The Scheming Ex-Husband's Courtship-Chapter 670 - 581: Disadvantage

"Plaintiff Helan Ying, what is the ultimate goal of fighting for the custody of Zhengzheng?"

Helan Ying said, "Zhengzheng is our Nan Family’s grandson, of course I want to have him recognize his ancestors and return to our clan."

Nan Zhan nodded and then turned to Jian Si, "May I ask my client, how much time do you spend alone with Jian Zheng every week?"

Jian Si replied, "I have to work during the day. I eat breakfast with him before taking him to kindergarten, and then accompany him at dinner in the evening. On weekends, if there are no special circumstances, I will always be by his side."

"Good. Now, Mrs. Helan Ying, as far as I’m aware, your work is extremely busy, and the number of times you dine at home can be counted on one hand. If Jian Zheng really lived with you, there is no doubt he would become a lonely child with only a nanny for company. At Jian Zheng’s age, what he needs most is companionship, something you would undoubtedly struggle to provide."

Helan Ying smiled faintly, "I can give up part of my work for him."

"Are you really willing to give up part of your work? Clearly, this doesn’t sound credible." Nan Zhan suddenly confronted her, "Mrs. Helan Ying, as everyone knows, we are mother and son. Could you tell me, what is my favorite dish to eat and what do I dislike the most?"

Helan Ying paused, with a momentary panic on her face.

"May I ask, when I got into a fight at school and broke a rib, where were you at that time?"

Helan Ying looked at him in surprise. When did this happen?

"You surely wouldn’t know because when your assistant informed you that I was involved in a school fight, you merely asked them to approach the school and pressure the other party, without caring if I was injured. You were on a business trip for a month, and I was in the hospital for a month. When you returned I was discharged, and you acted as if nothing happened."

"Do you know whether I ever liked someone of the opposite sex during my adolescence? Do you know if I ever failed any high school exams? You don’t even know, I traveled abroad by myself once." Nan Zhan looked at Helan Ying’s increasingly pallid face, "I dare to ask, a mother who doesn’t even know her own son’s preferences, would she really devote the effort to care for a seven-year-old child?"

"You..." Helan Ying’s mouth trembled with rage.

"Objection." Mu Rongchen hurriedly interjected, "I object to the defense lawyer’s subjective speculation and assumption."

Nan Zhan retorted without courtesy, "I am the evidence, is there a need for speculation?"

Helan Ying’s face turned ugly. She never knew that all this time, Nan Zhan cared about these things. She saw him going to school and doing things by himself, eating and sleeping as if he was very independent, without ever acting spoiled like other children in front of their parents. She thought he did not need all that, how could her son be compared to ordinary people? It seems he was very ordinary after all.

The presiding judge hesitated on whether to stop the questioning, but Nan Zhan had already spoken again, "Unfortunately, I did not follow the path you planned for me. So now, you need to groom another individual who will listen to you, carry out your arrangements, and revitalize the Nan Family, which is why Zhengzheng has become your necessary candidate."

"Objection." Mu Rongchen said with emotion, "The defense lawyer is talking nonsense, I request the presiding judge to stop his questioning."

Just as the presiding judge was about to speak, Nan Zhan said, "Your honor, my questions are complete."

Nan Zhan’s questioning evidently caused Helan Ying to lose face, and it also gave Jian Si a bit more chance of winning. However, Jian Si could not feel happy. Exposing their discordant mother-son relationship in such a setting must have been painful for the usually proud Nan Zhan, she knew, he did it to help her.

This moved her, and her heartache intensified.

Nan Zhan gave her a slight nod, and blinked.

It seems, they had advanced another step towards victory.

Jian Chuan, listening to the murmurs around him, also showed a relieved smile. To everyone, even though Jian Si had a sad past, her experience earned her much sympathy. Everyone lamented how difficult it was for such a young girl to raise a child, and upon learning of Helan Ying’s inability to manage a mother-son relationship, their concern for the child grew. No matter what, the child should stay with the parents.

"Your honor, I have new evidence to submit," Mu Rongchen suddenly stood up, "I believe that Miss Jian Si’s impropriety in her love life could negatively influence Jian Zheng."

Everyone turned their attention to Mu Rongchen all at once, and Jian Si felt a chill, sensing trouble. Her mind raced to guess what Mu Rongchen could use against her.

And then, Jian Si saw Nan Yu on the large screen used for displaying evidence.

The photo was taken from a deliberately tricky angle, with Nan Yu having collapsed drunk on top of her.

As soon as the photo was revealed, there was an uproar.

A look of triumph appeared on Helan Ying’s face, as the setback she just experienced was swiftly salvaged.

Mu Rongchen asked, "Defendant, is the person in the photo you?"

Jian Si’s face turned a shade paler, and she instinctively looked at Nan Zhan, whose expression remained calm as he nodded at her.

