When my husband’s mistress showed up, pregnant and demanding, I actually sighed in relief. No one knew how long I’d been waiting for this exact moment. The woman looked at me with open disdain. “Daniel’s heart belongs to—” I cut her off swiftly. “To you, I know.” The very next second, I pushed the wheelchair from behind me. “So, this old lady is all yours now.” The woman’s face instantly went pale. “No! That’s impossible, Daniel told me his mom died ages ago!” I waved my hand dismissively.”You misunderstood. This isn’t his mother. This is his father’s former mistress.” The woman was completely stumped. “You… are you out of your mind? His father’s mistress? What does that have to do with you?” I nodded in agreement. “Nothing at all, but she’s got everything to do with you now.” Then I pulled out the divorce papers and shoved them right into her shirt collar. “From now on, you’re responsible for this woman’s medical bills, her nurse’s fees, her living expenses. Oh, and a little extra, you’ll be covering my and Lily’s support too.” With that, I quickly dragged my suitcase and strode toward the door. A heavily pregnant woman simply had no time to react. Ever since I found out about her, I’d been plotting how to turn the tables. Assets? No, Daniel had transferred most of his wealth a long time ago. Guilt? No, a man with no morals feels no remorse. “You stop right there! His father’s mistress… why are you dumping her on me?” “Because Daniel loves you! You’ve successfully climbed to the top, so you’re the lady of this house now!” Bang! The door slammed shut with a resounding thud. I let out a long, heavy breath. This security door required a fingerprint to unlock, both from the inside and the outside. So, she wasn’t getting out. She wanted to force her way in and take over, right? Well, she could skip the forcing part. She was already in. My phone rang just as I stepped into the elevator. It was Daniel. I quickened my pace. After all, I’d messed with his precious little thing. He wouldn’t let this go easily. He’d called over thirty times, but I ignored every single one. Texts immediately flooded in: “Get home within half an hour and give me a proper explanation!” Explanation? “Nothing to explain. What goes around comes around, right? And hey, a stepmom is still a mom! So, let your precious mistress take good care of your daddy’s mistress. What a heartwarming family saga that’ll be for everyone to hear!” When we got married, Daniel told me he had a terribly unhappy childhood. His father’s mistress moved right into their home when Daniel was fifteen, driving his biological mother to her death. He hated that scumbag father and that conniving woman with a burning passion. But fate has a twisted sense of humor. Less than two years later, his good-for-nothing dad died suddenly from a drunken heart attack. And that stepmom, who had sworn she’d take care of Daniel, ran off overnight with every penny the family owned. She only left behind a historic family estate that had belonged to his biological mother. I thought my love could heal the scars of his childhood. But only now did I understand. He’d become just like his father. “Bullshit! What does this have to do with Chloe? Why should she have to take care of that btch?” Daniel’s rage practically dripped from every word. I quickly typed back: “Because she loves you. Because she’s your soulmate. Because she isn’t after your money and just wants to build a life with you.” If she loved him that much, what was a little sacrifice? I once tearfully asked him why, despite hating scumbags so much, he was following in his father’s footsteps. He was silent for a long time before giving me a truly gut-wrenching answer: “You’re great, Grace, but Chloe makes my heart race. When I’m with her, every struggle feels meaningful. I finally understand now, you can’t force feelings. I… I finally understand my father.” I looked at his shameless face and felt a wave of blackness wash over me. He said he understood his father. Understood the irresistible pull of “true love.” Yet he forgot his mother, who jumped to her death. Of course. Sons can never truly empathize with their mothers. But they’ll always find a way to excuse their fathers’ sins. Since you understand your father so well, Daniel, then let me make you relive those pains you conveniently forgot.
Daniel ran a small company. As for his income, I honestly had no idea. For the first few years of our marriage, he deposited a fixed amount for household expenses each month. But ever since Chloe, his mistress, started working for him, Daniel changed completely. He constantly complained about the company’s poor performance. So, he mortgaged this pre-marital historic estate for $400,000 in cash. And I became the guarantor. Later, things only got worse. He stopped giving me a single cent for household expenses, claiming the business was struggling. Yet, Chloe was always impeccably dressed in designer clothes, radiating affluence. Only Lily and I were his old world, slowly being abandoned. I couldn’t just sit back and do nothing. Otherwise, one day, Lily and I would surely be thrown out. A plan began to form in my mind. The process was smoother than I’d imagined. Daniel’s father and Martha hadn’t actually divorced. After much searching, I finally tracked down Daniel’s father’s former mistress. When I actually met her, I was still taken aback. She was covered in unexplained scars and was frightfully thin. Her medical report listed various infectious and chronic diseases, including late-stage syphilis. It seemed that life after running off with the family’s money hadn’t been so sweet for her either. She scrutinized me, a hint of calculation in her murky eyes.”You… you’re Daniel’s wife?” I didn’t answer. For women like her, I felt nothing but visceral hatred. Legally, she was Daniel’s stepmother. In terms of marriage, she was his father’s spouse. So, after local social services had tried contacting Daniel multiple times without success, they sent the old woman right to his doorstep. I processed the paperwork as quickly as possible. Once inside the house, her cloudy eyes instantly lit up. She quickly pushed her wheelchair around, surveying everything in the house. It was as if she was already prepared to be the new lady of the house. However, she didn’t know Daniel hadn’t stepped foot in this house for over six months. But I still took excellent care of her, raising money for her medical treatment. After all, the best way to punish a mistress is to make her suffer the consequences of her own actions. She thought she was coming to claim her spot. She didn’t realize she was just there to take over my mess.
