Are You Crazy? He’s only an Intern Lawyer?
Chapter 271 - 269: A New Witness Finally Takes the Stand, Xiao Baihe Delivers a Last-Minute Victory!

Chapter 271: Chapter 269: A New Witness Finally Takes the Stand, Xiao Baihe Delivers a Last-Minute Victory!

(It was supposed to be a three-day lockdown, but it’s the fourth day, and the lockdown is still in place. No way around it, gotta keep working!)

...

"Ah, my daughter, I have failed you..."

On the witness stand, Wen’s father continued to cry, his voice even louder than before.

There was no helping it; Zhang Wei had completely broken his defenses, leaving him overcome with grief...

Pain...!

It hurt too much!

He couldn’t help but cry!

The instigator of this situation, however, appeared calm at the moment, as if the words he spoke and the actions he took had nothing to do with him.

But the calmer he appeared, the more his despicable actions were highlighted.

Dammit!

You casually made a grown man cry in front of everyone, and now you wear an innocent face.

You’re ruthless, vicious, and heartlessly cold!

In the jurors’ box, the hearing room, countless glances were directed at Zhang Wei’s face and body, like numerous sharp swords poised to stab him to death.

"Bring it on, face the pointing of thousands with disdain, that’s me!"

Zhang Wei mockingly thought to himself, before mentally exclaiming: Mission accomplished!

At this moment, he had drawn all the firepower to himself, which was exactly his intention.

Because now, with everyone hating him, the animosity towards Yang Chuanfang would naturally decrease.

Zhang Wei was a defense attorney; it was normal for him to be hated, and he didn’t mind it.

But it was different for Yang Chuanfang; as the defendant, if the jury started hating him, the case would become more difficult.

It’s common for defense attorneys to be disliked by juries; it doesn’t affect their ability to continue speaking, as long as the judge doesn’t hate them.

Thus, Zhang Wei was feeling somewhat pleased at the moment.

Being cursed at and still finding joy in it, well, that’s just Zhang Wei and his psychological twists.

"Lawyer Zhang, have you finished your questioning?"

"Judge Wang, although I would like to tell you I have finished, I actually have one more question to ask!"

"You, this..."

Old Wang glanced at the witness stand; you’ve already made a grown man cry, aren’t you satisfied?

The things you just said, although they make some sense, I found you a bit too much.

However, it’s still my duty to fulfill the judge’s role.

Old Wang looked at Zhang Wei, then turned to the witness stand: "Witness, are you still able to answer questions?"

"I... I still can..." Wen’s father wiped his tears with a tissue, answering almost with a sob.

"Alright then..."

Old Wang sighed, then looked at Zhang Wei again, his gaze full of warning.

You’re free to ask questions, but don’t overdo it, or be careful!

Even if I don’t act against you, the jury and the audience might not agree with you; think it over carefully.

Of course, Zhang Wei had thought it over, which is why he chose to continue asking questions.

"Mr. Wen, I won’t ask you about your daughter this time to avoid stirring up any painful memories. My question is about the woman Cheng Lisha!"

"Hm?"

Hearing Zhang Wei start to speak, Hu Yaode in the front row of the audience could no longer sit still.

Good grief, are you planning to attack my client now?

Unfortunately, the seat beneath him wasn’t in the defense counsel’s area, but in the spectator’s gallery.

And because of his earlier outburst, he had already been marked by Old Wang.

He feared another outburst might lead to being "invited" out by the court guard, which would be utterly embarrassing.

Hu Yaode could only restrain himself, forcibly suppressing the urge to react, making himself stay seated in the audience.

In the courtroom.

Seeing that Mr. Wen had finally recovered, Zhang Wei started his questioning.

"Mr. Wen, how did Cheng Lisha originally explain it to you to get your permission to turn the situation of your daughter into a film or television production?"

"She promised to help us seek justice, so we needed to agree to her request. She also said that once it’s made into a film production, it would attract more attention to the whole affair. We thought there was nothing wrong with that, so we agreed!"

"Ten years have passed; have you received justice?"

"This..."

Wen’s father paused, lost for words, as Zhang Wei posed the question.

Right!

Ten years had gone by, their daily tears a testament to their pain, yet all they had awaited was a retrial.

This has been ten years, a full decade!

God knows how they made it through before the case was reopened for retrial.

