At two in the morning, my mother called me.
“Leigh, your sister just ate with a friend, and your brother-in-law insists on getting a divorce. You have to help her.”
Still half asleep, I forced my eyes open and said, “Mom, I bet my sister had fried rice in bed with that friend. She’s already been divorced nine times, every time for cheating. What man can handle that? I can’t help her.
The call ended, but less than five minutes later, the phone rang again.
“Your sister agreed to the divorce. She’s been so wronged. As her younger sister, send her a hundred thousand dollars to comfort her.”
My tired mind couldn’t even make sense of her words. I mumbled something like an agreement and hung up.
Not even half an hour later, the phone rang once more. “Leigh, your sister wants your husband now. You’re getting divorced tomorrow. She plans to marry Waylon Fisher.”
That woke me up completely. I laughed in anger. “Mom, that’s nonsense. Waylon has been my husband for three years. Our relationship is fine, and I just got pregnant. Divorce? Don’t even think about it!”
I thought that would be the end of it. Yet when I turned my phone on the next morning, the screen showed more than a hundred missed calls.
——
Realizing every one of them came from my mother, my heart dropped, and I quickly sat up in bed.
It made me think something awful had happened. In a rush, I called her right back.
“Mom, what—”
My mother’s cold laugh broke in before I could finish.
“Oh, still breathing, are you?”
“You couldn’t pick up the phone? Are you planning to drive me to my death?”
Once I heard her voice, strong and full of life, I finally relaxed and pressed my hand to my forehead.
“Mom, I have work early today. I turned off my phone last night. What’s so urgent?”
“Your sister is heartbroken from her divorce, and you dared to turn off your phone and sleep? Do you even have a heart?”
“Raising an ungrateful thing like you, I’d have been better off raising a dog. Over a hundred calls and not one answer. You think you’re important now? You think you can just ignore me?”
I let out a helpless breath. “Mom, I didn’t mean that. Reese’s divorce happened because she cheated. What does that have to do with me?”
That line seemed to hit her right in the chest. Her voice suddenly rose, loud enough to make my ears ache.
“How is it not your fault? You’re the bad luck that ruined this whole family! Your sister got divorced because of you!”
I froze for a couple of seconds.
That same tired feeling came over me again, and pain spread through my body.
Once again, it was all my fault. Everything was my fault.
Any time something made Reese upset, it became my fault.
When she left high school to be some man’s mistress and got beaten almost to death by his wife, it was my fault.
When she hung out with street kids, got drunk, raced cars, and had eight abortions, it was my fault.
After she grew up, she scammed her way through nine marriages, the shortest lasting less than a week, and every time she cheated and was caught, it was still my fault.
It felt like even my very existence, even my breathing, was a mistake.
After being shaped out of dirt for twenty-eight years, I finally couldn’t keep it in any longer.
“Mom, if you think I’m bad luck, then stop calling me. Just act like you only have one daughter….Reese.”
Right away, my mother’s voice went harsh.
“No! You’re my daughter! Why can’t I call you? You have to give me money, take me traveling, buy me gold and silver. And when I grow old, you’ll serve me day and night, handle everything I need. That’s your job as a bad luck, it’s your way to make up for your sins!”
I laughed out of anger. “I’m your daughter, fine, but isn’t my sister your daughter too?”
My mother spoke as if it were completely normal, “How could your sister be like you? She was born to live an easy life, and you were born to serve others.”
A tight knot rose in my throat. All that favoritism since childhood, I had never once been chosen.
By now, I should have been used to it, yet every time, my chest still hurt like it might burst.
Trying not to cry, I was just about to hang up.
Then my mother suddenly commanded, “Bring your ID and come to the City Hall right now.”
My eyelid moved. “What are you trying to do?”
“Are you stupid? Didn’t I tell you yesterday, you’re divorcing Waylon today? Your sister is going to marry him.”
I stood frozen in shock, my vision spinning. “Mom, have you lost your mind? Waylon is my husband! Just because Reese wants him, I have to give up my own marriage?”
“What are you screaming for?” Impatiently, she said, “Your sister is prettier and more capable. The fact that she likes your husband is good luck for you. She doesn’t even care that Waylon is secondhand after you’ve shared a bed with him for three years. What right do you have to yell? You’re just a small, low-class thing. You’ll never match your sister, you’ll never be presentable.”
