Come Sit At My House - Chapter 1

Chapter 1

On February 9, 2023, Luo Qingmeng was getting ready to divorce.

It had only been a month since she got married and moved into her husband’s apartment. She used to live in Qingshiyan, a three to four subway stops away from him. A few days after they got their marriage certificate, her new husband said, “Come live with me. The money you save on rent can be used to buy a nice bag.”

Luo Qingmeng thought it made sense. After all, her monthly salary was only 4,800 yuan, and after paying rent, she didn’t have much left. Besides, since they were married, there was nothing to hide; they would have to live together eventually.

Li An was 32, a senior manager at a foreign company. She was 28 and worked as a cashier at a bookstore. Luo Qingmeng felt incredibly lucky to have met and fallen in love with Li An. She was introverted, had a poor education, and came from a modest family. Because of this, she always felt a little inferior to Li An.

They spent days moving her belongings. On the night they were supposed to consummate their marriage, Li An had already stripped down to his boxers. She caught a whiff of his body odor, which was unbearable and made her feel nauseous. As it was her first time, she was very resistant and said, “I’m so tired. My shoulders are really sore. Can we do it tomorrow?” Li An also said he was tired and went to take a shower, leaving his phone on the bed.

Feeling guilty, Luo Qingmeng took the next day off work, cleaned the apartment thoroughly, bought some orange-scented incense, and then bought groceries. She returned home, cooked a nice meal, and poured some wine, waiting for Li An to come back.

Li An came home early. He opened the door, affectionately called her his wife, and went to the bathroom with an eager look on his face. His phone was on the bed, and the screen wasn’t locked. Luo Qingmeng didn’t intend to look at it. Li An wasn’t particularly handsome, but he was well-educated and a complete gentleman. She trusted him deeply. However, the screen suddenly lit up with an incoming call, and she couldn’t resist taking a look.

She found several revealing photos in Li An’s phone album. Although they weren’t very clear, she could make out a tattoo on the woman’s chest and legs under a pair of short shorts. She recognized the woman immediately—it was Qiu Shuxue! There were more photos after that, but once she realized who it was, she couldn’t bring herself to look any further. She quickly started digging through their chat history.

Qiu Shuxue had come to Li An’s apartment for dinner before, when he had hosted a get-together for his colleagues. Luo Qingmeng, as his girlfriend, helped with the cooking and cleaning. When Qiu Shuxue got drunk, she kindly offered her a place to stay. To avoid suspicion, Qiu Shuxue showered with her and slept next to her that night. The next morning, as Luo Qingmeng was cooking, Qiu Shuxue praised her cooking and called her a virtuous wife. Qiu Shuxue stood next to her, leaned on her, and affectionately called her “sister-in-law.” It was then, in their intimate moment, that Luo Qingmeng noticed Qiu Shuxue’s chest tattoo and a birthmark on her thigh.

Whenever she thought back on it, she always felt that Qiu Shuxue was gentle and down-to-earth. She genuinely liked Qiu Shuxue and envied her for being a translator at a foreign company at such a young age.

But now, Luo Qingmeng was furious. She looked at the dates on the photos—they were taken right around the time Qiu Shuxue had come over for dinner.

Luo Qingmeng had clearly been played. She felt so wronged that she wanted to cry. When Li An came out half-naked, ready to get intimate, she grabbed the phone and threw it at his groin. Li An thought she was being playful and moved closer, but Luo Qingmeng wasn’t finished. She grabbed the curling iron, which was still plugged in, and threw it at his crotch as well.

She heard Li An shriek and saw smoke. With tears blurring her vision, she ran out of the apartment in just her pajamas. It was still cold in the North in February. Her face was numb with cold, and her body was shaking uncontrollably. She ran all the way, but Li An never came out to apologize or explain. Fortunately, she ran into a traffic police officer, who took her to the police station.

Sitting on a bench at the police station, Luo Qingmeng shivered, wrapped in a coat the auxiliary police officer had given her. She sobbed as she opened Qiu Shuxue’s WeChat Moments and saw a seductive photo. Qiu Shuxue was wearing a black, low-cut, V-neck lace dress. Her fingers were hooked on a strand of her hair, but her face wasn’t visible.

Luo Qingmeng was crying so hard she was on the verge of snot bubbles. She couldn’t believe she hadn’t realized it when they slept together that night. Qiu Shuxue had been wearing a very sexy outfit. She came out of the bathroom and sat on the bed next to her, purposely tugging on her shoulder strap and asking, “Sister, do you think this style looks feminine?”

At the time, Luo Qingmeng thought Qiu Shuxue was just discussing women’s secrets and didn’t think much of it. She shyly complimented her, saying she looked beautiful. Qiu Shuxue had also praised her, “Sister, my figure is all forced. Yours is what’s truly beautiful and mature. The simple styles, with the little moon pendant in the middle, are very charming. You have a great figure.” Luo Qingmeng had a very full figure—a C-cup and more. She deliberately bought loose-fitting bras to make herself look smaller and never dared to wear anything that pushed them up. Sometimes she felt embarrassed at work and would hunch her shoulders. Being complimented like that made her so happy that she added Qiu Shuxue on WeChat with her phone. They chatted a few times after that.

Now, she realized. Qiu Shuxue was showing off.

She scrolled through their chat history, feeling so miserable that her tear-soaked finger slipped and accidentally hit the video call button.

Beep, beep. Qiu Shuxue answered.