Chapter 2The Price of Filial Piety

Married for three years, I had heard similar accusations many times.

The first time was in the third month of our marriage.

My in-laws went to a wedding banquet, and it started raining on their way home.

Instead of seeking shelter, the two elders just rushed home in the rain.

Afterward, they both caught a cold and were bedridden. My mother-in-law called Liam.

In my father-in-law's words:

"Liam and his wife need to know about this."

After I found out, I sent a polite message of concern in the family group chat, telling them to drink plenty of hot water and rest well.

The group was dead silent; no one acknowledged me.

That day after work, I was opening packages, trying on new clothes in front of the mirror, and casually asked Liam if they looked good.

He instantly got angry.

"My parents are like this, and you still have the mood to buy clothes? How can you be so selfish and cold-blooded!"

The sudden barrage of accusations left me stunned.

Then Liam slammed the door and left, not returning all night.

At that time, my love for him was strong. Being suddenly called cold-blooded to my face made me very uneasy.

I reflected on whether I hadn't done enough.

But they just caught a cold, did they expect me to go back and take care of them?

After thinking it over, I sent my in-laws a red envelope of a thousand dollars each, telling them to buy something nice to eat to nourish themselves, to spend what they needed to spend, and not to worry about the money.

This time, my father-in-law instantly praised me for being filial, and my mother-in-law chimed in saying I was sensible.

I didn't say anything, but I felt an indescribable sensation in my heart.

The next morning, just as I woke up, I saw Liam wearing an apron, making breakfast for me in the kitchen.

He apologized to me.

"I'm sorry, honey. Mom and Dad talked to me. It's just a cold, I overreacted. But—" his tone shifted, "as children, we can't just look at the surface, we have to look at the big picture. Why did Mom and Dad catch a cold? Isn't it because they don't have a car? If they had driven home, they wouldn't have gotten rained on, right?"

I remained silent.

Liam continued:

"I looked at a three-wheeled enclosed motorcycle. It's not expensive, just thirty-eight thousand. They can drive it when they visit relatives too."

Thirty-eight thousand.

A three-wheeler.

Not a car worth over a hundred thousand.

It seemed... maybe... not too unreasonable?

In the end, I nodded.

Liam hugged me and laughed, saying the money would come from his savings so I wouldn't have to worry about it.

But after that, for a full six months, he didn't contribute a dime to the mortgage or daily expenses.

I was dissatisfied, but inexplicably, I couldn't bring myself to fight with Liam over this. I always felt like I was being unreasonable.

In the end, I could only console myself by saying he was just being filial.

Husband and wife are supposed to support each other.

He had no money, I had money, so it was normal for me to shoulder a bit more, right?

Besides, situations like this wouldn't happen often.

But reality quickly slapped me in the face.

The in-laws' second major expense arrived unexpectedly.