After just one month of marriage, I’ve already had 38 arguments with my mother-in-law, Jane Holmes! My husband, Zane Holmes, has an extremely close relationship with Jane. For Zane’s sake, I voluntarily went on a two-month business trip to give myself and Jane some space to improve our relationship. One evening, Jane suddenly transferred me $20,000 with a thoughtful message: “Dottie, stay safe while you’re away. This money is for you to spend however you like.” Not long after, Zane called me, angrily saying: “Dottie, Mom thinks you’re actually having an affair while on your business trip. She gave you money because she’s worried you might spend another man’s money! She’s gone too far! I’ve already had an argument with her! Don’t worry, I’ll always take your side!” Zane had said things like this many times. Whenever Jane and I argued, he seemed particularly pleased! Once, when I accidentally knocked Jane over, he even said I shouldn’t hold back since she wasn’t my mother! It wasn’t until later that I discovered his love for both Jane and me was completely fake! 1 The day I returned from my business trip, Jane spent three hours in the kitchen preparing a table full of my favorite dishes. She smiled warmly while continuously serving me food: “Dottie, eat more, you’re too thin. Your work is stressful, you need to maintain your nutrition.” Jane’s kind and gentle demeanor warmed my heart, making me think that perhaps the conflicts between us were just misunderstandings. Even if there were no misunderstandings, some friction was normal. After all, I was newly married, and the adjustment process would naturally involve some tension. I enjoyed the meal thoroughly. As we were finishing, I said to her: “Thank you, Jane.” Jane’s eyes lit up with happiness, and she smiled. My gratitude seemed to make her happier than winning the lottery. “It’s no trouble at all. We’re family.” That night, as soon as I got into bed, Zane lowered his voice and complained to me: “Dottie, Mom said you ate too much! Guess why she made all that food for you?” He deliberately kept me in suspense, so I asked: “Why?” “It’s to help you build up your strength so you can have a baby!” We had discussed the topic of having children with Jane and Zane two weeks ago. My career was currently on the rise, and I wanted to wait a couple of years before having children. I never expected Jane would agree to my face but change her mind behind my back. I was instantly angry, but then I reconsidered. Jane had been so pleasant earlier, and I didn’t want to start arguing as soon as I returned, so I suppressed my emotions. “She can say what she wants. I’ll just ignore it.” As I lay down, I caught a glimpse of disappointment on Zane’s face, but I was too tired to care and fell asleep immediately. Not long after, I woke up needing to use the bathroom and vaguely heard Zane talking in Jane’s room. I faintly heard him say: “Mom, I’m sorry, Dottie is so ungrateful. You worked so hard to prepare all those dishes, and she complained that you’re messy and unclean. If it weren’t for your sake, I would have argued with her already!” I was stunned. I had never said any of those things. Furious, I gripped the doorknob, ready to confront Zane about why he was trying to drive a wedge between us. But then I heard Jane’s calm voice: “Being clean is a good thing. I’ll be more careful next time. Zane, you should control your temper and treat Dottie well.” I never expected Jane to respond like that. It immediately brought me back to my senses, and I didn’t open the door. I wanted to see why Zane was going to such lengths to create conflict between Jane and me.
