Reborn to Ruin My Toxic In-Laws

At our annual weekend family dinner, while I was busy running around serving the entire extended family, my husband, Marcus, walked in with his personal assistant, Chloe. He slammed a fake DNA test onto the table right in front of me, sneering, "Serena, on a day meant for family, why didn’t you invite your real baby daddy?" The entire dining hall instantly fell dead silent. Every single pair of eyes locked onto the two of us. I tried desperately to explain, but no one believed a word I said. My mother-in-law marched straight up to me and slapped me twice across the face, pointing a trembling finger at my nose. "You shameless tramp! Not only did you give birth to a useless girl, but she isn’t even a Miller!" Right then, my one-month-old baby girl cried out, rolled off the dining chair, and hit the hard floor. She died on the spot. I held her lifeless little body, glaring at them with pure hatred. Seeing that a baby was actually dead, Marcus finally mumbled awkwardly: "I... I was just joking. How was I supposed to know things would get out of hand?" Chloe chimed in from the side, playing the innocent peacemaker: "Marcus is always like this at the office. Everyone’s used to his pranks." "Besides, if your conscience was clean, you wouldn’t be so defensive. A clear conscience fears no accusation—everyone knows that." Drowning in despair, I stood up, threw down the word "Divorce," and stumbled toward the exit. I didn't see the slick patch on the stairs. I lost my footing and tumbled all the way down. When I opened my eyes again, I was back to three days before that fatal family dinner. This time, I was going to play a little joke on them, too. Exactly the way they played theirs! ... I woke up to the sound of my daughter's soft whimpering. Stepping out of the bedroom, I saw my parents in the living room, gently rocking her. "Shh, good girl, sweetie. Grandma and Grandpa's little angel is the best." Watching the scene, a wave of bitter grief washed over my chest. In my past life, after my baby died, I plunged down the stairs and died right after her. Hit with two devastating losses back-to-back, my parents couldn't survive the heartbreak and passed away soon after from sheer grief. Meanwhile, Marcus took complete control of my family's wealth. Within six months, he married Chloe and got the baby boy he had always obsessed over. Since they loved pranks so much, I was going to give them a taste of their own medicine! I glanced at the calendar on my phone. The Thanksgiving family dinner was in three days. I was my parents' only child, yet Marcus’s family hadn’t even bothered to invite them to Thanksgiving dinner. Instead, Marcus’s side-chick assistant somehow managed to score an official seat at the table. Looking back, it was utterly ridiculous. "Serena, why are you up so early?" Mom stood up, hurried into the kitchen, and brought out a steaming bowl of rich chicken noodle soup, waving me over. "Come on, eat this. I've been simmering it since five this morning. Packed with all the nutrients you need. Try it." I took the spoon from her and took a sip. The warm steam fogged up my eyes, and before I could hold them back, the tears began to fall. Dad held the baby with one arm while handing me a tissue with the other, grumbling under his breath. "Just look at you. You had a baby and lost so much weight. Your in-laws don't have an ounce of human decency. They don't help with the baby, they don't care about you, and they still expect you, barely out of postpartum recovery, to wait on their entire family hand and foot!" Drying my tears, I took another sip of the soup. Mom immediately nudged Dad, whispering for him to drop it. In my past life, my parents had constantly stood up for me, pointing out how toxic Marcus and his family were. But back then, I always fought back, defending him stubbornly. I had thought they were overstepping, choosing to stay trapped in my own delusional fairy tale. We had even gotten into screaming matches over it, which was why they rarely brought up his family anymore. After finishing the soup, my strength finally started to return. I put down the bowl and looked at my parents with a calm smile. "Mom, Dad was right. A deadbeat husband and a family of bullies? I'm done serving them." Mom stared at me in shock. "Serena... honey, don't do anything crazy." I nodded and smiled reassuringly. "Don't worry, Mom. I'm just getting a divorce. I won't do anything stupid. And I will protect myself and my baby."Three days flew by. Just like in my past life, the Thanksgiving dinner was hosted at a high-end downtown hotel. The only difference was that this time, I didn't lift a single finger to plan it. I handed the entire event over to Marcus’s assistant, Chloe. Right as the party began, Marcus walked into the banquet hall with Chloe by his side. "We have Chloe to thank for tonight. If it weren't for her, this dinner wouldn't have come together so smoothly." As he spoke, his eyes deliberately drifted toward me. I couldn't care less, focusing entirely on piling delicious food onto my parents' plates. My mother-in-law smiled warmly, pulling Chloe over to sit right beside her. Naturally, Marcus took the chair on the other side. To anyone watching, you'd think those two were the actual married couple. Mom leaned over and whispered into my ear, "That assistant doesn't look like good news. You need to keep an eye on her." I smiled faintly. "Mom's instincts were always spot on." Marcus walked over to our table, handing me a glass of red wine. "Serena, you haven't been home these past few days. My parents aren't happy with you at all." "Go over there, offer them a toast, and apologize. When dinner's over, pack up the baby and come back home with me." My parents, who had been smiling while playing with the baby, instantly froze. Their expressions hardened. I stared at Marcus coldly. "Are you sure your parents have an issue with me?" Marcus immediately slapped on an easygoing grin. "Come on, I'm just messing with you! They didn't say anything, but look at how they're acting. You should know better than to play dumb." In my past life, I had listened to this exact gaslighting routine countless times. Back then, I swallowed every bit of it. But I had been given a second chance at life. Why should I endure this humiliation ever again? I stood up, took the wine glass from Marcus's hand, and threw the wine straight into his face. "Why the hell should I apologize? Shouldn't you be the ones apologizing