Seventh Year Of Separation chapter 34
Do You Know I’m Trying to Win You Back
Li Zhao pushed Gu Jiahe into the living room and casually closed the door behind him.
Then he took out his phone and talked to someone on the other side for a long time.
Gu Jiahe could only stand in the room, watching the back of his head. Li Zhao’s voice was low, and Gu Jiahe couldn’t even guess what they were talking about.
It wasn’t until five minutes later that Li Zhao returned from the balcony.
“What did he say?” Gu Jiahe hurried over to ask Li Zhao.
“He wants to sue. The lawsuit requests the return of that insurance money and payment for his support over the past two years. This is the total amount.” Li Zhao held out his finger to indicate a number, then locked the phone and handed it back to Gu Jiahe. “What’s your plan? Settlement or litigation?”
“Litigation.” Gu Jiahe didn’t hesitate for a second.
“Okay, I’ll help you.” Li Zhao nodded.
“Don’t get involved in this mess. I can handle it myself.” Gu Jiahe didn’t want Li Zhao to be involved from the bottom of his heart. “He’s just being troublesome. You’re so busy with work, don’t waste your time.”
But Li Zhao shook his head, unfazed. “I’ve dealt with more difficult people than him.”
Gu Jiahe was helpless and had to pull out his ultimate weapon. “I can’t afford your legal fees.”
Li Zhao raised an eyebrow. “Who said you have to pay?”
Gu Jiahe scratched his head, not knowing what to say. After organizing his thoughts for a while, he said with a stiff neck, “Li Zhao, do you know I’m trying to win you back now?”
Li Zhao didn’t expect him to suddenly say this, hesitated for a moment, then couldn’t help but find it amusing. He pretended to be confused, “Win me back for what?”
Li Zhao wasn’t stupid. Gu Jiahe had been running to their office every now and then, as if clocking in for work. And today, he went to the high-speed rail station for “meeting a client” out of the blue.
Gu Jiahe tugged at the sleeve of his hoodie again, not willing to give up: “Don’t you know our current situation? I have to quickly stand on my own feet, silently contribute, be a model citizen, otherwise how can I pursue you… If you insist on getting involved, with you standing on the high ground, where does that leave me, ge?”
This train of thought almost made Li Zhao’s CPU burn out. It was somewhat laughable and hard to grasp.
Gu Jiahe’s ears were burning, and he turned away from Li Zhao’s gaze. “Well, you know, isn’t that how novels are written?”
Li Zhao held back his laughter and nodded seriously. “Oh, so this is the situation we’re in now.”
“Okay, then, Gu Screenwriter, you go according to your script. We’ll settle the legal fees later.”
Gu Jiahe was dumbfounded and didn’t know what to say.
After their conversation, it was almost ten o’clock. Gu Jiahe glanced at the clock in the living room and prepared to leave. “I’m going home first. You should rest early.”
Li Zhao walked to the entrance and found the car keys. Gu Jiahe quickly grabbed his hand. “Don’t come out, I’ll take the subway home myself.”
Li Zhao didn’t say anything and didn’t follow him either, watching Gu Jiahe open the door.
He really wanted to see what tricks Gu Jiahe would come up with next.
Gu Jiahe was telling the truth. He wanted some time alone to think about what to do next. Although he wasn’t afraid of litigation, based on their many years of understanding, Gu Jianmin was indeed difficult to deal with, and this might be a long-term battle.
But as Gu Jiahe prepared to close the door and walk towards the elevator, Li Zhao suddenly called out to him, “Wait.”
Gu Jiahe turned to look at him, and Li Zhao handed him a coat from inside the house. “It’s cold outside.”
It was a pure black wool coat, thick and warm.
Gu Jiahe was about to refuse, but a gust of wind blew through the corridor, making him shiver. His hoodie ballooned up like a hot air balloon.
After a moment of thought, he reached out and took the coat. “Thanks. I’ll return it to you another day.”
Two minutes later, he walked into the night wrapped in Li Zhao’s coat.
The sleeves of Li Zhao’s coat were long enough for him to tuck his hands inside, feeling the soft pure wool fabric against his skin, warm and cozy.
