Hello, Mr. Major General

Xie Dezhao’s voice began to choke at this juncture.

 Gu Nianzhi had not expected capable of crying so badly at the thought of his wife’s passing. Especially not after more than twenty years, a remarriage, and watching his daughter grow.

 She felt rather guilty about it. For the sake of her own lawsuit, was it selfish of her to implicate others and dredge up their own painful memories?

 Gu Nianzhi’s face darkened. She looked at Xie Dezhao and handed him some paper towels.

 Xie Dezhao accepted them and patted his face before saying, “Excuse me, I’ve lost my cool.”

 “It’s okay.” Gu Nianzhi comforted him carefully. “You can choose not to say anything if it’s too painful…”

 “No, I have to say it.” Xie Dezhao raised his head, the tip of his nose and the lower eyelids of his eyes slightly red. “When Gu Tian was seven months pregnant, I told Gu Xiangwen the news. He came to my place in a rage. He scolded me for a long time while pointing right at my nose…

 “At that time, I allowed him to scold me. I even allowed him to kick me… Because I felt that I had let him down. I had promised him that Gu Tian would not get pregnant, but I went back on my words… However, after this, Gu Xiangwen told Gu Tian that he was prepared to help her, but he could not guarantee success. He still felt that Gu Tian was risking too much. But Gu Tian said that if she did not have a child with me, she’d feel that this marriage was incomplete…”

 Xie Qingying was sitting amongst the audience, and she began crying as well.

 A month after she was born, Gu Tian’s health had gave way. Her immune system was fully handicapped and she caught a flu while in recovery. She passed on a week later.

 Xie Qingying did not see her mother before. However, Xie Dezhao and the entire Xie family doted on her a lot. So even though she didn’t have her mother by her side, the rest of the family made that sadness bearable. She would only feel her father’s pain whenever he reminisced about her mother.

 Gu Nianzhi had felt nervous until after hearing the story. She looked at Gu Yanran out the corner of her eye and realized that Gu Yanran had an aloof grin on her face…

 Xie Dezhao continued, “After that, Gu Xiangwen said that though he was prepared, the time wasn’t right. However, since Gu Tian was about to give birth, he couldn’t care less anymore. He asked me to call him a fortnight before Gu Tian’s estimated delivery date, so that he could come and help her…”

 “May I know why Gu Xiangwen helped Gu Tian? And in what way?” Gu Nianzhi interrupted. “Surely he didn’t help with the delivery. After all, he didn’t have any obstetrics experience, did he?”

 Although she knew that Gu Xiangwen was a genius, his main area of research had always focused on technology. He was interested in cell reproduction and genetic make-up, but those didn’t have any relation to obstetrics, did they?

 Xie Dezhao laughed coldly and looked at Gu Nianzhi. “Gu Xiangwen is your father. Perhaps you would not like it if I were to say this, but it’s a fact. Gu Xiangwen said that he would be there for Gu Tian when she was about to give birth, but when the time came, we weren’t able to reach him. I still remember calling Gu Xiangwen for the last time before Gu Tian was pushed into the delivery suite. I yelled into his voicemail, ‘If you are still not here, I will never ever acknowledge you as my brother again!’ After that message, Gu Xiangwen finally returned my call. He said that he was looking for someone, and that he would be there when the child was born…”

 Gu Nianzhi sensed something suspicious. “Looking for someone? Who?”

 Gu Yanran’s eyes narrowed. She turned towards Jin Wanyi and whispered something to her.

 Xie Dezhao continued his story. “I have no idea, he didn’t say and I was too worried about my wife. She was in labor, how could I have cared who he was looking for?”

 That was a fair point Gu Nianzhi remained silent and indicated for Xie Dezhao to go on.

 “During labor, Gu Tian lost a lot of blood. They tried, but there was no stopping it. I was panicking like crazy. I begged my cousin to fly a top European obstetrician from France over in our private jet. That was how Gu Tian was saved. However, due to the blood loss, the doctor realized that Gu Tian’s immune system could not function normally. Her bone marrow was no longer able to make blood, and she needed a transplant.”

 Gu Nianzhi’s eyebrows twitched—twice. The mocking smile on Gu Yanran’s face was clearer than ever.

 And Huo Shaoheng, who was watching the entire trial closely from Special Forces headquarters stood as well. He folded his arms as he continued watching the livestream, feeling frustrated. He contemplated whether or not he should cut the stream… However, Xie Dezhao continued, which put Huo Shaoheng at ease again.

 “After that, we sought out a specialist in marrow transplants to help find a match. Since money was no object, we were able to find a match rather quickly and then immediately performed the transplant.”

 Gu Nianzhi’s heart had been pounding in her chest. It was only after hearing that last part that her heartbeat calmed. She covered her thumping heart with her hand, and felt that she might not be strong enough to face the impending truth…

 She clenched her fists and felt sweat on her palms. Her legs slightly wobbled, but she mentally ordered herself to not fall in court in front of everyone. Gu Nianzhi willed herself to stand straight and looked at Xie Dezhao quietly.

