"Alright, ma'am. I'll clean up right after eating," Riana replied.

Riana walked towards the dining table, only to find that there was no main dish or vegetables left. Everything she had cooked had been completely consumed, leaving her shaking her head softly.

"Fortunately, Rey didn't bring any packed lunch, so I can eat," Riana said to herself while hugging the lunchbox tightly in her hands.

There was a tinge of disappointment in her heart, but Riana didn't want to dwell on it too much. She believed that overthinking would not be good for herself, so she tried her best to restrain herself from becoming burdened with negative thoughts.

Riana ate her meal with gusto, enjoying the breakfast menu. Whenever Serly came, Mayang would buy delicious main dishes and vegetables in large quantities, so when Riana cooked yesterday, there were still leftovers for breakfast.

When else would she have the opportunity to eat such a delicious meal? Usually, she would have simple dishes like salted fish or eggs every day. But Riana was the only one who ate at home, as Mayang and Reynald never touched those meals.

After finishing her meal, Riana cleaned the dining table first. She would stack the plates in the sink. She planned to wash the dishes once she finished other tasks, as she didn't find washing dishes burdensome. She prioritized cleaning the house, such as sweeping and mopping.

"Riana! Oh, my back!" Mayang cried out in pain.

Riana hurriedly ran with a mop handle in hand upon hearing her mother-in-law's cry from inside. When Mayang shouted, Riana was on the porch, mopping the floor as she had finished the interior part of the house.

"What's wrong, ma'am?" Riana asked, catching her breath.

"Are you trying to kill me, huh?!" Mayang shouted angrily, still sitting on the floor right in front of her room.

"What do you mean, ma'am? Kill?" Riana asked, puzzled. She reached out her hand to help Mayang stand up.

Mayang harshly pushed away Riana's hand, choosing to stand up on her own. "Don't pretend you don't know! I know you intentionally mopped the floor to make it slippery like this. That's why I slipped when I walked out!" Mayang accused angrily.

"I have no ill intentions as you're claiming. The floor is slippery because I just finished mopping it," Riana defended herself against Mayang's accusations.

Mayang scoffed in frustration. "Useless daughter-in-law! You can't even mop properly. All you know is eating and sleeping!" Mayang grumbled as she walked away.

Mayang walked out towards her car, holding her waist in pain from the fall, continuing to complain along the way.

Riana let out a heavy sigh, feeling like she could never do anything right in her mother-in-law's eyes. There always seemed to be some fault according to Mayang, even though Riana tried her best. She chose to continue with the unfinished tasks, as there were still many piled up that needed to be done by her.

Like doing the laundry, there was a basin full of clothes soaking in the bathroom. Mayang never allowed Riana to use the washing machine, as it was only used for drying clothes. Mayang believed that washing in the machine never made the clothes clean and wasted electricity, so she always suggested handwashing instead.

"Ugh! My back feels like it's about to give out," Riana groaned as she gently massaged the sore area.

However, she continued with the task of handwashing the remaining clothes, ensuring that not a single stain remained.

"I do the housework every day, and yet I'm accused of just eating and sleeping," Riana muttered to herself.

Riana lamented her situation of not pursuing a direct career, even though she had been offered a good job in the past. She had received a scholarship due to her excellent grades, and she was even considered one of the exemplary students on campus.

However, her love for Reynald made her give up that opportunity and instead accept his marriage proposal. She didn't spread her wings in the career world because Reynald wanted her to be a homemaker, not a career woman.

Meanwhile, inside the car, Mayang continued to complain about her back pain, wanting to go to a masseuse. Unfortunately, she was late for the socialite gathering, which was always held every Monday.

"Hello, everyone," Mayang greeted as she sat in an empty seat.

"Hello," her friends replied in unison.

"Why are you constantly holding your back? Is it painful?" Santi, Mayang's socialite friend, asked.

"No, Santi. I just slipped at home earlier," Mayang answered with a grimace.

"How did that happen?" Desi asked.

"It's just the usual, Desi. It's because of Riana, Reynald's wife. She's so incompetent as a wife. She mopped the floor so slippery that I slipped and fell," Mayang explained with a feigned sad expression.

"Oh my goodness, Mayang. If it were me, I would have fired her as a daughter-in-law!" Santi grumbled. "Should we teach her a lesson?"

Mayang shook her head dramatically, as if she were a wise mother-in-law.

"Well, it's difficult when it comes to having a son. No matter how many times I told him that Riana is not a good woman to be his wife, he still insists," Mayang said with a sad expression.

"Maybe it's because of your son. He loves his wife so much, so it's understandable. Besides, from what I've seen, Riana is very beautiful," Desi commented.

"Not really, Desi. You haven't seen Riana lately. I passed by Mayang's house the other day, and Riana looked completely different from when they first got married. Ugly, unkempt, and disheveled," Santi mocked.

"Really?" Desi asked, not believing.

"Yes, of course. Just ask Mayang if I'm lying to you, right?" Santi nudged Mayang's arm gently.

Mayang, who had just taken a sip of her juice, choked in surprise. "Of course. Riana really doesn't know how to take care of herself, and she's so wasteful. Every penny that Reynald gives her is always spent," Mayang began to speak ill of her daughter-in-law.

"Oh, be patient, Mayang. Sooner or later, Reynald will find the right woman to be his wife," Santi hugged her friend tightly.

"Thank you, Santi," Mayang replied, returning the hug.

Desi just watched her two friends embracing each other, opting to brew her hot drink.

However, she noticed a slight smile on Mayang's face.

Meanwhile, Reynald was trying to hold back his anger.

Just a moment ago, he was scolded by his boss. He was not invited to the meeting because the agenda he had prepared was deemed unsatisfactory by his boss.

"That ignorant boss! He thinks he's so great, how dare he say that the presentation I made was bad!" Reynald grumbled in his office.

Ding!

The sound of a message coming in on his phone made Reynald hurry to check who the sender was.

[Can you have lunch with me today?]

Reynald, reading the message, immediately smiled happily. His anger vanished instantly when he found out that the sender was Diandra, a beautiful woman with fair and smooth skin.

[Of course, I can. What can't I do for a beautiful woman like you?] Reynald replied.

[You're such a charmer, Rey.]

Reynald imagined the sweet smile on the beautiful woman's lips, and he couldn't help but smile himself, oblivious to Riana who was struggling to finish all the housework.

From morning till noon, Riana had just finished all her chores when the call to prayer for Dhuhr sounded. This made Riana choose to rest a bit before performing the prayer. She opened her rarely used phone and was surprised to find many unread messages.

"It must be nice to lie around playing with your phone!" Mayang grumbled, just returning from her socialite gathering.

"I just finished all the work, ma'am. That's why I'm taking a break before praying," Riana replied gently.

"Oh, that's just your excuse. Now, massage my back that hurts because of your incompetence!"

"Just a moment, ma'am. I'll pray first." Riana got up to go to the bathroom for ablution, then went into her room.

"Tsk, always finding a way to evade!" Mayang grumbled.

Mayang chose to enter her room and wait for Riana to finish, making sure to prepare massage oil for her aching back.

Riana, who had finished praying, slowly knocked on her mother-in-law's tightly closed door.

"Excuse me, ma'am." Riana opened the door slowly.

Thud!

A pillow was thrown towards Riana.

"Your prayer took so long, were you praying or sleeping?!" Mayang exclaimed.