Seventh Year Of Separation chapter 41
Hug Me
Bang! The sound of shattering glass echoed in the courtroom. Gu Jiahe fell to the ground, clutching the back of his head. Gu Jianmin just glanced at him and ran towards the other end of the road.
The camera angle was just right, capturing the side profiles of the two men, leaving no details of their features unnoticed.
The timestamp in the bottom right corner of the video froze at 6 p.m. on the evening of January 27, 2012.
After watching the video submitted by Li Zhao, the panel of judges in the courtroom heard murmurs and discussions from the audience seats behind.
Gu Jiahe turned to look at Li Zhao, his fingers trembling uncontrollably.
The presiding judge asked, “Plaintiff, do you acknowledge the authenticity of this video evidence? It can be cross-examined in court.”
The opposing lawyer, flipping through the documents in front of him, anxiously attempted to find loopholes.
Before he could rise, Gu Jianmin unexpectedly slammed the case file onto the table and yelled at Gu Jiahe, “Why the hell can’t I hit you? It’s perfectly justified for a father to discipline his son! It’s so difficult to ask you for some money, and now you pull off this stunt in court?!”
Boom! The audience seats began to stir.
The presiding judge pounded the gavel firmly. “Plaintiff, maintain order!”
The lawyer couldn’t restrain Gu Jianmin’s outburst. He continued to curse loudly, banging on the table with a jarring sound.
Gu Jiahe’s fingers trembled incessantly, as if it were an involuntary physiological reaction. For him, recalling that incident felt like reopening a wound that had already been stitched up.
However, for some reason, as he watched the uncontrollable Gu Jianmin before him, he felt a strange calmness wash over him, his gaze narrowing slowly.
Gu Jiahe clenched his fists, halting the trembling. After three seconds, he lifted his head and stared at Gu Jianmin expressionlessly.
Gu Jianmin continued to rant incoherently, his words unintelligible. The audience seats joined in the commotion.
The situation became somewhat unruly, prompting the presiding judge to speak up, “Court is adjourned for half an hour! We’ll reconvene in half an hour.”
Afraid of affecting Gu Jiahe’s emotions, Li Zhao immediately took him outside the courtroom during the recess to catch some air.
As they walked into the corridor, it was already noon, and the sunlight gradually warmed up. Surprisingly, the inner side of the glass windows felt slightly warm to the touch.
Li Zhao wanted to say something but couldn’t find the right words.
On the other hand, Gu Jiahe appeared calm and initiated the conversation, asking, “Where did you get the video footage? The surveillance cameras in that area should have expired and been removed long ago, with no police records either.”
Leaning against the railing next to the glass, Li Zhao replied, “I have a colleague in the litigation department who used to be in the same team as me. He mentioned it casually during our last office dinner, saying there was a video shop on the street near your school. In early 2012, the owner of that shop had a case and sought his legal representation as the plaintiff. They had to review the entire month of surveillance footage. I only found out that the owner himself had installed surveillance cameras outside the shop, so I asked him if there were any archived footage. It turned out he kept the entire month’s surveillance footage in case of future disputes.”
“And then you went to retrieve the video?”
“Yeah.”
“Must have taken a lot of time to search through the footage. How long did you watch it?”
“Not too long, just a few hours.” Li Zhao chuckled and shook his head.
“It’s been tough on you, ge.” Gu Jiahe patted his shoulder with a smile. “But obtaining evidence without informing the involved parties is a big mistake.”
Li Zhao knew he was trying to lighten the mood and playfully responded, “Well, I only received the archive yesterday and didn’t expect it to be useful. Won’t happen again.”
“Don’t curse yourself; there won’t be a next time.” Gu Jiahe pushed his shoulder lightly.
As they conversed, the door behind them suddenly burst open. Gu Jiahe turned around to see Gu Jianmin being pulled out by his lawyer. The atmosphere between them seemed tense.
They seemed not to have noticed Gu Jiahe’s presence there; they stood about three to four meters away, speaking.