I pulled out my phone and opened the home surveillance app. Daniel was back. He looked completely bewildered by the scene before him. Chloe, heavily pregnant, was weeping in his arms. And Martha in the wheelchair was groaning incessantly, clutching the armrest. Daniel, meanwhile, was continuously pinching the bridge of his nose. Soon, a second message popped up: “Grace, don’t think bringing this woman back will give you leverage over me. Get rid of those stupid ideas of yours. I was going to give you more compensation, but now, I see no need.” A slight smile played on my lips. “You’re overthinking it. We can talk about compensation later. For now, settle the medical and nurse fees that woman owes. All the detailed breakdowns are attached to the divorce papers.” Through the monitor, Daniel slowly flipped through the stack of documents. His expression gradually twisted into a grotesque mask of fury. “Late-stage syphilis?” “Ah—!” Chloe instantly sprang to her feet. “What did you say? Who has late-stage syphilis?” Yes. That was the real reason local social services had delivered his father’s old mistress to our door. Nursing homes wouldn’t take her, hospitals wouldn’t keep her, and out of eight nannies, nine bolted. The only remaining option was for family members to personally care for her. So, I was even more eager for this day to come than Chloe. “All expenses related to your mother during this period were personal loans. A total of $25,000. Please settle it as soon as possible.” On the screen, Daniel kicked over the coffee table. Amidst the shattering glass, both women shrieked in unison. The woman in the wheelchair shuddered, and a puddle of waste dripped down her leg. No one dared to approach her. The pregnant Chloe, catching a whiff of the smell, immediately threw up… Moments later, she grabbed her bag and fled. Daniel followed closely behind. I kept my eyes on the woman in the wheelchair. Sure enough, she shakily pulled out her phone. The people from social services had carefully instructed her. If her children refused to support her, she could call the police. The police would charge Daniel with abandonment. So, during this time, the threats I heard most often were hers: “If you don’t give me imported medicine, I’ll report you!” “If you don’t hire me a nurse, I’ll report you!” “If you don’t make me delicious meals, I’ll report you!” For the sake of today’s show, I had been utterly compliant with her every whim. The tonics in her bowl, the gold jewelry on her body, all inflated her confidence and greed. “Hello? Police?” Her voice echoed through the monitor. “My son abandoned me, a sick person, at home to die! I want to report him!” Two hours later, Daniel was brought back. The once dashing man now looked like a humiliated stray. He squatted dejectedly by the door, fingers deeply buried in his hair. “Mr. Miller, abandoning a gravely ill relative carries criminal liability. We hope you resolve your family dispute properly. If we receive another report, we will legally open a case.” Chloe, the pregnant one? Legally, Daniel had no obligation to her. But this woman, who had once run off with his family’s money and driven his biological mother to her death, he had to support. That was the law. A taste of his own medicine. I used his legal responsibility to block his path to his “true love.” He had finally understood his father, hadn’t he? Well then, in the dead of night, he could explain to his mother just how grand and self-serving this “true love” of his really was. The wheelchair slowly rolled closer. Martha reached out, not a hint of remorse on her face. “Daniel, why bring up old things? Haven’t I come back now? That Chloe doesn’t look like the type to settle down. Listen to me, Grace is easier to handle. Hurry up and coax her back.” “Shut up!” Daniel suddenly stood up. “When you ran off with the money back then, why didn’t you think about whether I’d starve? Now you’re diseased, at your wit’s end, and you remember you have a son? Where do you get the nerve to lecture me?” Seeing Daniel’s resolute attitude, Martha waved her hand nonchalantly. “Fine. Since you’re acting like you have no family, I have nothing more to say. Anyway, I’m your mother. I raised you for two years, so you have to support me for life! I don’t like that cheap hussy, Chloe. Bring Grace back now!” With that, she went straight into the master bedroom and slammed the door shut. My phone buzzed, receiving another message from Daniel: “You brought Martha back, so you’re responsible for her! I don’t have time to play games with you. This has nothing to do with Chloe, she has no obligation!”
