Chapter 7 — Let Me Watch Tiananmen

"Borrowed money? So how do you explain this confession?" Ms. Vuong took out a copy and showed it to the camera. "This is the confession Lam Dieu was forced to write after being brutally beaten, admitting to stealing money from her family. In order to hide the truth of selling their daughter, she and her husband did not hesitate to collude with outsiders, using extreme torture to force their biological son to confess. This is what you call 'no wrong parent in the world'?" The camera actually recorded it. She looked ugly and panicked, cold sweat pouring down her face. That evening, an in-depth report titled "The bloodthirsty family behind the tyrannical female student Thanh Hoa: The daughter was priced and the son was bound by iron chains" shocked the entire world. The article not only exposed in detail the truth that Ly Cuong kidnapped Lam Dieu, but also included pictures of Lam Dieu lying in the intensive care room, his body filled with tubes, along with evidence of my being abused and deprived of the right to education from childhood to adulthood. Public opinion immediately completely reversed. The netizens who had previously scolded me all changed sides, venting their anger on my parents. "Are these my parents? They are clearly animals!" "Selling their daughters to evil tyrants, chaining their sons in pig pens, why haven't these people gone to hell?" "Support Lam Niem's lawsuit! We must let them go to jail!" Parents absolutely cannot stay at the school gate anymore. They are like rats running across the street, disheveled and fleeing back to their hometown amid the curses of netizens. But this is just the beginning. I absolutely will not let them escape so easily. "Lam Niem, are you ready?" The lawyer called. "The trial opens tomorrow." "Prepared." I looked at the night sky outside the window. "Tomorrow, I will personally take them in there." The atmosphere in the court was so heavy that it seemed like it could drip into water. I sat in the plaintiff's position, my back straight, looking coldly towards the defendant's seat. My parents sat there, no longer arrogant when causing trouble in front of Thanh Hoa gate. They cowered, their eyes avoided, like two quails whose feathers had been plucked. Ly Cuong was wearing prison clothes, his head was shaved, and he looked at me fiercely as if he wanted to swallow me alive with his eyes. "The trial begins." The judge tapped his gavel. This is a long and fierce confrontation. Ly Cuong's lawyer tried to justify the kidnapping as a "family conflict", claiming that Ly Cuong only helped his "parents-in-law" teach his "disobedient brother-in-law". My parents' lawyer risked his life to brush off their relationship, insisting that they were completely unaware of Ly Cuong's violent behavior, and that the three hundred thousand was simply a civil loan. "Chairman, our side has new evidence to present." My lawyer stood up, handing a thick bag of documents to the front. "This is plaintiff Lam Niem's medical records from childhood to adulthood, along with a certificate issued by the village committee where the plaintiff lives." The lawyer's voice echoed. in the hall. "These evidences can fully prove that defendants Lam Dai Cuong and Vuong Thuy Hoa have abused the plaintiff for a long time, and repeatedly prevented the plaintiff from receiving higher education. This is absolutely not a normal family conflict, but a long-term and systematic abuse." On the big screen, horrifying photos began to show. X-ray of a broken rib when I was seven years old. Scar on his back from being burned by boiling water when he was twelve years old. The same certificate of achievement from high school only remained in one corner after being burned. From the audience seats, the sound of cold air was continuously heard. Mother bowed her head, her body began to tremble slightly. "In addition." The lawyer continued: "Regarding the nature of the three hundred thousand, our side recommends summoning important witnesses."

Court." The courtroom door was opened. A thin figure sitting in a wheelchair was slowly pushed in. It was Lam Dieu. He was wearing a loose hospital gown, his right leg was wrapped in a thick layer of plaster, his face was as white as paper. As soon as he saw Lam Dieu, his mother suddenly stood up as if going crazy, pointing at him loudly: "You beast has lost all conscience! What did you come here for? Do you have to harm your biological parents to be willing?" "Keep order!" The judge sternly knocked on the gavel. "Defendant, pay attention to discipline at trial!" Lam Dieu did not pay attention to his mother's scolding. The nurse pushed him to the witness stand. "Witness Lam Dieu, present the truth you know." The judge said gently. Lam Dieu raised his head, his eyes looked past his parents, stopped on Ly Cuong's body. "Those three hundred thousand are absolutely not borrowed money, but money to buy my sister." Lam Dieu's voice was very weak but every word was extremely clear. "Ly Cuong said that as long as he gave the money, my sister would be his. If my sister runs away, he will use me to pay off the debt." "You lie!" Ly Cuong struggled frantically in the defendant's chair. "When did I say something like that?" "When Ly Cuong chained me in the pig pen, my parents stood next to watch." Lam Dieu ignored Ly Cuong and continued to speak. His voice began to tremble, his eye sockets turned red.