"Mr. Wen, do you know that Cheng Lisha never really cared about the justice you seek in your heart? She only wanted the traffic this incident could bring her. That’s why she publicized the drama multiple times in public, but she has never mentioned your plight. Are you aware of this?"

"Impossible, she visited us before and assured us every time that Xiaoyun would definitely get justice!"

"But what’s the result? Despite her reassurances, she’s still making money, isn’t she? Where’s your justice?"

"This..."

Zhang Wei shook his head with a smile as he looked at the other party, "Honestly, you’ve just been used by Cheng Lisha!"

"Let me ask you another question, do you know how much money Cheng Lisha has made from this show?"

Wen’s father didn’t speak, obviously having no concept of it.

"Just by relying on the viewership of this show, Cheng Lisha has secured her status as the media queen. Add on the royalties from books, magazines, and film and television adaptations, plus advertising deals and various business ventures, her guaranteed minimum earnings are in the hundreds of millions, and that’s per year!"

"Can you imagine, for a whole decade, she has been hyping up this incident, has she ever given you a penny?"

Wen’s father’s face became somewhat ugly.

Although he didn’t quite understand, he knew what Zhang Wei meant.

Cheng Lisha was exploiting her own daughter’s death to make money for herself.

"Mr. Wen, seeing your expression, it seems she hasn’t given you a penny, has she?"

"That’s not true, Miss Cheng initially supported us with tens of thousands of yuan!"

"Oh, tens of thousands of yuan!"

Hearing Wen’s father’s words, Zhang Wei revealed an "enlightened" expression.

Merely tens of thousands of yuan to "buy" the focus of an income of hundreds of millions each year for the next decade.

This business deal is too profitable, an enormous windfall!

The world’s richest person would weep at this!

Zhang Wei nodded his head, preparing to stand up and return to the defendant’s bench.

But then, as if he thought of something, "Right, did you come to court today because of the prosecution’s summons?"

"No, Miss Cheng sent her assistant to inform us. She told both of us to come and testify in court!"

"Look, she’s using you as a pawn again. How can you be so foolish, always being used by this woman, even counting the money for her after she’s sold you? And the key point is, not a penny of that money is yours!"

"Objection!"

Hearing Zhang Wei’s ridicule, Xiao Baihe couldn’t sit still anymore.

"Your Honor, Miss Cheng’s actions are irrelevant to this case!"

"Sorry, I retract my last statement!"

Zhang Wei immediately apologized, then waved his hand, "Your Honor, we have no further questions for this witness from the defense!"

Wen’s father felt helpless inside, but urged on by Old Wang’s gaze, he had to leave the witness stand, walking step by step back to his spouse.

As for Zhang Wei, he could finally breathe a sigh of relief.

He had realized that while he was attacking Wen’s father, the jury’s gaze was filled with hostility towards him.

But after he turned the cannon towards Cheng Lisha, the jury’s animosity towards him decreased somewhat.

Clearly, the jury had no fondness for the likes of Cheng Lisha, a heartless media person who profited off human tragedy and showed no compassion.

Having her to help divert some of the heat indeed alleviated some of the juries’ hostility.

In the witness gallery.

Hu Yaode watched the scene in court with a flicker of displeasure in his eyes.

His client had become the target for Zhang Wei to reduce the jury’s animosity, and it indeed helped attract a lot of fire away from the defendant.

"Go, report what’s happening in court to the client!"

Hu Yaode immediately ordered a subordinate, who quickly got up from his seat and left the courtroom.

After instructing his subordinate, he continued to watch the proceedings in court.

"Zhang Wei, don’t think you can start feeling proud now, the prosecution still has one last witness..."

"That’s the decisive evidence; I want to see how you’re going to die this time!"

Hu Yaode’s gaze was never more ruthless, with a hint of confidence in it.

Because he knew that this last witness would be the coup de grâce.

In the courtroom.

Because Zhang Wei sacrificed himself and also used Cheng Lisha’s actions to share the burden of hostility.

This led to the jury’s animosity towards Yang Chuanfang diminishing significantly.

Any lawyer with a bit of ability could see this clear as day.

Xiao Baihe certainly knew this.

"I thought I could take you, Zhang Wei, down without even needing a new witness, but in the end, I underestimated you!"

She looked towards the defense bench, looking at Zhang Wei who still seemed composed, with a flame of competitive spirit burning in her heart.

