My wife cheated and left me. When I told her she couldn’t have my stuff, she laughed and said she didn’t want any of it. But on moving day, when they realized what that meant once I had written the divorce papers, Parker thought quickly. “Get out of my house,” my wife sneered provocatively. Beside her, her lover was dreamily looking around the house.

“Wow—all this high‑end furniture. How lovely. It’s a house that fits me perfectly,” she said.

I felt the sting of those words and reminded my wife, “Just so you know, I’m taking all my personal things with me on moving day.”

“Okay then,” my wife replied, looking at me as if she was about to burst out laughing. “Of course, of course. If your stuff was left behind, it would just remind me of the miserable days we’ve had so far.”

Apparently, she still didn’t understand the true meaning of my words. I thought: Just watch. Make sure you don’t regret it later.

My name is Kevin. I’m a twenty‑six‑year‑old interior coordinator. My wife Joanna is thirty‑one and works in the construction industry. We met through our shared hobby of DIY projects and had been married for a quick three years. At first, we cared deeply for each other, but now I feel grateful we didn’t have children. The reason is that Joanna has become too self‑indulgent. After coming home, she carelessly takes off her coat, eats the meal I’ve prepared while complaining, doesn’t even clean up, and retreats to her room.

Before marriage we made various agreements, one of them being shared household chores. Joanna and I decided to split them equally, but now I’m taking on almost all of the housework. When I pointed out that she should do her share, she came up with an incredible excuse: “Housework is easy, so it’s natural for men to do it. Women have to take responsibility for work, so I don’t want to do all this.” This rigid opinion was something she had never voiced before marriage.

The fact that I earned more than Joanna also played a part in her turning against me. By the time I reached Joanna’s age, I was planning to be independent and should be able to increase my income even more—perhaps resenting that Joanna contributed only the bare minimum of her earnings to the house without saving, spending her money however she liked. She was so reckless with money that I warned her repeatedly, but she stubbornly refused to change. My hard‑earned money—how greedy could she be to still want more?

Not content with just that, she exaggerated to her co‑workers, painting me as an outrageous miser to win their sympathy. It was Joanna’s apparent generosity with money and the perception of domestic unrest that attracted her affair partner Liam. He’s a twenty‑four‑year‑old temporary employee at Joanna’s company. There are few young women at her workplace, and even though slightly older, she’s still considered young—which likely made thirty‑one‑year‑old Joanna catch his eye.

“Gosh, Joanna, if I had a beautiful wife like you, I’d take care of her forever,” he’d said, making her quickly infatuated.

I discovered Joanna’s infidelity about six months ago—just when the affair had begun. One day an unknown man called Joanna’s mobile phone. When I searched for his name on social media, I found Liam. He posted things like “Today’s date with my future wife at a fancy restaurant—I’m so nervous since it’s my first time,” along with photos of himself unmistakably with Joanna. I saved all of them and also retrieved their exchanges from Joanna’s phone. From the dates, conversations, and details about the places they visited, there was no doubt that she was cheating.

When I found out about her infidelity, I felt neither anger nor sadness—only emptiness. I understood that getting lectured when coming home tired wasn’t pleasant, but all those discussions were necessary for our future. Maybe it was harsh, but to have an affair just because you’re fed up with family life after only three years? I sighed heavily.

Certainly I couldn’t afford to be down and do nothing. I had been working hard, believing compromise was necessary between us, but I couldn’t tolerate the cheating anymore. I decided to divorce her and started looking for a lawyer. A month later, on a Saturday, I brought Joanna and Liam together for a discussion. Naturally, they were shocked when I contacted Liam—they probably never expected me to find out. Yet Liam, thrilled about the marriage, didn’t apologize or attempt to justify the affair. Instead he cheerfully asked, “Kevin, are you really okay with this unprecedented compensation?”

I calmly replied, “That’s right. Joanna and I decided before marriage not to divide our assets.” At that moment, Liam held hands with Joanna and celebrated.