It would take about seven or eight minutes to walk from the entrance of Li Zhao’s community to the subway station. Gu Jiahe walked out of the community gate, glanced back at Li Zhao’s building, and then counted up to the fifteenth floor.
The lights in that room were still on.
……………
On Monday morning, Li Zhao arrived at the law firm unusually early.
He parked his car and strode into the office. From afar, he noticed something on his desk.
As he approached, he realized there was a large bouquet of pink roses on his desk, wrapped in translucent glass paper, with a card inserted on top.
Li Zhao took it off and read the card. It said, “Happy Monday.”
No signature.
“Idiot.” Li Zhao couldn’t help but laugh and then placed the flowers on the windowsill next to his desk.
Just then, Qin Yi also arrived, passing by Li Zhao’s desk. Her eyes lit up, and she stopped to tease him, “Oh, what’s going on? Do you have an admirer?”
Li Zhao actually thought about it seriously. Was he an admirer?
Seeing Li Zhao didn’t answer, Qin Yi didn’t continue to ask, she just tapped his desk, “We have a project meeting at the client’s office this afternoon. Come with me.”
“Okay.” Li Zhao nodded.
His recent work wasn’t as busy as before. The merger and acquisition project in Ningcheng was nearing its end, and there was no need for him to be there anymore.
Rarely having nothing to do in the morning, Li Zhao sat in the office, holding a cup of coffee, lost in thought.
However, as he was lost in thought, his gaze wandered to the bouquet of roses.
He inexplicably thought of Gu Jiahe’s eyes.
Gu Jiahe naturally had a pair of puppy eyes, with the corners drooping downwards. When he had no expression, he looked pitiful.
Unfortunately, Gu Jiahe himself seemed unaware of this, always putting on a tough face, as if he had everything figured out.
A puppy just needed to lower its head and nuzzle someone’s hand to easily get a hug.
Lately, Gu Jiahe had been visiting Yuping Road more and more frequently, at least three or four times a week.
Wu Mou was recently quite dissatisfied with Gu Jiahe, as he often couldn’t find him after work. During lunch breaks, he would often bump into him strolling around the shops downstairs.
One day, Wu Mou went downstairs for coffee in the afternoon and saw Gu Jiahe walking towards him with a paper bag.
Wu Mou cleared his throat and asked him, “Why are you out during work hours?”
Gu Jiahe innocently replied, “Aren’t you having coffee too?”
Every time Gu Jiahe went to shop downstairs, he brought something different, but the only common point was that they were all sweets.
Li Zhao always ate them without fail, but after work, he often went to his boxing instructor for a couple of classes to burn off the calories.
The following Wednesday, just as it hit six in the evening, Gu Jiahe took the subway to Yuping Road again.
Li Zhao received his WeChat message and came downstairs. The two went to the convenience store and sat by the window.
“Ding ding!” Gu Jiahe opened the box he brought.
Li Zhao took a look inside, seeing two light yellow pastries lying in the box. “Pea cake?”
Gu Jiahe nodded. “It’s from the new store downstairs, just trying it out.”
“Next time, will it be sweet bean rolls or pea cakes again?” Li Zhao asked jokingly.
“How did you know?” Gu Jiahe deflated a bit. It was no fun that he was always figured out.
Li Zhao didn’t joke with him anymore. After finishing one pea cake, he turned to him and asked, “Did you receive the subpoena?”
“Yeah.” Gu Jiahe nodded, only realizing after a moment that something was off. “How did you know?”
“His lawyer contacted me a couple of days ago.”
“Why does he have your contact information?” Gu Jiahe was puzzled.
“During our last conversation, I gave him my number.”
Gu Jiahe sighed inwardly.
It seemed that Li Zhao was determined to get involved in this mess.
Gu Jianmin was extremely proactive when it came to money matters. He quickly found a lawyer and sued Gu Jiahe.
Gu Jiahe calculated the days and realized that the trial would begin in a month.
Seeing him zoning out, Li Zhao asked, “What are you thinking?”
