Are You Crazy? He’s only an Intern Lawyer?
Chapter 333 - 331: The Story of the Light Bulb, A Moral Bottom Line?

Chapter 333: Chapter 331: The Story of the Light Bulb, A Moral Bottom Line?

Courtroom scene.

The jury selection had begun.

This time, the questioner for the selection was Lan Zhengye from the prosecution.

"Ladies and gentlemen, if during your travels abroad you overheard someone nearby plotting to attack our country’s embassy overseas, what would you do?"

"A, immediately take a photo of the conspirators and find the embassy to report everything you’ve heard, including showing them the photo."

"B, pretend not to have heard anything, because they might just be joking around and there is no need to trouble yourself over a couple of people who could be boasting."

Lan Zhengye spoke and then looked towards the jury.

"Those who choose A, please raise your hands!"

Many in the jury looked around; some hesitated for a moment before raising their hands.

However, there were a few who immediately raised their hands as soon as Lan Zhengye finished speaking.

"So, for the rest of you, do you all default to choosing B?" Lan Zhengye asked next.

These people looked around and, seeming a bit embarrassed, a few slowly raised their hands.

He knew what he needed to know and immediately turned his head, "Your Honor, the prosecution rejects jurors number 2, 3, 5, 6, 8, and 9!"

Judge Chen nodded and made a note of it.

The purpose of this question was so obvious that anyone who wasn’t a fool could see the underlying implication.

"Lawyer Zhang, would you like to ask a question?"

After filtering out six potential jurors, Lan Zhengye suddenly turned to the defense bench.

"The questioning from Prosecutor Lan is very good, and the defense has no objections. In fact, we think you can continue!"

Zhang Wei, however, was behaving very strangely at the moment, responding to the other party almost with a smile.

This surprised those who knew him.

Are you really not opposing and not planning to ask your own questions?

Have you been possessed, or did you take the wrong medication today?

Is this still the same Zhang Wei known for asking fanciful questions during jury selection and for his clever strategies?

Something is not right!

Very wrong!

At least three people at the prosecutor’s bench were whispering to each other at that moment.

"What’s going on, is this still the same Zhang Wei?"

Lu Wenwen had only clashed with Zhang Wei once, so she was somewhat puzzled.

"I don’t know?" Tan Yingying pushed her glasses up, looking perplexed.

"This guy must be plotting something!" Xiao Baihe crossed her arms, exuding a "I knew he’s up to no good" demeanor.

But did Zhang Wei really have other plans?

Could it be that he just whimsically aligned his thoughts with the prosecution?

These thoughts, no one in the courtroom knew.

Or rather, many wouldn’t even think this way.

Seeing that Zhang Wei truly had no intention of getting up to interrupt him, Lan Zhengye continued to ask questions.

"Ahem, everyone, let’s continue with the previous question!"

Lan Zhengye walked in front of the jury bench and smiled, "I know many of you raised your hands earlier; you all default to choosing A, right?"

"What if, I mean what if, when you report the matter, the embassy staff informs you that what you have reported is quite serious and requires 24-hour verification, asking you to cooperate with us and not to leave the embassy during this time."

"Even after 24 hours, if we, together with the local law enforcement, apprehend the individuals who threatened to attack the embassy, and we need you to readily identify those people, would you still continue with your report?"

"Those who would continue, please raise your hand!"

This time, fewer people raised their hands.

Because it’s too troublesome.

If it were them, enjoying their travel abroad and hearing two people go nuts, threatening to bomb the embassy, the most they might do is stay further away from the embassy during their trip.

But to do as Lan Zhengye suggested, investing so much time and effort, and even afterward being ready to identify those two people.

It’s too much trouble, and a waste of time.

They admit to themselves that they couldn’t go through with it.

Lan Zhengye watched the few who raised their hands and had already made his calculation.

"Sir, you were the first to raise your hand every time, may I ask why you did this?"

"Because I’m a retiree from the War Department. Dragon Country is my home, and I can’t bear to watch anyone plot against it!"

The man’s answer was resolute, his expression solemn and stern.

"Your Honor, the prosecution accepts juror number 3!"

Lan Zhengye nodded toward the bench and at the same time glanced at the defense bench.