Jian Si said, "It’s me."

"And this person?"

"He’s my friend."

"Does the defendant have such close relationships with all friends of the opposite sex?" Mu Rongchen switched to another two photos, "This photo was taken ten days ago. After this gentleman embraced you, he went straight into your room. According to the photo, he did not leave until six in the morning, which means he spent the night at your place, am I correct?"

"That’s incorrect." Jian Si denied, "He drank too much that day, and it was his birthday, we simply ate noodles with eggs, and he left my place after ten o’clock."

"However, the time on the photo cannot be wrong, this gentleman indeed left in the early morning."

Jian Si: "..."

She was also somewhat confused. After Nan Yu got drunk that evening, it was Nan Zhan who took him away. Yet the photo indeed showed that he didn’t leave the residential area where she lived until dawn. 𝐟𝗿𝐞𝚎𝚠𝐞𝚋𝕟𝐨𝚟𝐞𝕝.𝕔𝕠𝚖

Seeing her at a loss for words, Mu Rongchen immediately said: "The defense attorney this time, Mr. Nan Zhan, happens to be the biological father of your child, I believe your current relationship is not ordinary either, otherwise Lawyer Nan wouldn’t defend you in this lawsuit. Now, behind Lawyer Nan’s back, you are having a fling with another man. I wonder what Lawyer Nan thinks about this. How could such a woman be worthy of being Jian Zheng’s mother? It’s simply a bad influence on the child."

"That’s not true." Jian Si rushed to explain, "That night, Nan..."

Nan Zhan suddenly stood up: "Your Honor, I request a recess."

After consulting with the jury, the judge hammered the gavel: "Recess granted for thirty minutes."

~

In the rest room, Jian Chuan asked anxiously: "What is really going on? Why did Nan Yu go to your place that day and end up completely drunk?"

Jian Si glanced at Nan Zhan standing in front of the window and said softly, "It was his birthday that day, he got so drunk that he ended up at my place, but that day, Nan Zhan was also there."

"That’s good." Jian Chuan let out a sigh of relief.

"There’s no evidence." Nan Zhan suddenly spoke up: "Given our relationship, my word as evidence is not credible."

Something came to Jian Si’s mind, and she asked in confusion, "You were the one who took Nan Yu out that day. Why didn’t he go home?"

"Because he stayed at my place that night." Nan Zhan’s words startled Jian Si, but she quickly realized. Could it be that he has been staying in her residential complex all along?

"There must be evidence." Nan Zhan looked down upon the distant street. Because this area is close to the court with an emphasis on greenery, many couples choose to take their wedding photos on the shaded roads here.

By the roadside, there happened to be a couple dressed in wedding attire taking pictures, with two assistants holding reflectors, and the photographer lying on the ground in a difficult pose to get the shot.

Nan Zhan’s formerly tense lips suddenly lifted into a reassuring light smile. Right, how could there be no evidence? The evidence is in Nan Yu’s cellphone.

"Call Nan Yu, tell him to bring his cellphone here immediately." Nan Zhan handed his own cellphone to Jian Si, "I’ll be right back."

With his phone in hand, Jian Si found Nan Yu’s number. She could have used her own phone to call him, but Nan Zhan must have his reasons for doing so; as a brother, his words would carry more weight for Nan Yu. He needed him to come over right away.

After Nan Zhan left, he went to find an acquaintance— the vice-judge of this trial.

According to the rules and regulations, defense attorneys and the presiding judge are not supposed to have any contact during a recess, so the two of them ended up going to the same restroom very tacitly.

Separated by a partition, the vice-judge said, "Nan Lv, there’s some trouble this time. If we can’t find evidence before the court resumes, we’ll have to deliver a verdict."

"That’s not in accordance with the rules."

"You understand, with Dean He presiding personally, many things that don’t conform to the rules suddenly conform. There’s nothing we can do to reverse it, and even if you appeal to the higher courts, it would be Dean He’s territory, and it’ll be even more problematic than now."

Nan Zhan, of course, understood this.

In this world, there is no absolute justice, nor is there absolute fairness, so long as it’s within the moral boundary that doesn’t exceed the law,

"I understand, thank you."

"Find the evidence as soon as possible. I’m sorry, Lawyer Nan."

After the vice-judge left, Nan Zhan lit a cigarette.

Back in the rest room, the atmosphere was off. Jian Si shook her head at him, "I can’t get through to Nan Yu’s phone. I called the police station, his colleague said he’s on a mission and hasn’t contacted them for three days. They’re also worried but can’t find him."

Like a bolt from the blue, Nan Zhan’s expression became heavy and solemn.

Some say, the greatest distance in the world is me calling you, and you cannot answer.

"Nan Zhan, are you asking Nan Yu to come to court to testify? Would his words be unacceptable as testimony, too?"