SHE HAD JUST GIVEN BIRTH FOR 7 DAYS, YET HER HUSBAND ABANDONED HER TO GO ON A “BUSINESS TRIP” WITH HIS MISTRESS FOR FOUR DAYS OF NEW YEAR — ON THE SECOND DAY, HER FATHER ARRIVED, AND HER MOTHER-IN-LAW COLLAPSED WHEN SHE SAW THIS
Mai stared at the calendar hanging on the living room wall.
The number 30, printed in bold red, marked New Year’s Eve.
This should have been a day of reunion — a day when families gathered around a warm table, when a new mother was cherished and cared for after enduring the pain of childbirth.
But Mai’s heart felt cold, hollow, like ashes.
She shifted slightly, and a sharp pain shot through her lower abdomen. The cesarean incision was only seven days old, not yet healed. Every movement felt like a knife lightly slicing into her flesh.
She looked down at the baby in her arms.
Her son — Ethan — tiny, red-faced, sleeping restlessly under a thin blanket. Each time he stirred, her heart clenched.
She hadn’t even had time to fully feel the joy of becoming a mother — before reality struck her mercilessly.
In front of the mirror, David, her husband, was carefully adjusting his shirt collar, smoothing his hair, spraying cologne with a rich woody scent. A black suitcase stood by the door, clearly packed long ago.
Gathering all her strength, Mai whispered:
“Are you… really going?”
Her voice was weak, hoarse from sleepless nights.
David turned around, frowning impatiently.
Mai hugged the baby closer to her chest, took a deep breath, and continued:
“I just got discharged from the hospital… my incision still hurts… Our baby is only seven days old… Can you really leave us for four days during New Year?”
David let out an annoyed sigh.
“I already told you. It’s a business trip. Meeting an important client at the start of the year for good luck. Stop nagging. It’s exhausting.”
Mai smiled bitterly.
She knew exactly who that “client” was.
Lily — the young mistress, nearly ten years younger than her, whom David had been seeing for months while Mai struggled through pregnancy — nausea, swelling, back pain, sleepless nights.
She knew.
She wasn’t foolish.
She had just chosen silence, hoping that the birth of their child would change him.
It didn’t.
She turned toward the sofa.
There sat Margaret, her mother-in-law, casually cracking sunflower seeds, eyes glued to her phone, as if none of this concerned her.
Swallowing her tears, Mai spoke softly:
“Mom… I just gave birth… I’m in pain… Could you please say something to him?”
Margaret curled her lips in a mocking smile, flicked the seed shells into a small dish, and replied coldly:
“Oh please. Men work hard all year long. It’s New Year — he deserves to relax a little. Don’t act like you’re the only woman who’s ever given birth.”
She paused, scanning Mai from head to toe with disdain.
“When I gave birth to David, it was the morning of New Year’s Day. By the afternoon, I was already at the market. Did I die? Women these days are just too fragile.”
Mai froze.
Margaret continued sharply:
“If you want someone to wait on you, serve you food and water, call your own parents from the countryside. No one in this house has time!”
Every word felt like boiling water splashed straight into Mai’s face.
David said nothing more.
He grabbed his suitcase and walked out.
Before leaving, he didn’t even glance at his newborn son.
The door slammed shut.
In the spacious house, only Mai and her crying baby remained.
New Year’s Day passed in tears.
There was no postpartum meal.
No warm soup.
Not a single word of concern.
Mai held her baby and painfully dragged herself into the kitchen. Each step sent a stabbing pain through her body. She cooked a small pot of rice, boiled an egg, ate hastily, then carried her baby back upstairs.
Margaret spent the entire day visiting neighbors.
At night, she locked her bedroom door and ignored her grandchild’s relentless crying.
That night, Mai developed a fever.
She trembled while holding her baby, tears soaking the pillow. In her weakest moment, only one person came to mind.
Her father.
THE SECOND DAY OF NEW YEAR — THE UNINVITED GUEST
On the morning of the second day, just as Mai laid Ethan in his crib, the doorbell rang.
Margaret emerged from her room, annoyed.
“Who comes so early on New Year?”
She opened the door.
The moment she saw the person standing outside, her face drained of color.
It was Robert — Mai’s father.
He wore a thick coat, his frame thin but upright. His eyes were cold, steady — no polite greetings.
Behind him stood an old suitcase… and a thick folder of documents.
Without a word, Robert walked straight inside, scanned the room, then fixed his gaze on Mai holding the baby.
Seeing his daughter pale and trembling, he clenched his fists.
“I’m here to take my daughter home.”
Margaret immediately waved her hands.
“Oh come on, in-laws shouldn’t interfere with other people’s family matters—”
Before she could finish, Robert slammed the folder onto the table.
BANG.
“Before we talk about taking my daughter away, I want to ask you one question.”
He stared straight at Margaret.
“Do you know what your son has been doing these four days?”
Margaret forced a laugh.
“He’s on a business trip—”
Robert opened the folder.
Inside were photos, hotel bills, flight tickets, credit card statements.
One by one, he laid them on the table.
“A beach resort hotel in Florida. A double room. 480 USD per night.”
“Round-trip flight tickets for two people.”
“A jewelry purchase worth nearly 6,000 USD.”
“And this…”
He placed the final photo down.
A picture of David and Lily hugging on the beach, smiling brightly.
Margaret staggered backward, eyes wide.
“No… that’s impossible…”
Robert wasn’t finished.
He spoke slowly, every word like a nail driven into wood:
“The money your son used to buy his mistress a ring… was money I sent my daughter for childbirth.”
“Money for my grandchild’s milk.”
“Money for her post-surgery medication.”
Margaret’s eyes rolled back. Her mouth fell open — and she collapsed onto the floor, unconscious.
THE TRUTH REVEALED
Mai broke down sobbing.
Robert pulled his daughter and grandson into his arms, his voice shaking with rage and sorrow:
“I’m sorry… for trusting the wrong man.”
It turned out Robert had long suspected David. He had quietly investigated, gathered evidence, waiting until his daughter was strong enough to leave.
That very afternoon, Robert took Mai and Ethan away from that house.
No arguments.
No begging.
One week later, divorce papers were filed.
When David returned, he faced the truth:
He lost his wife.
He lost his child.
He lost his dignity.
As for Mai — in the embrace of her parents, she finally slept deeply for the first time since giving birth.
Outside, a new year had begun.
And this time, she knew —
she and her child would never endure such suffering again.