"Your Honor, the defense also accepts!"

What happened next was beyond Lan Zhengye’s expectations; Zhang Wei actually agreed too.

He didn’t understand, you agree with this?

Do you wish for your client to die sooner or what?

Juror number three had a background in the War Department and also displayed such patriotism; his presence in the jury could likely influence the jury’s decision-making process.

Even if he wasn’t the foreperson, the others would, to some extent, take his presence into consideration when deliberating.

You really have no objections?

Alright then, Zhang Wei didn’t object and even nodded at Lan Zhengye with a smile.

To those unaware, they’d think they were old friends.

"Does the prosecution wish to continue questioning?"

From the bench, Old Chen also chimed in.

At the same time, he was also puzzled—why wasn’t Zhang Wei objecting? What was going on?

In past cases, hadn’t Zhang Wei eagerly continued questioning, using all kinds of questions to filter for the jurors he preferred?

Why was he so compliant today?

Unaware parties might even think he was a well-behaved child, no?

Similarly,

On the witnesses’ bench, Guo Wufeng and Zhao Chunming exchanged glances.

In their eyes, there was a hint of perplexity.

They had thought that Zhang Wei would come out with all guns blazing against the four today.

But they never expected Zhang Wei to be so "well-behaved" that it was out of character, as if he had given up resisting and allowed the prosecution to perform freely.

"This guy must be plotting some conspiracy!" Guo Wufeng, troubled by Zhang Wei, immediately assumed the worst.

"Maybe, he’s really scared?" Zhao Chunming, frowning, wondered if that was a possibility.

But he quickly shook his head. If Zhang Wei would so easily compromise, he couldn’t have become such a formidable enemy of the Procuratorate Headquarters.

Regardless of what others thought, Lan Zhengye continued to ask a few more questions in court, though they were almost all for the same purpose.

All to select people who held a sense of awe for Dragon Country.

Under his questioning, some jurors were excluded, while others were retained.

Those retained were the ones Lan Zhengye needed, and Zhang Wei, surprisingly, didn’t object to any of them.

As a result, the jury was almost about to finalize its selection.

"The prosecution has finished!"

Lan Zhengye declared and finally stopped wanting to question, as he felt he had retained enough jurors on the prosecution’s side.

Lan Zhengye even thought that perhaps Zhang Wei’s brain had misfired.

With the jury I’ve selected, even if you had the power of the mythical beings with three heads and six arms, you couldn’t overturn it.

Could it be deliberate?

Knowing you can’t win, are you purposely exposing flaws in your work to make our win easier?

Lan Zhengye had to suspect that Zhang Wei really wasn’t planning to turn things around and had even given up resisting.

"Defense?" Judge Chen urged.

Zhang Wei slowly stood up, strolled to the center of the courtroom as if in a leisurely garden, and even straightened his collar.

"Cough cough, the questions just now from Lan Gaojian were rather good. I trust that everyone remaining holds a pure heart for our Dragon Country, right?"

He laughed heartily, then his tone shifted, "Of course, we also know that those who didn’t hold such sentiments have already been kicked out by him."

At that moment, the jury laughed.

Look at this guy, such a joke he’s made us all amused.

Zhang Wei then raised a finger, "Since everyone’s amused, why don’t I tell everyone a little story?"

"Cough cough, please listen carefully. Once there was a light bulb manufacturer that wanted to create the most durable light bulb in the world, and they worked diligently towards that goal."

"After years of development, they succeeded. They made what was proclaimed to be the world’s most durable light bulb. Do you know how durable this light bulb was?"

Zhang Wei paused here, looking at the jury, as they looked back at him.

This is your story, how would we know how durable it is?

"In fact, after this company created the most durable light bulb, they conducted an experiment watched by the entire media. They kept power supplied to the light bulb nonstop until it reached the end of its life span. That was the entirety of the experiment."

"And this limit, it exceeded 10 years, it exceeded 20 years, it even reached 100 years later, and that light bulb was still on!"

At this point, Zhang Wei smiled.

The jury looked at each other in bewilderment.

What light bulb is this durable?

years and still functioning, and it doesn’t burn out? Could it be the filament won’t burn out?

"But do you know?"

