Are You Crazy? He’s only an Intern Lawyer?
Chapter 195 - 194 Xiao Li Feels the Pressure, Old Li Offers a Reminder

Chapter 195: Chapter 194 Xiao Li Feels the Pressure, Old Li Offers a Reminder

(A new case has arrived, seeking monthly tickets, recommendations, and subscriptions)

...

Thursday, a workday.

Jincheng Law Firm, the criminal division office.

Zhang Wei was reading the newspaper at his desk, but his mind kept replaying the scene from yesterday.

Thinking about yesterday’s house viewing still made Zhang Wei want to laugh even now.

In the end, the Li sisters, Li Qinghe and Li Qinghua, both confirmed one thing: Zhang Wei really owned an apartment in Dongjiang Yipin.

Moreover, it was a high-rise with an excellent view, offering a sweeping panorama of Dongjiang and nearly half of Dongfang Capital’s stunning scenery, making it an invincible riverside apartment.

Given its floor level and location, this apartment was at least tens of millions more expensive than the lower-floor ones, and it was priceless.

Ordinary people couldn’t even dream of affording it, and even the wealthy might not be able to purchase it if they wanted to.

Li Qinghe and Li Qinghua were no fools; they naturally could see what was going on.

Although they were curious about how Zhang Wei had obtained such an apartment, they didn’t dare ask more since he didn’t volunteer the information.

In any case, in the end, Zhang Wei saw that the look in Li Qinghe’s family’s eyes had become incredibly complex when they looked at him.

Auntie Li Qinghe, her daughter Li Feifei, and son-in-law Zhan Qingze could only leave in dejection.

Originally, Li Qinghe had wanted to bring her son-in-law to ridicule her beloved sister, but it turned out that Zhang Wei was the one who put them in their place.

Her son-in-law had an annual salary of 800,000 yuan and worked in the finance industry, a promising future ahead of him.

But Zhang Wei’s monthly salary was close to 3 million yuan - and he was a lawyer at Jincheng Law Firm. He was a true "warrior of the future"!

As Li Qinghe couldn’t belittle him over salary and benefits, she brought up the matter of the house instead.

Her son-in-law Zhan Qingze bought an apartment of a hundred square meters for over ten million yuan in Central Ring to marry Li Feifei, but Zhang Wei countered with a slap in the face by pulling out Dongjiang Yipin’s riverside mansion worth hundreds of millions.

Zhan Qingze was both jealous and envious of the house because he knew that even if he worked hard, he might not be able to afford such an apartment even by the time he retired.

Eventually, Li Qinghe came to grips with reality. She realized that Zhang Wei was no longer someone she could easily manipulate.

Whether as a lawyer or simply as her sister’s family member, she could no longer find any sense of superiority over Li Qinghua and Zhang Wei.

If she couldn’t put on airs anymore, then Li Qinghe could only retreat in defeat.

After the aunt left, Li Qinghua and Xia Donghai pestered Zhang Wei with questions for a long while.

In the end, Zhang Wei had no choice but to invite Manager Wang from the property management to explain it to them in person.

It was only after Manager Wang’s explanation that his in-laws finally understood that Zhang Wei was the owner of the apartment in Dongjiang Yipin.

Moreover, after much persuasion from Zhang Wei, his in-laws agreed to move into the Dongjiang Yipin apartment.

Actually, Li Qinghua originally wanted to refuse.

She was a self-reliant woman; even though her career wasn’t notable, perhaps she would forever be a court secretary, but she didn’t want to accept charity from Zhang Wei, her son-in-law.

"Are you looking down on me, kid? Our family needs your handouts? Just a big house, do you think we’d care for it?"

Li Qinghua wanted to reject Zhang Wei like this, but alas, the boy was offering too much!

It was an unbeatable riverside apartment in Dongjiang Yipin, a super-large flat, the very pinnacle of luxury in Dongfang Capital.

The mother-in-law tried to refuse several times, but she just couldn’t bring herself to say the words.

And with Zhang Wei’s repeated insistence, she finally agreed...

Although her expression seemed to scream her self-disdain.

Li Qinghua, oh Li Qinghua, you were bought by a mere riverside apartment in Dongjiang Yipin. Where’s your pride?

But ultimately, Li Qinghua couldn’t resist the temptation of the house.

Once the wife agreed, Xia Donghai naturally had no objections.

As for Xia Qianyue, with both in-laws in agreement, she wouldn’t dare to refuse.

And as a dutiful daughter, she genuinely wished for her parents to have a better quality of life.

Thus, the matter of the house was settled satisfactorily.

Today is Thursday, a working day.

