A shocking revelation has emerged from eastern China where a wife, identified as Shang, discovered her husband Wang’s 16-year-long affair in a most unexpected way. During her father-in-law’s funeral in June 2022, Shang noticed an unfamiliar woman among the mourners. This woman, later identified as Wen, was dressed in traditional mourning attire and presented herself as the “daughter-in-law,” even weeping beside the coffin, leading attendees to believe she was a legitimate family member.
Shang’s suspicions were immediately aroused by her husband’s evasiveness when questioned about Wen’s presence. Determined to find the truth, she pursued the matter legally. Court proceedings revealed that Wang had been in a continuous extramarital relationship with Wen since the third year of his marriage to Shang. The affair had resulted in a son, and Wang had been leading a double life, often telling his wife that his frequent long absences were due to his job as a long-haul truck driver, when in reality, he was living with Wen and their child in another city.
Further investigations uncovered that neighbors had considered Wang and Wen to be a married couple, despite no legal marriage existing between them. Wang had even acted as Wen’s spouse when signing her surgical consent forms during a hospital stay.
In his defense, Wang claimed he and Wen were merely “supporting each other” and had never officially registered their marriage. However, the court ruled that Wang’s actions constituted bigamy under Chinese law, as he had effectively entered into a common-law marriage with Wen while still legally married to Shang. Consequently, Wang was sentenced to one year in prison. His appeal against the verdict was ultimately rejected.