“I’m begging you, don’t talk nonsense in front of the judge. We had a chance of winning, but if you can’t control yourself, I can’t help you either,” the lawyer said.
“Why the hell should they believe their nonsense?!” Gu Jianmin seemed indignant. “Why is it so hard for me to ask my son for some money? Can’t you handle it? If not, I’ll find another lawyer!”
The lawyer, now a bit agitated, couldn’t help but ask, “Why didn’t you tell me about the incident of beating your son years ago? Now we’re in a very passive position!”
After finishing his sentence, the lawyer changed direction and suddenly spotted Li Zhao and Gu Jiahe. He quickly pushed Gu Jianmin away from there.
Gu Jianmin continued to mutter curses until he disappeared at the end of the corridor.
Gu Jiahe paid no attention, just turned his back and looked out the window.
“With his outburst, it’s more advantageous for us. Don’t worry,” Li Zhao reassured him, sensing his heavy heart.
“I wouldn’t rule out him continuing to talk nonsense later,” Gu Jiahe continued to look at the sky, rubbing his temples.
Li Zhao comforted him, “It’s okay, I have experience…”
Before Li Zhao could finish his sentence, Gu Jiahe interrupted him, shaking his head. “No need. I’ll handle this myself.”
“Why?” Li Zhao was puzzled.
Gu Jiahe turned to look at Li Zhao in the eyes. “This is my own matter, I want to handle it myself.”
“Are you sure?”
“Absolutely.” Gu Jiahe nodded firmly.
Half an hour later, the trial resumed.
The presiding judge asked Gu Jianmin’s lawyer, “Plaintiff, do you have anything else to say?”
Just as the lawyer was about to stand up to speak, Gu Jianmin forcefully pushed him down. “Judge, if he doesn’t return my insurance money, that’s fine. But his income isn’t low, he should pay me 20% of his income as alimony for the past two years!”
As soon as he finished speaking, Li Zhao glanced at Gu Jiahe. Gu Jiahe sat there calmly, his expression very serene.
A few seconds later, he stood up, not looking at Gu Jianmin but addressing the panel of judges.
“Income statement page 21 of the evidence submitted by our side, please check it,” Gu Jiahe said calmly. “It shows my income flow for the past few years. You can see a fixed expenditure every month at the beginning of the month.”
“Since 2013, after I had a source of income, I have been supporting my grandmother. At the same time, I have been repaying the student loan I took out during my university years. During this period, the plaintiff did not provide me with any financial assistance, nor did he support my grandmother. For many years, it has been me alone supporting her, with the remaining income only enough to meet the most basic living expenses.”
“Therefore, I believe the plaintiff’s insistence on me paying 20% of my income as alimony is unreasonable.”
Gu Jianmin didn’t expect him to mention his grandmother and was momentarily stunned. After a while, he angrily cursed, “Your mother is dead! Why should I support your grandmother? What’s the use of having you?”
Gu Jiahe’s Adam’s apple bobbed, but he quickly regained his calm expression. Li Zhao lowered his head and saw him tightly gripping his own wrist, leaving a deep red mark on his skin.
Gu Jiahe said coldly, “Let’s stick to the facts.”
The commotion in the audience seats grew louder.
“What is this? He doesn’t support his elderly parents, yet has the audacity to ask his son for money…”
“Yeah, exactly.”
“How can someone be like this?!”
…
The presiding judge frowned deeply, seeming overwhelmed.
After both sides summarized their arguments, the trial phase ended 15 minutes later.
“Now, the panel will deliberate. Court will reconvene shortly for the verdict.”
In no time, the presiding judge took the standing microphone beside him.
Both parties sat in anticipation of the immediate verdict.
The presiding judge banged the gavel, “After careful consideration, this court hereby rules that, based on relevant laws and social norms, the defendant shall pay the plaintiff a one-time alimony of eight thousand yuan within 30 days.”
Li Zhao and Gu Jiahe held their breath, waiting for the next sentence of the verdict.
The presiding judge looked up at Gu Jianmin, “Furthermore, the plaintiff’s other claims are dismissed. The litigation costs shall be borne by the plaintiff.”
