Read Novel Full Chapter 288: The Child's Own Views Have Been Heard
Chapter 288: The Child's Own Views Have Been Heard
He Lan arrived first. She didn't sit on the long bench inside the east gate. She stood against the wall, the candy still in her palm, the creases in its glassine wrapper pressed flat, layer folded over layer.
"What time is it?" She straightened when she saw Shen Zhixia.
"Nine forty. Sentencing at ten."
"My daughter asked me this morning before she left: Mom, are you going to court again today?" He Lan switched the candy to her other hand. "I said yes. She said oh, and put on her backpack."
"If she asks, answer her straight. If she doesn't ask, don't say anything either."
At ten, the door at the end of the corridor opened.
There was no one in the gallery of the family court. A round table, six chairs, Judge Qiao seated across from them, uniform sleeves rolled to the wrist as usual. The clerk's notebook lay open, Lawyer Fu's case file stood upright at the table's edge, and Feng Guoming sat to her right, dark gray jacket, both hands flat on the tabletop, fingernails clipped down to the quick.
"Divorce dispute between plaintiff He Lan and defendant Feng Guoming, judgment now pronounced." The clerk finished reading, stepped back, sat down. "All rise."
Judge Qiao opened the judgment.
"One, the divorce between plaintiff He Lan and defendant Feng Guoming is granted."
"Two, the marital daughter Feng Xiaotian shall be directly raised by plaintiff He Lan. Defendant Feng Guoming shall pay child support of 1,500 yuan per month before the fifteenth of each month, beginning December 2026, until Feng Xiaotian reaches the age of eighteen."
"Three, defendant Feng Guoming may visit Feng Xiaotian. The specific times and manner shall be negotiated by both parties; if negotiation fails, either party may file a separate claim."
"Four, the case acceptance fee of 150 yuan shall be borne by defendant Feng Guoming."
She turned the page at this point.
"The Court holds that after the plaintiff and defendant registered their marriage, they repeatedly came into conflict over trivial family matters, and the defendant was once admonished and fined for violating a personal safety protection order issued by this Court. The plaintiff's attitude toward divorce is resolute, and neither party has any desire for reconciliation. The marital relationship has indeed broken down, and the plaintiff's request for divorce is hereby granted."
"As to child custody. This Court has, in accordance with the law, separately heard the views of the minor child Feng Xiaotian herself. Applying the principle of the best interests of the minor child, and considering that the child currently lives with her mother, her living and learning environment is relatively stable, and the plaintiff has adjusted her work shifts to be able to take the child to and from school and care for her, it is appropriate for the child to be directly raised by the plaintiff. As for the defendant's claim that the plaintiff is emotionally unstable and the written materials he submitted, for which the writer, time, and place of writing cannot be explained, this Court does not accept them; the defendant's request for direct custody is not supported."
"As to the amount of child support, based on the income of both parties and the living standards of this city, the Court sets it at 1,500 yuan per month."
"If either party is dissatisfied with this judgment, they may submit a notice of appeal to this Court within fifteen days of service of the judgment, and submit copies according to the number of opposing parties, appealing to the Jiangzhou Intermediate People's Court."
"Judgment pronounced. Be seated."
He Lan didn't move. She stood there for two seconds before sitting down, hands clasped together on the table.
"Fifteen hundred," Feng Guoming read out. "I make four thousand eight a month."
Lawyer Fu's hand pressed down on his forearm and whispered three words. He didn't say anything more.
The clerk pushed two copies of the judgment and two proof-of-service forms across the table, a pen placed in the middle.
Shen Zhixia first flipped to the last page, read through the operative part, then flipped back.
The judgment was four pages. She stopped on the third page. In the reasoning section, Feng Xiaotian's name appeared only once, in that one sentence—"This Court has, in accordance with the law, separately heard the views of the minor child Feng Xiaotian herself."
That sentence ended with a period, followed immediately by the discussion of care arrangements. What the child said to the judge—not a single word.
"Appeal. How many days?" Feng Guoming didn't stand up.
"Fifteen days, counting from the day the judgment is served on you." Judge Qiao said. "Submit the appeal to this Court, or directly to the Intermediate Court; submit copies according to the number of opposing parties."