to me?" It was the first time in our entire marriage that I had ever stood up to him. Wine dripped down his face, leaving him completely stunned. Across the room, Chloe jumped out of her seat. She rushed over with napkins, frantic as she dabbed at his face while glaring at me accusingly. "Serena, what are you doing?! If you didn't like how I set up the dinner, you could have just told me! Why take it out on Marcus?" I set the empty glass down with a gentle clink, snatched the napkins right out of her hand, and used one to casually wipe Marcus's collar. "I was just playing a little joke on my husband. But you..." I turned a sharp, freezing gaze onto Chloe. "You organized one little dinner party for me, and suddenly you've forgotten your place?" Every pair of eyes in the hall locked onto the three of us. The guests began whispering and pointing. After all, nothing beats the thrill of watching family drama unfold in real-time. Marcus was the exact kind of pathetic man who loved showing off, constantly humiliating me in public just to feel big. And every single time I got genuinely upset, he'd dismiss it, saying I couldn't take a joke and ruined the mood. I still vividly remembered the first Christmas after we got married. He told me his mother was craving peanut butter fudge from a boutique bakery across town, so I drove through a blizzard to get it. By the time I got back, the entire family had already finished Christmas dinner. "Go ahead and eat. I'll take this to Mom," he had said, ushering me toward a table full of cold leftovers. Before I could even sit down, a bloodcurdling scream tore through the living room. I dropped my fork and ran out, only to find my mother-in-law choking on the carpet, eyes rolling back, foaming at the mouth. "What did you buy?!" "Peanut butter fudge..." My father-in-law screamed at me while pointing at the box on the counter. That was the moment I found out his mother had a severe peanut allergy. Marcus had sent me to buy it on purpose. I had looked at Marcus in utter desperation back then, but he kept his head down, refusing to meet my eyes.Back then, I had been so furious that I packed my bags, determined to separate. But Marcus dropped to his knees in front of me, crying like a baby. "Serena, please don’t leave. I was wrong, I swear!" "I was just trying to pull a prank on you! I honestly thought you knew my mom was allergic to peanuts and wouldn’t actually buy them!" Sobbing with rage, I had punched his chest while screaming, "How the hell was I supposed to know her allergies? You did that on purpose to ruin me, and you know it!" Ever since that incident, my mother-in-law had hated my guts. Chloe’s pathetic, choked sobs snapped me back to the present. "Serena, I swear I didn't mean anything by it... I had no idea you thought of me like that." "I’ve always looked up to Marcus as my career mentor. If anything I did gave you the wrong idea, I'll resign from the company immediately!" Before another word could be said, my mother-in-law lunged forward and splashed a whole bowl of hot soup straight into my face. She pulled her son and Chloe behind her, glaring at me like a protective mother hen defending her precious chicks. "You shameless whore! How dare you bark orders at my son like you own the place? Who do you think you are?!" "Bah! To think our family ever treated you like a proper daughter-in-law. If sweet Chloe hadn’t pointed out that the baby doesn't look like Marcus at all, we would've stayed completely in the dark!" With that, my mother-in-law snatched an envelope from Marcus’s suit pocket and slapped the DNA test inside right across my face. Then she spun around, jabbing an aggressive finger toward my parents. "And you two! Apple doesn't fall far from the rotten tree! Trash parents raise trash daughters!" "I didn't even want you invited today. If Chloe hadn't been so gracious and begged me not to cause a scene to save face for both families, I would’ve marched over to your front lawn three days ago to let all your neighbors see what kind of trash you really are!" She unleashed a non-stop barrage of venom. My parents sat there, completely frozen in shock. I didn't even bother wiping the broth off my face. Casually dabbing at my chin, I walked back to my parents' side. "Serena... what is going on here?" Dad asked, voice trembling. "Don't worry, Dad, Mom. That DNA report is completely fake." Hearing that, Marcus immediately stepped forward, playing the heartbroken victim. "Serena, I really never thought you’d do something like this. I thought we were each other's first loves, that our marriage was unbreakable. But I never imagined..." In an instant, the holiday dinner turned into a full-blown witch hunt. Marcus’s aunts and cousins all stood up with their hands on their hips, looking ready to drown me in their spit. I stepped firmly in front of my parents and my daughter, shielding them without a flicker of fear. Everything unfolding before my eyes was going exactly according to my plan. Marcus let out a theatrical sigh, his eyes feigning deep sorrow. "Since things have come to this, Serena, let’s just end it." "You cheated, which makes you the at-fault party. Legally, you walk away with nothing. The baby isn't mine, so I don't want her. The house, the cars, and the family assets you brought into the marriage will stay with me as compensation. You'll also sign over your forty-five percent stake in the company. Let's get a divorce." He had finally said it. A cold, barely perceptible smirk flashed across my lips. "Marcus, are you completely sure?" "One hundred percent." I turned around, unzipped my bag, and pulled out a freshly printed divorce agreement. It stated in black and white: "Whichever party is proven at fault in the marriage waives all claims and leaves with zero assets." Marcus frowned slightly, his calculating gaze scanning over me again and again. He couldn't quite put his finger on what felt off. But staring at the massive jackpot outlined in the agreement, greed completely blinded him. He snatched the pen, signed his name, and stamped his thumbprint. Two original copies. The moment I held mine securely in hand, I couldn't hold back my grin any longer. "Well then! This is a Miller family dinner, and we don't welcome trashy outsiders!" my mother-in-law barked, eager to kick us out. I smiled calmly, reached into my purse, and pulled out a sleek USB drive. "Don't be in such a rush, former mother-in-law." "I actually brought a special housewarming gift for all of you."