Are You Crazy? He’s only an Intern Lawyer?
Chapter 310 - 308: Scandal, Prostitution Solicitation?

Chapter 310: Chapter 308: Scandal, Prostitution Solicitation?

(There’s a case at the family doorstep. Got to get busy now, it’s really annoying... Update, I’ll do my best to ensure it!!!)

...

"Zhang Wei, big trouble. The whole firm is saying that the team leader got busted for soliciting prostitutes!"

Zhang Wei was dumbfounded when he heard this news from Li Yueqin.

Theoretically, this kind of thing shouldn’t have spread so quickly.

Although it wouldn’t be possible to keep it under wraps forever, Tie Ruyun had only been detained for over 30 hours and the case wasn’t even closed yet.

Even if the case were to proceed, and the prosecutor prepared to charge him, that would still be days away.

But now, the law firm was already buzzing with the news; something was off, right?

Could it be that, like me, Zhang Wei, you also have informants in the major crime unit?

Zhang Wei suspected that someone else might have a girlfriend in the major crime unit...

But now wasn’t the time to ponder why this news had leaked. What he needed to do was to handle the repercussions of this incident.

"Zhang Wei, the Boss’s secretary just sent me a message, saying the Boss wants to know the ins and outs of this matter!"

Tie Cuilan also rushed over in a fluster, immediately talking about serious stuff.

Lin Xiangtian had heard about the incident as well and had instructed his secretary to relay a message wanting to be informed about the situation.

"Okay, I’ll handle it in a bit..."

Zhang Wei was about to say something, but his phone suddenly vibrated.

The caller ID showed "Unknown Number."

Zhang Wei was startled, as all these events seemed to explode out of nowhere, overwhelming him.

"Hello, who is this?"

"Lin Jincheng!"

On the other end of the phone, a cold and stern voice came through.

Just three simple words, yet they carried an air of supreme authority.

Fuck, the Supreme Emperor!

Zhang Wei suddenly felt immense pressure; even the Boss’s dad had gotten involved.

"Everyone, get out!" He quickly waved his hand to dismiss Li Yueqin, Tie Cuilan, and Lin Yumeng, who was still bleary-eyed and hadn’t fully come to her senses.

Once the office was empty, he sat down and put on a similarly stern expression before continuing the call.

"Elder Old Lin, why have you called as well?"

"I just want to ask one thing, is it true?"

"About Old Tie?"

"Don’t answer a question with another question!"

As Zhang Wei heard the warning from the other end of the phone, the corner of his mouth twitched.

However, he still responded with certainty, "I don’t have much information yet, but I think it’s not true. There are some issues with the case; he must have been framed!"

"You think?"

"Yes, because I’ve just taken over the case. I haven’t even finished reading the case report, let alone find evidence to prove it!"

"You know, I, Lin Jincheng, have always cared about reputation. Even a small blemish within Dongfang Capital is unacceptable!"

As Zhang Wei heard Lin Jincheng emphasize his words over the phone, he scoffed internally.

You care about face, huh? Didn’t you try to stand me up before?

You and your son, Lin Xiangtian, are nothing but two-faced!

Of course, these were things he couldn’t say directly; it sufficed to know them in his heart.

Zhang Wei argued reasonably, "A blemish certainly shouldn’t exist, and cleaning it up would solve the problem. But what if the stain is not our fault, but instead we were framed and slandered, then how should that be accounted for?"

"You know, it’s been a long time since someone dared to speak to me like this!"

"I’m just speaking as a defense lawyer, saying what needs to be said," Zhang Wei replied, adding, "Elder Old Lin, you and I are both lawyers. As a defense lawyer, shouldn’t we harbor reasonable doubt?"

"Fine, I’ll give you some time to deal with this. The month is almost over, and I don’t want to hear any gossip about Jincheng circulating in Dongfang at the beginning of next month!"

Lin Jincheng finished and hung up the phone without giving Zhang Wei a chance to object.

"Old man, your attitude really pisses me off," Zhang Wei muttered to himself as he looked at his phone.

Lin Jincheng’s meaning was obvious; he wanted Zhang Wei to take care of this mess.

But how exactly should he handle it?

Zhang Wei strode out of his office to stand by his apprentice, Lin Yumeng.

"Zhang Wei, about the Boss..."

Tie Cuilan, standing beside him, quickly spoke up to remind him. The secretary from the Boss’s office was still rushing him.

"Xiao Meng, no more dazing off. Use my phone to call your dad!"

