like them, the cruelest revenge is not to continue to meddle... It's for me to completely withdraw, leaving them to face their own mess.

"Let's go." I tilted my head and said to Luc Dinh.

He nodded and opened the car door for me. In the background, there was still the sound of Chu Tu Van crying and cursing. But I didn't turn back. Not even once. That afternoon, I went to the hospital to pick up my father for a follow-up checkup. He recovered very well. The doctor said that as long as he took careful care, there would be no major problems. Mom held the results and smiled until her eyes curled up.

“Let's go home and eat hot pot tonight. Mom will go buy the beef you like.”

I laughed. A truly good life is not about marrying someone, nor about being patient to be a good bride. It's that my father can stand firmly in front of me, my mother keeps telling me not to stay up late... And I, in the end, don't need to look at anyone's face to live. Leaving the hospital, it was already dusk. The east wind blew, I pulled my scarf higher. Just as I was about to open the car door, there was suddenly a commotion downstairs. I raised my head to look. Chu Tu Bach... comes again. He stood under my house, carrying a bag of fruit, his nose red from the cold, clearly he had been waiting for a long time. Seeing me, he quickly walked over.

“Van Van, can we…”

I didn't even stop. He panicked, his voice hoarse:

"My mother is sick now, Minh Khai is done, my house is all in chaos. I really can't stand it anymore, I feel sorry for you a little..."

I paused for a moment. Love you? In my previous life, when I knelt in the hospital hallway and begged you to love my father, what did you say? He said his family was also difficult, said he had to take care of his younger brother first, and said I had to be reasonable. I slowly turned around and looked at his red eyes.

“Chu Tu Bach, do you know what I feel most fortunate about right now?”

He was stunned.

"I was most fortunate that on that wedding night, I was no longer soft-hearted. Because that kick not only kicked him out, but also saved me - the person who, for the sake of dignity, for marriage, for the sake of the sentence 'we are all one family', backed down time and time again."

Having finished speaking, I turned around and went upstairs. There is no more sound behind. Maybe he stood there dumbfounded, maybe he finally understood, but none of that mattered anymore. When we got home, mother was in the kitchen cutting food, father was sitting in the living room watching the news. The house is warm, filled with the smell of everyday life. I stood at the door for a while, my nose suddenly stinging. Mother turned around:

“What are you doing standing there? Wash your hands and eat.”

I smiled, replied, and just as I put my bag down, the doorbell rang. I went to open the door. Outside the door is Luc Dinh. He held a box of strawberries and a stack of documents he had just printed.

“Last time, you said you wanted to see the verdict, I'll take the opportunity bring it over.”

I raised my eyebrows:

“Convenient?”

His face did not change color:

“Very convenient.”

I laughed. Mom poked her head out from the kitchen, and when she saw him, she was immediately happy:

“Tieu Luc is here? Come in, come in and eat hot pot together!”

Dad also put down the remote, rarely smiling:

“Just add a pair of chopsticks.”

Luc Dinh looked at me questioningly. I leaned towards the door:

"Come in, consider the lawyer fee deducted in advance."

He smiled softly, changed his shoes and walked in. The hot pot quickly boiled, steam fogged the window glass, and the house was so warm that people did not want to leave. Mother constantly brought food to Luc Dinh, father rarely said much, asking him if he was busy with work, if he was tired from the case. I sat to the side and watched that scene, suddenly feeling a strange peace of mind. It wasn't a violent vibration, but after all, there was someone sitting with me under the light, eating a normal meal. After eating, my parents cleaned up in the kitchen, and I sent Luc Dinh downstairs. The night breeze is light, the tree shadows move. Going downstairs, he suddenly stopped:

“Where is the queue?”

I was stunned for a second then burst out laughing:

“See the expression.”

“So how many points do I have now?”

I tilted my head to look at him, deliberately observing for two seconds:

“That's enough to pass the class.”

He also smiled, then took out a small box from his pocket and gave it to me:

“What is it?”

“Open it and see.”

I opened it, inside was a small silver bookmark shaped like a high heel shoe, with the words engraved on the back: "The stone is beautiful." I couldn't help it, I laughed until my shoulders were shaking:

“Luc Dinh, you really remember it.”

“It's not a long memory.” He looked at me, his eyes deepened. “It's for celebration.”

Commemorate what? The memory of me finally being sober at the right time, the memory of me no longer giving myself to the wrong person, the memory of that seemingly disastrous wedding night was actually the most beautiful turn of my life. I held the bookmark tightly in my hand and looked up at him:

“Luc Dinh.”

“You don't have to wait in line for long.”

He paused, then his eyes gradually brightened. At that moment, under the dim light on the stairs, the wind was not strong, but something in my heart finally let go. Later, the Chu family came to cause trouble a few times. Chu Tu Van once stood downstairs cursing me cruelly, saying I ruined both of her children. I stood behind the window and watched her make a mess, but there were no more waves in my heart. It's not that I destroy them, it's that I'm no longer willing to stand up for them anymore. Chu Tu Bach also came once, standing far away, not daring to come closer. He looked several years older, as if his shell had been stripped away by life. I don't pay attention. There are people who don't have to say a word of regret to be able to come back. There are hurts that don't require an apology to deserve forgiveness. As for me, the most important thing in this life is no longer proving who is right or wrong, but reliving myself. I washed my wedding night outfit, folded it, and put it deep in the closet. Not to remember, but to remind. Reminding me that I almost lost myself, also reminding me that a woman doesn't have to wait until her wedding to start over. Sometimes, the real beginning is the moment you kick the wrong person out of your life. That night, as I lay in bed, my phone lit up. This is Luc Dinh's message:

“Are you free tomorrow? Take you to choose a new lock.”

I looked at that line for a long time, then smiled and answered with one word: Outside the window, pale moonlight, the wind passing by The tree canopy is very light. I closed my eyes and suddenly saw how beautiful this life is. Father still exists. Mom is still there. I still have it. As for the wedding night that I smashed with my own hands... I have no regrets. Because I get it—not every marriage is worth trying to keep, and not every exit is a failure. There are women whose whole lives begin from the worst night... when they saved themselves. And I… did it.