2 In the days since I’ve been back, Jane and I have been getting along harmoniously. I could feel that we both had fire burning inside, but we were both holding back from exploding. While at work, I received a message from Zane. The photo showed my most expensive silk dress, a Valentine’s Day gift from Zane worth thirty thousand. It was my favorite piece of clothing, one I rarely wore because I cherished it so much. However, in the photo, the dress was completely ruined from washing. “Dottie, Mom went too far! I told her your clothes must be hand-washed, but she wouldn’t listen and put it in the washing machine!” “I told her this dress cost thirty thousand, and she said you’re extravagant and not a good wife. I’m about to burst a blood vessel!” “Don’t worry about me—you absolutely need to give her a good scolding, otherwise she’ll never change!” Seeing the photo, I was indeed angry, but realizing Zane was encouraging me to fight with his mother, I calmly replied: “It’s just a dress, no big deal.” There was silence from his end, then a moment later, he called me. Zane said: “Dottie, marrying me has really made you suffer. You’ve always had a fiery temper and never put up with nonsense!” “We’ve only been married a month and my mom has been giving you trouble the whole time. You don’t need to tolerate her for my sake.” “Even if you get into a fight with her, I’ll stand by you. You’re the most important person in my life. I love you the most, and no one should make you upset!” “How about we tell Mom tonight that we want to live separately?” I do have a bad temper and never take mistreatment or avoid conflict. Once, a confrontation with my boss ended up requiring police intervention. Everyone around me knows I’m not someone to mess with, but I’m not unreasonable—I don’t bother people unless they bother me first. Right now I was indeed angry, but not at Jane—at Zane. Controlling my anger, I told Zane: “Don’t treat your mom like that. You’re not short on money—just buy me another one.” I didn’t lose my temper, which seemed to make Zane anxious: “What if I buy a new one and Mom ruins it again?” “Then buy another one! She won’t keep wasting your money forever.” Zane fell silent on the other end, apparently not expecting this response from me. That evening when I returned home from work, Zane immediately said: “Mom’s angry. She went out with her friends and didn’t cook dinner for us. I complained, and she yelled at me.” “She said she doesn’t owe us anything and to leave her alone!” What he didn’t know was that two minutes before I walked through the door, I had received a message from Jane. Jane had transferred me 50,000 and explained: “Dottie, I’m so sorry. I was doing your laundry today and didn’t notice your silk dress wrapped up with the other clothes. It got ruined in the washing machine. Please accept my apology. Take this money and buy yourself a new one.” “Also, it’s my friend’s birthday today, so I’m out celebrating with her. I didn’t have time to make dinner for you two, but I’ve ordered takeout from a restaurant. It will be delivered at 8 PM.”
3 At that moment, I carefully examined the man before me. He had truly transformed into someone I didn’t recognize! Zane noticed my gaze and nervously asked, “What’s wrong, Dottie? Why are you looking at me like that?” Suppressing my anger, I replied casually, “Nothing. There’ll be food delivery soon, so we won’t go hungry.” Zane seemed extremely surprised and disappointed that I hadn’t lost my temper. Later when Jane returned, I overheard Zane badmouthing me in her room, “Mom, I’m sorry I married such a vicious woman. I told her it was normal for you to attend your friend’s birthday party, but Dottie claimed you were using the gathering as an excuse to meet men!” I clenched my fists in anger. Jane also vented her frustration, “Dottie is so heartless. I’ve been nothing but sincere to her, and this is how she treats me!” Zane encouraged her, “Mom, when I confronted her, she kicked me out to sleep on the couch. There are some things I can’t say as her husband, but you should confront her directly!” Jane hesitated, looking somewhat afraid. “Dottie has a bad temper. Let it go. I have a clear conscience anyway.” Zane grew anxious and continued urging Jane to confront me. But Jane said, “Family harmony is most important. Let it go.” Then she shooed Zane out of her room. He returned to our bedroom, quietly slipped into bed, and gently embraced me from behind. He kissed my neck and said in an incredibly affectionate tone, “Dottie, I love you so much. No one is more important to me than you.” Fighting the disgust I felt inside, I pretended to be asleep and gave him no response. A few days later, Zane started causing trouble again. He asked me out, held my hands, and with feigned sincerity said, “Dottie, something’s come up. I’ve negotiated a big deal that requires a 3 million advance payment. I mentioned