She took out her phone and connected it to the courtroom's audio system. Gu Yanting's furious voice came through the recording: "Where is that document? Find it for me! At all costs, we cannot let it fall into anyone else's hands! That woman Zhong Hua, if she dares to say anything out of line, shut her up forever!"
The recording was crystal clear, and the courtroom erupted in uproar. Gu Yanting's face turned deathly pale. He stared at Zhong Hua in disbelief, as if he were seeing her for the first time. He hadn't expected Zhong Hua to have such a hidden trick up her sleeve.
Cold sweat beaded on Attorney Zhang's forehead. He knew that the recording and the old document had dealt a fatal blow to Gu Yanting. He tried to argue again, but his voice lacked conviction: "Your Honor, this recording has been edited and cannot be used as direct evidence..."
"Enough," the presiding judge interrupted him. "Ms. Zhong Hua, your testimony and evidence have been recorded. You may leave the courtroom."
Zhong Hua bowed to the presiding judge and turned to leave the witness stand. As she passed Gu Yanting, she stopped and whispered, "Gu Yanting, justice may be delayed, but it will never be absent. What you owe the Lin family, what you owe us, today, it's time to pay."
Gu Yanting suddenly raised his head, his eyes filled with resentment, but he didn't say anything more. He just slumped back in his chair, his eyes vacant.
Chapter Four: Lin Wanqing: Courage and Redemption
"Summon witness Lin Wanqing to court."
When Lin Wanqing's name was read, all eyes in the courtroom were on her. She wore an elegant white dress, her face was somewhat pale, but her eyes were unusually calm, even with a hint of relief. She walked to the witness stand, gently placed her hands on the Constitution, and said in a soft but exceptionally clear voice: "My name is Lin Wanqing, and I swear that everything I have said is true."
The prosecutor looked at her and said in a gentle tone, "Ms. Lin Wanqing, please state your relationship with the defendant Gu Yanting and how he manipulated and used you."
Lin Wanqing took a deep breath and began to recount how she met Gu Yanting, from their initial "encounter" to his later "pursuit," and then to how she gradually discovered the truth. "At first, I thought he was genuinely good to me, until I realized that he knew everything about me, even some small things from my childhood. Later I understood that he had known all along that I was a descendant of the Lin family, and that he approached me only to monitor me and prevent me from discovering the truth of what happened back then."
Her voice trembled slightly: "He took advantage of my confusion about my origins and my longing for family, manipulating my emotions and making me mistakenly believe that he was the only person I could rely on. When Ah Yu appeared, I discovered my true identity and wanted to leave him, but he started threatening me, using Ah Yu's safety and the 'trouble' I might face to force me to submit."
"Objection!" Attorney Zhang stood up again. "The witness is distorting the truth! My client is deeply in love with Ms. Lin Wanqing. How can there be any talk of 'manipulation'? This is clearly a false statement made by the witness under the influence of Ah Yu!"
Lin Wanqing looked at Attorney Zhang with a hint of sadness in her eyes: "Attorney, if 'deep affection' means using me as a pawn to deal with Ah Yu, and even threatening to destroy everything I have when I try to break free, then I think no normal person would want this kind of 'affection'."
She turned to the presiding judge, her tone even more resolute: "Your Honor, I have evidence proving Gu Yanting's manipulation and threats against me. These are some of the text messages and emails he sent me, filled with threats and innuendos." The bailiff took the electronic device from her and passed it to the judge.
“Besides,” Lin Wanqing’s gaze fell on Gu Yanting, her eyes filled with no hatred, only utter disappointment and relief, “I also need to confess something. My decision to turn myself in wasn’t to take the blame, but because under Gu Yanting’s control, I did do some things against my will, such as helping him pass on some false information and misleading A Yu and Zhong Hua. I was very scared and confused at the time, and I didn’t know what to do, so I could only choose this extreme way to end it all.”
“But now,” her voice suddenly rose, with a do-or-die courage, “I understand that running away and sacrifice solve nothing. Only by facing the truth and bravely standing up can I truly be redeemed. Gu Yanting,” she looked directly at the man in the dock, “you thought you could control everything and manipulate people’s hearts, but you’re wrong. People’s hearts are not machines, not tools you can control at will. Everything you did to me, everything you did to Ayu and Zhong Hua, is evidence of your crimes.”
She paused, as if using all her strength: "Your Honor, I am willing to testify against all of Gu Yanting's crimes, including how he instructed me to cooperate with him in acting, how he planned the commercial framing against Ayu, how he manipulated public opinion to attack Zhong Hua behind the scenes, and even... how he tried to interfere with the judicial process through his connections after I surrendered myself."
Lin Wanqing's testimony was like a bombshell, creating a huge uproar in the courtroom. Gu Yanting panicked completely. He never expected that this woman, whom he had always considered a pawn, would deliver such a fatal blow at the last moment. He stood up abruptly, pointed at Lin Wanqing, and shouted hoarsely, "Lin Wanqing! You ungrateful woman! I treated you so well, how dare you betray me?!"
“I can’t accept your ‘goodness’.” Lin Wanqing’s eyes were calm and unwavering. “Gu Yanting, you destroyed everything with your own hands, including yourself.”
Faced with Lin Wanqing's testimony and the evidence she presented, Gu Yanting's defense completely collapsed. Attorney Zhang slumped back into his chair, knowing the situation was hopeless.
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