"Can I see the child this month?"
"Article Three of the judgment. You two negotiate; if negotiation fails, file a separate claim. Until the judgment takes effect, the child's life continues as it is now."
Feng Guoming picked up the pen and signed the proof-of-service form, pressing harder on the date than on his name: November 13, 10:40.
When He Lan signed, the pen tip paused on the paper for a moment. She finished and looked up. "I keep this one?"
"That one is yours," the clerk said. "The original."
Shen Zhixia signed in the agent column, same time. The appeal period started counting from that day, through November 28.
The corridor emptied quickly. Lawyer Fu went downstairs first with the case file under his arm. Feng Guoming followed, stopped at the top of the stairs, looked back toward He Lan for a while, said nothing, and went down.
"Did the judgment say what the child said?" He Lan held the original against her chest.
Shen Zhixia opened to the third page and pointed out that line: "'This Court has, in accordance with the law, separately heard the views of the minor child Feng Xiaotian herself.'"
He Lan lowered her head and read it character by character, stopping at the word "views."
"That's the only sentence."
"That's the only sentence."
She closed the judgment and pressed both palms down on its cover, holding them there for a while: "Then I'll never know."
"No, you won't," Shen Zhixia said.
"Before the twenty-eighth, he could file any day?"
"Filing or not is his business. If he files, we keep working. If he doesn't, the appeal period passes and it takes effect on the twenty-ninth. This case is over, legally speaking."
There was wind on the steps. He Lan walked down to the third step, unwrapped the candy, crushed the glassine into a ball and tossed it into the bin by the door. The candy sat in her mouth, making her words a little indistinct: "Tangerine flavored."
"Are you working today?"
"I took the morning off. One in the afternoon at the shop, off at three thirty. I'll wait for her at the school gate at noon and eat lunch with her."
2:30 p.m., second floor of the Zhengping Firm.
Two photocopies of the judgment: one for the case file, one for the firm's archive. There was a layer of dust on the copier's glass plate. She wiped it with her sleeve. The paper came out warm, four pages per copy. She counted the pages again.
At four, footsteps on the stairs. Lu Jibai stood in the doorway, phone still in hand.
"The branch bureau called," he said. "Zhi'an's case was transferred to the District Procuratorate today. The indictment opinion went with it."
She didn't put down the photocopies. "Transferred today?"
"Investigation closed, review and approval done, so it went." He slid the phone into his pocket. "Day after tomorrow morning I'll go file the paperwork and apply to review the case file. How many volumes, when we can see them—that's up to them."
"What do we tell Zhi'an?"
"One sentence: the case has moved to the next stop."
"What if he asks other things?"
"If he asks other things, don't answer for him." He paused. "On that end, you're family. Family says one sentence and that's enough. Answer the same way you did last time."
She straightened the photocopies and pressed them into the file envelope. "Just that one sentence?"
"Just that one. Leave the second sentence to the Procuratorate."
November 14, 8:40 p.m., second floor of the Zhengping Firm.
Last night when she got home, Zhi'an was doing homework. She'd said that one sentence. He looked up, said "oh," and his pen kept moving. Not until he'd finished a whole line did he ask, "So can I still go to school?" She said yes.
One by one, she pulled the documents from the file envelope and laid them out on the desk by date.
November 1: three pages of contested issues, the back side revised twice, the crossed-out three lines still legible. November 3: archive pages of the two applications, one photocopy of the summons. November 5: six pages of the defense statement copy, the photocopy of that sticky note pinned to the last page. November 6: one page titled "Explanatory Statement" from the breakfast stall owner, his fingerprint pressed below his name. November 8: the page where Teacher Yang wrote down her name and phone number. November 10: three pages of agent's opinion, the word "severe" crossed out and replaced with a small line of handwriting. November 13: four pages of judgment, one proof-of-service form.
She wound a white cotton thread around the whole stack three times and tied a dead knot at the ends, pressing down on the knot.
On the front cover of the file, she wrote four lines:
"He Lan v. Feng Guoming. Divorce, custody. Judgment pronounced November 13 at 10:00. Judgment: 4 pages."