this to Mom, but she doesn’t seem willing to help.” “Could you talk to Mom about this for me? I’m working myself to death to earn money, all for our family.” “But Mom doesn’t see it that way. I’m her only son, yet she refuses to help me!” “Dad’s been gone for some time now, and I’m worried she might spend his death benefits on other men.” “Dottie, would you please discuss this with Mom? We need to work together. If the company succeeds, our lives will improve. Don’t you agree?” I refused him, “Zane, that’s Jane’s retirement money. You’re a man and her son. Since she didn’t agree, let’s respect her decision.” Zane seemed about to say something more, looking extremely anxious as he tried again to persuade me. But I still didn’t agree, which angered Zane, and he stopped talking to me. That evening at dinner, Zane himself asked Jane for the 3 million. After a moment’s hesitation, Jane finally said, “Fine, I’ll transfer the money to Dottie. She’s more detail-oriented. You two can build the company together.” The moment Jane agreed, Zane’s face lit up with crow’s feet from smiling so widely, but when Jane mentioned giving the money to me, his disappointment was obvious. 4 Jane actually transferred that money to me, and I knew it was all she had. Zane repeatedly asked me for this money, but I refused each time, claiming the project wasn’t mature and carried high risks. While Zane appeared to listen to me on the surface, even when furious inside, he could only vent his frustration in private. After several attempts, he even hired people to act, trying to convince me the project was reliable. To make him give up, I told him directly: “I’ve invested this money in a private equity fund with a fixed term. We can’t withdraw it for three years.” I showed him the records, and Zane turned pale, completely losing hope. I told him: “I’ve reviewed your company’s accounts. Your business isn’t short of money. This is your mother’s retirement savings. We shouldn’t touch it unless absolutely necessary.” Zane didn’t say anything to my face, but behind my back, he smashed his phone to pieces in anger. That evening, when I noticed his new phone, he explained that he’d lost his old one and had to get a replacement. In our daily life, he would still occasionally try to provoke arguments between Jane and me. Sometimes when Jane couldn’t bear it anymore and scolded me, I deliberately maintained a good attitude to prevent Zane from succeeding, choosing to be respectful toward Jane instead of arguing. Seeing my increasingly better attitude, Jane grew even more affectionate toward me. So during Zane’s later attempts to stir up trouble, Jane restrained herself from getting angry with me. When Zane saw our relationship improving, he finally snapped! He brought several accident insurance policies, indignantly showing them to me: “Dottie, look at this! Mom has secretly purchased so many accident insurance policies for you, with coverage ranging from millions to tens of millions.” “The beneficiary is my mother’s name on all of them! It’s so vicious—she’s trying to harm you!” “This is unacceptable. Even if you don’t confront her for my sake, I can’t let her get away with this!” After examining the three policies, I calmly asked Zane: “Why would Jane want to harm me? She’s always been good to me. I can feel she truly loves me like her own daughter!” Zane fumed: “She’s just pretending. Dottie, you’re too innocent and kind-hearted.” “Remember when my mother took you hiking? Fortunately, I arrived early and saw her trying to push you off the cliff from behind.” “I didn’t overthink it then, but now it’s terrifying to consider. Think about it—there was that time you almost got hit by a car while crossing the street.” “You were badly frightened. Then there was the time your car lost control and nearly crashed; and another time when Mom took you on a sea trip, I saw her almost push you overboard.” “I’ve argued with her many times in private about this. I thought she wasn’t serious, but I never imagined her intentions could be so malicious.” “Dottie, we must address this, or she’ll eventually kill you.” As Zane spoke, he became increasingly agitated and angry, but I also noticed an indescribable excitement in his eyes. He indignantly pulled out his phone, preparing to call everyone in the Holmes family: “Even though you’re fine now and we don’t have evidence to catch my mother, I won’t let you get hurt. From now on, I disown her as my mother. We’ll expel her from the Holmes family—she’ll have nothing to do with us anymore.” With that, he called the Holmes family members and Jane’s relatives one by one, declaring he was cutting all ties with Jane. I didn’t stop him. It was time for friends, family, and even more people to see Zane’s true face! He thought I knew nothing, unaware that he too was merely a piece on my chessboard.
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