Zhang Wei spoke up again, "The first year this company made a huge profit, all because they invented the most durable lightbulbs, making the bosses rich."

"However, in the second year, the company’s market share was only 50% of the first year, and in the third year it dropped to below 10%, while the fourth year it was at 0!"

As he said this, Zhang Wei’s expression suddenly became serious, "By the fifth year, when not a single lightbulb could be sold and after consecutive losses, the company declared bankruptcy!"

"The only thing this lightbulb company left behind that the world knows of is that single bulb that has stayed lit for a hundred years without going out, nothing more!"

At this point, the jurors weren’t amused.

They grasped the meaning behind the story, but found it somewhat unreasonable.

What kind of company wouldn’t reflect on itself after a massive decline in the second year’s revenues?

If they had reflected early on, they would have been able to identify the problems sooner, wouldn’t they?

"Cough cough, the story isn’t over yet!" Just then, Zhang Wei coughed.

"After that lightbulb company went out of business, several new lightbulb companies emerged in the city, all tacitly agreeing on an unwritten rule: their lightbulbs didn’t need to last, not even to have a prolonged lifespan."

"The lightbulbs they produced had a lifespan of only one year, some even as short as six months before becoming obsolete, yet their annual revenue was on the rise, selling far more lightbulbs each year than the last."

"Alright, everyone, that’s the end of the story. I believe you’ve all heard what it’s about, right?"

Diverse expressions appeared on the faces of the jurors.

Indeed, they had discerned something from it.

For example, the later lightbulb companies, what decision did they make?

They reduced the lifespan of their products, compromised the quality, ensuring the lightbulbs lasted only a year or even half a year.

In this way, those who had bought lightbulbs would come back the next year and continue to do so without interruption until a new product replaced their lightbulbs.

Although this strategy seemingly sacrifices the customers’ wallets, obliging them to keep paying for replacements, it secured the long-term interest of the company.

But was this approach right?

At least from the consumers’ perspective, it was actually wrong, because the products the lightbulb companies sold were flawed, essentially unusable items.

"Cough cough..."

At that moment, Judge Chen on the bench had an objection.

I allowed you to question, not to tell stories.

And I brought you to court to select the jury, yet here you are, telling me the story of the ZB Family.

"Lawyer Zhang, can you please proceed with the questioning? And as for selecting the jury, you haven’t used that opportunity even once!"

Judge Chen said, pointing to his notebook.

Until now, Zhang Wei’s use of the defense’s right to dismiss jurors was still at 0!

This is not normal!

"Oh, I apologize, Judge Chen, I’ll start selecting the jury right now!"

With that, he looked at the jury box, his gaze sweeping over the prospective jurors.

"The defense requests the dismissal of jurors number 13, 15, 19, 20, 21, and 24, thankful for their participation!"

At once, he dismissed six jurors, appearing somewhat cursory.

It was as if the judge forced you, and you merely chose six people to go through the motions.

But was that the kind of person Zhang Wei was?

He was not.

He had actually been paying attention to those people all along, and the story he had told was not meaningless.

The six eliminated individuals had no reaction to the story, naturally not fitting the profile of jurors Zhang Wei needed.

However, outsiders were unaware of his thoughts.

At this moment, Judge Chen on the bench merely noted down the dismissed jurors with his pen.

With six people leaving their seats, the jury was officially finalized.

"Very well, now we have a suitable jury!"

Old Chen spoke, his eyes sweeping over both the prosecution and defense.

"Now we face another issue, that is, the time for the next session. I have a court session tomorrow morning and another in the afternoon, although that one in the afternoon is just wrapping things up, and the prosecution has already given its closing argument. So, I ask you, are you willing to court tomorrow at 4 pm, or would you prefer Friday, although I need to confirm the time again tomorrow."

"Your Honor, the prosecution has no objection to holding the court session tomorrow and strongly hopes that the trial can proceed as quickly as possible, as the members of the investigation department and special ops team have been busy with this case for a month now; they all wish to conclude it soon!"

Lan Zhengye naturally did not disagree and even strongly supported the idea.

"And the defense?"

"We have no objections either because my client, Doctor Qian, also wants to prove his innocence as soon as possible!"

Zhang Wei naturally did not disagree either.

