Chapter 1

My mother-in-law treated the whole family to a lavish dinner costing thousands of dollars. Even her pet dog went. But I wasn't invited.

Watching their happy, cozy gathering on Ins, a chill ran down my spine.

Without a word, I immediately canceled the supplementary credit card she held.

So, when my mother-in-law went to pay—that card, which always worked without a hitch, suddenly declined.

Under everyone's watchful eyes, she fretted like crazy, frantically calling me.

Only to find out I’d blocked her already.

Good luck cleaning up this mess without me.

It was the weekend, and I’d planned a family dinner, hoping we could have a good talk and reconnect. After all, it had been ages since we’d had a proper meal together.

But my mother-in-law rejected the idea without a second thought, and my wife, Chloe, didn't seem interested either.

Reluctantly, I dropped the idea.

What I never expected was to wake up the next morning and find myself completely alone at home!

I checked my Ins feed and it hit me: My mother-in-law was hosting a banquet for the entire family at The Golden Swan, the city's most exclusive restaurant!

In the video, relatives laughed and chatted non-stop—all our aunts, uncles, and even distant cousins I barely knew were there.

Even more infuriating, my mother-in-law's Teddy poodle actually had its own seat, munching on expensive gourmet wagyu beef. She even zoomed in, as if deliberately trying to show it off.

The whole lavish feast: every single relative present, even the dog at the table.

But I was the only one missing.

Watching that scene unfold in the video, it was a punch to the gut, and pure rage boiled within me.

I immediately called my mother-in-law, but she hung up on me the next second.

I called again, but it just kept ringing, then went dead.

My heart clenched. My mother-in-law had blocked me, she wouldn't even take my call!

So I called my wife, Chloe. It rang for a long time before she finally answered.

Her tone was utterly impatient.

"What do you want? We're eating. Why are you calling to ruin the mood?"

Her words were dripping with disgust.

I clutched my phone tightly, gritting my teeth as I demanded, "Chloe, what exactly is going on here?"

"Do you even consider me family? You invited everyone, but left me alone at home. What, am I that embarrassing? Am I not good enough to be seen with you?"

Last night, when I wanted a family dinner, both my mother-in-law and Chloe rejected me without a thought. Now it was clear: they weren't against a dinner; they just didn't want to have dinner *with me*!

Chloe snapped back, unapologetically, "Blake, what's your problem? So what if we didn't invite you to dinner? It's not a big deal. You're a grown man, do you really need to be so petty?"

I laughed, a bitter, angry sound. *Petty?*

"Chloe, you invite distant relatives I barely know, even the dog gets a seat at the table, but you leave me, your husband, alone at home—and now you blame *me* for being petty?"

My voice trembled uncontrollably. "In your heart, in your mom's eyes, what am I in this family? Am I worth less than a dog?"

From the other end, I heard my mother-in-law’s sharp voice butt in, "Chloe, why bother arguing with someone so unpresentable, so lacking in class? Let him throw his fit!"

Chloe's tone grew even colder. "Blake, are you trying to cause a scene right now? Mom's right, you just have no class. Go reflect on yourself."

With that, she hung up.

I called again, only to find—she had blocked me too.

In that moment, my heart felt like it was being ripped out, as if the entire world had gone silent.

This was the wife I’d loved for three years, the one I’d given my all for.

This was the "family" I’d fought so hard to keep, yet they always treated me like a stranger.

Honestly, this wasn't the first time.

In this family, I always felt like an outsider, always deliberately excluded from any family activity.

I still remember Chloe's birthday last year. We had a joyful party for her.

After the party, my mother-in-law posted photos on the family chat and Ins:

"Here's our family photo," the caption read, "Wishing my precious daughter a happy birthday. May our family always be happy."

In the photo, my wife, linked arms with my mother-in-law and her uncle, was beaming. All the relatives surrounded her, making her the center of attention.

But my figure was nowhere to be seen.

My mother-in-law had precisely cropped me out, leaving just a blurry half-leg awkwardly visible in the picture.

If she hadn't been afraid of cutting off other relatives' limbs, I probably wouldn't even have had the privilege of that half-leg.

And there were countless other messy, infuriating incidents, each one leaving me with a profound sense of coldness.

Just then, I saw my mother-in-law's Ins feed update.

Seeing the content, my eyes widened in disbelief.