Chapter 657 - Numb
The custody hearing lasted for several hours but still failed to reach a conclusion on the same day. After several heated back and forth between the two conflicting sides, the judge ended today's session and scheduled the next one tomorrow.
Jiang Ying Yue's team found an empty waiting room to congregate after the first court session ended. Long Hui and his lawyer also did the same thing, finding another room in the opposite direction.
Hong Shaoqiang sighed. "This has turned into a media circus as I feared. I did my best to speed things up but the judge appears like he wants to prolong this custody case."
"It's because some stupid idiot invited the media," Deng Gui said, huffing in irritation. "If the media wasn't already present here in the first place, the case would have proceeded normally and most likely ended today even with my appearance and involvement. Not everyone could recognize me anyway, only certain people could. Even among the reporters earlier, only one of them was able to recognize me but when he did, it snowballed and everyone else ended up focusing on me instead."
Kang Huizhong nodded. "Indeed, the media's involvement in this case has complicated things. Now it looks like we also need to deal with public opinion. It shouldn't affect the judge's decision—he looks competent enough—but it would certainly affect you, Miss Jiang. I'm afraid that you need to prepare yourself for the worst when it comes to the public's opinion of you, especially now that Mr. Long showed the photos and videos of you and Mr. Lin spending time together with your son. The media will certainly use those misleading evidence and insinuate a false narrative about your relationship with Mr. Lin. I'm sure that Mr. Long's side will also feed that false narrative."
"The nerve! What an asshole!" Clover roared. Her face had already long turned red in anger. "Sis Ying Yue may not have a romantic relationship with Eldest Brother Yehan, but he's still many times a better man compared to that jerk! If we weren't in court, I would've already channeled my inner Momsy and beaten that asshole with my mighty boots! All the things he and his lawyer said, who's also an asshole by the way, were all disgusting! I really can't believe that such a malicious person is my boss' brother! You really can't trust blood relations. Just look at how boss and Fifth Bro Hao act more like the true siblings than that asshole! He must never get Little Junie boy. I don't want our Baby Junie turning into an asshole like his father when he grows up."
"I won't allow him to take our son away from me," Jiang Ying Yue replied in a surprisingly calm voice. It was a huge contrast to her emotional breakdown earlier during the court session. "But I won't deprive him of his right as the father either. If he wants to see his son and become part of Little Jun's life, I'll let him. I can give him at least that despite all the hurt and humiliation he caused me. Without him, our son wouldn't be born into this world."
Clover sighed and grumbled, "You're too kind, Sis Ying Yue. But it's your decision. If that's what you want, I'll support you!"
After discussing their strategy for tomorrow's court session, they left the courthouse through a nondescript side entrance where they were whisked away by their waiting cars, causing the reporters waiting at the other entrances to miss them.
Inside the car, Jiang Ying Yue felt numb physically, mentally and emotionally. Long Hui, her former boss and the man she fell stupidly in love with and who fathered her beloved son, painted her as a promiscuous, gold-digging, cheating slut during the court hearing. The anger was there inside her but she was too exhausted to feel it. Before she knew it, her eyes had closed and she fell into a restless and dreamless slumber.###
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At Lin Yehan's farm villa mansion.
"Eldest Bro, this…oh shit," Yu Mo couldn't help but curse as he watched the evening news on TV.
Lin Yehan's lips pressed into a thin line as he watched several photos and a video clip of him and Jiang Ying Yue at the mall together with Little Jun, whose face was blurred out, being shown on the evening news. The custody battle was actually featured as a major news story tonight! And the implication was clear. The news wanted people to believe that he had an affair with Jiang Ying Yue while she was still engaged to Long Hui.
His usual gentle expression was nowhere to be seen. It looked stormy instead. So stormy that Yu Mo didn't dare make any jokes to lighten the atmosphere like he usually would in normal situations.
However, when the news showed a short video clip of Jiang Ying Yue sobbing in utter heartbreak in the courtroom, Lin Yehan's stony expression cracked revealing concern, sympathy and also unwarranted guilt. He felt sorry for her.
Then he felt furious at the asshole who made her cry like that. When the news showed the face of Long Hui next, Lin Yehan lost his temper and threw the remote control hard. It struck the antique vase on top of the coffee table, breaking both the vase and the remote control into pieces. He imagined that the broken vase was the son of a bitch's face which made him feel a little better but failed to decrease the growing fury he felt.
Not caring about the next portion of the news story about the involvement of bigshot lawyers Deng Gui and Kang Huizhong, Lin Yehan grabbed his phone and called Jiang Ying Yue's number. It kept on ringing and going into voicemail. He tried calling her seven times but she wasn't answering.Lin Yehan stood up and walked out of the living area.
"Eldest Bro, where are you going?" Yu Mo called after him.
"I'm getting my coat and keys. I'm driving to Third Brother's place. I need to talk to Miss Jiang and see with my own eyes how she's doing."
"Oh okay! Wait for me! I'm coming, too!"