Are You Crazy? He’s only an Intern Lawyer?
Chapter 573 - 566: The Origin of the Weapon? Who is this person?

Chapter 573: Chapter 566: The Origin of the Weapon? Who is this person?

The hearing was in session.

This time, the prosecution had a clear upper hand.

Under Zhu Yuansi’s "bringing up the past," the hearing officers were almost unanimously on one side.

Even Zhao Xiaoxiao and her colleagues were shocked to hear that Guan Ping’s father, Guan Yuhong, was a murderer, and they looked at Zhang Wei in astonishment.

They only had a general understanding of the case, but they hadn’t anticipated it would involve an incident from 12 years ago.

Furthermore, it was advantageous for the prosecution that Guan Yuhong had already been convicted.

Given that the father’s murder charges had been confirmed, you, his son, would also be viewed with hostility by the hearing officers.

Zhu Yuansi could not help but curl her lips into a smug smile.

Compared to Zhou Er’s sorry state, she was indeed pleased as punch now.

Look at the expressions of everyone at the hearing table, look at the 10 hearing officers sitting on the jury bench.

If a vote was held right now, they would undoubtedly all cast guilty votes.

And on our side, the evidence is as solid as a rock, with the DNA report, toxicology report, autopsy report, and fingerprint comparison report—all evidence points to Guan Ping as the murderer.

With that, if you can still shake off the charges, I, Zhu Yuansi, wouldn’t know what to say.

If you can still turn the tables, I’ll eat my lackey’s laptop screen right here and now!

This hand seems to be a sure win!

"Feeling quite confident, aren’t we, Prosecutor Zhu?"

Perceiving Zhu Yuansi’s confidence, Zhang Wei couldn’t help but mutter.

Prosecutor Zhu, I hope you haven’t set any bizarre flags, otherwise shortly...

"Ahem, has the prosecution finished speaking?"

Judge Bao on the bench couldn’t hold back anymore.

Although the prosecution is clearly in a dominant position, if you’re done speaking, can’t you sit down?

Also, knowing you have a big advantage, can’t you refrain from smiling so complacently? Beware of a turnabout!

Judge Bao is an old hand in the field and had seen numerous examples of people overturning cases in court.

No matter which side overturns, the most crucial aspect is the opponent’s ability to adapt on the fly.

Haven’t you noticed that even though you have a clear advantage, Zhang Wei’s face doesn’t show the slightest panic?

Either Zhang Wei’s personality is just so, or he’s got something up his sleeve!

In any case, Judge Bao felt that today’s hearing wouldn’t simply be dominated by the prosecution.

The defense definitely had a trick hidden up their sleeves.

After Zhu Yuansi had retaken her seat, Judge Bao turned his gaze toward the defense bench.

"Lawyer Zhang, it’s your turn to speak!"

"Thank you for the reminder, Judge Bao, we’ve been eager to start!"

Zhang Wei thanked him and immediately stood up, as if indeed he couldn’t wait any longer.

"Cough cough, before beginning my speech, I’d like to ask the prosecution, are you serious about bringing up another case from 12 years ago?"

Zhang Wei’s question was naturally within the expectations of the prosecution.

Zhu Yuansi calmly seated at the prosecution bench, smiled subtly, "What do you think, Lawyer Zhang?"

"Prosecutor Zhu, didn’t your mentor teach you not to answer a question with another question?"

"Well, then, take it as though I did it on purpose!"

Zhu Yuansi was not to be outdone, conceding directly since bickering was useless.

"However, the fact that the defendant’s father is a murderer can’t be denied!"

"My father isn’t a murderer!"

Provoked by Zhu Yuansi’s words, Guan Ping couldn’t hold back any longer and stood up to retort.

Guan Ping’s action naturally attracted the attention of the whole room, everyone looking toward the defense bench.

"Lawyer Zhang!"

Judge Bao warned in a cold tone, eyes fixed on Zhang Wei.

"My apologies, Judge Bao, my client was a bit uncontrollable due to the prosecution’s statement, I hope for your understanding."

"Hmph, it’s only because you are from Dongfang Capital that I give you this chance. If you were a lawyer from Longdu, I wouldn’t let you off so easily!"

Judge Bao warned sternly again, yet still gave Zhang Wei an opportunity to back down.

As he said, Zhang Wei wasn’t a Longdu lawyer, unaware of his rules.

The ancestor of I, Bao Yansu, was none other than the illustrious Bao Qingtian, strict and impartial, understand?

"Thank you, Judge Bao, for your consideration. I will warn my client!"

Zhang Wei said, and winked at Guan Ping, who immediately sat down and dared not act rashly any further.

In fact, this was deliberately arranged by Zhang Wei, just to instill one thing in the jury first.

Guan Ping is innocent—at least I, Guan Ping, believe in my father.