My ears rang, and I yelled in anger, “I will never divorce him, not even if I die! And Waylon won’t either!”
“That might not be true!” My mother laughed proudly. “I already told Waylon that you were seen messing around in a hotel with five men last night. He’s heading back right now to divorce you. Just in time for him and your sister to get their marriage license.”
I could hardly believe what I was hearing; tears of rage ran down my face. “Mom, how can you accuse me like that?”
Coldly, she laughed. “If you refuse to divorce, I’ll show up at your job and tell everyone. I’ll post online that you abused and hit me. I’ll ruin your name until it stinks across the city, what people now call ‘social death.’ No company will ever take you again. You’ll end up begging on the streets.”
Before I had a chance to answer, she ended the call.
Quickly, I wiped away my tears, asked my boss for leave, and hurried to the City Hall by taxi.
While riding there, I called Waylon.
We were in the same company, though we worked in separate departments. He had been tied up with a big project recently, often working late and sleeping in the office so he wouldn’t disturb my rest.
When he heard my shaky voice, he spoke gently, “I’m already heading to the City Hall. Don’t worry, wait there for me.”
From our school days to our wedding, Waylon and I had always been together, our interests matched, and our bond grew.
Four years of dating and three years of marriage, we supported and understood one another.
Hearing his calm tone felt like a dose of comfort.
Not long after I ended the call, I reached the City Hall. From far away, my mother’s voice already echoed through the hall, bothering the staff nonstop.
“Aren’t you supposed to handle marriage problems for regular people? I already said it, my younger daughter cheated! She shamelessly messed around with a group of men! And you still refuse to process her divorce?”
“How long are you planning to delay this? Is it really that hard to press a few keys? Just divorce them already, my elder daughter is waiting to get her marriage license with my second son-in-law!”
Her loud words left every staff member frozen in shock.
Carefully, a young worker spoke, “Ma’am, this is a government office. We have to follow the rules. If one person isn’t here, we can’t handle a divorce.”
“How can you not? If your husband slept with several women, could you take it? I bet you’re just like my second daughter, itching to be handled by a bunch of men!”
The young woman’s face turned bright red with anger. “Ma’am, what kind of nonsense are you saying?”
“Am I saying something wrong? If you don’t feel the same as her, will you keep delaying and refusing to process the divorce?”
“At this moment, I command you, divorce my younger daughter and her husband, Waylon, at once, and then grant a marriage certificate to my elder daughter and Waylon. I give you five minutes.”
Every staff member’s expression went dark. “Ma’am, how can something as serious as marriage be decided by a few words from you? If you keep causing trouble, we’ll have to deal with this officially.”
On hearing that, my mother slapped her thigh and pretended to slide to the floor.
“I don’t care! If you people don’t listen to me today, I’ll make such a scene that your whole City Hall will be in chaos. If anyone dares to touch me, I’ll break my hands and legs, and you’ll be paying compensation until you go bankrupt!”
At the doorway, my knuckles went white. As I watched my mother make a scene and act shamelessly to force my divorce, a cold shiver ran from my head to my toes.
Feeling tired, I walked ahead. “Mom, stop it. That’s enough.”
As soon as she saw me, my mother jumped up, grabbed me hard, and said, “Good, you’re finally here! Tell them right now, you were cheap and fooled around with a bunch of men, and you demand a divorce right away.”
I pulled my hand loose, no longer able to take it. “I didn’t cheat! I will never divorce!”
Right after those words came out, my mother rushed forward and slapped me across the face. “You pretend to be pure after being dirty! You filthy slut! How did I ever give birth to such a shameless piece of garbage? Waylon belongs to your sister. Today, you’ll divorce him whether you agree or not!”
From nowhere, my sister suddenly ran out and yelled, “Leigh, I’ve told you again and again to value your marriage! Look at you! Having abortions eight times before marriage was bad enough, but even after getting married, you’re still so trashy! What man could take that? Hurry up and give Waylon to me, only a decent woman like me deserves him!”
Looking at their disgusting, well-practiced faces and hearing the whispers around me, anger made me laugh.
When Waylon and I got married, my mother and sister looked down on his poverty, chased him away with a broom, splashed him with cold water, and shouted at the door that he would stay a beggar forever.
Because we were poor, we had no wedding, no banquet, and my mother didn’t even give me a cent of dowry.
