Chapter 17: This Was Simply an Automated Teller Machine
Su Bai's gaze met Wang Li's, and he wondered whether, having just been released under a suspended sentence, Wang Li was now preparing to initiate a civil lawsuit to regain composure.
Wang Li shifted his position slightly, causing the new sofa beneath him to creak.
"To be honest, Lawyer Su, I do indeed have such an idea."
"My wife and I have been married for five years and have no children, and when my father was seriously ill last time, that woman did not even go to the hospital to visit him once, and she even said that my father had already reached that age and that there was no need to go to the hospital at all."
"At that time I was anxious about my father's condition and did not argue with her, and later the incident with the bank occurred, and my parents were constantly worried about my situation, but my wife, that woman, did not visit me even once, and did not say a single word of concern, I suspect that she was simply waiting for me to be imprisoned so that she could inherit our family's property."
"Now that I have come out, I truly wish to divorce her."
Su Bai listened carefully to Wang Li's description, and throughout the entire previous bank litigation he had indeed never seen Wang Li's wife appear.
This also confirmed that the relationship between Wang Li and his wife was not harmonious.
Considering these circumstances, if Wang Li still did not wish to divorce, Su Bai would be willing to regard him as the most outstanding example of endurance without exception.
"Then what are your current plans, are you intending to file for divorce?"
In response to Su Bai's question, Wang Li shook his head. "Lawyer Su, I am still within the period of suspended sentence, and I am afraid that filing a lawsuit might create complications, the purpose of my inquiry is mainly to introduce a divorce case to you, it concerns a childhood friend of mine who wants to file for divorce."
"If Lawyer Su is willing to handle a divorce case, I can introduce my childhood friend to you."
Wang Li's recommendation was indeed considerate.
When there was a case, he immediately thought of introducing it, which showed that he was trustworthy.
A few days earlier he had won the lawsuit and promoted his law firm before the media reporters, and it could be said that the publicity had been quite strong, yet there were still no cases.
The media cared only about whether the topic was sensational, and internet users cared only about whether the courtroom proceedings were exciting, and expecting to obtain cases through such publicity had been overly optimistic.
Unexpectedly, Wang Li's visit today brought him a pleasant surprise.
"Of course that is possible, our law firm primarily handles divorce cases, you should already know that."
Wang Li, a man in his thirties, scratched his head awkwardly. "When Lawyer Su handled my case last time, the impression left on me was too strong, so I subconsciously assumed that Lawyer Su specialized in criminal law."
"That is correct, I do indeed specialize in criminal law, but I am also professionally experienced in civil marital matters."
Su Bai did not display any modesty, what he said was simply accurate, as he already possessed a certain level of understanding regarding various forms of litigation.
Therefore this statement was not entirely incorrect.
"That is excellent, with Lawyer Su taking the case, my childhood friend's divorce case will have hope."
Wang Li appeared excited and even somewhat exhilarated, and he showed unusual enthusiasm regarding the possibility that his childhood friend might obtain a divorce.
"Could you describe some details about your childhood friend's situation? I see that you are quite pleased about the possibility of his divorce, would this be considered liberation from hardship?"
Upon hearing Su Bai describe his childhood friend's divorce as liberation from hardship, Wang Li's expression immediately became filled with resentment, even more so than when he had spoken about his own wife.
"If he can divorce her, it would not merely be liberation from hardship, it would be equivalent to ascending directly into paradise."
Wang Li struck the sofa forcefully with his fist.
A fist-sized indentation, about two centimeters (≈0.8 inches) deep, immediately appeared in the sofa.
This was newly purchased and should not be damaged.
Looking at the indentation on the sofa, Wang Li appeared somewhat embarrassed and scratched his head.
"I am sorry, Lawyer Su, I became too emotional just now, mainly because my childhood friend's wife is truly difficult to describe, she is the kind of person frequently described online as extremely unreasonable, even more unreasonable than those examples, Lawyer Su, can you understand what I mean?"
"That is why I was so angry, mainly because I feel injustice on behalf of my childhood friend."
A trace of heartache appeared in Wang Li's eyes.
Indeed, it was heartache.
It was heartache for the suffering experienced by his friend.
Looking at the newly purchased sofa, Su Bai also felt somewhat distressed, as it had just been purchased at the full price of eight hundred yuan.
"You should not feel indignant yet, first describe your childhood friend's situation."
Su Bai adjusted his suit slightly and called Li Xuezhen over to record the information.
Wang Li nodded firmly and began describing the relevant circumstances.
"My childhood friend is an honest person, a programmer, with a monthly salary of approximately twenty thousand yuan, height one hundred and seventy two centimeters (5 ft 8 in), weight sixty five kilograms (143 lb), and he is a resident affected by redevelopment in Nandu and owns three apartments, one occupied by his parents, one occupied by himself and his wife, and another that was originally rented out, but his wife said that one of her colleagues wished to rent it, so it was no longer rented out and was instead intended for that colleague, yet unexpectedly his wife privately allowed her younger brother to live there."
"Oh yes, I should first describe his wife's situation: his wife is from another region and her family background is relatively poor; she is approximately the same age as my childhood friend, about thirty years old, height one hundred and sixty two centimeters (5 ft 4 in), weight fifty five kilograms (121 lb), with a salary of three thousand yuan, and she has two younger brothers, and her parents have no social security or similar support and normally rely on occasional temporary work with an income of about two thousand yuan per month."
"One of her two younger brothers left school after junior secondary education and remains at home relying on his parents, and the other graduated from university a year ago but still has no employment."
"My childhood friend is a typical compliant man, he gives his entire salary to his wife and she spends it all each month, including the money he earns himself, and he even counts individual cigarettes because he must save money for them each day."
The more Su Bai listened, the more unreasonable the situation seemed, and he wondered what exactly his friend had expected from such an arrangement.
While recording the information, Li Xuezhen also frowned as she listened to Wang Li's description.
As a woman herself, she also felt that such conduct was excessive.
This could not truly be considered a marriage.
It resembled treating the husband as an automated teller machine, and moreover an automated teller machine that worked without complaint.
Had the husband not become entirely exploited?
Such a thought suddenly appeared in Li Xuezhen's mind.
Su Bai could no longer continue listening and interrupted Wang Li. "Please explain the key point, why does he want a divorce?"
"Because my childhood friend's wife said that my childhood friend no longer loves her."
Su Bai: remarkable.
Li Xuezhen: this is somewhat difficult to understand.
Wang Li continued.
"Because of this, his wife insisted on seeking a divorce, and my childhood friend originally thought that if she wished to divorce then they would proceed with it, as he had already endured enough, but when the property division began he discovered that his wife had already transferred most of his premarital property into marital joint property and requested its division."
"My childhood friend's original marital joint property had also been spent by his wife on handbags, cosmetics, and various beauty service payments."
"If they were to divorce under these circumstances, then my childhood friend would effectively leave the marriage with nothing and would even suffer complete financial loss."
Only at this point did Su Bai fully understand that the claim that she was no longer loved was merely a pretext, and in reality the automated teller machine arrangement had reached its conclusion.
His friend had come to this realization rather late.
If Wang Li earlier could be considered an outstanding example of endurance, then his childhood friend could be considered the most extreme example.
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