Chapter 22 — A Debt of Filial Duty

That year, he had voluntarily waived all claims to my pre-marital assets.

Attorney Tan glanced at me.

“Do you still have the original document?”

“I do.”

“Very good.”

That evening, I sent a text message to my ex-husband.

“My parents listed you as a witness. Did you know?”

It took half an hour for him to reply.

“I knew.”

“They said I transferred all six properties to the child just to spite them.”

I stared at the screen.

“And what do you plan to say?”

He replied very quickly.

“I will only speak the truth.”

I knew him too well. The truth in his mouth usually meant whoever offered the greater benefits, whose words would resemble the truth. I did not reply. The next day, Attorney Tan helped me retrieve my ex-husband's child support payment history over the past few years. Eleven payments missed. Seven payments short. The remaining three were only made after I spent half a month hounding him to settle the balance. Placed side by side, these few thin pages of records completely stripped away the dignity of this so-called father. Two days before the trial, my ex-husband asked to meet me. The location was a cafe. When I arrived, he was already sitting by the window. He was slightly heavier than he had been during our divorce, and his hair had thinned out. Seeing me sit down, his very first words were,

“An Hoa, there is no need to make such a big issue out of this.”

I placed the voice recorder in my pocket, and my phone was also recording.

“Who told you to come?”

He frowned.

“You are still as overbearing and aggressive as ever.”

I replied, “You are still as fond of beating around the bush.” His expression turned somewhat unsightly. A few seconds later, he lowered his voice.

“Your parents said that as long as I go to court and testify that your emotional state has been unstable over the years and that you are unfit to manage the child's assets, they will help me win custody of Xiao Nghien.”

I looked at him.

“You want Xiao Nghien?”

His gaze drifted away.

“After all, I am his father.”

“Then do you know what grade he is in right now?”

He froze. I asked again, “What is his head teacher's last name?” He said nothing. I continued, “What food is he allergic to?” His face gradually darkened.

“Must you make things so difficult and unpleasant?”

I said, “The one making things unpleasant is you.”

“You do not even know what your own son is allergic to, yet you want to use his custody in exchange for benefits.”

Stung by my words, anger flared in him.

“Do not act like you are so morally pure.”

“Didn't you transfer the properties to Xiao Nghien just to bypass your parents?”

I nodded.

“Yes.”

He choked on his words. I looked at him calmly.

“I transferred them to my own son to protect him.”

“You want to use my son as a pawn, which means you are selling your own flesh and blood.”

He abruptly stood up. The coffee cup shook, spilling liquid over the rim. People around us turned to look. He tried to suppress his voice.

“Do not regret this.”

“I have something on you, too.”

I raised my eyes.

“What?”

He let out a cold laugh.

“After our divorce that year, you went to see a psychological counselor, didn't you?”

“Your parents said that if we bring this up, the judge will know you are not mentally normal.”

A chill went straight through my heart. It was true that I had sought psychological counseling. That was after the divorce when I suffered from persistent insomnia for two months. Back then, my mother had accompanied me once. She had said she pitied me. Little did I know, even that act of companionship had been stored away in her memory like a hidden blade meant to stab me in the back later. I picked up my bag and stood up.

“You can bring it up.”

“But you had better think it through carefully.”

“Going for psychological counseling does not mean someone is abnormal.”

“Trading private matters for personal gain is what is truly abnormal.”

He clenched his teeth, glaring at me. I gave him no chance to speak further. Returning to my car, I sent the audio recording to Attorney Tan. After listening to it, Attorney Tan said only one sentence.

“He is finished.”

On the day of the formal trial, my ex-husband showed up just as expected. He sat behind my parents, dressed in a respectable manner. Seeing him there, a trace of confidence finally returned to my mother's face. My father also straightened his posture. Perhaps they thought the man who had once been closest to me would become the final boulder to crush me. But they did not know. If a boulder is already rotten, it will only crush the feet of the ones who wield it. When the judge questioned the witness, my ex-husband first claimed that my emotional state had collapsed following the divorce. He then mentioned my prolonged bouts of insomnia, and alleged that I harbored deep hostility toward my parents. Attorney Tan waited until he finished speaking before slowly rising to his feet. First, he submitted the divorce agreement. Next, he presented the child support payment history. Finally, he submitted the transcript of the conversation between my ex-husband and me at the cafe. My ex-husband's face instantly drained of color. My mother threw a sharp look at him. My father's fingers tightened their grip on the armrest. Attorney Tan asked him,

“Did you ever accept the proposal made by Ms. Manh's parents, agreeing to act as a witness in court in exchange for their support in contesting custody of the child?”

My ex-husband's Adam's apple bobbed.

“No, I did not.”

Attorney Tan played the recording. His voice echoed clearly from the speakers.

“Your parents said that as long as I go to court and testify that your emotional state has been unstable over the years and that you are unfit to manage the child's assets, they will help me win custody of Xiao Nghien.”

The courtroom fell into a terrifying silence. My ex-husband's face turned ashen grey. My mother's lips trembled as if she wanted to say something, but my father held her back. The judge looked down at my ex-husband.

“Witness, please answer truthfully.”

My ex-husband lowered his head.