See? That was the scumbag’s calculation. Marriage, to him, was a game he could exploit. He found the perfect loophole. Let Chloe, in the name of “true love,” enjoy all the benefits. And me, in the name of responsibility, bear all the risks. The people from social services simply followed procedure, pushing that foul-smelling woman in front of me. It was like the whole world was conspiring with him to exploit his wife. Was he stupid? Not at all. He knew exactly how to use the shackles of marriage to legally plunder his own wife. I sent him the $25,000 bill again. “Settle the debt first. This is for your mother’s medical treatment.” His call came immediately. “I’ll say it again, that woman is not my mother. She’s a btch. Don’t expect me to pay a dime for this. You treated her without my consent; that’s your personal debt!” Then he hung up. A buzzing sound filled my ears. If that’s how you want to play, then so be it. I then sent the recording to Daniel’s stepmother. “Martha, you heard him. Daniel isn’t acknowledging this debt. This $25,000, you’ll have to repay yourself.” Martha instantly panicked. “Grace, you know I don’t have any money! If I had that kind of money, I wouldn’t have ended up…” I cut her off. “You forgot, when Daniel’s father passed away, he left behind a house. You legally inherited 25% of it.” Martha looked bewildered. “A house?” “Yes, that house was Daniel’s biological mother’s personal property. But after she passed, Daniel and his father each inherited 50%.” “When Daniel’s father passed, his 50% was split between you and Daniel again, so you own 25%, and Daniel owns 75%.” “Daniel will definitely challenge your share. After all, you ran off with the money, so it’s like a worthless piece of paper. But if you assign that share to me, it’s a completely different story. Not only will I continue to pay for your future medical treatments, but your previous debt will also be cleared.” Martha fell silent. The reason Daniel kept that house was not out of sentimentality, but because Martha’s disappearance all those years ago meant the inheritance procedures couldn’t be executed. “Fine!” Martha texted back: “I’ll sign! But you have to put it in writing, clearly stating that you’ll be responsible for my treatment! Don’t let me end up homeless again!” “It’s a deal.” The next day, after dropping Lily at school, Martha immediately came home and signed the “Debt Assignment Agreement.” The entire process didn’t require Daniel’s consent. This 25% ownership was my first trophy. Though it originated from a woman I once despised, I now firmly believed: The enemy of my enemy is my friend. But my mortgage debt was still a marital joint debt. Subsequently, I moved Martha into a newly rented apartment. She had an infectious disease, and this was a necessary isolation measure to protect Lily. This new rental expense, like her previous medical bills, once again became another clear marital joint debt under Daniel’s name. After all, I was fulfilling his legal obligations. Upon returning, I began a systematic liquidation of our home. I sold off all the valuable items at low prices. The cash was used to repay the medical debts I had incurred earlier. Next, I put the house up for rent. This pre-marital property of his, with a monthly rent of $2,500, could precisely cover his mother’s treatment costs. Lily was temporarily being picked up and dropped off by my parents. You see, fate can sometimes be so ironic. He thought he had defined the rules of this game, and I was destined to be the trapped player. But he forgot that rules are a double-edged sword. If he could build high walls, I could carve out a path to survival. With these maneuvers, that pile of rotten debt he left behind was completely revitalized by me. Days later, seeing that I was no longer hounding him, he smugly assumed I had finally given up. It wasn’t until his fingerprint couldn’t unlock his own front door, and a strange tenant slowly appeared at the entrance, that he truly panicked. All traces of me and Lily had been erased from the house. He furiously called my phone, but was met only with a cold “phone is off” message. Soon, he received a thick envelope. The first document was the “Deed of Gift” for that 25% property share. Next to the agreement, I’d attached a sticky note: “Friendly reminder: No need to find Martha for a signature, the ownership has already been transferred. Awaiting division. If you wish to sell the house, please consult with me.” Following that was his stepmother’s rental contract for $3,000 a month, with an attached doctor’s note recommending separate isolation due to her condition. Then came the nurse’s contract, with a monthly salary of $5,000, and a note in the remarks section: “Special infectious disease caregiver, high-risk position allowance.” Finally, there was a densely itemized “Summary of Advanced Expenses,” including medical fees, living expenses, nutritional costs… all shockingly high. He threw the documents to the floor, roaring in front of everyone. “Grace! If I give you one damn penny, I’m a dog!” Finally, he sued me for property damage, demanding that I immediately cease infringement and return his pre-marital property! He demanded that I return all his rent money. He demanded that I bear all legal costs. I calculated the court date. How convenient, Chloe was about to go into labor. This was truly a double celebration. So, I would use this trial as their wedding gift.
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