I’m Emi, and after marrying my husband Ryo, I moved in with his family. His mother had been bullied for years by his grandmother and claimed she wanted a better relationship with me. Instead, she started treating me with the same cruelty she’d endured—talk about a double standard. Things came to a head during Ryo’s sister Momoka’s wedding when her selfishness finally hit its limit. I called her out on every single contradiction, forced her to face her own hypocrisy, and used that momentum to officially end our living arrangement.
Once Ryo exposed how Great-Grandma had been bullying his mother, the room erupted. The relatives started buzzing and demanding answers from both Great-Grandma and my father-in-law. Great-Grandma was visibly shaken, stumbling over her words and panicking. I can only hope her attitude toward my mother-in-law softens after this. I managed to escape that house, but only because Ryo actually stood by my side. My mother-in-law started out just like me—a daughter-in-law entering a new family. But because my father-in-law never had her back, she became the person she is today. It’s crazy how much the future changes based on whether a husband chooses to step up between his wife and his mother. My mother-in-law gave us a deep, sincere bow. I truly hope my father-in-law starts facing things head-on so that their home finally becomes a place where she can actually feel at peace.