Are You Crazy? He’s only an Intern Lawyer?
Chapter 245 - 243: Using the Media? You Really Won’t Change the Judge?

Chapter 245: Chapter 243: Using the Media? You Really Won’t Change the Judge?

Wednesday, pre-trial day.

Nandao City, city court.

When he boarded Lin Xiangwan’s extended executive van again, Zhang Wei’s mood was not very good.

Because today was Wednesday, the day of the case’s pre-trial.

Moreover, because he had learned about the relationship between the presiding judge and the chief prosecutor of the case, and also because he did not have the key evidence of the case in his hands.

All of these were telling him that this case was very difficult to fight.

To sum up, the difficulty had reached hell level!

When he arrived at the entrance of the courtroom, countless media reporters swarmed in.

"President Lin, why did you kill your own husband, Jia Shiqing?"

"Rumors say Jia Shiqing was unfaithful during your marriage; is this the reason for committing murder?"

"President Lin, did you kill him in a moment of anger during a quarrel, or was it a premeditated act?"

"It’s been heard that President Lin has been claiming amnesia; is it real memory loss, or do you want to use your mental state as a reason for your innocence?"

"The gentleman by President Lin’s side, could he be your defense lawyer? I heard he’s not a local attorney from Nandao; could it be that President Lin feels guilty, hence the need to bring in a lawyer from outside?"

"President Lin, do you know who your husband had an affair with?"

"President Lin..."

Zhang Wei found that no matter where you are, the questions from media reporters are always so tricky, never sparing anyone’s feelings.

Clearly, these questions would upset Lin Xiangwan, but the media didn’t care about the feelings of the person being questioned.

If they could, they would even love to chase Lin Xiangwan 24 hours a day for questions.

If you’re not ruthless, how can you get the hot news?

In the media industry, whoever has the hot news can become famous!

Whoever becomes famous can make money!

This was common knowledge.

Under the siege of the media, Zhang Wei and the driver acted as bodyguards, protecting Lin Xiangwan and her assistant Xiao Li, making their way towards the Nandao City Court’s main entrance.

Zhang Wei said that at times like this, he really missed a certain Silly or Simple-minded person.

If she could step in, none of these reporters would even think about getting close to them.

Finally, after exerting tremendous effort, Zhang Wei and the driver finally managed to bring Lin Xiangwan and Xiao Li to the entrance.

By that time, they had broken out in a sweat.

"Lawyer Zhang, aren’t you coming in?"

Just as Lin Xiangwan was about to walk into the Nandao City Court, she noticed that Zhang Wei hadn’t followed.

"No, I still have a matter to deal with which requires the media’s power!"

Zhang Wei nodded at her, then turned and walked toward the press reporters at the court entrance.

Lin Xiangwan was curious; she often dealt with the media and knew that these people were like wolves.

When you succeed, they are polite to you, but when you fall from grace, they turn into starving wolves, biting at you.

She recalled when she first came to Nandao, urgently in need of attention, but the media treated her with indifference.

Leveraging Jincheng’s resources and her professional acumen, she secured several highly profitable investments.

The media then turned into groveling dogs, crazily covering her stories, and her news dominated the headlines day after day. At that time, there was no difference between the media’s attitude and that of groveling dogs.

But as soon as trouble arose, the media quickly changed their tune, with those who had cooperated with her issuing statements one after another, declaring an end to their partnerships and from then on, they were strangers.

The media’s harshness and selfishness, with an agenda driven by trending traffic and interests, were blatantly exposed.

Unbelievable!

Lin Xiangwan was also curious why Zhang Wei needed to use the power of the media?

At the entrance of the courthouse, Zhang Wei came out.

The reporters, seeing that Lin Xiangwan had entered the court and had given up, gathered around again when they saw Zhang Wei come out.

"Are you President Lin’s defense attorney?"

"Can you tell us what kind of defense you’re planning for President Lin? Is it a defense of innocence or guilt?"

"President Lin has committed murder, yet you still defend her; is it because the attorney’s fee is substantial?"

"In exchange for money, helping a murderer—how does your conscience allow it?"

Well, Zhang Wei admitted to himself, he could never like the media.

The questions from these reporters almost made him seem like an unscrupulous lawyer, blinded by money and devoid of conscience.

"Ahem, my friends from the press, I can’t really answer your questions, because the case is still under trial, and specific case details should adhere to the information made public by the court."

