"That's your mom. She spread rumors about me! What kind of mother-in-law is she? What's wrong with eating a piece of meat? Do I have to get down on my knees to apologize to her? I'm getting a divorce today!"
Jackie's face darken, "Lilian, have some conscience. I fell for you and married you because you and I get along, and we have similar lifestyles. Even though you ate an extra piece of meat today because you were greedy, I wasn't really angry. I just wanted you to give Mom a way out by taking the initiative to cover her living expenses for a month to calm her down. Is that a really unreasonable request?"
Looking at Jackie's slightly red eyes, I was furious. Unexpectedly, my mother-in-law got angry.
She screamed at the top of her lungs, "Is one month's living expenses enough for you? Lilian, you have to pay for all this year's living expenses and mortgage. And you have to buy me a house."
I stared at my mother-in-law in disbelief.
She didn't care at all. Instead, she spoke confidently, "Ever since you gave birth to a useless girl, not only does my son have to raise another useless thing, but he also has less money to spend. It's all been squandered by you two."
"My son originally promised to buy me a retirement home, but now, you've spent it all! You should give me some compensation!" she shouted again and again.
I just found it ridiculous. Having a child was clearly a joint decision, as was raising one. We signed the AA marriage agreement at the City Hall. We both had the AA spending system ingrained in our minds.
When did I ever spend more of her son's money? Originally, our family's monthly living expenses were only 500 dollars. But since her arrival, she's been constantly playing tricks.
She'd often buy seafood and durian without my knowledge. She'd frequently go out to restaurants under the pretext of taking care of the kids, and she'd always watch those deceptive live streams and buy useless health supplements for the family.
Our family's living expenses have skyrocketed from 500 dollars to 1000 dollars. The monthly mortgage is still 500 dollars, and Jackie only earned 700 dollars a month. His income wasn't enough to support us in the first place, and for years, I've been the one paying the most.
Now, my mother-in-law wanted me to support the entire family alone. And she was even using my savings to buy her an apartment. She seemed crazy! Jackie actually wanted to keep things quiet.
He pulled me aside and, in a low voice, advised me, "Lilian, you know, my mom originally came to the city so she could provide for my retirement. Don't get angry, listen to me. I've already gone house hunting with her. A small apartment isn't expensive, only a few hundred thousand."
Jackie smiled at me, as if I understood, "Didn't you just get a 3000 dollars year-end bonus this year? It'll be enough to make up for it. It sounds nice to say this house is for Mom's retirement, but won't I inherit it after I buy it? What's the difference between that and not spending any money?"
"Just agree to Mom's request. A harmonious family brings prosperity!" He said as he held my hand. I was completely shocked by his shamelessness.
"Not spending any money?" I slapped his hand away.
"Since you didn't spend any money, why don't you buy your own mom a house? It's all our money anyway, it's the same as if we didn't spend any money at all."
Jackie was a little furious, "Here you go again, and you’re going after me! How much do I make? If you hadn't been so greedy and insisted on having that extra piece of meat, Mom wouldn't have been so angry, you know?"
