Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio
Reveal everything to Gu Nianzhi?! Gu Yanran was instantly blinded by rage. This was the sentence she refused the accept the most and also hated the most. All her dissatisfaction and anger over the years, as well as the unspeakable anxiety and fear that she felt after reuniting with Gu Nianzhi, finally compelled her to blurt out, “Go ahead and reveal it! You reveal everything about me, and I’ll rip her mask off to show you who she really is! You think she’s the one who chatted with you anonymously all those years ago?! Stop dreaming! She…!”
Ye Xuan was also incredibly enraged and frustrated, so he kicked one foot and slammed hard onto something. It suddenly made an earth-shattering noise, and this noise was like a powerful bomb going off right in Gu Yanran’s ear. It quickly pulled her back from the very edge of reason. Gu Yanran muffled her mouth with her hand and looked out the window to see the bright blue sky that rivaled the blue hole in the Caribbean Sea. She seemed to suddenly recall something, and an extreme fear flashed in her graceful eyes for a moment. Her entire body was wracked with uncontrollable shudders, and even her teeth chattered loudly. The phone slid down from her hand to smash onto the ground.
Gu Yanran slumped on the couch and pressed her hands hard against her face. Desperate, she curled up on the couch. She needed to go back… She needed to go back.. She couldn’t live here anymore… She couldn’t go back to Barbados either, so when she requested a flight plan from the air traffic control agency, she had only used Barbados as a cover. As long as she could leave the Hua Xia Empire, where couldn’t she go? Gu Yanran’s heart continuously repeated the words, and she became even more determined. She needed to leave the Hua Xia Empire immediately and find a place to hide.
…
Gu Nianzhi battled it out in her dormitory for an entire morning. At noon, she finally finished writing the complaint. This was a complaint about a dispute over family assets, and the contested assets were not only in the Hua Xia Empire but could also be all over the world. This kind of case was even more controversial for a court to accept, so Gu Nianzhi spent a great deal of effort in order to be able to file the case and convince the Hua Xia Imperial Court to accept her complaint. As soon as she printed the complaint, she heard Huo Shaoheng’s special ringtone on her phone. Gu Nianzhi answered the call. “Huo Shao, what is it?”
“Did you go file the case with the court yet?” Huo Shaoheng had just finished having lunch and went to the immigration agency to check that Gu Yanan’s injunction hadn’t been issued yet, so he knew Gu Nianzhi probably hadn’t completed her part just yet.
Gu Nianzhi sighed. “I just finished writing the complaint, Boss. What are you in such a rush for?”
Huo Shaoheng replied, “It’s already late.” He glanced at his watch. “You keep working hard then.” He ended the call and drove his car out.
Gu Nianzhi grumbled to herself and also ended the call. She began packing up things to take with her. At 1pm, Gu Nianzhi went to the Imperial Capital High People’s Court herself to submit her own complaint.
“We have no precedence for accepting a case like this.” The clerk in charge of reception in the High People’s Court carefully examined Gu Nianzhi’s complaint and was quite impressed with it. However, it was also true that they’d never accepted that type of case. “How about you file the case with the court in Barbados?”
Gu Nianzhi became anxious. If she gave up now and let Gu Yanran leave the Hua Xia Empire, then she was extremely certain that Gu Yanran would hide somewhere and make it extremely difficult to find her ever again. “Sir, can you please discuss this with the judge before making the decision?” Gu Nianzhi was even more anxious now. “I wrote it very clearly in there and included all applicable laws and precedents, as well as international guidelines for handling this type of case. I listed them all. Can’t you reference them?”
The middle-aged man in his forties suddenly felt his face flush. He was feeling very uncomfortable about having a pubescent little girl question his level of professionalism. His expression also turned icy as he casually scribbled a few words on Gu Nianzhi’s complaint with his pen. He used bureaucracy as a front. “Where are the precedents? Why haven’t I seen them before? Where did you find all these things that you’re talking about?”
“I listed the bibliography in the back. You can verify it.” Gu Nianzhi quickly flipped to the very last page of the complaint. “You can see, it’s right here.”
“Never heard of them. I don’t know if those can be considered references.” The clerk was already annoyed and stabbed the pen hard on the desk. “Fine, fine, little girl. Stop causing trouble and wasting my time here. Are you an adult? Don’t mess around. If you really want to file a complaint, a lawyer needs to be the one to bring you here!” As he spoke, he got ready to crumple Gu Nianzhi’s complaint into a ball to throw out.
Gu Nianzhi never thought that dealing with the clerk in court would be even more difficult than arguing with those glib-tongued defendants and plaintiff’s lawyers in court! Her anxiety was about to go through the roof, and tears were about to fall from her eyes. A sheet of fog seemed to veil her large eyes, like cold mist and moonlight cloaking water. She was so beautiful, it pained his heart.
The clerk also seemed to notice his own terrible attitude and said somewhat guiltily, “Don’t cry. This is the regulation. We all need to work by the book, isn’t that right? You have no charter to follow, so my hands are tied as well. Also, the monetary amount involved is so high, and you don’t even have a lawyer representing you. How can I believe you? Are you an adult? Are you just messing with me? Is that right?”