Now that he’s proven himself at work and become the deputy general manager of the company, they shamelessly want to take my husband.
When I stayed silent, my mother tried to hit me again, but before her hand could fall, someone caught her wrist.
As I lifted my head to see who it was, my eyes turned red in an instant.
Dark-faced, Waylon wrapped his arms around me. “Mom, Reese, out of respect for you being Leigh’s family, I’ve kept quiet until now. But you’ve crossed the line today, spreading lies to make us divorce is going too far. Let me say this clearly: I have only one wife, Leigh. Even if I die, I will never divorce her, and I will never marry Reese.”
Those watching who didn’t know what was going on suddenly figured everything out.
“I was thinking, what kind of mother would shame her own daughter in public and force her to divorce? Is that younger daughter even hers? She’s worth less than a cabbage in the field.”
“What’s even more insane is making her son-in-law marry the older daughter, and the two of them working together to throw dirt like that. One old shameless woman and one young shameless one, completely disgusting.”
My sister’s face went pale.
Even more furious, my mother yelled, “Waylon! Don’t be ungrateful! How can trash like Leigh ever compare to my Reese? Reese liking you is a miracle; you must’ve saved the world in a past life! If you don’t marry her, you’ll regret it for the rest of your life!”
Waylon covered my ears and guided me away.
Once we got home, he immediately said, “Wife, headquarters has already sent out my transfer notice. After I come back from a week-long business trip, we’ll move and leave this city.”
Through tears, I nodded.
After Waylon went on his trip, I knew my mother and sister wouldn’t stop. I just hadn’t expected them to be even more shameless than I imagined.
By the third morning, I was leading the early meeting when the office door suddenly burst open.
My mother and Reese charged in with a group of influencer-looking people and reporters holding cameras.
All my coworkers froze. My mother pointed at my face and began to cry and yell, “Shame to the family! Come look, my good daughter Leigh is a tramp and a slut! She not only took her sister’s man but, pregnant with who knows whose bastard, fooled around in hotels with a crowd of men!”
Holding a thick pile of indecent photos that were supposedly of me, she passed them out one by one to my shocked coworkers and managers.
“I think to myself, I’ve spoiled her like a treasure since she was small, I gave her everything she wanted, and look what I ended up raising, such a shameless bitch!”
Beating her chest, she acted like the heartbroken mother of a ruined daughter.
By her side, my sister wiped at her tears at the right moment and spoke soft words of comfort, playing the role of the caring older daughter.
Some coworkers didn’t believe it and stood up for me. “Manager Leigh is usually very proper. I don’t believe she’s that kind of person.”
Prepared in advance, my mother shouted even louder, “What do you know? Leigh has been divorced nine times and had eight abortions. She’s filthier than bugs in the sewer.”
“And your deputy general manager, Waylon, was once my older daughter’s husband. Leigh used to call him poor and look down on him. Now that he’s deputy general manager, she shamelessly crawled into bed with him. My poor older daughter, treated like this, but still thinking of her sister and not blaming her.”
“As a mother, I can’t take it. With morals that rotten, today she can steal her sister’s husband, and tomorrow she’ll seduce your husbands and boyfriends. Do you still want to work with her?”
Lowering her head in fake sadness, my sister wiped her eyes at all the right moments.
“Leigh, I’ve told you to value your marriage. Look at you, having eight abortions before marriage, and even after marrying, still so cheap. What man could stand that? Hurry up and give Waylon to me. Only a woman as good as me deserves him.”
Flashes went off wildly, shining right at my pale face. Coworkers looked at each other and quietly stepped away from me.
After all, nobody could believe a real mother and older sister would go crazy enough to publicly accuse their own daughter of sleeping with her sister’s husband.
But my mother and sister actually did it.
Standing there, I felt like a clown stripped bare in public, meeting everyone’s poisoned stares.
“I never imagined, Manager Leigh, you’d be that kind of person. You really can’t tell someone’s heart from their face.”
“Taking your sister’s man is disgusting enough, and now that you’ve got him, you still fool around. Just look at these photos, the content is so explicit that even porn sites would bow their heads.”
My boss’s face darkened with anger. “Leigh, this involves the company’s moral standards. Give me a reasonable explanation right now.”
My mother smirked. “Explain what? Fire her straight away, never take her back again.”
