Legal guardians can indeed be changed. Custody of a child can also be transferred.
But Mu Yuting helps people only after clearly determining whether they truly deserve assistance. The fable of the farmer and the snake is not just a joke.
Teacher Wang understood her concerns and spoke up proactively: "The Yu family lives in the same neighborhood as I do; we're practically neighbors. I'm aware of everything regarding their daughter."
Old Mr. Yu sighed deeply and took over the conversation: "Let's eat first. I'll tell the story myself after the meal."
The food was soon served—a balanced mix of meat and vegetables, all quite delicious. No one drank alcohol; instead, a pitcher of freshly ground soy milk was provided, making for a very healthy meal.
After dinner, the warm soy milk helped soften the chilling story, comforting everyone’s stomachs.
In his youth, Old Mr. Yu had suffered an accidental injury that affected his fertility, making it difficult for him to have children. It wasn’t until his forties that he and his wife finally had a daughter, Yu Jiajia.
They poured all their love into raising her, nurturing her to become an accomplished individual. Their daughter was pure-hearted, kind, and relatively quiet by nature. In university, she chose to study library science.
After graduation, with her parents' support, Yu Jiajia opened a bookstore. Over a few years of operation, the small shop grew into the largest bookstore in the city.
It was around this time that she met Wu Zhengcai, an insurance salesman.
Dressed in a suit and wearing gold-rimmed glasses, Wu Zhengcai appeared refined and well-spoken, his words exceptionally charming. He fabricated an image of a hardworking, persevering young man from the countryside and quickly won over the innocent Yu Jiajia.
Knowing that the Yu family was well-off and that gaining her father’s approval would be difficult, he resorted to a "clever" scheme. While Yu Jiajia was on a business trip, he secretly followed her and staged a calculated act of self-sacrifice to deceive her into intimacy.
By the time Old Mr. Yu realized something was wrong, Yu Jiajia was already pregnant with Wu Zhengcai’s child—and the pregnancy had already passed the three-month mark. The fetus was stable.
Old Mr. Yu had initially opposed his daughter’s relationship with this man. With his life experience and position as the chairman of the city’s writers' association, he, as a man and a literary scholar, was all too familiar with the tricks and deceitful tactics some men employed.
He believed this man was unreliable and insisted that his daughter have an abortion. However, after medical examinations, the doctor informed them that Yu Jiajia had a uterine condition—if she terminated the pregnancy, she might never be able to conceive again.
His daughter clung to her belly, looking pitiful. Wu Zhengcai pretended to be obedient, accepting any scolding or criticism without resistance. His wife also pleaded on their behalf. In the end, Old Mr. Yu relented.
This single concession paved the way for tragedy.
For the wedding, the marital home and all assets were provided by the bride’s family. The groom contributed nothing but himself.
After marriage, using the excuse that Yu Jiajia’s pregnancy made it unsuitable for her to overexert herself, Wu Zhengcai found ways to involve himself in the bookstore’s operations. By the time Yu Jiajia went into labor, he had largely taken control of the business.
He cheated. He had an affair during the later stages of Yu Jiajia’s pregnancy, when the child was nearly due—reasoning that the baby would have to be born regardless. Once the child arrived, he believed maternal love would keep the family and marriage intact.
When the affair came to light, Old Mr. Yu was furious. Wu Zhengcai, however, remained unrepentant: "I only made a mistake that any man could make. I have no intention of divorcing—the woman outside was just a fling, a passing affair. My only wife is Yu Jiajia."
The Yu elders were so furious they nearly fainted backward, yet they dared not tell their daughter, who was about to give birth, fearing it might disturb her pregnancy and cause a difficult delivery.
But secrets cannot stay hidden forever.
Yu Jiajia had worked hard to deliver her daughter and was still basking in the joy of motherhood when her in-laws, who had rushed from the countryside, infuriated her to no end.
Her father-in-law and mother-in-law declared: "Having a money-losing girl is worse than getting a new wife. Since this wife can’t bear any more children, why not replace her with a new one to have sons!"