Upon hearing Zhang Wei’s first sentence, the reporters all rolled their eyes.

If they were to report based on the court’s public information, they’d have been drinking the northwest wind a long time ago.

Because this information could also be searched for on the court’s official website by the public, what significance would there be in them reporting it?

What they wanted was not this, but explosive news!

"Perhaps everyone doesn’t know, I am not a local attorney from Nandao City, but yesterday I heard a piece of news that surprised and shocked me a great deal!"

Explosive news!

Reporters, experienced as they were, pricked up their ears when they heard Zhang Wei say this.

Clearly, the lawyer was prepared to drop a bombshell.

"What news?" a reporter immediately asked, with other nearby journalists following suit, crowding closer.

"Actually, it might seem insignificant, but it concerns the presiding judge of this case, who seems to be named Lu Zhengting. Personally, I feel like he might not be quite suitable for the role of the presiding judge in this case?"

Upon hearing what Zhang Wei had to say, the reporters all "tsked" in unison.

Is this it?

This counts as explosive news?

"Judge Lu is the Criminal Court Judge at the city court, it’s very normal for him to oversee this case, right?"

"Yeah, Judge Lu has a good reputation, what’s the issue with him overseeing this case?"

"Judge Lu has been a criminal trial judge for almost 30 years, and has presided over quite a few major cases. It’s normal for you, an outsider, not to know, but let me tell you, Judge Lu definitely has the qualifications to be the presiding judge!"

"Exactly, why would Judge Lu not be suitable? I think he’s extremely well-suited!"

The media reporters all started to confront Zhang Wei, visibly indignant.

Clearly, standing at the doorstep of the city court, they naturally had to show their support for the judge.

After all, when on someone else’s turf, you’ve got to kiss up!

Far from being annoyed by the media reporters’ confrontations, Zhang Wei remained completely unflustered.

"Ahem, I certainly am not questioning Judge Lu’s professionalism, and as you all said, I’m from out of town and don’t know the local judges well. I’m also not in a position to comment on the judge," he said.

"But then again, I happen to know the chief prosecutor in this case, her name is Lu Wenwen, and I also know that Lu Wenwen and Judge Lu Zhengting seem to be..."

Zhang Wei stopped there, giving the media reporters a smile, then turned and walked into the Nandao City Court without looking back.

Some things don’t need to be spelled out explicitly.

On the contrary, just by mentioning two names, there would be countless media figures ready to wildly interpret and imagine all sorts of things.

Zhang Wei knew that by simply saying the names of Lu Zhengting and Lu Wenwen, he could leave the rest of the work to the media.

"Lu Wenwen?"

"Isn’t this case being handled by the Bright Moon District Procuratorate’s Main Office? The investigating prosecutor I remember is named Wei Min, right?"

"I did indeed hear some news that the case was transferred to the General Procuratorate to take charge of it, I just didn’t expect it to be Prosecutor Lu Gao!"

"Strange, this is also news, isn’t it? If the case was transferred to the General Procuratorate, we should be able to find that out with a little investigation, right?"

"But then again, both Prosecutor Lu Gao and Judge Lu have the same surname, they wouldn’t happen to be related, would they..."

"Holy crap, they actually do seem to be family!"

It suddenly dawned on the reporters that Lu Wenwen’s father seemed to be Lu Zhengting!

Holy crap!

In an instant, none of the reporters could remain calm any longer.

The daughter’s case, with her father as the presiding judge!

The father presiding over a case, with his daughter as the chief prosecutor!

Explosive news!

This is massive explosive news!

"Who would dare to take on this case, isn’t this a guaranteed loss?"

"Nonsense, with father and daughter united, their strength can cut gold!"

"Prosecutor Lu Gao teamed up with Judge Lu, not to mention gold, silver, copper, or iron, they could break loose diamonds!"

"Nandao City Court arranging it this way is clearly a work error, hurry, go back and write the report!"

"Why go back, we have to get the scoop, type it out on the phone directly!"

"Quick, quick, where’s my Bluetooth external keyboard? My hands are itching to get started!"

Leaving the agitated reporters outside, Zhang Wei had already returned to the court’s preparation room.

"Lawyer Zhang, by leveraging the power of the media, are you planning to pressure the court into replacing the judge?"

Lin Xiangwan had seen the scene of Zhang Wei leaking information to the reporters and naturally had to ask.

