Chapter 12: He Can''t Possibly Break the Law! |
"The currently available information is very unfavorable to the defense."
"The trafficking and murder aspects of the case are being tried separately. Looking solely at the murder incident, Wang Qiang struck first, making his defense extremely tricky."
"If the presiding judge''s personal inclination doesn''t favor the defendant, then..."
Sitting side by side on the chairs, Lin Yue voiced her greatest concern.
"The sentencing outcome... might be highly detrimental to the defendant."
As her words faded, silence descended over them.
Truthfully, Lin Yue had initially wanted to take this case, but after hearing the details, she decisively abandoned the idea...
She knew she lacked the ability to sway the outcome of such a case. Taking it on rashly would only make things worse for the victims!
She had no choice.
First, judging by Wang Qiang''s actions in the case, the court could easily hand down a guilty verdict for intentional homicide according to the law. Even a suspended death sentence would be reasonable.
But if the judge ruled with leniency...
They could declare him not guilty on the grounds of legitimate self-defense.
A death sentence or an acquittal. The razor-thin difference depended entirely on the lawyer''s performance. If they slipped up...
"Wang Qiang would very likely receive a suspended death sentence."
Lin Yue took a deep breath, her delicate face etched with solemnity.
Looking at Xu De, she asked:
"So... what are your thoughts?"
Xu De, however, crossed his legs with great interest and threw the question back at her:
"If it were you, Lawyer Lin, what would you do?"
Hearing this, Lin Yue paused and fell silent for a moment. Finally, she sighed and shook her head, her tone filled with helplessness.
"Sacrifice custody of the child in exchange for the other party signing the letter of forgiveness in Wang Qiang''s case."
"At the same time, have them change their statement, allowing the court to smoothly declare it legitimate self-defense."
As it stood, it was an either-or choice.
Either trade custody rights for the retraction of their statement and the issuance of a letter of forgiveness.
Or fight for custody, leaving Wang Qiang''s fate hanging in the balance.
"Although the child wouldn''t be by Wang Mei''s side, at the very least, his life wouldn''t be in danger, and custody could be fought for later."
"But Wang Qiang... if he dies, he''s truly dead."
Xu De mused thoughtfully, then smiled and nodded.
"A very common line of thought. But compared to winning the case that way, I prefer..."
"To take it all!"
As those words dropped, Lin Yue froze, as if she hadn''t heard him clearly.
"What did you say?" she asked hesitantly.
Xu De composed his expression and calmly replied, "Custody and a criminal victory... I want them both!"
He hadn''t forgotten that his case rewards were calculated based on client satisfaction.
Would Wang Mei be satisfied with an either-or outcome? Anyone with half a brain would know it was just a desperate compromise!
Unless...
He secured both!
But...
Lin Yue was slightly taken aback and subconsciously shook her head. "That''s impossible."
"Nothing is impossible."
Xu De smiled.
Just as he was preparing to explain further...
Suddenly, a loud, resonant voice abruptly echoed through the police station lobby from behind them.
"Excuse me, is Lawyer Xu De here?"
Hearing the noise, Xu De paused slightly, and he and Lin Yue reflexively turned to look.
At the main entrance of the lobby stood a man dressed in a neat suit, holding a briefcase and wearing glasses.
After conversing with a police officer, the officer pointed toward Xu De. The man followed the direction and happened to meet Xu De''s gaze.
''He doesn''t come with good intentions,''
Xu De thought to himself.
The man smiled and walked over to Xu De, extending a hand as he spoke:
"I am Chen Wei, a lawyer from Yangteng Law Firm."
"My firm has signed a contract with the couple, Li Youcai and Liu Cui. I am here to serve as the victims'' legal representative in the Wang Qiang case."
"You must be the defense attorney, Lawyer Xu De, correct?"
A smile appeared on Chen Wei''s face. His eyes clearly carried the disdain of someone who already held the winning ticket.
Without giving Xu De a chance to speak, he continued:
"The main reason I came to find you..."
"...is to understand your stance on the case."
Li Youcai''s lawyer?
That family had tortured Wang Mei for ten years, and they actually had the gall to hire a lawyer to fight for their interests!?
Lin Yue''s eyes widened. She pursed her lips, anger surging in her heart, but she kept silent.
Xu De didn''t speak either, let alone shake his hand.
He looked the man up and down for a moment, then suddenly broke into a smile.
"What stance? Be specific."
