— “Olga Pavlovna, I can’t hire Polina,” Angela said cautiously.
Her mother-in-law had asked several times to secure a job for her daughter.
— “But why not? She’s smart, she graduated from college, and she’s married. And if you think she’ll just be on sick leave—if her granddaughter falls ill and I have to sit in—you’re mistaken.”
— “That’s not it,” Angela replied as calmly as possible. “I have rules: I don’t hire relatives in my own company.”
— “What foolish rules!” Olga Pavlovna exclaimed, offended.
— “Unfortunately, yes. I have two rules: the first is not to lend money to relatives and friends, and the second is not to work with them. Unfortunately, these rules weren’t invented by me but by history—since they usually lead to conflict, and I don’t need that.”
To change the subject, Angela went to the kitchen to heat the kettle. In the living room, her husband Boris remained. As soon as the mistress of the house left the room, his mother addressed him:
— “What are you staring at? It’s your sister—go and put the pressure on your wife!”
— “Oh no,” Boris immediately objected. “If Angela said no, it’s best not to. And besides, can’t Polina find a job on her own? There are plenty of vacancies; she can choose any.”
— “And you, too,” Olga Pavlovna grumbled in an offended tone, though she did not insist. After all, Angela was the owner of the enterprise and had every right to decide whom to hire.
However, a month later, rumors reached Olga Pavlovna that Galina—her relative by marriage—was working with Angela. Then she raised the issue again, wanting her daughter-in-law to hire her own daughter.
— “We already discussed this matter,” Angela replied with a note of irritation.
— “But your sister works for you!” the mother-in-law immediately retorted.
— “Yes, that’s true,” Angela did not deny. “But she works in her own field, while Polina has no qualifications. Why would I need a historian at work? I’d have to train her from scratch, and that takes time and money. I only hire specialists.”
— “Then let her work part-time while learning.”
— “No, and it’s all because someone would have to train her, and that someone would get paid a salary by me, which means I’m effectively paying for Polina’s training. Therefore…”
— “I understand everything,” the mother-in-law said, her tone hurt.
Angered by the refusal to hire her daughter, Olga Pavlovna, the next day, found some time and, armed with a pen and paper, began looking up government offices where she could file a complaint against Angela’s enterprise. By lunchtime she had written three statements. What that would achieve, she did not know—she simply wanted a little revenge to keep her daughter-in-law from getting conceited.
More than a week passed. Angela never once mentioned in conversation with Olga Pavlovna that there were problems at work.
“— You managed somehow,” thought the mother-in-law, coming to the conclusion that the daughter-in-law’s enterprise was flourishing.
— “So, how are things at work?” she inquired of Angela.
— “Lots to do,” the young woman replied briefly.
Angela did not like to talk about her work—partly because no one understood it, and her listeners never wanted to get into the details, so she always avoided the topic.
— “Your father-in-law—bless his soul—didn’t live to see this. He worked hard on our summer house, but now it’s falling apart. I want to ask you to help fix it.”
However, the tone of the mother-in-law was so authoritative that it sounded more like an order than a request. Angela was skilled at negotiations—she had learned from her father—so she did not refuse immediately; instead, she asked a series of questions about the country house: what trees had been planted, then about the cottage, its foundation and roof. From the conversation, Angela deduced that the cottage was fine—perhaps only in need of cosmetic repairs.
— “Yes, I can help,” the young woman finally said, “but only out of my salary and only if my husband agrees.”
Hearing this, Olga Pavlovna was astonished. She had always assumed that a businessman had a separate account or something similar, and that he could easily withdraw a portion of the company’s money for himself; she hadn’t thought of a salary. As if reading her thoughts, Angela added:
— “Yes, I do have a salary—it’s a percentage of the profits, and it varies depending on the reports. So if Boris agrees, I can allocate a little money”—but she stressed “a little” on the last word.
Olga Pavlovna interpreted this in her own way and, the very next day, decided to talk to her son Boris.