Zhang Wei’s goal should have been to have the court replace Lu Zhengting, so they could buy more time, and maybe there would be a turning point in the case.

"No, I never intended to change the judge. I just wanted to use the power of the media to put pressure on Judge Lu."

"If he makes a judgment in the courtroom that is favorable to the prosecution, he will have to consider whether the media will think he’s favoring his own daughter!"

"I just want to use the pressure created by the media to gain an advantage on some controversial issues, that’s all!"

Zhang Wei denied Lin Xiangwan’s speculation.

What a joke, my time is precious. How could I possibly go about replacing a judge?

After replacing a judge, the case would have to be rescheduled, possibly causing a delay of several weeks.

Every day that I, Zhang Someone, am not the top lawyer is a loss of money!

"Let’s go, the pre-trial hearing is about to start. We should head to the courtroom first!"

Zhang Wei glanced at the time and hurried them again.

For Lin Xiangwan’s case, the Nandao City Court specially opened the large courtroom, with seats for a hundred people in the audience.

But given the case’s influence and Lin Xiangwan being a celebrity in Nandao City, the hundred seats in the audience were clearly insufficient.

Even for a pre-trial, the audience seats were packed at the moment.

As Zhang Wei entered the courtroom with Lin Xiangwan, he saw Lu Wenwen and Wei Min emerging from another corridor.

"Prosecutor Lu Gao!"

"Lawyer Zhang!"

The two nodded lightly at each other, their attitude was cool, but they had acknowledged each other’s presence.

Both parties entered the courtroom, and countless eyes from the audience followed them.

"That’s Prosecutor Lu Gao, the ace of the Nandao City Court!"

"Have you heard? The presiding judge of this case seems to be Prosecutor Lu Gao’s father."

"I heard as well. To be honest, no one expected the presiding judge to be Judge Lu Zhengting. To participate in his daughter’s case and even serve as the trial judge, isn’t that too much of a coincidence?"

"You’re telling me. The defense attorney will definitely raise an objection to this!"

"Nonsense, if they don’t raise an objection, are they just waiting to lose?"

The audience was abuzz with discussion.

Zhang Wei and Lu Wenwen both heard the chatter, with differing expressions on their faces.

The prosecution and defense took their respective seats.

Zhang Wei and Lin Xiangwan were seated, their expressions composed.

Lu Wenwen and Wei Min sat in the adjacent seats, their expressions somewhat anxious.

"The court really scheduled this awkwardly, to have Judge Lu preside over this case. Prosecutor Lu Gao, I guess the defense is bound to object at the first opportunity!"

"Of course, that’s his duty. If he objects and requests a postponement of the trial, that’s a reasonable demand, and we can’t prevent it."

After hearing Wei Min’s complaint, Lu Wenwen’s expression was much calmer.

After all, it was because the court had not been informed in time about the case being transferred to her, leading to a mistake in the judicial panel.

It all depended on how the defense attorney would exploit this loophole.

Normally, the other party would definitely object at the first opportunity.

"All rise!"

As everyone in the courtroom had their minds on different matters, the court guard finally spoke up.

This signified that the judge had arrived!

Lu Zhengting was a middle-aged man, not particularly tall, but with a face that exuded authority.

His strides were steady, his face serious. That was the impression he gave to others.

Of course, judges often gave off the impression of being serious and stern-faced.

Zhang Wei just glanced at him and then let out a breath of relief because he could tell that this judge was the type who valued principles and tradition.

Judge Lu Zhengting took his seat on the bench and then scanned the courtroom, pausing for a moment on the prosecution’s seats.

He had no choice; his daughter was sitting in the courtroom, causing him a bit of helplessness.

"Cough, cough, before this court announces the start of the pre-trial hearing, there is something that must be clarified!"

Lu Zhengting cleared his throat and then looked towards the defense seats and asked in a clear voice:

"Defense attorney, you have confirmed receipt of the court’s notification documents and the announcement calls, correct?"

"Of course, Your Honor, I have received them!"

"Hmm, the court is clear on that!"

After receiving a positive response from Zhang Wei, Lu Zhengting continued, "Then are you aware that I am the father of the Chief Prosecutor Lu Wenwen in this case?"

"Our side is aware!"

"Very well, this court announces that, because the prosecution and presiding sides are blood relatives, in order to avoid any prejudice in judgment that could affect judicial fairness and to avoid any conflict of interest, should the defense raise objections, this court will comply with the defense’s request and immediately replace the presiding judge..."

