My Sister-in-law Forced Me to Drink Wild Mushroom Soup

Part 1

Summer vacation was approaching. After the high school entrance exams, my sister-in-law went viral because of her instagram video about picking wild mushrooms.

The video gained a lot of attention. She suggested that the whole family take a trip out of the province to go mushroom picking.

I tried to warn them. “There are many kinds of wild mushrooms, even locals can’t always tell which ones are poisonous. For outsiders like us, it’s easy to make a deadly mistake.”

My in-laws twisted my warning into something cruel, accusing me of cursing her out of jealousy and the trip went ahead anyway

On the day of the trip, someone slipped poisonous mushrooms into our meal. I remembered the taste, the burning in my throat and the foam at my mouth. By the time the ambulance arrived, it was too late. They all blamed me. My husband even testified, claiming they had warned me, saying it was my own stubbornness that caused it.

I died from the poisoning—angry, confused, knowing someone had set me up. As everything faded to black, I saw a light. Reaching for it, I opened my eyes... back on the day my sister-in-law first mentioned the mushroom-picking trip. This time, I smiled and agreed.

“Wild mushrooms are full of nutrients. It’ll be a perfect brain boost for her after those exams.”

My head was still spinning. The memory of my stomach churning and throat tightening from the poisonous mushrooms hadn’t completely faded. My sister-in-law, lounging on the couch, snapped me back to the present by tossing a slipper at me.

“Are you even listening? You’re slow to respond—typical for someone without much education.”

I glanced at the slipper in my hand and realized I wasn’t in hiking gear but in an apron and plastic gloves. My body didn’t ache and there were no needle-like pains from the toxins. Yet the memory of that awful smell made me dry heave. That physical reaction, combined with everything else, made it clear: I got my second chance as I had been reborn.

***

My dry heaving alarmed everyone. My mother-in-law rushed forward. “Sarah, are you pregnant?”

My husband chimed in. “Should we go to the hospital? If you are pregnant, climbing up mountains for mushrooms isn’t a good idea.”

My mother-in-law nodded. “Exactly. This is your first child—you should be careful. You can’t go climbing if you're expecting.”

My sister-in-law’s face turned red with anger. Before I could explain, she jumped up, smashed a glass on the floor and yelled, “Married for three years and no baby, but now, as soon as I suggest a trip, you suddenly get pregnant? You’re just trying to spoil my fun because you’re jealous I got into college! You don’t want me to become a video star because then I’d overshadow you huh?”

In my previous life, I’d tried to stop her from going on that trip too.

Growing up in the mountains, I had seen too many locals fall victim to poisonous mushrooms, sometimes with fatal consequences.

But in my past live, my mother-in-law had accused me of cursing her daughter

“You’re worse than the deadliest mushroom! My daughter just finished her exams and you have the nerve to curse her like that because you’re jealous she’s going to college.”

My father-in-law slapped me so hard my eardrum ruptured, while my husband stayed silent. Instead of taking me to the hospital, they hurriedly packed the next day and dragged me along up the mountain.

But now in this lifetime, I smiled at them all and said gently, “It’s fine, we’ve already booked the flights. We’ll handle the baby stuff when we get back. We can’t make my sister-in-law miss out just because of me. She’s at her peak right now—she’s the princess of this family. Plus, wild mushrooms are incredibly nutritious and after all those exams, she could use a brain boost. The baby will rely on their aunt to be strong.”

My sister-in-law beamed with satisfaction at my support, immediately pulling everyone to pack for the trip. I smiled the entire time, giving my husband a look that assured him I was on board.