— “Your wife is such a stingy girl,” she bluntly declared, pouring out everything that had been building inside her. “She can’t even meet her mother-in-law’s needs. She has a big enterprise; surely she’s hoarding money, and she refused to help me. And remember, your father worked on that summer house—you used to play there; it’s about to collapse.”
Although Boris had graduated in management, he had little idea of how an enterprise worked, so like his mother, he believed that the company owner could easily extract money. That evening, coming home, he resentfully turned to his wife:
— “Why didn’t you help my mother?”
Angela looked at her husband. She was well aware of the gaps in his education—which, admittedly, was common among her friends.
— “You see, dear,” she said while pouring herself some fragrant tea, “don’t treat my enterprise as something personal. This business has its own economic laws; you can’t just pull out a chunk of money. I have financial plans and obligations to meet. And these obligations cost money—not only salaries and rent but also equipment. It’s quite a long chain; if I pull out money, this chain might break.”
— “Is it really that bad?” Boris asked, surprised.
— “I didn’t say it was bad. I don’t have a reserve account right now where I can save part of the profits for a rainy day. Every single penny is accounted for, so talk to your mother and explain that I don’t have a bedside table from which money can be taken. And if you’re so curious about how enterprise finances work, then read”—and she pulled three hefty books off the shelf.
Boris felt hurt—first, because he was made to feel like a foolish boy, second, because his own mother had been refused once again, and third, because he was being shown up with books. He respected his wife precisely for building her own, albeit small, yet stable business from scratch. He longed for something similar himself, though it hadn’t worked out yet.
A few days later, Angela visited her mother. About twice a week she would drop by to chat, and although she was grown up, she still sought advice.
— “I’m fed up with my mother-in-law,” Angela said after they had tea.
— “Something serious?” asked Vera Gennadyevna, with curiosity.
— “I don’t even know. First she asked me to hire Polina, then got upset that I hired Galina, and just the other day she demanded money for the summer house—and Boris sided with her.”
— “Hmm…” murmured the not-so-young woman. “It’s understandable: you have your own company, you work for yourself, and so they think you’re some golden hen.”
— “Hen,” Angela smirked, “if only they knew what little eggs this hen lays.”
— “They really don’t know. And maybe you should involve your husband in your work process?”
— “Oh, Mom, please don’t start! I don’t need Boris dictating what to do. I already have enough headaches with my own people, and you want to add another one.”
— “But a mother-in-law is your husband’s mother; you should help her, of course, within reason.”
— “Mom, Olga Pavlovna has a son, and I believe he should help her—not me. I have you, Galina, my brother, and even a niece.”
— “That’s all well and good, but Boris is your husband, and he has a mother. Think about it.”
— “Alright, Mom, I’ll think about it,” Angela agreed.
In truth, she wasn’t entirely opposed to helping her mother-in-law; however, recalling the commanding tone, she wondered, “Is it really worth it?” After all, if she made the first financial contribution, Olga Pavlovna would eventually demand more. Yet, one way or another, this issue needed to be resolved.
Boris read the texts Angela had given him. He understood some parts, but others were so intricately written that he decided to postpone dealing with them. Later, when he spoke with his mother, he tried in his own words to explain how business works and that Angela had financial obligations.
— “She’s lying about everything,” his mother said after Boris finished his mini-lecture. “Remember, your stepmother went to a holiday home in the summer, sponsored by your wife. And the relative by marriage wasn’t left out—she got a renovation done, bought a refrigerator for her mother, and is now fixing the bathroom. And I…” she paused dramatically, spreading her arms as if to show emptiness.
— “Yes…” Boris agreed.
He immediately recalled how Angela had given his niece a children’s furniture set, and how his stepmother had been getting massages for nearly a month. He felt hurt that his mother was being overlooked, so, when he got home, he lectured his wife like a schoolteacher about fairness.
Angela did not interrupt him; she was even curious to know how Boris envisioned things. When he finished, placed his palms on the table, and addressed her:
— “Are we a family?”
— “Yes,” she agreed.
— “And in a family, isn’t everything shared equally?”