Li Qinghua and Xia Donghai would be busy with moving.

The father-in-law might not have much material desire, but the mother-in-law was eagerly awaiting moving into Dongjiang Yipin.

"What a pity, I still think living at Lin Mansion is nicer!"

If there’s one thing to regret, it might be that Zhang Wei couldn’t live with Xia Qianyue.

He had to stay at Lin Mansion for convenience and because there was someone there who needed his care.

Just thinking about Zhao Xiaoxiao, this second daughter, and Old Zhao next door, gave Zhang Wei a headache.

What kind of conflict had arisen between the parent and child that they were practically strangers to each other now?

"Master, what are you looking at?"

All of a sudden, Lin Yumeng, who might have finished watching a drama series, turned her gaze towards Zhang Wei.

"Oh, I’m searching for the big events that have happened in Dongfang Capital recently!"

Zhang Wei turned the computer by 30 degrees, allowing Lin Yumeng to see the content on the screen.

"The entertainment section of Dongfang Capital, what are you looking at this for?"

"Hehe, the entertainment section, sometimes you can land a big case there!"

Zhang Wei pointed to the homepage of the entertainment section, laughing as he explained, "Take for example the recent uproar in Dongfang Capital where a movie mogul was killed by his wife by accident. If we have a chance to connect with that wife, we could make a fortune!"

"Oh, that incident, I’ve heard about it too."

Lin Yumeng nodded, "But I heard from the gossip that it was the mogul who wanted to kill his wife, which led to him being killed in self-defense, right?"

While saying this, the apprentice also combined previous cases to analyse, "Just like the case you fought for Uncle Zhao. The victim Zeng Xiang wanted to threaten your client Fang Yunshu, but ended up being killed by your client in self-defense. It was his own fault!"

"However, in your case, the Procuratorate and the investigation department didn’t find evidence of Zeng Xiang’s threats, so they prosecuted your client. But in this case, the possibility of legitimate self-defense is high, obviously the Procuratorate won’t charge the mogul’s wife, right?"

Zhang Wei casually waved his hand, "Xiao Meng, making any speculation without having met the client is presumptuous. You need to learn to distinguish the truth of the matter!"

"Do you know, as criminal defense lawyers, who do we see the most every day?"

"I know, it’s criminals!" The apprentice quickly answered.

Unfortunately, this answer was evidently wrong.

"You’re mistaken!"

Zhang Wei shook his head, looking disappointed, "Criminals refer to those who have been investigated and found guilty of a crime. Before our clients are judged, they cannot be called criminals; they can only be treated as suspects. What you said has a significant issue!"

"Oh, I understand now..."

Lin Yumeng bowed her head, humbly accepting the rebuke, but she couldn’t help asking, "So, Master, what’s the answer?"

Seeing the apprentice a little discontent, Zhang Wei smiled.

"The answer is quite simple. We criminal defense lawyers actually deal with liars the most every day!"

"So, you need to develop a keen discernment, the ability to differentiate right from wrong, to spot the flaws in these people’s words, and to find the truth of the matter!"

"As long as you stand on the side of truth, then you will always stand on invincible ground; you will be unbeatable in battle!"

When Lin Yumeng heard Zhang Wei’s words, her eyes began to twinkle with stars. She quickly pulled out her notebook and jotted down his words.

"Mhm mhm, Master is right, find the truth, and be unbeatable in battle!"

Seeing such an obedient apprentice, Zhang Wei too smiled satisfactorily.

Although she is the daughter of a big boss, this attitude of earnestly seeking knowledge is definitely commendable.

There were no issues with Lin Yumeng, so the recent problem must be with another partner...

"Xiao Li, you’ve been quite busy lately, what are you busy with?"

As the "decision-maker" of the criminal division, Zhang Wei felt it necessary to check in on another partner.

"I’m, busy with a case..."

Li Yueqin lifted her head, replied briefly, but soon lowered it again, continuing to write documents.

"Oh, busy with a case, huh!"

It must be acknowledged that Li Yueqin is extremely diligent. These past few days, if she wasn’t busy with a case, she was making time to study.

In contrast, a certain someone, since settling their case on Monday, has been slacking off—three days fishing, two days drying the nets, goofing off at work whenever possible...

Zhang Wei looked at the busy Li Yueqin and couldn’t help but walk over.

"Xiao Li, with so much evidence in this case, and eyewitnesses as well, do you still plan on defending as not guilty?"

Opening a case summary, Zhang Wei couldn’t help but ask.

"I feel... the client might be innocent..."