Buzz—
Gu Jianmin froze on the spot, motionless for about half a minute.
“Judge! I refuse to accept this ruling! I object!” Immediately, Gu Jianmin knelt on the table, began to cry and even put on a sobbing tone, his face twisted in horror.
“If either party objects to the ruling, they may appeal to this court within fifteen working days,” the presiding judge said, leaving only the final sentence, “Court is adjourned.”
The trial concluded, and members of the panel left one by one. Gu Jianmin lingered, and the lawyer had to pull him up, making for a pitiful sight.
Finally, Li Zhao loosened his tie under his robe.
“Let’s go.” Gu Jiahe sighed in relief, gently patting Li Zhao’s arm.
The two walked straight out of the courtroom.
The sun outside had risen to its highest point, and the snow on the roadside had melted considerably, reflecting the sunlight.
Gu Jiahe stood at the courthouse gate, with dozens of steps below him.
Li Zhao stood beside him. The strong sunlight fell on Gu Jiahe’s nose, and through the light, even the texture of his skin could be seen.
Gu Jiahe took a deep breath, his chest rising and falling slightly.
But just as the quiet moment lasted less than a minute, as he was about to say something to Li Zhao, Gu Jianmin suddenly ran out from behind them, knelt down, and tightly hugged Gu Jiahe’s thigh.
Gu Jiahe was first surprised, then looked down, only to see Gu Jianmin crying, his expression extremely painful.
“Jiahe!” Gu Jianmin’s voice was hoarse. He actually called him “Jiahe,” with none of the arrogance and domineering demeanor he had shown in court, a complete one-eighty in attitude.
“Jiahe, Dad didn’t mean it. I really had no choice. These eight thousand really aren’t enough. My lawyer fees alone are more than that. Your aunt’s son, he needs money for school. This woman… This woman, she’s driving me into a corner.”
Li Zhao stood aside, wanting to pull Gu Jiahe away from Gu Jianmin’s clingy behavior, but Gu Jiahe stopped his hand.
Gu Jiahe chuckled and looked down at the disheveled Gu Jianmin.
“Gu Jianmin, don’t you find yourself ridiculous?”
“Aunt’s son, isn’t he your son too?”
“You’ve lived for so many years. Haven’t you learned to take responsibility for your own life?”
“You blamed my mother when you were young, and now you blame her again. Who really ruined your life? Do you have no clue at all?”
Gu Jiahe’s words were like knives, cutting into the man’s back in front of him.
Gu Jianmin obviously didn’t expect that the thin and weak Gu Jiahe from back then, who would endure any beating and scolding, would now mock and ridicule him like this.
He wiped away his tears and said, “Dad didn’t mean it like that. Let’s talk, you lend me fifty thousand. I’ll repay you next year…”
Gu Jiahe’s tone was icy, cutting him off, “If you disagree with the verdict, you can appeal.”
Gu Jianmin still held onto him, his grip on his thigh causing some pain.
Gu Jiahe forcefully shook off his arm and patted his own pants, “Get lost.”
Gu Jianmin didn’t react at first, looking up at him.
“I said, get lost.” Gu Jiahe repeated.
Gu Jianmin finally stood up from the ground, gave him an angry look, but Gu Jiahe could see a hint of despair in his eyes.
Gu Jianmin walked away slowly, wearing his old blue suit, completely disappearing from Gu Jiahe’s sight.
The winter sunlight fell on Gu Jiahe’s eyelids, and his eyelashes trembled slightly. Then he took a deep breath, and his lips quickly sealed shut.
“Congratulations,” Li Zhao said, seeing that he still had no expression, patting his shoulder, “You’ve won.”
Gu Jiahe lowered his eyelids and whispered two words, “Hug me.”
Li Zhao didn’t hear clearly at first, “What?”
Gu Jia tapped his hand with his fingertip, “Can you hug me?”
Li Zhao was stunned for two seconds, then opened his arms and pulled Gu Jiahe into a tight embrace.