Mother-in-law Wants to Change the Fate of the Whole Family

In my previous life, my mother-in-law Lauren Hanson dressed my son in a black fur vest.

I thought that the vest looked filthy, and I wasn't sure what material it was made of, so I feared it might cause illness.

But she insisted, "I spent a lot of money consulting a master. If he wears it for a full month, our whole family will change our fate."

I refused firmly, and she kicked me out of the house.

A month later, when I returned, her entire family was dead.

My newborn child, still trapped in that vest, was covered in thick black fur.

Panicking, I rushed him to the hospital to figure out what was wrong.

He became violent and, with a mouth full of irregular sharp teeth, tore open my throat.

When I woke up, I was back at the moment Lauren pulled out the vest.

***

"Yaritza, bring the baby over. Let me measure him, and see how the vest fits."

Lauren said, holding up the black-fur vest. A disgusting, rancid stench hit my nose.

Everything was exactly as it had been before.

My husband Rowan Gilbert grimaced and pinched his nose. "Mom, where did you get that thing?"

"What do you mean 'that thing'? It's a treasure! I consulted a master, and as long as my grandson wears this for a full month, promotions, raises, and even winning the lottery will be a breeze."

Lauren said proudly, explaining the origins of the vest.

"I heard it from a lady in your community. There's a master who lives nearby. I specially invited her to help, and she gave me this ancient treasure! Even the meat on the table is special. Ordinary people don't get to taste this," she added with satisfaction.

She spent the past week wandering around the neighborhood with a net every day. I didn't understand why she had to dress like that to see the master.

The dishes in front of us, particularly the three meat dishes, all had a strange odor.

Lauren considered them delicacies and had even invited my brother-in-law Parker Gilbert's family over to share the meal.

In my previous life, I had thought it was just ordinary beef and was about to take a bite when she slapped my hand away.

"Not a bite for you today! Behave yourself!" she snapped.

She had never dared speak to me like that before.

Everyone knew I was the one in charge at home.

Lauren had only moved in after begging me several times.

Initially, I had planned to hire a nanny to help care for my newborn.

But Lauren showed up with bags in hand, insisting on helping with the baby.

Too afraid to bother me directly, she stayed at Parker's house, which was in the same community as ours.

Parker's family also consisted of three people, but their house was half the size of ours.

Lauren could only sleep on the couch, coming over to help with chores each day.

Finally, I softened my heart when I saw her sincere attitude and let her stay.

I didn't expect her to be just tough on the weak and scared of the strong. After meeting some so-called master, she thought her family must be superior to me and began to show off in front of me.

In my own home, how dare she forbid me from eating meat?

I flipped the table and shot Rowan a glare. "I'm heading out for a meeting. When I come back, I expect this place to be cleaned up."

That was how I escaped that disaster, avoiding the strange meat altogether.

But what I didn't know at the time was that after I left, Lauren picked up all the meat from the floor.

She didn't just eat it herself; she made her two sons eat it, fed it to her other good daughter-in-law, and even mashed it up to feed the two newborns.

Now that I had been reborn, I wasn't going to let her keep harming my child.

When she proudly presented the meat to his son again, I cut her off.

"Here is something precious. Enjoy yourselves."

I knew that even overturning the table wouldn't stop her, so I called her out, "Lauren, I saw that the meat cooked is from the animals you caught yourself. Do you want me to expose it? What if it carries some virus? You could end up putting our whole family at risk."

Everyone turned to Lauren, waiting for an explanation.

She slammed down her fork and knife. "Do I need your permission to do something? The master said this meat had been stored for a long time, and it was a treasure. Eating it will strengthen us and bring us good fortune. It wasn't meant for you anyway, so keep quiet."

Rowan nearly vomited when he heard her admit it.

"It's not like we can't afford to buy fresh meat! You really think stuff from around the neighborhood is safe to eat?"

Lauren pointed her finger at him. "Are you defying me now? Will you eat it or not?"

Parker and his wife Kamora Berg quickly chimed in.

He said, "Mom won't harm us. It's all for our good."

And Kamora added, "An elder in the house is a blessing. She must have her reasons. Just stop being noisy here."

Seeing there was no need to reason with them, I grabbed my son and left.

"You lunatics can eat it yourselves. Don't even think about feeding my son that filth."

As I changed my shoes by the door, I heard Rowan say casually, "Mom, next time, just give us a heads-up about stuff like this."

Then I watched him pick up his knife and take a bite of the meat.

Seriously? How had I not realized before that Rowan was a total mama's boy?

Being reborn wasn't a waste after all. Now, I was going to start thinking about myself and my son's future.