"No, no, no, the client can’t be innocent in this case, the prosecution has too much evidence. I suggest you go for a guilty defense, try to persuade your client to admit guilt, which would benefit plea negotiations for a lesser sentence. If you aim for innocence, they could get sentenced to 10 years, which would actually be a disadvantage for your client!"

"But I still want to fight for it..." Although Li Yueqin listened to Zhang Wei’s words, she did not fully agree.

"Alright then, it’s your case, I can only offer a reference suggestion!"

Zhang Wei spread his hands, deciding not to interfere further.

"I’ll consider your advice, but I have to go to court soon!"

Li Yueqin began gathering her files, preparing to leave.

"I wish you a swift and decisive victory!"

Zhang Wei quickly cheered her on, but he didn’t think Li Yueqin stood a good chance of winning the case.

"Mhm mhm, you too keep at it!"

Lin Yumeng also stood up and gave a thumbs up to Li Yueqin.

Tie Ruyun, who was buried in work, also looked up and said, "Xiao Li, fight a good fight, but I have a lot of documents to process today, so I cannot accompany you to the courtroom. You’ll be okay, right?"

"Don’t worry, Leader, and everyone else, I won’t fall behind!"

Li Yueqin solemnly responded and then, holding several files, she walked out of the criminal department office.

Watching Li Yueqin go to court, Zhang Wei shook his head.

"Xiao Li has been under a lot of pressure lately, it seems we have all handled major cases, yet she’s still stuck in criminal defense, probably feeling somewhat resentful!"

Zhang Wei could naturally tell that Li Yueqin’s heart was somewhat in turmoil.

For example, with that case just now, even if Zhang Wei didn’t visit the crime scene, he knew the party involved was almost certainly the real offender.

However, Li Yueqin didn’t want to defend a guilty plea, insisting on an innocence plea, clearly stimulated by Zhang Wei.

Zhang Wei felt that a competitive nature wasn’t wrong in itself, but it must not let one’s character affect their objective judgement, as that would be irresponsible to oneself and the client.

"I hope Xiao Li gains something from this case..."

He remarked with a sigh and couldn’t be bothered to worry anymore.

...

In the afternoon, 4:30 PM.

Li Yueqin returned.

However, compared to the solemn look she had before she left, her expression now seemed rather troubled.

"Xiao Li, how did the case go?"

Zhang Wei immediately noticed the change in the newcomer’s expression and quickly asked.

Even though he asked, he actually had a clear idea of the answer.

"I..."

Li Yueqin opened her mouth, but unfortunately, she was too embarrassed to disclose the outcome.

Zhang Wei smiled faintly, "How long will your client be sentenced, 8 or 10 years?"

"He... was given... 13 years..."

"What!!!"

Hearing Li Yueqin’s response, Zhang Wei’s eyes widened in shock.

"That’s impossible, the maximum sentence for that case was only 10 years, how did he get more than the maximum?"

"My client, he didn’t accept the verdict, he cursed and insulted people in court, and also had a physical altercation with the court guard, so the judge added an assault charge, along with disrupting order, contempt of court..."

"I understand!"

Zhang Wei waved his hand, signaling Li Yueqin she didn’t need to continue.

Obviously, the criminal thought he could secure his release by colluding with his defense attorney, only to end up with a 10-year sentence.

The huge psychological disparity shattered his mental defenses, leading to his irrational behavior in court.

In fact, Li Yueqin also bore some responsibility for this incident, if she had insisted on a guilty defense from the start, plus the client’s good attitude in admitting guilt, the case might have resulted in a maximum of 5 years.

After all, if you fight for the innocent, justice may be on your side.

But if you attempt to defend the guilty as innocent, then you only have yourself to blame if you lose!

"Xiao Li, on the bright side, at least the law didn’t wrong an innocent person!"

Zhang Wei didn’t know how else to comfort her, so he simply lamented in his heart that the law is merciless!

"But I wanted to prove myself, yet..."

Li Yueqin said helplessly, unable to summon a smile no matter what.

...

PM, time to clock out.

Since there were no major cases on hand, the criminal department got to leave earlier than the other sections of the litigation department.

As Zhang Wei passed by the commercial and civil sections of the litigation department, he saw them busily engrossed in their work.

Not only that, but the heads of the commercial and civil sections also saw Zhang Wei, and the looks they gave him were filled with wariness and defensiveness.

Clearly, they assumed Zhang Wei was up to no good, possibly ready to show them up again.

Lately, Zhang Wei also noticed a problem, that the litigation department’s "trash heap" didn’t contain many cases of value.

Only those cases that were not lucrative and doomed to be lost would be thrown in there.

