Chapter 1

The Pregnant Mistress Who Came to Claim Her Place

I didn't have the courage to tell her to get lost.

Because I couldn't get pregnant.

My husband James said that in ancient times, men had multiple wives and concubines. What was wrong with him having two women?

One to bear his children, one to be his public face.

I flatly refused to accept this, and my whole family called me a fool.

On the day we were to sign the divorce papers, someone finally dropped their act.

My husband's uncle Lucas, rumored to be uninterested in women, pinned me against the wall and kissed me forcefully. He said, "I've been going crazy wanting you."

In the living room, James sat on the couch opposite me, his arm around his mistress.

Yasmin stroked her round 5-month pregnant belly, smirking at me challengingly.

James calmly said, "In ancient times, a family of our status would have had multiple wives and concubines. Having two women now isn't that many."

The person before me felt increasingly like a stranger.

When he pursued me initially, it was the talk of the whole city. He was so passionate and zealous, holding nothing back.

At our wedding, he even vowed to love only me for life.

Now, he was embracing another woman right in front of me, humiliating me.

With reddened eyes, I asked, "James, have you forgotten everything you said?"

James sneered, "It's all because you couldn't get pregnant. For three years, everyone's been whispering behind my back that I have no heir. It's been so embarrassing."

I lifted my chin, trying hard not to let the tears fall. "So you cheated and found another woman."

"Coco, I just want a child. If you can't be a mother, are you going to deny me the right to be a father too?"

With a broken heart, I slowly stood up.

He was still trying to justify himself!

Before the tears could fall, I quickly turned and left that heartbreaking scene.

As I rounded the corner, I unexpectedly collided with someone.

Looking up, I saw it was James' uncle - Lucas Fu.

He was known for being cold, especially towards women.

Rumors said he had no interest in women and at 33 still refused the family's attempts to arrange a marriage for him.

I hurriedly stepped back, escaping from his embrace. "Uncle Lucas, I'm... I'm sorry."

Lucas looked down at me and said slowly, "Running away won't solve anything. Be a good girl and stay in the Fu family."

His soft, coaxing tone made me uncomfortable.

In the end, I took his advice.

I couldn't believe James would abandon me and destroy all our beautiful memories and vows.

At dinner, there was no spicy Sichuan food on the table, only light Cantonese dishes.

I grew up in Sichuan and was used to spicy food. I really couldn't stomach these bland dishes.

James was peeling shrimp for Yasmin, eating happily.

I had never experienced such treatment from him.

Yasmin glanced at me slyly as she ate her fried egg, deliberately asking, "James, what happens to a hen that can't lay eggs?"

James casually replied, "It gets made into soup."

My mother-in-law sitting at the head of the table remained silent the whole time.

She didn't stop the mistress's deliberate provocation, showing how disappointed and annoyed she was with me.

I immediately lost my appetite and left the table.

The maid quickly brought Chinese herbal medicine.

But this time, it wasn't just one bowl, but three.

The extremely bitter soup went down my throat, making my stomach churn. I couldn't stop gagging, but I had to drink it.

Thinking of James' actions today, I finally couldn't control my emotions. Tears dripped into the medicine, mixing together to become even more bitter.

That evening, I checked the calendar and saw it was my ovulation period. I wanted to make one last attempt.

I put on light makeup, wore a black slip dress, and sprayed James' favorite perfume.

James came back to the bedroom where I was already waiting on the bed. I slowly wrapped my arms around his neck and pressed my lips to his.

As our lips moved together, James quickly became aroused.

Just then, James' phone rang with the special ringtone he had set for his mistress.

I didn't want to give up, pleading softly, "Don't answer it. She's just doing it on purpose. Don't go."

James' expression instantly hardened. "You're jealous of a pregnant woman? How petty."

With teary eyes, I held him back. "Fine, I'm petty. If you go out tonight, don't think about coming back to my room or asking for sex."

I thought this would stop James from going to see her.

But James roughly pushed me away, glaring as he said, "Stop being unreasonable. I can sleep with you whenever I want. I don't need your permission."

He quickly disappeared.

Tears streamed down my face uncontrollably.

Now I felt like a woman shamelessly flaunting herself to compete for favor. How degrading - I had lost all dignity and self-respect.

I went to the kitchen and threw all the Chinese medicine from the fridge into the trash.

Wiping away my tears, I headed straight for the wine cellar.

Nothing could heal the wound in my heart better than getting drunk.

As soon as I entered the wine cellar, I felt an intense gaze on me.

I felt awkward, annoyed at losing composure in front of Lucas.

I was barefoot, wearing a black nightgown with my hair loose - not at all proper.

I wanted to retreat, but remembering the scene upstairs, I steeled myself and walked in.

I silently chose a red wine, took a glass, and started drinking on my own.

Lucas held out his hand to stop me: "You shouldn't drink so much."

I smiled bitterly and shook my head. "Uncle Lucas, don't stop me. Let me drink myself to death."

After that, Lucas no longer tried to stop me.