Chen Wei''s smile faltered. He composed his expression, discreetly withdrew his hand, and chuckled:
"My clients are willing to give your side a chance to offer compensation. If we are satisfied, perhaps Mr. Wang might bear less criminal responsibility. What do you think, Lawyer Xu..."
A chance?
Would Li Youcai and Liu Cui be that kind-hearted?
"The price?" Xu De asked.
Chen Wei kept smiling. "Naturally, it concerns the custody of their grandson."
Just as expected. Li Youcai and Liu Cui''s goal was also to fight for the child. Things were exactly as Lin Yue had predicted.
However...
"The court has already made a definitive ruling on the custody issue. Surely Lawyer Chen isn''t unaware of that?"
Xu De stood up and looked him straight in the eye. Despite his mild tone, his presence was like a porcupine, making the other party thoroughly uncomfortable.
Chen Wei sensed his underlying hostility, yet he pressed on:
"It''s only the first trial. If, during the second trial... the beautiful Lawyer Lin by your side is willing to persuade Wang Mei to voluntarily give up custody..."
He left it at that, not needing to elaborate further.
Lin Yue, however, could no longer hold back her anger. She shot to her feet, gritting her teeth.
"This is blackmail!"
Chen Wei merely waved a hand, completely unbothered.
"No, no, no. This is just a negotiation."
"Besides..."
He looked up at Xu De.
According to Chen Wei''s estimation... Xu De would most likely agree.
After all, this was an opportunity to secure an acquittal in a murder case. It could completely alter his career trajectory; the temptation for any lawyer was simply too massive!
And as for himself?
He would also be considered victorious, securing his clients'' demands while pocketing a sum of money.
If Xu De could get Wang Mei and Xu Hong to pay Li Youcai a massive sum of money, that would be even better. It would absolutely be a win-win!
Therefore, they should be acting with the utmost synergy right now, working together!
As for the victims, Wang Mei and Xu Hong... who cared?
They were just a bunch of low-class hicks who hadn''t seen the world. Providing value to an elite like him was already their good fortune.
"What do you think?" Chen Wei asked.
Xu De looked at him and suddenly spoke up, "Lawyer Chen, do you need to use the restroom?"
Chen Wei was stunned. "What do you mean?"
Xu De replied, "If you don''t have a mirror, you can at least use your own piss, right? Take a good look at your reflection."
The atmosphere around them stagnated. Even Lin Yue froze, staring at him with a strange expression.
Chen Wei''s face flushed red and green. Finally, he took a deep breath, clenched his fists to suppress his anger, and muttered:
"You had better think this through. This is a murder case. If you lose, it will be a devastating blow to your entire career!"
"Without the letter of forgiveness and a retracted statement... how the verdict swings will be entirely unknown."
"Furthermore, you ought to notify Ms. Wang and let her make the decision."
Xu De directly rejected him.
"You said it yourself, it''s an unknown. Don''t trouble yourself over my clients."
"I have some tea leaves here. Tea is good for urination. Want to take some back with you?"
"You!"
Looking at the utterly stubborn Xu De, Chen Wei''s expression darkened. It was his first time meeting someone so unappreciative.
A win-win situation, making money and boosting their win rates together—wasn''t that good?
"Hmph, then I''ll see you in court."
Chen Wei glared at him, dropped the harsh remark, and took a deep breath before turning to leave.
Watching his retreating back, Lin Yue sighed in relief, then looked at Xu De and chuckled.
"You have a rather interesting way of speaking."
She paused for a moment, then sighed and whispered,
"But... although he''s annoying, without the letter of forgiveness... our chances of winning the lawsuit really will be much lower."
The moment her voice faded, a response immediately followed.
"Who said I was out of options?" Xu De casually remarked.
Lin Yue continued,
"To be honest, I''m more inclined toward negotiating, fighting for more visitation time..."
But halfway through her sentence, she suddenly stopped as if she had just realized something. She jerked her head up to look at Xu De, her clear eyes filled with astonishment, and exclaimed:
"You have a plan!?"
"Of course I do."
Xu De nodded matter-of-factly.
"The plan is, we..."
...
Outside the lobby.
Chen Wei walked out the door with a dark expression. Right before he left, he looked back, giving Xu De on the public bench a deep look.
At first, he had hoped for a win-win, but since the other party was so unappreciative...
Then he wouldn''t mind proactively applying some pressure on the defendant, getting the judge to hand down a much harsher sentence for Wang Qiang!
''Heh, what an ungrateful fool!''
Chen Wei fumed internally, feeling deeply humiliated.
It was his first time being insulted like this by such a young upstart. Since that was the case, he''d teach him a lesson called ''reality''!