— “Yes.”
— “Then why do you help only your own relatives and ignore my mother’s request?”
— “Ah, that’s just how it is,” Angela smiled sweetly. “You see, dear, for me my mother will always be closer. Don’t be upset, but it’s a fact—as your mother will always remain your mother, so I naturally think of her first.”
— “Then why don’t you help your mother-in-law?” Boris asked.
— “Really?” Angela was surprised by his question. “Didn’t I give her a washing machine? And who, in your opinion, installed the air conditioner? You?” she said, looking into his eyes; he immediately lowered his gaze. “And who changed the windows in her bedroom? You?” Boris’s face reddened slightly.
— “Yes, that was you,” he agreed, “but…”
Angela interrupted him:
— “I’m willing to help your mother, but fifty-fifty. In other words, you invest one hundred rubles, I invest one hundred rubles. But don’t forget our family budget. Well, do you agree?” she asked, and he nodded involuntarily.
Of course, Boris wasn’t foolish; he understood that his wife would naturally care for her own mother more than his, and that she had already done quite a bit in the short time they had been together—while he had done nothing for his own mother. That, above all, hurt him because he still hadn’t learned how to earn money. Yet inside, he resented his wife for setting such conditions, meaning that in the future, his own mother would receive very little.
A few days passed. It appeared that Boris had talked to his mother and explained his wife’s position, but Olga Pavlovna was not satisfied. She decided to speak with her daughter-in-law herself, and when Angela was home alone, she paid her a visit. After a few minutes of conversation, the mother-in-law declared:
— “If you don’t give me money for my summer cottage, I’ll turn Boris against you, and then who knows how long you’ll live together.”
— “I have to go,” Angela said coldly and headed for the corridor.
She felt disgusted being near her mother-in-law. It was the first time she had been given an ultimatum: either money or family happiness. She believed in Boris, although recently he had too often taken his mother’s side, but she did not want to quarrel with Olga Pavlovna at that moment. Instead, she decided to discuss it with her husband later that evening, and for now, she wanted to consult her best friend Zhanna—after all, Zhanna also had her own business and surely had her own way of handling financial issues with a difficult mother-in-law.
“— How do I handle it?” Zhanna mused to herself.
Together with her husband Pavel, she had organized a travel company that showcased not the beauties of nature, but rather the negative aspects—abandoned factories, deserted plants, and empty villages. When she told Angela about her plans, Angela hesitated, but the tourists were very curious to see old factories, abandoned mills, and desolate villages.
— “Lately my mother-in-law’s behavior and my husband’s complaints have been too much,” Angela said sadly. “How do you handle this problem?”
— “Well, it’s fine. Each of us keeps a sort of order sheet—if you can call it that—where we write down our parents’ wishes. Then, together, we decide which of these demands requires immediate attention. Of course, that doesn’t mean we block everything out—he wants to help his parents, and I want to help mine. I don’t mind if he helps his mother, but not at the expense of our family.”
— “That’s nicely put,” her friend replied, as it was exactly what she had suggested to Boris, though for some reason he had gotten angry over it.
The anger toward her mother-in-law did not fade. The words where she had threatened to turn Boris against Angela kept echoing in her mind. Perhaps Olga Pavlovna had already spoken with him, but Angela couldn’t ignore the problem, so upon arriving home, she decided to talk with her husband.
— “Your mother is being aggressive. Today she demanded that I give her money. Why does she come to me and not to you?” Angela watched Boris’s reaction carefully.
— “Isn’t it hard enough for you to help her?” he asked coldly.
— “You probably don’t understand where my money comes from. It’s a small part of the profit—and profit is the work not only of me, but also of my team and my clients,” Angela tried yet again to explain how the business worked, but he wouldn’t listen.
He, like his mother, suspected that his wife was hiding her income from him—money she gave to his mother—while his own mother was left out. He was angry at both her and himself for not being able to push her to give money.
That evening, they argued again. Boris insisted that Angela should help his mother equally, while Angela said these were not her problems but his.