At the woman who had never shown me an ounce of family affection and only aimed to drain me dry, I stared hard. I bit my tongue until I tasted blood, holding back the disgust climbing up my throat.
Those were my family.
To force my divorce, they had used every way possible to ruin me, faking explicit photos, slandering, and spreading lies, afraid I might die too easily.
Luckily, after what happened at the City Hall, I was already ready for this.
Calmly, I lifted my phone in front of everyone. “I recorded everything you said earlier and called the police. I hope when we reach the station, your acting stays convincing.”
Frozen, my sister’s confident smile disappeared, and her lips shook with fear.
She had never imagined that after more than twenty years of being walked all over, the one she always pushed down would finally fight back.
My mother gripped her shaking hand to keep her steady, her eyes wide with rage.
“Leigh, you dare call the police on your own mother? You heartless brat with no conscience! Aren’t you afraid lightning will strike you?”
“If I’d known I’d give birth to garbage like you, I should’ve killed you the day you were born!”
Ignoring her hateful shouting behind me, I walked quickly out of the office.
Because the police got involved, I soon proved I was innocent. For three days, my mother and sister were held in custody.
Three days passed, and my mother called me.
For the first time, her tone softened. Sounding hoarse, she said, “Leigh, after staying in there for three days, I realized you’re the only one who honestly cares about me. Your sister kept calling me useless and yelling at me for being old. I actually feel bad for you.”
I felt nothing. “What do you want to say?”
“I cooked a few of your favorite dishes and want to apologize to you in person.”
“I’m not going.”
My mother instantly began crying. “I know I’ve done awful things, and you’ll never forgive me. I’ll just go die then, throw myself in front of your father’s grave!”
“Stop.” I took a deep breath. “I’ll come. Don’t talk about Dad again.”
My father had been the only one who treated me kindly, and even after his death, I didn’t want him disturbed.
When I arrived home, my mother acted overly warm, placing food into my bowl and pouring a drink. Staying alert, I only began eating after watching her take a bite first.
Halfway through the meal, my throat suddenly started to itch, my arms and legs went weak and numb, and I fell to the ground.
In disbelief, I glanced at my mother.
Standing up, she lost the kind look on her face and kicked me twice in the stomach.
“You worthless thing! You dare call the police on me? Think you’re untouchable now? Luckily, I found your old medical files; you’re allergic to peanuts. I only added a bit of peanut powder to your food.”
My face burned red as I grabbed at my tightening throat, gasping for air.
My sister had been sitting on the couch cracking sunflower seeds, but she stood with an evil grin, clapped her hands, and opened the door.
A bald, heavy man around fifty walked in. Rubbing his hands together, he let his cloudy eyes move over me like he was pricing something for sale.
Cold sweat covered my whole body as my eyes went wide.
“She’s really pregnant? If she’s not, I don’t want her.”
My sister laughed. “Baldwin, I already took fifty thousand from you. You think I’d lie? She’s really pregnant, three months along. I just have one rule: make sure the video and photos are clear.”
“No problem.”
My sister crouched beside me, patted my sweaty face, and said with a smirk, “Since you claimed the pictures were fake, I’ll take plenty of real ones. I’ll even record a clear video for Waylon. Let’s see if he’ll still want you once you’re ruined.”
My eyes turned red, and the pain of choking made my voice rough. “Why? I’m your sister…”
My sister gave a cold laugh. “You were born to be under my feet. Any man I want, if I can’t have him, then you can’t either. You think you deserve a better life than me? Don’t make me laugh.”
Gasping for air, I turned to grab my mother’s sleeve, but she instantly stepped back, her eyes darting aside with clear guilt.
“Your sister is right. If you had agreed to the divorce like we asked, would any of this be happening? Baldwin is a man your sister and I chose carefully for you. He may be older, but after three marriages, he knows how to treat a woman well. He doesn’t even care that you’ve been married before. He also paid a five-hundred-dollar bride price. After tonight, you’ll marry him and have a decent life.”
My heart sank into a cold darkness. When I tried to stand, my legs gave way, and I hit the corner of the table.
The man’s rough, hard hand caught my ankle and pulled me impatiently toward the room where the camera was already in place.
My sight turned hazy, shame and hopelessness wetting my face with tears.
Right before I blacked out, the front door suddenly flew open.
A familiar figure came rushing in with the police.
“Police! Don’t move!”
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