Gu Nianzhi thought, “Why the hell would I want to mess with you!? Who has the spare time to be messing with you at a moment like this!? You think you’re a monkey sent out to entertain people?!” Gu Nianzhi balled her hands into tight fists and pursed her lips. She tried hard to force the tears back into her eyes. Holding her head up high, she inhaled deeply to organize her thoughts and muster her courage. Just as she was about to continue convincing the clerk to file her complaint with the court, she heard the door to the small room open. Someone walked inside.
The annoyed clerk standing across from her suddenly plastered on a big smile and stood up from his seat. Quickly walking out from behind his desk, he lunged to the door and said with great respect, “President Zhan, why did you come? You can just call if you need something. Why come here yourself?”
Gu Nianzhi pouted with contempt when she heard the clerk act so completely respectful. Turning around, she wanted to see what kind of important figure could cause this clerk to grovel to this extent. She saw a tall, strapping man standing at the door. Although he was already aged with hair dusted white on the sides of his face, his gaze was exceptionally sharp. He nonchalantly nodded to the clerk, then said to Gu Nianzhi, “You’re here to file a complaint?”
Gu Nianzhi was momentarily speechless. However, she still nodded. “Yes, I am. May I ask who you are?”
“Show me your complaint.” The man reached his hand out to her, his broad palm splayed before her, and gave her an indescribable sense of conviction. This was a man someone could trust with just one glance. Gu Nianzhi immediately took the complaint and respectfully placed it in his hands.
The clerk was very uncomfortable, stammering, “Well, President Zhan, we have no precedence for a case like this, and according to the subject of those properties, they are not in out nation at all, so accordingly…”
“What do you mean, the subject of the properties is not in our nation?” Gu Nianzhi couldn’t stand listening anymore and rudely interrupted the clerk. She said calmly, “The venue for cases of estate feuds is either in accordance with the plaintiff’s nationality or in accordance with the defendant’s nationality. I’m filing a lawsuit to reclaim my family assets, and as a clerk working for the Hua Xia Imperial High People’s Court, how on earth can you spout such inadmissibility? Aren’t you ashamed? Did you consult with your professional ethics? If they still exist, that is.”
“You–!” The clerk was red-faced from being berated by her, especially with President Zhan present. However, he didn’t dare trouble Gu Nianzhi again since his biggest boss was right in front of him. If he continued to make things difficult for Gu Nianzhi, then he would really be an idiot.
President Zhan still remained quiet on the sidelines as he read through Gu Nianzhi’s complaint very quickly. He nodded. “You wrote this complaint yourself?”
Gu Nianzhi wasn’t sure what to say. She squinted her sparkling eyes with suspicion. “Why do you ask that?”
“Because you didn’t bring a lawyer. If this was written by a lawyer, then you wouldn’t need to come here to file it yourself.” President Zhan glanced at her and saw she was still appearing wary, so he began to chuckle. “Actually, it’s very remarkable to have Lawyer Gu personally write her own complaint.”
Gu Nianzhi stared tongue-tied at President Zhan. “You… You recognize me?!”
“Yeah, I viewed several cases you participated in, in military court and the German courts. Very fine, indeed. The youth are a force to be reckoned with.” President Zhan seemed to have a very good impression of her and agreed quickly. “I will accept this complaint and immediately send someone to deliver the subpoena, then select a date for trials.” Present Zhan was very busy and had been requested by someone to help. After he came over to help Gu Nianzhi file her case, he went back for a meeting.
Gu Nianzhi felt like it was all a dream and completed the remaining procedures with the clerk, who had instantly changed his attitude. She witnessed them send someone out to deliver the subpoena before leaving the High People’s Court in a daze. Standing on the sidewalk, she turned around to look at the large national emblem hanging tall. A thought appeared in her mind, but she didn’t dare confirm it.
Picking up her phone to unlock it, she wanted to call someone, but after hesitating, she put it back down. Walking a few steps, she looked down to unlock her phone and tap on the letter “A” for that person. She wanted to call that person and tried several times, but a thousand weights seemed to be on her finger, preventing her from pressing down. Fine. She sighed to herself and looked down at her phone. Just as she as she was about to put it back in her bag, it suddenly rang.
“Offerings, alter, bow and arrow of war, whose past did they belong to? I love the image of how you only belong to me amid the crowd…” It was Huo Shaheng’s special ringtone. Gu Nianzhi’s finger had just fumbled on contact “A” on her phone… What a coincidence. Just as she was about to call him, he had called her. Gu Nianzhi hesitated for a moment before unlocking it to answer quietly. A deep and attractive laughter resonated from the phone. Not only was it from the phone, but it seemed to be right by her ear, not too far away. Gu Nianzhi’s heart trembled as she suddenly turned around to see Huo Shaoheng in uniform. With both hands in his trouser pockets, he casually stood next to the High People’s Court. From her angle, the large national emblem seemed to shine brilliantly above his head. He stood under the majestic national emblem just like that, watching her with a small smile.