"Just you wait."
With that, Chen Wei lowered his head, walked over to his car, pulled the door open, and swiftly drove off.
Not far away.
"Was that Chen Wei from Yangteng Law Firm?"
In the parking lot, the doors of an official vehicle opened, and several men stepped out. One of them looked at the departing car and spoke thoughtfully.
"It should be. The court gave us word that he is the victims'' legal representative for the Wang Qiang case."
Someone beside him nodded.
"Given the timeline, it makes perfect sense for him to be at the police station."
At those words, the first man also nodded in agreement.
There were three of them in total: two middle-aged men around thirty-five and one young man in his twenties. All of them wore black formal uniforms.
The uniforms were similar to suits, complete with white dress shirts and red ties, but pinned to their chests was a red national emblem that radiated an inexplicable aura.
Undoubtedly, these three men were prosecutors from the Greenwood City Prosecutor''s Office!
"If I remember correctly, this Chen Wei is a famous shyster, isn''t he? Why is he the legal representative for the plaintiffs?"
The young prosecutor, Zhang Qing, asked through gritted teeth, his brows furrowed.
They were the prosecutors in charge of filing the public prosecution against Wang Qiang. Their visit to the police station today was to gather evidence.
"Shut up."
The middle-aged prosecutor, Hu Guang, frowned. With a stern face and resolute features, he reprimanded him.
"We are prosecutors."
"We cannot hold prejudices, much less allow personal emotions to interfere!"
Hearing this, Zhang Qing said indignantly,
"Master, I''ve read the case files for Wang Qiang. He was clearly..."
Before Zhang Qing could finish speaking, Hu Guang immediately cut him off.
"Whether he deserves to die depends on objective evidence and the court''s judgment. It doesn''t depend on you, and it certainly doesn''t depend on me!"
"If you still don''t understand what public prosecution is, then get out of here and join another team!"
His forceful reprimand left the air thick with tension.
Seeing this, the other prosecutor, the peacemaker Wang Wei, hastily stepped in to smooth things over.
"Old Hu, look at what you''re saying. Little Zhang is still young. Didn''t we all go through this phase? Your words are a bit too harsh."
Hearing this, Hu Guang glanced at Zhang Qing, then walked away without another word, silently heading toward the police station.
Wang Wei looked back at Zhang Qing and chuckled.
"Little Zhang, you too. The prosecution cannot mix in personal emotions."
"If Chen Wei had heard you say that... it would cause a lot of trouble."
Zhang Qing opened his mouth to speak but stopped, eventually remaining silent.
After a long while, he suddenly asked,
"Uncle Wang, what do you think will happen to Wang Qiang in this case?"
Wang Wei fell silent for a moment before shaking his head and sighing.
"It''s hard to say. The evidence provided by the police, the statements from Lijia Village... it''s all very unfavorable for him."
Hearing this, Zhang Qing spoke quietly,
"Is there no other way?"
Wang Wei shook his head and said,
"Alright, enough out of you. Stop worrying about all this. According to our projections, the first trial will begin in early November. Go investigate the case with your master first."
"As for what happens to Wang Qiang... that depends on how the defense attorney performs."
"As for what else can be done under these current conditions..."
He led the younger man in the direction Hu Guang had gone, casually adding,
"Then I have no idea."
"After all, he can''t possibly break the law, right? That''s highly unlikely."
...
"Let''s go steal the child!"
"Um... huh?"
"What did you say!?"
Inside the police station lobby.
Looking at the dumbfounded Lin Yue, who had jumped out of her seat in shock, Xu De placated her while repeating himself word for word:
"I said, my plan is..."
"Let''s go steal the child!"
Lin Yue: ?
After hearing his plan, Lin Yue stared at him with utter disbelief.
A second later, her bewildered voice rang out.
"No, what do you mean your plan is... to go steal the child?"
"That''s breaking the law!"
"Ah, listen to yourself. How is that breaking the law?"
Xu De was quite dissatisfied. He then spoke softly, slowly explaining:
"Calm down and listen to me. I guarantee that what we are doing is absolutely lawful and compliant."
"Even if you flip through the entire Criminal Code until it falls apart, you won''t find a single word of illegality!"
Lin Yue: ?
Stealing a child? Lawful? You are a lawyer, how on earth did you manage to string those two concepts together in the same sentence?
Do you even know what you''re saying?!
Moreover...
Lin Yue covered her mouth and exclaimed in shock:
"What are you stealing a child for!?"