Chapter 24 — The Fateful Trial

Early the next morning, I brought all receipts for receiving sealed documents from the police to the civil status counter. The police also went along. After the employee at the counter looked up the system, his expression became more and more complicated. She turned the screen toward the police officer in the lead:

"The baby's birth information does have original records. But it is currently suspended in an unusual locked state. The reason for the lock is a dispute over the guardianship relationship."

I asked her: “What does it take to remove the lock?” She looked at me: "In principle, there needs to be a joint request from both parents. If the father is absent, or there is a dispute, there must be a clear written opinion from the court or police agency." I tightened the pile of papers in my hand: "The father is an accomplice in the case of falsifying documents. Yet he still has the right to block my son's household registration?" The employee looked awkward: "We can only follow the correct procedure." At that moment, Ha Tuan's voice rang out from outside the door: "I sign." I turned my head. He stood in the lobby, dark circles under his eyes, and a pathetic, haggard appearance. He walked up to me, his voice very quiet:

“Duong Hoa, I came to sign the joint petition.”

I looked at him and said nothing. The staff immediately took out the correction application. Ha Tuan took the pen and was about to put it down when his phone suddenly rang. He glanced at the screen, his expression changed instantly. I coldly asked: "Who?" He didn't answer. The next second, from his phone came Lam Mai's weak but clear voice:

"Tuan, if you dare to sign, mom will jump down from the hospital floor."

All those present in the hall were stunned. The pen in Ha Tuan's hand stopped on the paper. I looked at him and also looked at the form that was only missing the last stroke of the pen. On the phone, Lam Mai cried and screamed:

"If you accept Duong Hoa's son's household registration, Ha Binh's compensation will be lost completely. The house your father left behind will no longer be your part. If you sign today, I will die for you to see."

Ha Tuan's hands began to tremble. I suddenly understood that the real judgment trial had not ended yet. It's not that he didn't know he should sign. He is standing between his biological mother, the house and his son, to make the final choice. 19 Ha Tuan's pen tip hovered above the paper. At that moment, the atmosphere in the hall was so quiet that it seemed to stop. On the phone, Lam Mai's cries became more and more shrill:

"Tuan, if you sign, you will force my mother to die. Ha Binh is already pitiful enough, are you going to leave him with nothing left?"

Ha Tuan's hands trembled violently. I looked at him: "Sign." He looked up at me, his eyes filled with extreme tension: "Dang Hoa, she's in the hospital." I nodded: "And my son currently does not exist on the system." His lips were white. I placed An An's birth certificate on the table:

"Ha Tuan, your mother threatened you with death, that was her choice. You didn't sign today, that was your choice. I will not find any more reasons to justify any of you anymore."

On the other end of the line, Lam Mai seemed to hear my words. She suddenly shouted:

“Duong Hoa, that cruel woman! She insisted Do we have to destroy the Ha family to be satisfied?"

I picked up Ha Tuan's phone and turned on the speakerphone:

“Lam Mai, listen carefully. Since the day you stole my papers, the Ha family has been destroyed by your own hands. Today's petition is not to destroy the Ha family, but to return my son's name."

Lam Mai gasped: "You dare to force Tuan to sign, I will make you have a reputation for harming your mother-in-law for the rest of your life."