It was her fighting spirit, the pride of being a prosecutor.

"Prosecution, do you need to call any more witnesses?"

"Of course, your Honor, our side would like to call Mr. Lin to testify in court!"

As Xiao Baihe spoke, an elderly man, dressed in plain clothes and looking slightly pale, was helped step by step onto the witness stand by the court guard.

The old man appeared to be in his sixties or seventies, his face marked by illness, with some yellow spots at the corners of his eyes, a sign of health issues.

Seeing the old man, Zhang Wei knew this was the prosecution’s new witness.

The reason for this retrial was precisely because of this new witness, whose testimony had triggered this round of the trial.

So, this new witness held evidence that was extremely unfavorable to the defendant, Yang Chuanfang!

"Mr. Lin, hello!"

"Hello!"

Xiao Baihe greeted the new witness.

"Mr. Lin, could you please introduce yourself so that the court can understand who you are, and let everyone know why you came to court?"

"Yes!"

The old man, although looking unwell, spoke in a voice that was still clear, "Back in the day, I was a laid-off worker. As I was old and lacked any special skills, I applied for a job at the Changqing Hotel, starting as a janitor responsible for sweeping and mopping the floors."

"Ten years ago, in my third year working at the Changqing Hotel, I still remember that night, our hotel’s young master was holding a birthday party. Many people attended, and the supervisor instructed us to stand by at all times, responsible for maintaining the cleanliness of the party venue."

"Honestly, it was very busy that day. Not only did I have to clean up the trash at the party, but I was also in charge of the hygiene at the entrance. Those young people, after drinking too much, would run out to throw up, and I remember I spent the whole night mopping."

The content of the old man’s testimony was all about what happened on the night of the party; it felt like he really was there.

"...At the end of the party, right after I finished mopping a spot outside, I heard the sound of an argument coming from inside, followed by a young girl crying and rushing out. Later I found out that she was Wen Xiaoyun."

"That day, after she came out crying, she lingered outside the hotel for a good while, and then I saw..."

Speaking, the old man glanced at the defense bench.

This scene also made Zhang Wei’s heart skip a beat.

Masaka...

"...then I saw, our young master talking with that girl for a while, and then he walked away with her!"

Upon this revelation, the whole courtroom buzzed.

Because the old man’s testimony directly suggested one thing, Yang Chuanfang was lying!

You said you were drunk at the time, went to your room and slept, and slept through until the next morning.

But the old man saw you leave the party, saw you walk away with Wen Xiaoyun!

Doesn’t that mean that you’re responsible for Wen Xiaoyun’s disappearance!

The courtroom was abuzz with discussions, and the expressions of the twelve jurors changed upon hearing the testimony.

Confusion, suspicion, doubt, and even anger were all visible.

Xiao Baihe, seeing this, was naturally very satisfied.

"May I ask the witness, are you certain that Wen Xiaoyun was taken away by that gentleman?"

"Yes, I’m certain!"

The old man followed the direction of Xiao Baihe’s pointing finger and then nodded his head.

Because that person was Yang Chuanfang!

This distinctly hammered home the point!

"You bastard, give me back my daughter!"

On the prosecution’s family bench, Wen’s father exploded again, even more agitated than before!

"My poor girl, you died so tragically!"

Next to him, Wen’s mother likewise burst into loud cries on the spot.

The courtroom was now in total uproar.

On the defense’s bench, the atmosphere was heavy.

Yang Chuanfang looked shocked, because he had never done such a thing.

"That’s not right, if the old man witnessed this scene, why didn’t he say anything ten years ago?"

On the contrary, it was Zhang Wei who suddenly noticed a discrepancy.

But Xiao Baihe had also thought of this point.

"Mr. Lin, do you realize that what you have just said is decisive evidence in this case? If we had your testimony back then, Yang Chuanfang would have been convicted already!"

After hearing this, the old man showed a trace of embarrassment, "I wanted to say something at that time, but..."

"But what?"

"But at that time I got a little greedy and went to our boss, and then the boss gave me 200,000..."

Hearing this, everyone understood.

It’s not that you didn’t want to speak, but that you took a bribe!

"Oh, I see, you took 200,000 yuan from Yang Changqing as hush money, so you didn’t come forward, did you?"

Xiao Baihe taunted in a tone reminiscent of Zhang Wei.