Judge Lu Zhengting’s announcement did not come as a surprise to anyone.

On the contrary, had he not mentioned this matter, everyone would have found it questionable.

"Defense attorney, clearly you are already aware of these circumstances. The court asks you, do you wish to raise any objections?"

Although Judge Lu Zhengting thought the question was superfluous, as how could the defense possibly not object, the necessary procedures still had to be followed.

"Ahem, Your Honor, the defense..."

Judge Lu Zhengting subconsciously began to gather his belongings, preparing to rise from his seat.

"...the defense does not object!"

"Oh... wait, what did you say?"

At the bench, Judge Lu Zhengting’s eyes widened, and he sat back down after having just moved away.

Similarly, at the prosecution’s table, Lu Wenwen’s eyes also widened.

Next to her, Wei Min shook her head, wondering if she had misheard something.

The defense, did they just say they do not object?

No way, no way, has the workload been so heavy recently that there’s a problem with my hearing?

"What, do you need me to repeat it?"

Zhang Wei, seeing the astonished expressions on many faces, immediately stood up and declared, "Well, I’ll just say it again then, the defense has no objections to Judge Lu Zhengting presiding over this case!"

No objections!

This time, everyone heard it clearly.

Zhang Wei did not object and even restated his position to ensure that no one misunderstood.

"Ahem, defense attorney, could you repeat that again?"

Surprised, Judge Lu Zhengting nearly choked on his breath and asked again.

"Your Honor, what’s there to be surprised about? By not objecting, isn’t our side simply expressing trust in your professional ethics?"

"Our side believes that Judge Lu is a paragon of fairness and justice, and would never pervert the law for personal gain!"

Zhang Wei not only repeated his answer, but he also buttered up the judge a bit.

Of course, apart from the flattery, there was a subtle hint of threat in his words.

Zhang Wei’s implied message: You’d better be careful not to show any favoritism towards the prosecution now that you and your daughter are in the same court, or people might think you are perverting the law!

"Since... since the defense attorney has no objections, then this court has no choice but to continue presiding over the matter!"

Although Judge Lu Zhengting did not understand, since Zhang Wei had no objections, it was not appropriate for him to leave the bench.

After all, the person who would most be expected to object had agreed, so there was no reason for the court to switch judges.

"If that is the case, then let’s continue with the pre-trial. Please present your respective courtroom arguments," said Judge Lu Zhengting.

Although Lu Wenwen was surprised by Zhang Wei’s "honesty," the work still had to continue.

"Your Honor...!"

Looking at her own father on the court bench, Lu Wenwen’s face showed a slight discomfort.

She took a deep breath to compose herself, then continued, "The prosecution believes there is conclusive evidence in this case that the defendant Lin Xiangwan murdered her husband Jia Shiqing. The court is hoped to rule the defendant’s actions as second-degree murder!"

Judge Lu Zhengting nodded at his daughter and then turned to look at Zhang Wei.

"Your Honor, the defense believes in this case that my client, Miss Lin Xiangwan, is also a victim. The forensic team found signs of a struggle on the deck of the yacht where the incident occurred, indicating that my client was likely acting in self-defense."

"The defense believes that the prosecution has not thoroughly addressed all reasonable doubts and has neglected the strong possibility that my client was acting in self-defense when she attacked her husband Jia Shiqing, which led to his death."

Judge Lu Zhengting looked at Zhang Wei with some amazement.

"Are you saying you want to defend her on the grounds of self-defense and that you will also point out that there are mistakes in the prosecution’s charges?"

"Indeed, Your Honor, although I know that even you might not believe it, my client could very well be innocent, and as her lawyer, I must consider her best interests as my top priority. The defense requests a plea of not guilty!"

"The court understands," replied Judge Lu Zhengting.

While he did not understand, he took note of Zhang Wei’s courtroom argument.

All he could say to Zhang Wei was, you’re quite the character, daring to tell such a bald-faced lie right in front of me!

And not only that, Zhang Wei was challenging his own daughter’s work right in front of his face, which was nothing short of a provocation.

"Would the jury candidates please come in?"

With a rub of his forehead, Judge Lu Zhengting motioned for the court guard to let the jury candidates take their places.

As one juror after another entered the jury box, the pre-trial was finally getting to the heart of the matter.