The case-closing notes began on a fresh page. She wrote them down line by line:
"Appeal period fifteen days, through November 28. Effective date to be added."
"Child support beginning December, 1,500 yuan before the fifteenth of each month, until age eighteen. If it hasn't arrived by December 16, first remind her to ask about it; if she can't get an answer, apply for enforcement."
"Visitation: negotiated; file separately if no agreement."
"Protection order six months, counting from October 22. Before it expires, ask her whether she wants it extended."
"The judgment only says 'views have been heard.' What the child said is not in the file. No point asking."
She stopped writing there, pen tip resting on the paper, and added three final characters at the end: Not effective.
[Thud. Judgment not yet effective. This file will not be counted for now.]
"Logged," she said.
Footsteps on the stairs. He Xiufen came up carrying a bowl of noodles, glanced at the papers on the desk, and set the bowl down beside the file envelope.
"That column is blank."
"Which column?"
"Effective date." He Xiufen tapped the page with a fingertip. "Don't write it early. If he hasn't filed by the afternoon of the twenty-eighth, you come back and add that stroke. This notebook isn't for you—next year when someone comes asking how He Lan's case was decided, you flip to this page and you won't need to add a single word."
The noodle shop had just closed. Plastic stools were stacked against the wall, the roll-up shutter door pulled halfway down. Two bowls sat on the table by the window, steam already fading. Lu Jibai sat at the end nearest the wall, the two pages of tomorrow's paperwork spread out in front of him.
She set the file envelope on the corner of the table. "You haven't eaten?"
"Waiting for you to finish filing."
She slid the judgment photocopy over to him. He read the operative part first, slowed at the fourth line, then flipped to the third page, finding that line even faster than she had.
"What did the child say?"
"That's the only sentence in the judgment," she said. "I couldn't find out, and I didn't try."
"If it's written in, it becomes the language of the judgment." He pushed the paper back. "That one sentence is exactly right. The Court heard, and all that's left on paper is one sentence: it heard."
"You don't think it's too little."
"Ask the child one question, she answers you one sentence, and then that sentence becomes yours." He handed her a pair of chopsticks. "A judgment doesn't need to speak for the child."
She lowered her head and ate. The noodles had gone a little soft, a thin layer of oil congealed on the soup.
"Before the twenty-eighth, he can file at any time," she said. "If he does, second instance is another year."
"A second instance won't open this hearing." He lifted a mouthful of noodles with his chopsticks. "What's being fought over is still this same pile of paper. Whether the child gets asked again depends on the Intermediate Court."
"If he appeals, does he still have to pay support?"
"The judgment isn't effective, so no one can take anything from him. Whether December's payment comes through is also a matter for these fifteen days."
She moved her bowl a little closer to her side.
"This case is finished," she said.
"Mm."
"It doesn't take effect until the twenty-ninth."
"Taking effect is a matter for paper. The file is closed—it's finished." He looked up at her. "You finished it today. On your own."
She put down her chopsticks. "Not on my own. Teacher Yang came, the court went and listened to the child, Director He slipped in a page, you crossed out two words."
"Those were done by others," he said. "But the name signed in the handling lawyer column is yours."
She rolled the sentence around in her mouth, and by the time she said it, it came out shorter than she'd thought: "In this case, I am the lawyer."
He didn't respond. From his own bowl, he picked out two scallion slices and placed them by the edge of hers.
"I'm going with you tomorrow," she said, drinking down the last of her soup. Two scallion slices remained at the bottom of the bowl.
"Filing paperwork doesn't need two people."
"Eight thirty?"
"Eight thirty."
"I'll be standing downstairs." She shouldered the file envelope. "If he asks whether I'll go in."
"You can't answer that."
"Can't answer that." She repeated it.
"Words you can't answer are the ones that hold up best." Lu Jibai stood and stacked the two bowls to carry them away.
A draft lifted the door curtain, opening a gap. The judgment sat at the very bottom of the file envelope, four pages. Fourteen days left in the appeal period; tomorrow morning at eight thirty, her brother's case was waiting for her in a different building.