Zhang Wei handed the phone to his apprentice, who was still yawning, and asked her to dial the number.

"Sister Cuilan, I’ll speak to the big boss directly, you all rest assured!"

After offering those words of comfort, Lin Yumeng finally dialed the number.

Zhang Wei, holding his phone, promptly headed out into the corridor outside the criminal department.

After a short wait, the call was finally connected.

"President Lin, nice shot!"

"My goodness, another perfect parabola!"

"This ball is less than 30 meters from the hole, amazing, President Lin!"

From the other end of the phone came a chorus of compliments and the sound of applause.

It went without saying, Lin Xiangtian was playing golf again.

"Hello, Redneck Guy, don’t you know I’m playing golf?"

After a long pause, Lin Xiangtian finally picked up the phone.

"Director Lin, this is Zhang Wei!"

"Zhang Wei!"

The tone from Lin Xiangtian’s side suddenly turned serious.

"Did my girl dial the number for you?"

"Correct!"

"Alright then, these are just the small details. You know what I’m asking about, right? About the matter with Tie Ruyun..."

"You don’t need to worry about that anymore, I’ll handle it!"

"What?"

The voice on the other end obviously didn’t expect Zhang Wei to say that so suddenly.

The tone was as if Zhang Wei was telling him, Lin Xiangtian, to go about his business and to stop spouting nonsense.

My goodness!

Indeed, my goodness!

Zhang Wei really had some nerve, to talk like that to him.

"Zhang Wei, have you grown bear’s courage and leopard’s gall? How dare you talk to me like this? Do you realize that if Tie Ruyun’s matter isn’t handled well, that could be..."

"Director Lin, I’m going to play a recording for you, listen up..."

Zhang Wei couldn’t be bothered with idle talk with Lin Xiangtian and immediately started playing the recording.

"Do you know? It’s been a long time since someone dared to talk to me like that!"

"I’m just speaking as a defense attorney, expressing what should be said! Elder Old Lin, both you and I are lawyers. As a defense lawyer, shouldn’t we harbor reasonable doubts?"

"Fine, I’ll give you some time to handle it. The month is coming to an end, and I don’t want to hear any rumors about Dongfang Capital concerning Jincheng at the beginning of next month!"

After the playback finished, there was silence on the other end of the phone.

Lin Xiangtian was quiet because he recognized whose voice was on the recording.

What else is there to do? When my old man speaks up, his son surely can’t defy him, right?

Stop joking, please. I’ve been scared of the old man since I was a kid, and I still am!

With Lin Xiangtian silent, Zhang Wei naturally spoke up: "Director Lin, I’ve already discussed it with your dad, and he has given me full authority to handle this matter. I will have it settled by the end of the month!"

"I can assure you that if this isn’t resolved by next month, I voluntarily submit to punishment from your father!"

Upon hearing this, the voice at the other end finally spoke up, "That’s what you said, I didn’t say anything!’

"Since you’ve said as much, then you can carry this pot. I’ll be waiting for your update!"

With that, the call was ended, and Lin Xiangtian decided not to inquire further about the matter.

Since the elder had spoken, he didn’t want to bother himself with it anymore.

After all, he wasn’t the one who’d be taking the blame, so he was pleased to be off the hook.

Even if he felt uneasy about it, he could always play a few more golf strokes today~

Lin Xiangtian might have decided not to concern himself, but that gave Zhang Wei a new headache.

Because as soon as he ended the call and returned to the criminal department office, he found that all the newcomers were looking at him eagerly.

Lin Yumeng, Li Yueqin, Su Xiaoqian, and other newcomers.

"Master, surely the team leader hasn’t really..." The apprentice couldn’t restrain herself and trailed off.

"Xiao Meng, are you looking down on Old Tie?"

"No, not at all, I know the team leader must have been wronged!"

The apprentice hastily shook her head, but then stopped abruptly and asked, "Master, the team leader has been wronged, hasn’t he?"

Come on, who do you think Old Tie is? You still doubt him?

"Of course Old Tie has been wronged. He is the boss of the criminal department, an outstanding criminal defense lawyer. How could he not be aware of the consequences of these things?"

"But the news has spread throughout the firm, and several friends have messaged me about it, some of them aren’t even from Jincheng, but from other law firms?"

Su Xiaoqian quickly pulled out her phone and opened the WeChat conversation window.

"Oh, people from other law firms know about it too?"

Zhang Wei’s gaze instantly turned cold.

