The day when the WAT shareholder change procedure officially took effect also marked the submission of the film Same Or Not for consideration at the film festival. Yu Cheng went to City B for an advertising shoot, accompanied in secret by Zhong Shao as a family member. In this city with the highest population density per capita, another group of staff was divided into 5 teams conducting sampling interviews in different blocks.
Zhong Shao visited a special legal aid centre. Since taking over WAT, he regularly meets with the company's senior partner, Dong Yi.
This is a law firm specialising in providing professional legal aid for same-sex spouse issues, the Hengsheng Law Firm. With the dual promotion and bridging of the law firm and internet media, "Forward" has become not only the largest online same-sex spouse mutual aid community platform but also the largest offline same-sex spouse mutual aid community with the most complete organisational structure.
By 2022, there are nearly 35 million male homosexuals in China, 80% of whom will marry heterosexual women, making them "gay wives" As a country that inherently studies its own ontology, the nearly 30 million same-sex spouses have become a uniquely Chinese phenomenon.
In a three-year study of male homosexuals, it was found that the vast majority of those who entered marriage did not disclose their sexual orientation to their wives before marriage, underscoring the real dilemma of same-sex spouses. Among them, over 90% have experienced domestic violence, 30% have no sexual life in marriage, but only 30% choose to divorce. The persistence of this "fission" culture ultimately stems from the fact that under the state of society not recognising and accepting the homosexual community, the coercion of the heterosexual marriage system and the emphasis on marriage and reproduction in traditional beliefs force them to enter heterosexual marriages to complete role transitions, thereby fundamentally trampling on women's rights.
Therefore, compared to the male homosexual movement that receives positive responses, the "gay wife" is a more vulnerable group than male homosexuals. They are numerous, of various ages, mostly oppressed and constrained by traditional culture, enduring humiliation for children, not daring to speak out or appeal, unable to obtain sexual satisfaction, subjected to neglect, indifference, domestic violence, sexually transmitted diseases, and even the threat of AIDS.
However, in this world, there are always individuals who are willing to take the first step for a group, raise their voices, break free from societal norms, and empower themselves to be their true selves rather than being overshadowed by others. This is where the concept of "Progress" takes shape. It originated from a support group established by Yao Lan, a woman who successfully divorced her same-sex husband ten years ago. Her divorce case was the first of its kind involving a "gay wife" to be reported in the public eye.
Following the establishment of WAT, the Hengsheng Law Firm was founded, with Yao Lan being one of the shareholders. Over the six years of collaboration between WAT and Hengsheng Law Firm, they have successfully assisted in over a thousand cases of same-sex wife divorces, conducting regular legal aid and protection lectures both online and offline under the banner of "Progress."
Among all the gay wife cases handled by Hengsheng, the percentage of cases involving threats of sexually transmitted diseases and AIDS is very low. However, if we use the cases handled by Hengsheng Law Firm as a model, the number of gay wives affected by these diseases is significant.
"The shareholders of WAT were said to have changed." Dong Yi personally brewed a cup of coffee to entertain Zhong Shao.
This marks the first internal change of shareholders since the establishment of WAT. When the change took effect, those curious about it could find out - the company search and the industrial and commercial departments could access the relevant information - making it difficult not to arouse curiosity about the reasons behind it.
Zhong Shao casually responded with a "Hmm" and then said, "The movie is on screen, please take a look."
Dong Yi pondered, "What a mismatched conversation."
Retrieving a file folder from the cabinet, Dong Yi pulled out the documents and said, "This is the information you asked me to find."
"Thank you," Zhong Shao took the files but didn't rush to open them.
Dong Yi sipped his coffee and then asked, "What made you think of pulling this data?"
The information related to the national male sperm bank was personally integrated by Dong Yi.
Relying on years of cooperation and intuition with Zhong Shao, Dong Yi could roughly guess a few things.
"I haven't figured out the specifics yet, just wanted to have a look first." Dong Yi thought for a moment, "Do I look like I believe you?"
"Take a look at this," Dong Yi handed over another file, "This is the most special case from last quarter, related to the sperm bank records you requested. After consultation with the parties involved, they have agreed."
During each quarter, Hengsheng Law Firm selects key cases to focus on, conducting detailed discussions with the parties involved to see if they are willing to accept WAT's "teach a man to fish" approach and, with mutual consent, sign the relevant documents. In the second quarter, Hengsheng Law Firm focused on three specific cases, which Zhong Shao carefully reviewed. When he reached the third case, Dong Yi remarked, "This is the most special case from last quarter, related to the sperm bank records you requested."
Zhong Shao closed the file and asked for more details.
Hengsheng Law Firm received this case about a month and a half ago, when a lady named Xiaohui (alias) sought legal assistance. Her primary complaint in the case is divorce, with an additional request for compensation for medical expenses and mental anguish.
The case has not yet gone to trial, and Xiaohui's story goes beyond her stated demands. Xiaohui and her husband Ahui (alias) met through a blind date and, with all material and personal conditions meeting both parties' expectations, they dated for a year before getting married.
Three years into the marriage, Xiaohui remained childless. Despite normal results in all female fertility tests, she sensitively noticed a decline in her husband's performance in the bedroom. Upon medical advice, Ahui and Xiaohui went to a reproductive clinic, where the test results revealed Ahui's azoospermia.
Azoospermia accounts for 15%-20% of male infertility cases, with various causes. Ahui was diagnosed with non-obstructive azoospermia, where testicular sperm production is abnormal, rendering treatment ineffective. Following medical advice and careful consideration of their situation, the couple agreed to the doctor's recommendation to use donor sperm from a sperm bank and undergo artificial insemination.
One year later, Xiaohui couple found a suitable sperm donor. Subsequently, the couple underwent insemination treatment while starting ovulation induction therapy, proceeding with artificial insemination once the ultrasound monitored the mature follicles. The success rates for applying for sperm bank artificial insemination vary significantly, depending on the vitality of the sperm and the number of attempts; with normal semen, the overall success rate can reach fifty per cent, while using fresh sperm can increase success to around seventy per cent. The success rate for frozen sperm is approximately fifty per cent, and intrauterine artificial insemination success rate is roughly forty per cent. Unfortunately, Xiaohui's first attempt at artificial insemination was unsuccessful.
At this point, Ahui's father learned of the situation. Aside from being shocked and at a loss that his son was diagnosed with azoospermia, he strongly resisted and became angry at the idea of his daughter-in-law using a stranger's sperm rather than having his own grandchild. After accepting the reality and contemplating deeply, the elderly gentleman came up with a solution - to use his own sperm to create a test-tube baby for his daughter-in-law. He was very satisfied with and insistent on this idea, escalating from persuasion to coercion. Xiaohui, unable to bear the Ahui family's pressure to prioritise continuing the family line, suffered a mental breakdown but thankfully received timely psychological treatment.
After her condition improved, she prepared to formally request a divorce from Ahui.
Xiaohui vividly recalls that day when the weather was overcast and the wind was strong.
In order to have a serious discussion about divorce with Ahui, she left work early, only to unexpectedly discover her husband's darkest secret being carried out in broad daylight.
Her husband was in the living room intimately entangled with another man, engaging in a passionate activity. Xiaohui suddenly realised why her father-in-law could come up with such absurd schemes, as the whole family turned out to be complete frauds.