However, this point didn’t have much impact on the current hearing.

Zhang Wei didn’t have high expectations for this little trick.

"Alright, let’s begin now!"

Zhang Wei said and walked toward the prosecutor’s bench, facing Zhu Yuansi.

"Prosecutor Zhu, although I have already asked you this before, I must ask you again here in court, where exactly was this murder weapon, the black umbrella, found?"

"This..."

Although she had anticipated the question, Zhu Yuansi was still slightly hesitant upon hearing it.

But she quickly composed herself and answered, "The murder weapon was found by the investigation department near the crime scene, and then it was handed over to me!"

"Is that so?"

Zhang Wei looked surprised and then asked, "Who handed it to you, do you remember the name of the investigating officer?"

"Oh, no, I believe you must remember it very clearly, after all, it’s such an important piece of evidence. The investigating officer who found the evidence and handed it over to you, you would definitely remember their name, right?"

Zhu Yuansi was annoyed by Zhang Wei’s pointed questioning and retorted, "What’s the point in fixating on this question?"

"Yes, Lawyer Zhang, what is the significance of fixating on who submitted the evidence?" Judge Bao also grew impatient and had an issue with Zhang Wei.

After all, the evidence was there in court, and analysis reports were out. Wasn’t it the murder weapon used to kill Lin Berte?

You’re not seeking other issues but instead fixating on who submitted the evidence. Isn’t this nitpicking?

"Judge Bao, in fact, fixating on this issue is very significant!"

Zhang Wei replied and immediately laid his cards on the table, "If there’s something dubious about the origin of the evidence, then the legitimacy of the evidence would also be called into question, right?"

"That may be true, but how is the origin of the evidence questionable?" Judge Bao said, glancing at Zhu Yuansi.

Zhu Yuansi kept a composed expression, though she was beginning to feel unsettled on the inside.

No way, right?

How did that black umbrella end up with them? They themselves couldn’t trace it.

Could it be that Zhang Wei had already discovered it?

"I have found out!"

Zhang Wei seemed to know what Zhu Yuansi was thinking and said with a smirk, "As a matter of fact, I already know who placed that black umbrella in the Procuratorate Headquarters building and how!"

Shit!

Zhu Yuansi’s eyes widened, and she almost couldn’t help but stand up.

Zhang Wei actually knew!

The very thing the Procuratorate Headquarters and the investigation department didn’t know, Zhang Wei knew!

"Now, everyone, please look at the big screen!"

Zhang Wei signaled to Zhao Xiaoxiao in the gallery, and she immediately operated her laptop.

The second daughter is a computer expert, and she didn’t even need to use the court’s laptop to work the projection equipment.

A surveillance video then appeared on the projection screen.

"This is..." Zhu Yuansi was startled to see the surveillance footage.

Because wasn’t that the main entrance of the Longdu District Procuratorate Office, a place she passed by every day? She was well-acquainted with it.

She saw people coming and going through the entrance, many of whom were colleagues whose names she could call out.

"Pause!"

Suddenly, Zhang Wei called out, then pointed to a person on the screen and asked, "Prosecutor Zhu, this is you, isn’t it?"

"Yes, this is me!"

Zhu Yuansi rolled her eyes. That’s the entrance to the Procuratorate Headquarters, and I pass through it every day when coming and going from work; it’s very normal for me to be there.

"Prosecutor Zhu, then can you tell us, what is this place?"

"The entrance to the Longdu District Procuratorate Office, where I clock in and out for work every day!"

Zhu Yuansi said this with a face full of incredulity.

Was there a problem with this place?

"Continue!"

After confirming, Zhang Wei then gestured for the second daughter to carry on.

The video resumed playing, with the speed of the surveillance noticeably increased.

Streams of people surged across the screen, quickly turning into a blur of afterimages.

"Stop!"

After almost 2 minutes of fast-forwarded play, Zhang Wei shouted.

The screen froze, and a man in a maintenance worker’s uniform, carrying a long rectangular box, walked into the Procuratorate Headquarters building.

"Please look at this man!"

Zhang Wei stepped in front of the screen, raising his hand to point at the man in the footage, or rather, to the box in his hand.

"Lawyer Zhang, what’s the issue with this box? Isn’t it just a long rectangular cardboard box?"

"Yes, a long rectangular cardboard box, and it’s precisely the size that could accommodate the evidence!"

Following Zhang Wei’s words, Judge Bao showed a look of astonishment, then glanced at Zhu Yuansi.

Could it be that this long rectangular cardboard box really contained the evidence?

If that was the case, then wasn’t the evidence delivered by an outsider, not discovered by the investigative division at all?

"Unfortunately, there was a slight problem with the surveillance footage at the Procuratorate Headquarters. We can only see this man entering the Procuratorate, but we can’t see how he delivered the evidence to Zhu from the High Prosecutor’s Office."