The next day, Angela decided to talk with her sister Galina, who had a troubled relationship with her husband that was leading to divorce. In their childhood, they had often shared secrets, helped each other, and made plans for the future.
— “You’re saying that your mother-in-law wants a share of your pie?” Galina asked with a smirk.
— “Sort of,” Angela replied.
— “And your husband is siding with his mother?”
— “Uh-huh.”
— “Is he stupid? Well, mine earns money, and yours just sits on a salary and then complains about you.”
— “Uh-huh,” Angela said sadly.
— “Look at yourself from the outside. Let’s say you have a friend who owns a successful business—and then her husband and her mother start demanding that she support them. What would you say to that?”
Angela had never really considered the situation from the wife’s perspective before, but after her sister suggested looking at it that way, she found it amusing.
— “I think,” her sister continued, “that he married you for your money. I believe things will only get worse—surely he’ll eventually want a part of your business. Think about it,” Galina advised.
After that conversation, an entire week passed. Angela didn’t have time to mull over her problems because her business offered no respite. But by the end of the week, when Angela arrived home a little earlier than usual, Olga Pavlovna unexpectedly showed up. Boris was delayed—perhaps by chance, perhaps deliberately.
— “Why don’t you consider this option?” the tone of the mother-in-law was surprisingly gentle—an approach that unsettled Angela.
— “What do you mean?” Angela asked.
— “After all, my son is your husband; you live as one. So why not involve Boris in your business?”
— “He wants to start his own enterprise,” Angela immediately replied.
— “I don’t mean that he should work for you, but rather that you give him a share in your business.”
— “You want me to transfer some of the shares to him?” the mistress of the house asked in surprise.
— “Exactly, that would be fair,” the mother-in-law agreed.
— “Well then, I’m not opposed,” Angela answered. “I can sell him ten percent of the shares.”
— “Sell?” Olga Pavlovna did not expect such a proposal.
— “Of course, sell. The company is worth money, so if he agrees, ten percent is six million. Not as much as you might think.”
Olga Pavlovna’s face reddened—either from the audacity of her daughter-in-law or from hearing that figure.
— “But isn’t it unfair to demand money from your husband?”
— “Why would it be?” Angela retorted. “Ten percent is a commodity, and every commodity has its price.”
Olga Pavlovna was deeply hurt by the proposal. She tried several times to persuade Angela to simply gift a portion of the assets to her husband, but Angela was unyielding. She was only willing to part with ten percent of the shares in exchange for money. Outraged by her daughter-in-law’s refusal, the mother-in-law eventually left.
For a while, Angela sat in silence, digesting Olga Pavlovna’s words, and then decided to call her sister.
— “Can you believe it? The mother-in-law demanded that I include Boris as one of the founders,” she said indignantly.
On the phone, Galina laughed.
— “What did I tell you? That’s where your roots come from!”
After a minute’s conversation, Angela set the phone aside. She recalled how she had met Boris at a conference—when the city administration gathered young entrepreneurs who had passed a selection round. It was then that Angela won a grant, and thanks to that initial capital, she began building her business. Boris, too, was a promising young man with many ideas, though many had flaws. But Angela liked him—he had a special charm, he could talk for hours about his prospects and future plans. Of course, it wasn’t just that which attracted Angela—he was also attractive as a man. Before she knew it, she fell in love with him, and within six months they married. However, while Angela was busy advancing her business, Boris quickly lost interest in his own enterprise, and within a year he closed it. And now he had registered a new company where only two people worked—him and his friend.
A day later, as evening approached, Olga Pavlovna again appeared unannounced. Angela had just finished her shower and, with damp hair, greeted her mother-in-law. Boris, drying his face with a towel, greeted his mother.
Angela went to the kitchen and prepared tea. She did not feel like talking with her mother-in-law, but she wasn’t going to ignore her either. A few minutes later, once Olga Pavlovna had finished her first cup of tea, she addressed the daughter-in-law:
— “So, you’ll help me with the summer cottage?”
