Chapter 249: I owe him

Lu Mingji's efficiency was godlike; around ten in the morning, he messaged Xia Xi to tell her the lawyer had been contacted.

Xia Xi didn't want to delay work, so she first added the lawyer's WeChat contact and agreed to meet at noon.

Lu Mingji was uneasy about her, and later sent a message: "Shall I accompany you to see the lawyer?"

Xia Xi just wanted to learn some custody-related information; she didn't plan to go the lawsuit route, but since the lawyer was introduced by Lu Mingji and she was more familiar with him, having him there would make things easier to discuss, so she agreed.

At noon, Lu Mingji came to find Xia Xi; he was responsible for driving to the restaurant they had booked in advance.

The lawyer had already arrived, sitting by the window waiting for them; he was in his thirties, wearing a dark blue striped suit, half-rim glasses, with a dignified face, and his black briefcase placed on the empty seat to one side.

Lu Mingji gave a brief introduction to both sides, and added to Xia Xi: "Don't look down on Lawyer Luo just because he's young; he's a key member of their law firm, especially authoritative in custody battles, with a high win rate."

He didn't lower his volume; while giving Xia Xi reassurance, he was also complimenting Lawyer Luo so that he would take the case more seriously.

Lu Mingji pulled several connections to find such a capable lawyer, hoping to help Xia Xi. Only if she had absolute confidence in winning would she feel at ease and not be restrained by Xu Yanfeng.

Lawyer Luo waved his hand: "Don't mention it."

Lu Mingji poured him water: "Lawyer Luo is being modest."

Lu Mingji called the waiter over; after the three ordered in turn, Lawyer Luo switched to work mode and asked about Xia Xi's situation.

The lawyer had professional ethics and integrity, so Xia Xi wasn't worried he'd leak information; she didn't hide her true circumstances and told him the full story.

Simply put, she had a child while dating her ex-boyfriend; afterward she went abroad alone, and her ex-boyfriend didn't know about the child's existence until recently, when he decided to seek custody.

Lawyer Luo understood and said: "Let me ask, what does your ex-boyfriend currently do for work, what's his income, and what are his family members and their situation? If you don't know, say you don't know; if you do, describe them in as much detail as possible. These help the case. Including your occupation, financial situation, and some family circumstances, I also need to know. First, tell me about your ex-boyfriend."

Xia Xi: "……"

Xu Yanfeng's job and income are hard to say.

Lu Mingji had already worried about these points; he felt uncertain, and now hearing the lawyer's questions, he felt winning the lawsuit was harder than climbing to heaven.

Lawyer Luo adjusted his glasses, seeing both of them show odd expressions, and couldn't help doubting whether his explanation was clear enough: "Is there any problem?"

Lu Mingji cleared his throat and spoke for Xia Xi: "Her ex-boyfriend is…… the current CEO of the Xu Clan Group. No doubt, it's the Xu Clan Group you know. As for his income, it's probably impossible to estimate, but you can imagine."

Lawyer Luo was startled; the glasses he had just pushed up slid down his nose a bit, his eyes almost popping out of the frames: "You mean…… the Xu Clan Group's General Manager Xu?"

Lu Mingji picked up a bite of vegetables and put it in his mouth, chewing like straw, and nodded at Lawyer Luo.

Sweat beaded on Lawyer Luo's forehead: "Is the GC of the Xu Clan Legal Department surnamed Teng?"

Lu Mingji had no idea: "I don't know."

"Probably." Lawyer Luo muttered to himself, took out a tissue, removed his glasses, wiped the lenses, and put them back on: "Lawyer Teng is an idol to all of us legal professionals; he wasn't originally with the Xu Clan, but I heard he was lured away with a huge salary."

Lu Mingji suddenly felt the pressure double.

He said that with Xu Yanfeng's status, his hired legal team must be top-notch; ordinary people can't beat them!

"However, as far as I know, Lawyer Teng probably wouldn't handle this type of case." Lawyer Luo shifted the topic: "He's never dealt with such a case before."

Lu Mingji was comforted by his words, a faint hope sparked. He looked at Xia Xi, whose expression remained calm aside from some fatigue, and called out: "Xia Xi?"

Xia Xi's drinking motion paused; she set down her cup and turned her head to look at him.