Yes, Joanna and I had agreed that in the event of a divorce, there would be no division of assets, and the compensation I would receive would be minimal. Since I was working, I didn’t mind that part. But what made me furious was their complete lack of remorse for the adultery.

“How wonderful to live in such a stylish house filled with high‑end brands. The appliances are the latest too—it’s just the perfect house for me,” Liam said, causing a strange sensation to creep over me.

As I handed over the divorce papers, I reconfirmed something with Joanna. “Even during our marriage, there’s no division of the things I bought. I’m taking all my personal belongings with me. You understand that, right?”

Seemingly not understanding, Joanna paused and then spoke. “It’s obvious—your plain clothes and bags wouldn’t suit young Liam anyway. I have to buy him better things. If I leave your belongings here, they’ll just be a reminder of the painful days we had together.” It seems she thought I was talking about clothing and other personal items, and it was easier to let her believe it than to start an argument.

“Tomorrow the movers will take everything, so be prepared,” I said. But they were already ignoring me, too busy admiring the house’s interior.

The next morning, they came to see me off as if they were hurrying me to leave. Ignoring them, I waited for the moving company’s arrival. Then, right on time, a large truck arrived. The workers energetically called out to me.

“Thank you for choosing us today. We have another truck waiting nearby, so please don’t worry.”

Liam, with a clouded expression, hesitated as he approached me. “Do you have that many personal belongings?”

I held back a laugh and barely managed to answer. “The house itself belongs to Joanna, but all the appliances and furniture are mine. That’s why I said there would be no division of property.”

Hearing that, Joanna rushed over to me, her face turning bright red. “All the furniture and appliances are mine!”

Part Two — My wife cheated and left me. When I told her she couldn’t have my stuff, she laughed and said she didn’t want any of it. But on moving day, when they realized what that meant, they had been in this house for three years.

“Just take your stuff and get out quickly,” Joanna demanded.

I had reached my limit and finally burst out laughing. She truly didn’t understand what “no division of property” meant. Just because she’d been living in the house for a few years, she thought it was hers. “You must be joking.”

“Hey, you’re not really planning to take everything, are you?” Joanna, perhaps panicked by my attitude, lowered her voice to check with me. Meanwhile, the movers continued steadily transporting the furniture.

“Don’t worry,” I replied. “The only memories of living with you I’ll leave behind.”

At that, Joanna ran to the study in a panic. I always kept copies of receipts there, so she must have gone to check which pieces of furniture were being taken. But her search was in vain. There wasn’t a single piece of her furniture or appliances in this house. Joanna had inherited the house from her parents, who owned it as a rental property. Not wanting to spend on personal items, she had furnished it with secondhand furniture and appliances. When we got married, she disposed of all the furniture she had, so I bought everything.

Naturally, as an interior coordinator, I chose luxurious famous‑brand items and carefully arranged them for a visually pleasing atmosphere. The upscale furniture made the house look opulent—far from its secondhand origins, even if I say so myself. Liam, Joanna’s affair partner, couldn’t help but be enchanted as he looked around.

Joanna returned with a pale face as the movers were finishing up—leaving not a speck of dust behind.

“This is terrible!” Liam cried. “I can’t believe this is happening!”

A worker looked around the house and asked with concern, “The house is empty now—are you sure this is okay?”

“Yes,” I replied. “Since I’m moving out, I’m taking everything I bought with my own money. Please deliver it to my parents’ new address.”

The movers loaded the last items and drove off briskly.

“Hey, I didn’t hear about this! What are you going to do?” Liam continued to yell. But then a car pulled up, catching Joanna off guard.

“Wait—who’s coming now? What are you plotting?” she demanded, looking utterly bewildered.

“Karen, it’s been a while. Is it true you’re giving me the wallpaper?” A friend of mine emerged from the car.

“That’s right—the wallpaper too,” I said. It had been custom made by a designer friend, and I had paid for it. Since the wallpaper was reusable, with a bit of maintenance it could be used again without any issues.

“Y‑you’re going to peel off the wallpaper too?” Liam stared at me in disbelief. But my friend simply shrugged and began removing it.

“Please, can you at least leave that alone?” Joanna pleaded.