Angela did not immediately answer; she first glanced at her husband, then began watching the tea leaves in her glass.
— “Why are you silent?” the mother-in-law finally asked, unable to tolerate the long pause.
— “And what has your son done to help you?” she inquired, genuinely curious about how much money Boris had given his mother.
— “Not much,” Olga Pavlovna said irritably. “You know he just started his business; he needs to get on his feet. But you, dear lady, are financially stable and can act as a sponsor.”
At that moment, Angela realized nothing had changed and wouldn’t change. She turned away from the mother-in-law and looked into her husband’s strangely angry eyes. He, like Olga Pavlovna, expected an affirmative answer.
“Who do you think you are?” Angela silently asked herself.
After slowly finishing her tea and setting her cup on the table, she smiled slightly and addressed her mother-in-law:
— “Tomorrow I’ll come to your place, if you don’t mind, around six in the evening and I’ll give you a unique gift.”
At those words, a smile appeared on Olga Pavlovna’s face. Angela glanced at her husband—now he was looking at her not with anger, but with a hint of tenderness.
About ten minutes later, the mother-in-law left their home.
The next day, immediately after lunch, Boris departed—most likely to his mother’s house, expecting his wife’s gift. As promised, Angela arrived at Olga Pavlovna’s home by six in the evening. Accompanied by a mover, she entered with a couple of large boxes, beautifully wrapped and tied with pink ribbon.
— “What is this?” Olga Pavlovna asked, intrigued.
— “My gift to you,” the daughter-in-law replied calmly.
Boris hurried over, curious about what his wife had prepared for his mother. He had already stepped forward to open the first box, but Olga Pavlovna beat him to it. With some difficulty, she untied the large bow, began tearing off the wrapping paper, and then, armed with a kitchen knife, cut the tape. Upon opening the box, the mother-in-law was dumbfounded.
— “What is this?” she probably wondered, but Angela stepped in to explain:
— “These are your son’s belongings.”
— “Why are they here?” Olga Pavlovna asked innocently.
— “This is the most precious gift I can give you: I’m returning your son to you—my husband.”
Boris’s smile vanished; he looked into the box once more, then at his wife.
— “You talked so much about your business, but did nothing. You had time and money, yet you squandered it all. I asked you to moderate your appetite for financially supporting me, but you didn’t. I asked you repeatedly to talk to your mother so that she wouldn’t beg for money, yet it only got worse. Therefore, my dear,” Angela said with a sad smile, “I’m returning you as the treasure of your mother.”
— “What do you mean by that?” the mother-in-law’s voice trembled with anger.
— “I’m filing for divorce.”
— “What?” Boris blurted.
— “I have no financial claims against you.”
— “If you divorce,” Olga Pavlovna interjected, “he’ll claim half of the enterprise,” meaning her own son.
— “You think so too?” Angela asked Boris.
— “That would be only fair,” he supported his mother.
— “You’ve made the wrong decision,” Angela said coldly.
She said nothing more, turned, and silently left.
The divorce proceedings were far from simple. Boris had tried until then to resolve the conflict, but Angela insisted on divorce. Boris then filed financial claims against her, yet he managed to prove nothing—he ended up with nothing. Meanwhile, Angela managed to prove that the car Boris drove was purchased during their marriage. Therefore, Boris either had to compensate her fifty percent of the car’s value or sell it.
However, Boris felt sorry to lose the car, so he offered Angela a plot of land he had bought several years before they married. Angela agreed, and within a month she sold it at a very favorable price—almost twice the cost of his car.
Upon learning this, Olga Pavlovna quarreled with her son:
— “Waving your fists after a fight is useless,” she said.
And some time later, Boris got into an accident in his beloved car. The insurance company refused him payment because they found traces of alcohol in his blood. A month later, he even closed his new enterprise.
Angela was free. She often met with her sister Galina and her friend Zhanna, who hinted:
— “Maybe it’s time for you to find a new husband.”
After what had happened with Boris, she grew wary of men and decided that for a while she would live for herself—and later, if she fell in love again, then see what happened.