During her postpartum confinement, Yu Jiajia failed to rest properly. She took care of the child day and night without respite, all while enduring constant sarcasm from her in-laws who were supposedly "looking after her." She fell ill with various ailments, and even numerous tonics couldn’t restore her health.
Because of the powerful bond with her child, Yu Jiajia eventually forgave Wu Zhengcai. But she also came to a realization: love and marriage were unreliable; it was far more important to focus on building her own career.
Eight years passed in the blink of an eye. No matter how tough things got, Yu Jiajia never chose to become a housewife. Instead, she diligently managed her bookstore. No matter how much Wu Zhengcai tried to persuade her, he could never fully take control of the bookstore.
Until over two months ago, when Yu Jiajia was invited by a publishing house to discuss a collaboration. She drove alone both ways, a route she knew very well from many previous trips. But on her way back, she was involved in a car accident and just like that, she was gone.
The Yu elders were deeply devastated—white-haired parents burying their black-haired child, becoming a bereaved family. They placed all their hopes on their granddaughter Wu Yin, the continuation of their daughter’s life.
To ensure their granddaughter had a good life, they repeatedly swallowed their pride.
Wu Zhengcai seized the property, took over the bookstore, and swallowed all of Yu Jiajia’s assets. The elders remained silent and did not fight over these possessions, as they had their pensions and savings and didn’t care about the money.
Wu Zhengcai hastily remarried, openly bringing his mistress home. For the sake of their granddaughter, the elders endured it again, asking only one thing—that the child be treated well!
Human nature is insatiable; give an inch, and they’ll take a mile.
Wu Zhengcai discovered that his daughter Wu Yin was the elders’ weakness and exploited it more and more skillfully. He even planned to use the excuse of "transferring the child to a rural school" to force the elders to hand over all their savings.
He had accidentally found out that his father-in-law’s series of books on the War of Resistance had not only been published but also adapted into a TV series, likely earning a considerable amount. This was a fat sheep waiting to be sheared!
This time, the elders refused. Without some savings, who would they rely on if they fell ill? Their daughter was gone, and their granddaughter was still young. They had to keep a safety net.
Wu Zhengcai decided to act first and talk later—sending his daughter to the countryside first, then negotiating. Unexpectedly, during the transfer procedures, he got into trouble with Teacher Wang over coveting the refund of ten thousand yuan in tuition from the music school. Even more unexpectedly, Teacher Wang actually knew the Yu elders...
Mu Yuting finished the soy milk in her hand, set down the cup, and began explaining the law.
"Under normal circumstances, children are raised by their parents, and the legal guardians are also the parents."
"But when the original legal guardians—the parents—are absent or lack guardianship capacity, other individuals can be appointed as guardians. The same applies to custody rights."
"Aside from the parents, the next in line for guardianship are the paternal and maternal grandparents. The same goes for custody rights."
Old Mr. Yu caught on quickly, murmuring and repeating key phrases: "Absent? Lack guardianship capacity? Next in line..."
Grandma Yu raised a question, "But the child's father is still alive and well. And his paternal grandparents are also living in the countryside."
Wu Yin hugged her grandmother tightly around the neck and said, "I don’t want to be with Grandpa and Grandma. They say I’m just a girl—they don’t love me."
Mu Yuting highlighted the key point: "The grandparents don’t matter. The child is old enough that in a custody battle, the judge will consider her own wishes. The focus should be on the child’s father."
Teacher Wang also nodded and asked, "So, how do we deal with the child’s father?"
Mu Yuting thought carefully, recalling legal provisions: "If the father has a record of domestic violence, proven extramarital affairs, or harmful habits like gambling or alcoholism—or even a criminal record that could negatively impact the child’s upbringing—and if the mother’s family has good moral character and more time to care for the child, the chances of gaining custody are much higher."
The old man suddenly saw the light and understood the key issue.
"Also, I think Yu Jiajia’s death seems a bit suspicious. It would be best to look into that car."
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