This remark fanned the flames, changing the entire direction of the wind in the courtroom.

So it really was Yang Changqing who was cleaning up the messes behind Yang Chuanfang, helping the latter deal with trouble.

Then, could the testimony of the previous witnesses also be true?

What that officer said, about their leader having a shady deal with Yang Changqing, wasn’t entirely baseless after all!

Good grief!

We actually thought the defendant might be innocent, but who would have guessed, who would have guessed!

In an instant, a hint of anger emerged in the eyes of all 12 jurors.

This was anger at deception!

They felt they had been tricked.

"Good grief, hell mode incoming!"

Zhang Wei also noticed this touch of anger and felt uneasy.

If the trial were to end now and the voting for verdict were to begin, he knew without looking that the jury would cast 12 guilty votes!

A hundred percent, without a shadow of a doubt.

Similarly, Xiao Baihe also noticed the atmosphere of the court.

Checkmate!

This was checkmate!

This was the feeling of defeating a powerful enemy, and it was so exhilarating!

Seeing Zhang Wei’s complexion as uncomfortable as if he had eaten a cockroach cleared all the gloom in her heart, and she felt an inexplicable sense of satisfaction.

As long as Zhang Wei suffered, she was happy!

"Your Honor, we have no further questions for the witness!"

In the end, she finally finished her questioning and walked back to the prosecution’s bench with a triumphant look.

Tan Yingying, sitting in her seat, felt a slight thrill at this scene, but she managed to restrain herself well.

The battle wasn’t won yet, she couldn’t get excited, or else it might all fall apart.

She reminded herself to stay composed, trying hard to restrain herself, but she couldn’t help but curl her lips upwards.

She could hardly contain herself anymore!

Just as the prosecution’s duo was reveling in their moment, Zhang Wei finally approached the stand and began his cross-examination.

"Hello, Old Lin, you look quite pale, don’t you?"

"Hmm, I’m getting old, and my body isn’t working as well. It’s something that can’t be helped..."

The old man responded with a laugh, but his face was indeed very pale.

"You said that you saw my client clearly and decidedly taking Wen Xiaoyun away, didn’t you?"

"Of course, I saw it very clearly!"

"May I ask if you remember how far apart you were?"

"About 20 meters, I guess. I was on one side of the swimming pool outside the mansion, and they were on the other!"

"But it was dark at that time, and the lights outside the mansion weren’t as bright as those inside. Plus, after sweeping the ground for so long, your eyes must have been tired, right?"

As he spoke, Zhang Wei raised his fingers to point at his own eyes. "Are you sure that the person you saw was my client and not someone who looks similar?"

"Heh heh, young man, I know what you’re trying to ask. Are you suggesting that I made a mistake because I’m old, right?"

The old man chuckled and then affirmed, "But I absolutely did not make a mistake. The young master was wearing a very bright, multi-colored floral shirt that day. He was the only one in the entire venue wearing it!"

"So you’re saying that because you saw someone in a bright, multi-colored shirt, you’re certain it was my client. Are you telling me no one else in the entire hotel wore a similar style?"

"Of course not. That shirt was custom-made for the young master; he was the only one who ever wore it. I’ve been working at the hotel for so long, and I’ve never seen anyone else wearing a shirt like that. In the entire hotel, only the young master had that set of clothes, and that day he was wearing it!"

The old man’s words once again deepened the suspicion on Yang Chuanfang.

In the jury box, many exchanged glances.

In the public gallery, there was a buzz of discussion.

"Hahaha, checkmate!"

Hu Yaode was overjoyed internally. This was a true checkmate; the witness was pointing the finger at the defendant, leaving the other side completely defenseless!

In contrast, Tie Ruyun and her group were feeling the pressure at this moment.

It looked like Zhang Wei was going to lose.

Zhang Wei’s face indeed looked terrible, as he found that he couldn’t find any suitable points to refute the witness’s statement.

For a moment, he fell silent.

This scene, witnessed by everyone, displayed a lack of options.

"Now you’re in a tough spot!"

In the prosecutor’s bench, Xiao Baihe was incredibly pleased with herself.

She and Tan Yingying beside her both understood something clearly at this moment.

They had checkmated Zhang Wei, and the testimony of the witness was overwhelmingly convincing.

This time, it seemed to be a sure win!