Chapter 7: Poison and Power Plays

Faith reported outside the door: “Young Mrs., Mrs. Evans is here.”

I gave Paige a look, signaling her to leave first.

Paige melted into the shadows, disappearing down the hall. My mother-in-law entered holding a box, looking quite well, though she still had to feign grief.

She dabbed at her eyes with a handkerchief, but her gaze was sharp and calculating. She held my hands tightly: “Natalie, you are a good child. Now that Marcus is gone, I no longer wish to manage the household. From today on, I hand over the authority of managing household affairs to you.”

I glanced at the velvet box she handed over but didn’t take it.

It was heavy, embossed with the Evans family crest. My mother-in-law was never good at managing the household. After Marcus’s grandfather passed, the hardware stores declined day by day.

She always claimed it was the economy or 'bad luck,' but the truth was, she never cared for the details. In my previous life, I used my savings to cover the deficits of each store. After the stores became profitable, she still took a large sum of money every month.

I didn’t understand before, but now I do. She was using the money I earned to support her son.

“Natalie, why don’t you take it?” my mother-in-law asked in confusion.

Her lips twitched in a practiced smile. I smiled. “I’m afraid I can’t manage the household well.”

“I believe in you. If you don’t understand anything, you can come and ask me.”

As she spoke, she stuffed the velvet box into my hands, then quickly found an excuse to leave.

She left a faint scent of lavender in her wake, the door clicking softly behind her. I watched her back and smiled.

Mom, since you have personally handed over the power to me, you’d best not regret it in the future.

With the experience from my previous life, I quickly sorted out the accounts of all the Evans family stores.

I stayed up late, crunching numbers by the light of my desk lamp, red pen in hand. After several days of hard work, I finally balanced all the accounts.

Perhaps out of guilt, my mother-in-law sent people every day to bring me supplements.

“Young Mrs., this is today’s supplement.”

Faith brought the bowl to me.

Steam curled from the ceramic bowl, carrying a faint bitter scent. I picked it up casually.

As I drank, something flashed through my mind.

A memory of old prescriptions, the taste that never seemed quite right. The bitterness clung to my tongue, making my stomach churn with a familiar dread from my previous life. I suddenly put down the supplement.

“Young Mrs., what’s wrong?”

Faith’s eyes widened, worry creasing her brow. My eyes darkened. “Faith, pack up the leftovers and come out with me.”

In the car, I closed my eyes to rest, my mind full of thoughts.

The radio played quietly, static crackling in between old country songs. Until we arrived at the clinic.

I signaled for Faith to give the leftovers to the doctor.

The doctor smelled it, and his expression changed immediately.

“Doctor, is there something wrong with this?”

“Lady, where’d you get this stuff? You haven’t been taking it long, right? Because there’s something in here that’ll wear you down, slow and steady.”

He looked at me over the top of his bifocals, concern written all over his face. I was startled. “I’ve only taken it for a few days. Doctor, is there something wrong?”

The doctor seemed relieved.

He scribbled something on his notepad, then looked me in the eye. “It’s fine. This prescription is originally for boosting energy, but there’s one extra herb in it. It turns into an almost undetectable slow poison.”

My hand trembled. “If this poison is taken for years, what will happen?”

“At most fifteen years, at least ten—it will surely drain your blood and energy, causing weakness and vomiting blood until death.”

“So that’s how it is…”

The clinic’s fluorescent lights flickered overhead. Even when Faith helped me out of the clinic, I still couldn’t recover.

So my early decline in my previous life was not due to overwork.

The kind and benevolent mother-in-law had arranged for my death so early.

“Young Mrs., are you alright?”

Faith asked with concern.

I came back to my senses and said calmly, “Don’t tell anyone about today. Also, find a man for me.”

Faith’s jaw dropped, but she quickly composed herself and nodded.