But I ignored her. “If you see my belongings left behind, you’ll be reminded of me—and that’s unpleasant, right? So I decided to give it all to my friend,” I replied, watching as she grew confused and panicked.

Without the tasteful furniture, appliances, or even wallpaper, the house now looked older than it actually was. For Joanna and Liam—who had dreamed of a life in a stylish home—this was a harsh reality. They seemed too drained to argue as they stood dumbfounded, watching me leave with a smile.

I used the furniture and appliances in my new home initially, but soon got tired of them, knowing Joanna had used them. So I contacted a friend who worked as a buyer to sell them. Fortunately, they were in excellent condition and sold for a higher price than I expected.

As I pondered what kind of furniture to buy next and how to arrange it, I got a call from Joanna. “Liam won’t stop going on about how you arranged the furniture. Can you come by the house once?” she asked.

Though I didn’t want to meet them, my curiosity as an interior coordinator won out. I wondered what kind of furniture they had chosen and what design ideas they had in mind.

“All right—I’ll go, just to hear what you have to say,” I agreed.

“Really? Remember, you promised,” Joanna exclaimed with apparent relief before hanging up.

On the promised day, I arrived—and was shocked. They hadn’t even re‑papered the walls. The furniture and appliances were clearly secondhand items from bargain stores. It looked like a cheap apartment a student might rent. A whole month had passed since we parted, and this was beyond disappointing.

“What is this?” I stammered, unable to hide my disbelief.

Liam, taking it as an insult, exploded with anger. “We gathered this stuff just to live for now! We’ll replace it soon! Since you took everything, use your connections or whatever to make this a house we can brag about!”

He was clearly unhappy living with secondhand furniture—frustrated throughout our conversation. But the budget they offered was nowhere near enough for my services.

“What’s this? You’re a talented coordinator, but you can’t do this? You’re useless!” Liam snapped, indignant.

“No matter how skilled the coordinator is, I can’t do much with such a limited budget. This is ridiculous—and it’s way beyond ‘connections,’” I explained, feeling stumped.

But he was serious about wanting me to arrange high‑end furniture and appliances on such a tight budget. Liam, now fully exasperated, finally erupted.

“Did you come here just to look down on me? If you don’t like it, I’ll leave,” I replied. “But if you want to furnish your home on that budget, you should at least polish your interior sense.”

“You really are mocking me!” Liam yelled. “Just because you have a fashionable job, don’t get overconfident!”

“Hey, hey—stop it,” Joanna tried to calm Liam down, looking exhausted. “Liam, please be quiet. I’m sorry for the noise,” she added, weary. “After everything, I had to marry Liam—but as you can see, he’s always angry, and it’s tough every day,” she confessed with a tired voice.

She went on to explain how they fought constantly in the now‑empty house. Liam had quit his job for the marriage and hadn’t told his parents, leaving him with nowhere to go. He admitted that he had married her out of convenience, hoping she’d handle the housework. But such a marriage was doomed, and he had already given up.

“Karen—please help me fix our relationship again,” he begged.

I was taken aback and responded, annoyed. “What’s this—planning to cheat on me next?”

“No, the thing with Joanna was just confusion. After you left, I realized no one is more wonderful than you, Karen.”

“You’re not serious, are you?” I exclaimed. “You’re the one who told me to get out of this house, right? I divorced you just like you wanted. You can’t possibly expect me to change my mind now.”

“Please, Karen—”

“Don’t call me by my first name so casually. This rundown house is your chosen castle with your affair partner. You two should get along together,” I said firmly.

Ignoring Liam’s pleas, I quickly left the house. Later, I heard that both Liam and Joanna had begged their parents to help furnish the house—only to be disowned. No one would support or forgive them for marrying after an affair. So reluctantly, they continue to live in the secondhand house. I couldn’t muster any sympathy for them. It was the result of their own choices.

As for me, I recently met a female interior designer through work. We’ve been going out often on weekends. Though I’ve been cautious about dating, maybe it’s time to think about starting a new life. With those thoughts in mind, I’m off on another date today.