"Then it’s settled, court will convene tomorrow afternoon at 4 pm. Please ensure that both parties are not late, this session is now adjourned!"

Old Chen, gavel in hand, announced the gradual dismissal of the court.

"Lawyer Zhang, I..."

On the defense bench, Dr. Qian opened his mouth, but before he could finish his sentence, Xia Qianjun directly blocked him.

"We are taking the person with us!"

"Big Uncle, is this really necessary? Is he going back to Iron Island Prison?"

"That won’t be necessary. During the trial, he will be detained in our special operations team’s safe house!"

"Safe house?"

Upon hearing these three words, Zhang Wei felt a sense of trepidation.

A safe house for good people generally isn’t safe.

"To prevent the safe house from being compromised, we need to take him immediately. You also should not attempt to contact him during this time. Thirty minutes before the trial begins, we will bring him to the court. Your interactions will be limited to the courtroom preparation room and the courtroom itself!"

"Does it have to be this strict?"

"That’s the rule!"

After Xia Qianjun finished speaking, he exchanged a glance with Luo Qi Gaoyang, and the three escorted Dr. Qian away.

The four left in a hurry, without leaving a trace.

"What a pity, I was hoping Big Uncle could open a little door for me!"

Zhang Wei watched the four leave, feeling somewhat helpless.

"Let’s go too, and prepare for tomorrow’s trial!"

As Zhang Wei spoke, he glanced at the prosecutor’s bench, meeting the eyes of Lan Zhengye, Lu Wenwen, and others.

Lan Zhengye nodded at Zhang Wei, who naturally returned the gesture.

The two exchanged cordial nods.

However, Lu Wenwen by Lan Zhengye’s side had a much less friendly look in her eyes, and Xiao Baihe maliciously glared at Zhang Wei.

As for Tan Yingying, she kept her head lowered throughout; how could she dare to look at Zhang Wei?

But after leaving the courtroom, an unexpected person appeared.

"Lawyer Zhang, it’s getting late. Why don’t you come with me?"

Hua Chaofan, waiting at the door, was specifically waiting for Zhang Wei.

"Isn’t it still early? There’s still time before 8 o’clock, right?"

"There’s something I’d like to discuss with you on the way."

"This..."

Zhang Wei hesitated.

Nothing good could come from Hua Chaofan seeking him out.

But after thinking it over and glancing once more at Xia Qianyue and the others, he made up his mind.

"You all go back first; I have a dinner engagement tonight."

"Zhang Wei, he’s not a good man!" Xia Qianyue expressed her concern.

"Don’t worry, in this world, there are no absolute good or bad people!"

Zhang Wei reassured her with a comforting word and signaled Xia Qianyue not to worry.

Once the others had gradually left, Zhang Wei set off with Hua Chaofan.

Hua Chaofan’s car was parked at the back door of the courthouse, a luxurious limousine equipped with a professional driver.

In the car.

"Lawyer Zhang put it very well; in this world, there are no absolutely good or bad people!"

"Mr. Hua, our time is limited. From here to Dongjiang Star, it won’t take long!"

Zhang Wei, while looking out the window, reminded the man to watch the time.

"Hahaha, Lawyer Zhang is indeed straightforward and fast with words!"

Hua Chaofan handed a stack of documents directly to Zhang Wei.

"This is..."

"Just open it and take a look!"

Zhang Wei flipped through the documents, finding much of it to be information on the executives of Pioneer Medical Technology Group.

"These are targets I think we could blackmail, with Chen Xianfeng’s son-in-law holding the highest position. He’s also the person I think we can threaten the most!"

Hua Chaofan pointed to the topmost file and said with a smile, "I didn’t expect that this guy, having become Chen Xianfeng’s son-in-law, would still dare to keep a mistress on the side."

"If Chen Xianfeng finds out about this, he’s definitely in deep trouble!"

Zhang Wei narrowed his eyes, looking at Hua Chaofan.

"You want me to blackmail the prosecution’s witness?"

But Hua Chaofan simply smiled slightly: "I’ve always thought that an outstanding criminal defense attorney like Lawyer Zhang would have a flexible moral baseline!"

Of course, that’s a high EQ way of putting it.

If we’re talking low EQ, it means you have no baseline.