I, Lila, am 25 years old and married Ethan right after graduating from university. We met in college, and our love was simple and genuine. Ethan is kind and diligent, but his mother, Margaret, is notorious in the neighborhood for being strict and cruel.
The very first day she introduced herself to me, she said coldly:
– “A girl from a small village… do you think you can support this family?”
I tried to smile, telling myself that if I was obedient and hardworking, one day she would accept me. But I was wrong. From the moment I became her daughter-in-law, she criticized everything I did and never offered a kind word.
The reason was simple: Margaret had already planned for Ethan to marry a wealthy girl from the region, and I had ruined her “plans.”
When guests came over, she would sneer indirectly:
– “Nowadays, when you marry, you must choose someone with money. What can you do with someone who has nothing?”
Ethan heard it, but he rarely defended me; he mostly stayed silent or changed the subject. I swallowed my tears and told myself I had to endure everything for him.
One day, Ethan had to go on a business trip for a week. I stayed home, taking care of the family shop and the house. That day, I accidentally knocked over a bottle of oil, spilling it all over the floor. When Margaret saw it, she flew into a rage, yelling at me, calling me clumsy, and saying I had ruined everything.
But she didn’t stop there. Suddenly, she dragged me into a room, closed the door, and with a pair of scissors, cut off all my long hair that I had cherished since childhood.
I gasped and struggled:
– “Mom! Please… not my hair…”
She gritted her teeth:
– “What’s the point of having all this hair? To attract other men? I’ll cut it all off so you understand humiliation!”
The sound of scissors echoed through the house. Tears streamed down my face, but she continued.
After cutting my hair, she forced a small bag into my hands:
– “From now on, you’re going to a convent. I don’t want a shameless woman in my house!”
I fell to my knees, pleading:
– “Mom, please… I didn’t do anything wrong…”
But she turned away and left, leaving me trembling in the yard. Clutching my bag, I walked out of Ethan’s house while neighbors whispered and stared.