Behind this incident, someone must have been fanning the flames. Tie Ruyun had only been sent to the medical institution to rest this morning, and by midday, it seemed like the whole world knew about it.

If nobody inside were spreading the gossip, who would believe it?

"Let’s not concern ourselves with the firm’s internal issues for now. I believe in Old Tie’s character. He has been single for nearly forty years. If he wanted to break his vows, he would have done it long ago. It’s impossible for him to make such a low-level mistake!"

Zhang Wei waved his hand, gesturing for the newcomers to be at ease.

"Also, regarding this matter, I hope you all..."

"We know, to keep our mouths shut tight and not to discuss it further. We understand!"

Su Xiaoqian was the first to respond, immediately giving Zhang Wei a "rest assured" look.

"No, Xiao Su, don’t jump the gun, can you let me finish?"

Zhang Wei let out a slight sigh, then continued, "I need you all to talk more instead, then ask where the news originated from. I want to trace the source of this information back to its roots!"

"But now so many people know about it, who knows where it came from?"

The newcomers looked at each other bewilderedly. What should they do?

"It’s simple, just do this!"

Zhang Wei instructed in a clandestine manner, conspiring with the newcomers, "If someone comes to you seeking information, keep the conversation going. After you’ve chatted for a while, ask them who they heard it from, then find that person and continue to inquire about the source of the information from them!"

"This way, by cycling through and advancing layer by layer, peeling it back like an onion, you will definitely be able to trace the origin to a certain department, or a certain person!"

Hearing Zhang Wei’s plan, the newcomers immediately nodded in understanding.

Su Xiaoqian also asked with outstretched hands, "What if it’s a WeChat message?"

"Then, scroll through the chat logs page by page!"

"What if the logs have been deleted?"

"Then just tell me the approximate time frame and the person’s account, and I’ll have a ’professional’ look for it!"

"But what if..."

"Xiao Su, can you stop being so argumentative? There aren’t that many issues, I’m very busy!"

Zhang Wei was clearly not amused when he saw that Su Xiaoqian wanted to argue further.

Where did all these problems come from? Can’t you handle even a small matter?

"Oh, understood, Lawyer Zhang. We’ll get right on it, right away!"

The newcomers dispersed to begin their tasks.

They were curious, though, because Zhang Wei didn’t command them to stay quiet but instead asked them to find the source of the information, which was strange.

Usually, in such cases, isn’t the immediate response to seal lips and block the source?

However, they were not opposed to this approach; in fact, they showed a great deal of interest.

With the newcomers gone, only Li Yueqin and Lin Yumeng remained in the criminal department.

"Zhang Wei..." Li Yueqin was gearing up to speak after contemplating for a while,

"Stop!" Zhang Wei anticipated her and interrupted right away.

"Next, I’m going to see Old Tie. I’ll handle this matter. You do what you need to do. If Old Tie has been wronged, I’ll definitely prove his innocence!"

Li Yueqin and Lin Yumeng both nodded obediently.

With Zhang Wei’s words, they felt relieved.

After all, this was Zhang Wei, an impressive figure they both couldn’t catch up to even if they tried.

"Then I’m off. You go on with your work, and if possible, help the newcomers with their inquiries too. I also want to know if there is a mole inside the firm."

Zhang Wei reiterated his instructions and then left Jincheng Law Firm, heading straight for the medical institution.

...

City Center Hospital.

A ward for patients under observation.

Tie Ruyun inevitably fell asleep, having endured over thirty hours of resistance. Only an iron man could have withstood that.

Although Tie Ruyun’s name contained the character for "iron," he wasn’t made of it.

Once in the ward, lying on the soft bed, he naturally fell into a deep sleep almost immediately.

He didn’t even know when Zhang Wei arrived.

When he woke up, it was already late afternoon, approaching evening.

"How long have I slept?"

"Not too long, from noon till the afternoon!"

Zhang Wei chuckled and tossed a report in front of Tie Ruyun.

"You should be grateful, no, they should be grateful that you’re fine. The medical report is all normal. Otherwise, I would have sued them into bankruptcy!"

The so-called medical report was naturally requested by Zhang Wei, considering it as a free medical check-up.

Tie Ruyun didn’t look at the report; he knew he was fine.

"How are things going?"

Tie Ruyun looked at Zhang Wei.

The "things" here naturally did not refer to himself but to whether this matter had caused an impact within the law firm.

"Not good at all, the entire law firm is abuzz with it, saying you were caught soliciting a prostitute. There’s all sorts of talk!"

