The elders paused the hearing while Clerk Shen arranged the papers. Yan returned to his seat beside Qinghe. Ning sat across from him with the treatment preference sheet folded in her hands. The sealed packet had gone to the court vault, but the contract pages remained on the table. The chair asked whether Ning wished to speak about the proxy clause.
“I do,” Ning said. She rose, then looked at the chair rather than Zhao. “I never signed the research contract. I didn’t agree to let Zhao choose my physician. A labor-office clerk used a household mark while I was ill. I had no chance to read the terms.”
The chair nodded to Clerk Shen. “Can the laboratory record confirm a proxy mark?”
Clerk Shen checked the contract copy and the account page. “The mark was entered by a labor-office clerk. The line for Ning’s own signature is blank. I cannot find a note showing that she gave permission.”
Zhao sat with a guard behind him. “This is standard for household accounts. The clerk had authority to keep the account active.”
Ning turned toward him. “A standard form does not make my consent real. I want care. I don’t want you choosing the physician or making care depend on Yan’s body.”
