Bending down to enter the chess game

Chapter 20 The Killer Move

Yu Xingge was extremely excited.

After a period of bad luck, things are finally looking up. Sure enough, back at the law firm, Zhou Yuxuan informed her that the judge had called, and Lin Xiangsong had agreed to pre-trial mediation. The meeting was scheduled for Monday morning at the East Suburbs Civil Court.

At 1 p.m. on Monday, Yu Xingge arrived at her workplace and got into Zhou Yuxuan's car. The two headed to the court together. With her hair all pulled back and piled up, Yu Xingge looked radiant, revealing her smooth, full forehead. Seeing her spirited appearance, Zhou Yuxuan chuckled and said, "Anyone who knows you would think you're going to court as a lawyer, but someone who doesn't would think you're going to court yourself." Yu Xingge smiled knowingly at his words.

"You know law firms have marriage and family law teams, right?" Zhou Yuxuan asked.

She nodded: "Isn't that area behind me the team's area for marriage and family law cases? Sometimes I hear them discussing cases there, it's quite interesting."

Hongjiang Law Firm occupies 3,000 square meters, located on the 31st, 32nd, and 33rd floors of Building A in the Dongmen Building. On the 33rd floor, the reception, administrative offices, risk control office, cashier's office, finance office, and the litigation department (civil and commercial, criminal, and real estate) are divided into three main sections. Yu Xingge has never had the opportunity to visit the 31st and 32nd floors, only hearing that the firm's extra-large conference room and the litigation (administrative) and non-litigation (intellectual property, corporate trade, and international) teams are located there. The capital markets department on the 31st floor is divided into four teams: securities, finance, bankruptcy, and mergers and acquisitions. In total, there are 11 partners leading 11 departments.

"Yes. I'm a senior lawyer in the criminal team, and since Director Gu assigned me to you, I've handled two divorce cases. There's another one, and let alone you, I could consider switching to the marriage and family law team."

"Haha," Yu Xingge laughed and praised, "If you went into marriage and family law, you would be a senior family lawyer. Who else could switch specialties and be as good as you, winning every case with confidence?"

"Tsk, you're so glib. I should have criticized you, but since this is our first mediation, consider it a good omen."

As expected of the Dongjiang City District Court, the gate was much more spacious. The security guard at the gate had a serious expression and checked the contents of the bag twice before waving it open. Liang Hui, who lived nearby, was already waiting at the entrance of the Civil Court. Yu Xingge and the other two waited to enter the Civil Court and were first greeted by the renowned Lin Xiangsong. The moment Yu Xingge saw him, he understood why, until last night, Liang Hui had still clung to the idea that she would forgive and forget if Lin Xiangsong was willing to remarry her.

Hongjiang Law Firm has a list of male gods, and although it's unclear whether Gu Lezhi ranked first based on his looks or money, judging solely from the outcome, Lin Xiangsong is surprisingly on par with him. Years of teaching have imbued Lin Xiangsong with a scholarly air in his every gesture. Even when he sees Yu Xingge and Zhou Yuxuan, he greets them politely, as if bathed in a spring breeze.

The lawyer Lin Xiangsong brought was rather disappointing; throughout the meeting, he kept a close watch on the other side and was extremely vigilant.

Liang Hui scoffed, "Anyone who didn't know better would think she's his new girlfriend!"

Forget about eating melons, at exactly 2 PM, the five people entered the mediation room. The balding judge, Niu Jisheng, chuckled, "Sit down, everyone."

"I see you're both quite ready, so let me say a few words before we begin. Marriage is about bringing two families together. Since you're willing to walk down the aisle, even if you weren't in love with each other initially, you must have noticed each other's good qualities. So let's maintain this fine tradition. Let's be amicable today, and no matter the outcome, let's all be happy going in and out, and think good things about each other more often, okay?"

This was Zhou Yuxuan's first time meeting Judge Niu Jisheng, and upon hearing his words, she inwardly cheered. His words had greatly eased the tense atmosphere, and things seemed to be calming down. Niu Jisheng continued, "Mediation follows the principle of voluntariness. If a settlement is reached, everyone will avoid another court hearing, which would be unsightly and exhausting. Okay, now let's clarify our respective claims. Plaintiff Liang Hui, right? You go first."

"My request is simple—to annul the divorce proceedings."

She paused, then secretly turned to look at Yu Xingge.

Before the court hearing, Attorney Yu repeatedly warned her that there was no such thing as a fake divorce, and that once the divorce was finalized, it was finalized. But she still wanted to give it a try.

As expected, Yu Xingge had already shown his disapproval.