Gu Jiahe pondered for a moment before saying, “On the way back that day, I thought about it. He’s sixty-two this year. If he really insists on the support fee, I don’t have many options.”
“Yeah.” Li Zhao nodded. “It’s difficult to fight on the point of not having a support obligation. It’s basically impossible to win, there have been almost no such precedents in recent years. But there’s room for maneuver.”
“Such as?” Gu Jiahe turned to look at him.
“Try to minimize the loss as much as possible.”
“That’s what I thought too. At least the money my mom left behind shouldn’t go to him.” Gu Jiahe nodded lightly.
“Is that insurance policy still with you?” Li Zhao asked.
“No, he took the original. The insurance company settled the claim later, and the case was closed. I don’t know if they still have the original.” Gu Jiahe recalled carefully. “But even if he claims that the money he gave me was a gift, the statute of limitations for recovery has passed.”
Li Zhao shook his head. “The statute of limitations has passed, but it still can’t be considered a gift.”
“Why?” Gu Jiahe asked.
“Because they might use this as evidence of supporting and assisting you over the years to prove that your parent-child relationship hasn’t broken down, and then demand more support fees.”
Gu Jiahe thought for a moment. “That’s true. This possibility can’t be ruled out.”
Gu Jianmin would bite when he was desperate, and Gu Jiahe firmly believed in this.
Li Zhao continued, “So, to prove that this money is your legitimate income, we need to find that policy. Are you sure your name was listed as the beneficiary on that policy?”
“I’m sure. I saw it with my own eyes. But the original document can only be obtained from the insurance company in Pingcheng. It’s been a long time, and the case has been closed. I don’t know if they still have it on file.”
“Don’t worry about that. Insurance companies keep archives even after settling a case because they deal with disputes every year.” Li Zhao thought for a moment before asking, “Are there any other supporting evidence? Like, did he write any IOUs?”
Gu Jiahe fell into thought. He rubbed his temples and answered after a while, “I remember I might have recorded audio at the time.”
“What did you use to record it? Do you still have the audio file?”
“It seems like it was my old phone from high school.” Gu Jiahe tried hard to remember.
“Does he know you recorded it?”
Gu Jiahe shook his head. “He probably doesn’t know. I think I put my phone in my backpack to record it.”
Li Zhao nodded. “That’s good. This way, we have a bit of initiative.”
“I’ll try when I get back. I don’t know if that old phone can still turn on.” Gu Jiahe’s old phone was still locked in the office drawer, and he hadn’t found a suitable charger for it yet.
“It should be able to turn on.” Li Zhao replied.
“Hmm?” Gu Jiahe wondered why he was so sure.
But Li Zhao didn’t say anything else on the matter and changed the subject. “We need to collect other evidence. The most important thing is to find evidence that he didn’t fulfill his support obligations to you, so that the judge can sympathize with you.”
Gu Jiahe nodded after listening. “I might have to go back to Pingcheng. Many things are still there.”
But after he finished speaking, he looked at the shadows of the two reflected in the glass and felt that the current situation was somewhat strange.
Gu Jiahe shook his head gently and smiled, “Am I the most cooperative litigant for you?”
Li Zhao nodded. “Yes, you are the most obedient one.”
Gu Jiahe felt that the answer was a bit odd.
He lowered his head, flattened the packaging of the pea cake, and threw it into the convenience store’s trash can.
The convenience store had changed its background music again. Gu Jiahe hadn’t heard any recent pop songs for a long time and couldn’t even guess the singer, but the cheerful atmosphere was still lively.
Suddenly, a few middle school students who had just finished school burst into the store, rushed to the shelves, grabbed a bunch of snacks, and threw them on the counter, seemingly discussing whose house they would go to play games over the weekend. The convenience store became even louder with their chattering.
Gu Jiahe stood up and went to the cashier to get two napkins for Li Zhao to wipe his hands.
Outside the window, the sky had already darkened completely, with a crescent moon hanging in the sky.
Gu Jiahe glanced at the wall clock. It was almost eight o’clock. He stood up from his chair, bid Li Zhao farewell, and took a few steps out before turning back and shouting to Li Zhao, “I’ll come see you again tomorrow! Wait for me!”