Zhang Wei had sifted through the "trash heap" at the beginning of the month, but sadly didn’t find any major cases that could boost performance.

Obviously, the commercial and civil sections were intentionally preventing the criminal department from getting another big case.

Since there were no opportunities in the "trash heap," Zhang Wei naturally considered getting cases from other channels.

This was also why he had been browsing web pages and news recently.

Unfortunately, big cases were not so easy to come by; even a major law firm couldn’t ensure that every case would be profitable.

...

Meanwhile.

Central Ring, a mid-tier residential community.

Ding-dong!

After stepping out of the elevator, Li Yueqin walked up to a house and knocked on the door.

"Who is it?"

"Mom, it’s me!"

"Oh, my sweet child is back!"

A woman who bore a resemblance to Li Yueqin by about forty to fifty percent opened the door, "Why didn’t you bring your keys?"

"I’ve been busy with work these past few days, I left in a hurry and forgot them."

Li Yueqin hurried into the house, which was a corner unit commodity housing, three bedrooms and two living rooms, roughly a hundred or so square meters, though the decor was somewhat simple.

"Where’s Dad?"

"He, he’s definitely still at the court. But he doesn’t seem to be working too late today, why don’t we wait for him so we can have dinner together?"

"Oh!"

Li Yueqin replied and went straight to her room, then closed the door behind her.

"Like father, like daughter, one in the court, busy to death every day; the other in a law firm, always wearing a straight face..."

The woman glanced at Li Yueqin’s room and could not help but shake her head and sigh.

An hour later, the door opened again – someone was back.

"I’m home!"

A bespectacled man in a suit walked into the house holding keys, appearing at ease.

Had Zhang Wei been there, he would have been utterly surprised, for this man was none other than the judge of the city court’s criminal tribunal, Old Li.

Oh, Zhang Wei actually preferred his nickname, Calm Bro!

minutes later, at the dining table.

Li Yueqin, Old Li, and his wife, the three family members rarely sat down together for a meal.

Regrettably, Calm Bro’s face was expressionless, and Li Yueqin was similarly silent, just focused on eating her meal diligently.

The woman glanced at the father and daughter a few times but couldn’t liven up the atmosphere.

"Yueqin, something on your mind?" At last, Old Li sensed something was off.

"Dad, I’m fine, just some issues at work."

"And that’s not a problem?"

After thinking for a moment, Old Li asked, "What’s the issue? Speak up. I’m a judge at the city court, after all. If you’re unhappy at work, I definitely need to go to Jincheng and see what’s going on!"

"No, it’s just that I’ve been under quite a lot of pressure recently. Two of my peers handled major cases last month, and their legal fees were over 3 million each, while I’m still on a probationary base salary..."

"3 million in legal fees!"

Although Old Li was a judge, he was in charge of the criminal tribunal. Hearing the figure of 3 million still made him gape.

To think that those peers, like his daughter, must have also just graduated.

"Just graduated and earning 3 million in legal fees, are you sure? You’re not in the commercial group; since when do criminal cases make so much money? Why don’t I know about this?"

"They took on commercial cases and won, obtaining several tens of millions in compensation!"

"Ah, no wonder, commercial cases do make money, but you have to be able to win them!"

Old Li nodded in understanding, then looked at his daughter, "So, you envy them?"

"Yes, I want to prove myself too, but criminal cases don’t make money, and they’re exhausting to deal with..."

Seeing his daughter like this, Old Li sighed heavily.

Criminal cases don’t make money, but your specialty is in criminal law. If you’re not dealing with criminal cases, what, you want to take on commercial lawsuits?

Moreover, even if you want to challenge different types of cases, you need to have cases to work on first.

"Are you suggesting that you want to..."

"I don’t, commercial cases certainly won’t be any easier, and since we are the criminal group, we don’t come across money-making commercial cases. I’d better diligently work on criminal cases and try to accumulate more experience this month!"

Seeing Li Yueqin’s attitude, as her father, how could Old Li not perceive the dissatisfaction in his daughter’s heart?

After thinking for a while, he couldn’t help but say, "Actually, if you want to take on a commercial case, there’s indeed a big one coming up."

Li Yueqin, who had been concentrating on her food, couldn’t help but lift her head upon hearing her father’s words.

Noticing his daughter’s interest, Old Li lowered his voice, "Actually, it’s just something I heard about, the recent murder of that film tycoon, there seems to be a lawsuit within their company, but I’m not clear on the specifics. This might be something you could look into; there should be plenty of intrigues involved!"

"That case!"

Upon hearing this, Li Yueqin immediately understood.

The case had been causing quite a stir in Dongfang Capital recently.