Lu Mingji said: "Lawyer Luo is asking about Xu Yanfeng's family situation."

Xia Xi shook her head; she didn't know Xu Yanfeng's family, having only seen his father, a stern and dignified man reminiscent of Fahai. As for the others—his mother, his brother—she had never met them in person, only heard about them.

If it really came to filing a lawsuit, Xu Guanshan wouldn't be able to keep it secret; Xia Xi suddenly felt irritable, propping her forehead with her hand: "Forget it, I'll go talk to Xu Yanfeng instead."

Given her understanding of Xu Yanfeng, he wouldn't resort to harsh tactics… Of course, her knowledge of him only goes back seven years.

What he's like now, seven years later, she doesn't know.

"Are you still the Xia Xi I know? Are you planning to surrender without a fight?" Lu Mingji didn't want her to give up, encouraging her: "Think about all the difficulties we faced abroad while doing projects; back then we always felt we couldn't hold out, yet in the end we overcame every obstacle and finished."

Lawyer Luo didn't understand Xia Xi's inner thoughts, only thinking she found the case too difficult and was losing heart; he also urged her: "We haven't even clarified the basic situation yet—saying to give up now is too early."

Xia Xi steeled herself and talked with him.

When asked about Xu Yanfeng's marital and emotional status, Xia Xi thought for a moment; she had previously thought Xu Yanfeng and Ling Yan were a couple, but later, from his words, she inferred that Ling Yan's claim at a class reunion about having met the parents and discussing engagement was questionable.

Xu Yanfeng is probably single.

Otherwise he wouldn't be so shameless as to throw a marriage agreement at her.

"He isn't married and doesn't have a steady partner." Xia Xi felt a bit queasy in her stomach, perhaps from the iced coffee she'd drunk that morning, and she picked up her chopsticks to eat a few bites of hot food.

Lawyer Luo continued: "What about your current relationship status?"

Xia Xi: "Single."

Lawyer Luo ran through the known conditions in his mind: "Your financial situation is inferior to his, your involvement and care for the child lose to him, your emotional states are equal, so that's a tie. His family situation is unknown, while yours is a warm, loving environment, which gives you the edge. All things considered, your chances of winning are not small. Don't lose heart."

Xia Xi didn't know how to respond; she wasn't discouraged, she just hadn't thought that far ahead.

Seeing that Xia Xi still lacked spirit, Lawyer Luo cited some past cases to help her build confidence.

The lunch break ended; Xia Xi paid the consultation fee to Lawyer Luo, and as for the rest, she remained noncommittal for now.

On the way back to the company, only Lu Mingji and Xia Xi were in the car; Lu Mingji, by observing Xia Xi, sensed a hint of her thought: "Are you not preparing to sue?"

Xia Xi indirectly admitted: "After all, he is the child's father."

Lu Mingji didn't ask that question—whether she still had feelings for him—because he didn't want to invite an awkward situation.

"But in ninety percent of custody battles, both parties are the child's parents."

"Lu Mingji." Xia Xi stopped in front of the elevator and solemnly emphasized to Lu Mingji: "My situation is different from theirs."

"What happened back then, she couldn't tell Lu Mingji; she summed it up in one phrase: 'I owe him.'"

Lu Mingji's sense of crisis grew stronger; he believed this intuition wasn't baseless.

Tuesday afternoon, Xia Xi arranged a meeting with the boss of a custom furniture company.

The several timber suppliers and custom manufacturers that had previously worked with Broad and Elegant struggled to meet the Jingyu Yuan project's demands; a large amount of internal facilities required customization, and with high-end specifications, they had to seek new partners.

At noon, General Manager Ge's secretary sent the meeting location to Xia Xi.

Maple Leaf Lake International Golf Course.

After receiving the message, Xia Xi stared for a few seconds; she was very familiar with that place, having once chased Xu Yanfeng there in the past.

Today is a workday, Xia Xi thought she shouldn't be that unlucky to meet Xu Yanfeng there. Nowadays whether he still plays golf is uncertain, and she doesn't need to be unnecessarily suspicious.

She and Xu Yanfeng's last conversation was the day before yesterday; he said he would give her time to consider, and then he didn't contact her again.

I don't know what scheme he's cooking up behind the scenes.