"The proceeds from the gifted house will be fully returned, and the custody assignment will be revoked." Before Liang Hui could finish speaking, the opposing lawyer, Huang Caiwen, interjected: "Our response is that the divorce proceedings have been completed by the Civil Affairs Bureau and are irrevocable; the property ownership has taken effect and belongs entirely to our client; the son, who has custody, is over eight years old and has clearly stated that he will live with his father. There's no dispute." Liang Hui retorted: "You respond? Who do you think you are? Who gave you the right to interrupt? What? You think you can do this? You're putting in so much effort? Save your energy."

Huang Caiwen's face turned completely red, and the atmosphere suddenly became awkward. Zhou Yuxuan whispered, "That's why I didn't choose a marriage and family affairs team back then."

Outsiders often have a misconception that marriage and family law and wealth transfer cases are easier and more lucrative than corporate cases. This is not the case. While it's true that these types of cases have a lower entry barrier than corporate cases—referring to the initial contact level for ordinary lawyers—truly mastering them and doing them well is incredibly difficult. Wei Jin, head of the marriage and family law team at Hongjiang Law Firm, famously said: "To what extent must your relationship with someone be for them to entrust you with the entirety of their life's emotions and wealth?"

This is clearly an achievement that is much more difficult to attain.

Humanity has always dealt with the themes of friendship, family, and love. These three emotions come and go throughout a person's life, and marriage and family lawyers typically handle two of them. To achieve friendship in just a few days while resolving someone's lifelong issues of family and love is incredibly difficult! These are problems that humanity has struggled to understand for millions of years; how can a mere lawyer possibly delve so deeply into their inner world in such a short time? That requires an immense emotional investment.

Take, for example, the lawyer Huang Caiwen across from her. Zhou Yuxuan could see that whether it was her protection before the court hearing or her subconscious act of stepping forward now, it was all because she was handling Lin Xiangsong's divorce case. She had borne too much emotional burden that she shouldn't have had to bear, and in order to achieve empathy, she had invested an immeasurable emotional sunk cost. Thus, she naturally took on the role of protector, completely detached from her objective identity as a lawyer. But could she take back this emotion later? Zhou Yuxuan didn't know. She was only two years older than Yu Xingge, and she had already completely fallen for him. Could she withstand Liang Hui's wrath? Zhou Yuxuan still didn't know.

Niu Jisheng slapped his thigh: "Alright! I've wasted my time talking to you all. Let's all calm down and remain objective and rational. Since we can't reach a consensus, let's start presenting evidence focusing on the points of contention."

Yu Xingge handed over the evidence: "This is the divorce agreement filed with the Civil Affairs Bureau between the plaintiff Liang Hui and the defendant Lin Xiangsong. Article 146 of the Civil Code states: A civil legal act performed by one party with a false expression of intent is invalid. One of the requirements for the validity of a civil legal act is the authenticity of the expression of intent. Given the special nature of divorce, the termination of the marital relationship and the disposal of property can be two independent expressions of intent. Whether the property division content in the divorce agreement is valid should be determined in conjunction with the true purpose of the two parties entering into the agreement. My client..." Liang Hui signed the agreement under the pretext of a "fake divorce to evade debts" fraudulently with Lin Xiangsong. Without this basis, Liang Hui would not have gratuitously gifted her multi-million yuan property, located at Unit 2, Building 5, Hongguangyuan, Dongjiao Dianchang Road, to her husband. The divorce agreement registered with the Civil Affairs Bureau is clearly unfair and contrary to common sense. Lin Xiangsong defrauded Liang Hui, using a fake divorce to divide property and completely convert Liang Hui's personal assets into his own. He then sold the property to others and used the proceeds to purchase Unit 1, Building 6, Linfu Shijia, Xinqu Street, Putian District, Wushi City.

"Would someone trying to escape millions in debt give away their only valuable real estate to Mr. Lin Xiangsong, who is divorcing them, and thus face millions in debt alone?"

"Why not?" Huang Caiwen said, "Divorce and gifts both require the consent of both parties."

Yu Xingge smiled: "Yes, you're right."

She pulled out her trump card: "So regarding this, the plaintiff Liang Hui and the defendant Lin Xiangsong signed a supplementary agreement to the divorce agreement filed with the Civil Affairs Bureau. This agreement clearly states that the divorce and the gratuitous transfer of a property worth millions were due to debt evasion. The conditional gift explicitly states that the house cannot be sold. Lin Xiangsong first violated the gift agreement by selling the house, and after disposing of the house, he did not transfer the proceeds to the plaintiff Liang Hui as agreed. Bank statements can prove that my client did not receive any fees."