 “Did Gu Tian recover after that?” Her voice was cold and distant. It was as if she had left her body and watched this entire farce from afar.

 “Of course not.” Xie Dezhao wiped his face and stopped crying. However, his voice sounded so helpless and his features were sharper than ever. “The match was successful, but instead of helping Gu Tian produce new healthy bone marrow, the transplant caused her immune system to completely crash. From then on, Gu Tian could only live in a sterile environment.”

 Xie Dezhao grew quiet. He couldn’t bring himself to say what had happened next. It was because on the day that Xie Qingying turned one month old, Gu Tian missed her daughter so much that she secretly got someone to bring the child into her sterile room. She wanted the opportunity to hold her baby for a little while…

 And that was how Gu Tian caught the flu. She suffered for a week in bed, before eventually meeting her death.

 After she had passed on, Gu Xiangwen, who was almost unrecognizably skinny, managed to arrive at Xie Dezhao’s house. However, what welcomed him was a white memorial. His beloved sister was just barely over the age of twenty, but had already left the world.

 “…Twenty-seven years ago, on the day of my wife’s wake, I bashed him up. Then I chased him away, and told him to never again return to our house!”

 “…So you’ve had no contact with him in twenty-seven years?” Gu Nianzhi asked. “He’s never met his own niece?”

 “It wouldn’t have been different even if he had come. I never allowed him into my house. He attempted to come back several times in the first few years after Gu Tian passed on. But after years of me chasing him off, he eventually stopped coming. From then on, his only contact with Qingying was sending a birthday present every year.” Xie Dezhao paused and there was a sense of insecurity in his voice. “But then, seven years ago, the presents stopped.”

 Seven years ago was the time of Gu Xiangwen’s accident. The presents stopped because Gu Xiangwen had been in a vegetative state ever since. Now Xie Dezhao understood why.

 Gu Nianzhi pieced what she already knew with what Xie Dezhao had just told everyone in court and managed to form a picture. There were still parts that were missing, but those were minor details that did not hinder her main point.

 “All right. The story is finished. May I know what question you have, lawyer Gu?” Jin Wanyi smirked and looked at Gu Nianzhi.

 Gu Nianzhi raised her head and looked at Jin Wanyi. “Patience. I’m getting there.” Turning around, Gu Nianzhi solemnly addressed the judge. “Your honor, I’m finished with this witness. May I call for his daughter, Xie Qingying, to come to the witness stand?”

 The judge raised his hand. “Go ahead.”

 Gu Nianzhi signaled Xie Qingying to approach. For Xie Qingying, Gu Nianzhi did not require her to talk much. She merely asked a few basic questions about her name, her parentage, and verification of her identity. Xie Qingying answered the questions with ease, then produced her birth certificate, passport, and finally, a paternity test.

 Gu Nianzhi took the latter from Xie Qingying. “This document proves that Miss Xie Qingying is the biological daughter of Mr. Xie Dezhao and Madam Gu Tian.”

 Gu Yanran breathed a sigh of relief upon hearing that. For the past three hearings, Gu Nianzhi had managed to embarrass her so badly that she was almost unable to face anyone. Thankfully, in this fourth hearing, she would be able to get her revenge. Gu Yanran was so excited that she almost could not sit still anymore.

 Gu Nianzhi submitted Xie Qingying’s paternity test to the court and produced two more documents. She looked around the court and back at Gu Yanran.

 “I have two more paternity tests here. These reports came from the top hospital in the country, and their authenticity has been confirmed by the authorities.”

 Everyone’s attention focused on Gu Nianzhi.

 “These documents proved that Miss Xie Qingying and I are biological relatives. Defendant Gu Yanran, however, has no biological relations with Miss Xie Qingying at all.”

 “What?” Jin Wanyi’s expression fell and she jumped from her seat. “Objection! The plaintiff took my client’s DNA sample without her permission!”

 “Fine, I will get your client’s consent now to retest her DNA and Miss Xie Qingying’s. We shall see if they are biologically related. You can get your client’s consent now!”

 However, Gu Yanran was not angry at all. She patted Jin Wanyi’s hand and said, “Wanyi, be calm. I’m not even mad, why are you panicking?” With that, Gu Yanran stood and raised her head. “Yes, Xie Qingying and I definitely have no blood relations. This is normal. Because Gu Nianzhi is not related to my father or I by blood either.”

  “Of course—because that is YOUR father,” Gu Nianzhi continued. “Not mine.”

 Gu Nianzhi put heavy emphasis on the word ‘your.’ She produced a third report. “This is a report comparing the DNA of Gu Xiangwen and Miss Xie Qingying’s mother, Gu Tian. The report shows that they had no blood relation whatsoever. They are not biological siblings! Therefore, I have enough reason to believe that the person who is lying in the hospital right now is not my father, Gu Xiangwen, at all!

Gu Yanran chuckled: “Are you sure?”