"Some say you were caught in the act with both the person and the money. Others say you didn’t pay and tried to get a freebie, which led to a fight and then you got caught. And there are those who say you got a girl pregnant and she reported you, which led to them coming and arresting you."

As Zhang Wei spoke, he opened a chat window on his phone, which contained feedback from the newcomers at the law firm.

That’s the downside of online channels—rumors are flying everywhere, and all sorts are coming out.

And the rumors got more absurd as they spread, even leading to gossip that Tie Ruyun and the good girl were regulars and love had bloomed over time.

"I’ve gotten the newbies from the criminal department to trace the source of the rumors, but you know, this kind of thing, it’s usually very hard to find where it started."

Zhang Wei chuckled, then crossed his arms and looked at the person concerned.

"Old Tie, aren’t you going to explain?"

"I did tell you, right after you got into trouble, the top brass of the company personally called me. If this matter isn’t handled well, both you and I could lose our jobs!"

"Of course, I’ve already achieved financial independence, so if this case isn’t completed, it only means I’d switch to another law firm and work as a lawyer. But if you don’t handle this well, you might carry the stigma for life!"

"Sigh—" Hearing what Zhang Wei said, Tie Ruyun heaved a long sigh.

"This matter, when it comes down to it, is a misunderstanding..."

"A misunderstanding?"

Zhang Wei immediately didn’t understand. A misunderstanding could cause this much trouble?

He promptly pulled up a chair and sat down in front of Tie Ruyun.

"Then let’s start from the beginning. Let’s start with this woman called Xiao Wei. What exactly happened that day?"

"Xiao Wei, she’s a former client of mine, ever since she was little..."

As Tie Ruyun spoke, he glanced at Zhang Wei.

"I understand, a good girl, you don’t need to explain, I’m familiar with this line of work!"

Tie Ruyun’s mouth twitched, and he looked at Zhang Wei with some frustration.

You talk like a veteran, does your girlfriend know you’re so knowledgeable about this?

"She’s a streetwalker..."

"Liuying. In our profession, we refer to that kind of work as ’liuying.’ No status at all, miles apart from those brothel models!"

Zhang Wei waved his hand dismissively as he spoke.

Tie Ruyun: "emmm..."

Young man, how come you know even more than I do?

"Alright, let’s say liuying then!"

Tie Ruyun began to recount what had happened over the past few days.

Xiao Wei called him on Thursday night, asking for his help in resolving a lawsuit. In reality, she had been arrested again and was about to be prosecuted.

Xiao Wei had been a regular client of Tie Ruyun’s, and although she had always been involved in public welfare cases, he had advised the young girl to switch professions.

Unfortunately, Xiao Wei had been in the service industry from a very young age with no experience in other fields, and up to now, she was still a liuying.

Tie Ruyun had helped her, getting her out of the charges.

Afterward, Tie Ruyun, being kind-hearted, drove Xiao Wei back.

"That day, Saturday, I drove her to a street near her workplace. When I was about to see her off, I felt pity and gave her some money."

"And then Xiao Wei said, she said..."

Tie Ruyun lifted his eyes to meet Zhang Wei’s, his tone becoming somewhat embarrassed.

"Did she feel too embarrassed to take your money and decided to offer you a service instead?"

"Yes, but I refused at the time and even pushed her away. Still, she persisted, and so we ended up entangled. Then there was a knock on my car door—it was field officers who had discovered us!"

"Oh, I see..."

Zhang Wei revealed an expression of having expected as much, thinking to himself that it was no wonder.

"So you mean the field officer had been observing you for a while. He saw you give Xiao Wei cash and then her attempting to undress you?"

Tie Ruyun, somewhat ashamed, hung his head and admitted sheepishly, "That’s right."

"But we were in the car, and occasionally there were people passing by on the street nearby. How could I possibly... with her in the car, on the street..."

"Old Tie, have you ever heard of a term called ’car shaking’?"

Zhang Wei patted the other’s shoulder and sighed again.

"To be honest, this matter is indeed somewhat a misunderstanding. However, there was a cash transaction between you two, and Xiao Wei is a liuying, which makes it hard not to jump to conclusions, doesn’t it?"

"Even though you didn’t have the subjective intention to solicit prostitution, in the eyes of the officer who caught you, you had given money and were about to engage in the act objectively."

After analyzing the situation, Zhang Wei’s brows furrowed deeply.

This case was going to be difficult to handle.