"Even whether it was him who placed the evidence, or if there were accomplices inside the Procuratorate Headquarters working with him, we cannot confirm."

Zhang Wei said this, his face showing a hint of regret.

Zhu Yuansi breathed a sigh of relief and immediately retorted, "Lawyer Zhang, you say that the box contains evidence, but you can’t prove it. What does that prove?"

Yes, what does that prove?

You say there’s an umbrella inside, and I say there’s a pile of flowers in there.

After all, without subsequent evidence, you could claim anything is inside.

The Hearing Officers also shook their heads. Without evidence, what good does it do to say anything? Isn’t this a waste of time?

"Who says I can’t prove it?"

Zhang Wei was momentarily stunned and then countered with a question.

"Huh?"

Zhu Yuansi, including Judge Bao, all wore faces of astonishment.

Didn’t you say there was no follow-up surveillance footage? Didn’t you say you couldn’t see how he delivered the evidence to Zhu from the High Prosecutor’s Office?

Could it be that we misheard just now?

"In fact, I indeed have no subsequent footage and I also don’t know how he passed the evidence to Zhu from the High Prosecutor’s Office. But I never said we lacked preliminary footage. In fact, we have footage of the target receiving the evidence!"

Zhang Wei said, lifting his hand toward the projection screen.

The footage on the screen switched again, this time to the corner of a street.

"This place is..."

Seeing that familiar street corner, Zhu Yuansi was startled.

She was very familiar with this location because it was not far from the main gate of the Procuratorate Headquarters.

Indeed, when she encountered difficult cases, she would often walk out of the Procuratorate Headquarters and stroll along this street to clear her mind.

She was all too familiar with this area.

The video began to play.

In the video, people were coming and going, the streets bustling with activity.

But soon, the video featured the man in the maintenance worker’s uniform, holding a long rectangular cardboard box, walking to the street corner, where he paused for a moment.

Everyone watched the man carefully, or rather the cardboard box in his hands, waiting for the moment he would open it.

But after a long time, he just held the box without opening it.

"When will this box be opened? He’s just holding it like that?"

"Judge Bao, you’re mistaken. The box is empty right now!"

Zhang Wei had already watched the video and naturally knew the situation inside the box.

"What, empty?"

As if anticipating Judge Bao’s astonishment, a change indeed appeared in the video.

The man waved toward someone not far away, and then a guy, clearly a ruffian, approached the man.

Most crucially, the ruffian had a black umbrella in his hand.

The black umbrella was wrapped in plastic, and he brought it to the man.

The man, dressed in a maintenance worker’s gear and naturally wearing white gloves, tore open the plastic and placed the black umbrella inside the cardboard box.

The two then parted ways; the man walked in one direction and quickly vanished from the camera’s view, while the ruffian didn’t linger and left swiftly.

"Prosecutor Zhu, I believe you’re familiar with this surveillance footage, aren’t you?"

At that moment, Zhu Yuansi fell silent, just looking at the surveillance footage, lost in thought for a long time.

"Prosecutor Zhu, Prosecutor Zhu, Prosecutor Zhu!"

With Zhang Wei repeatedly calling out, he finally managed to bring Zhu Yuansi back to her senses.

"Ah, what did you say? What’s with this video, this surveillance?"

"Nothing, I just wanted to ask if the direction the man in the video is walking towards is that of the main gate of the Procuratorate Headquarters?"

"This... Yes!"

Zhu Yuansi only hesitated for a moment before nodding her head.

She walked this route every day, so she was very clear that the man was heading towards Procuratorate Headquarters, and this was undeniable.

What was the man going to do at the Procuratorate Headquarters?

In his hands was a rectangular cardboard box, holding a black umbrella obtained from who knows where, and he walked straight into the Procuratorate Headquarters offices.

To be precise, into her office.

"But the surveillance footage that day, wasn’t it all..."

"Yes, the surveillance footage of the Procuratorate Headquarters was interrupted the moment this man entered, but the footage from the street outside didn’t stop, did it?"

Zhang Wei seemed to have guessed Zhu Yuansi’s doubts, responding with a direct, cold laugh.

"But how can you prove that the box in this man’s hands was carrying that black umbrella?"

"Prosecutor Zhu, are you confused? This isn’t a trial, but a hearing. I don’t need to prove whether it is or isn’t, I just need to present reasonable doubt!"

In response to Zhu Yuansi’s questioning, Zhang Wei simply spread his hands as if to say why bother with the details.

"Judge Bao, and everyone at the hearing panel, I would like to raise a reasonable doubt before you now regarding the origin of the prosecution’s evidence."

"From the video, it can be seen that the prosecution’s evidence might not have been found by the investigative department near the crime scene, but rather could have been fabricated by someone with a hidden agenda through special means and then used to frame my client."

"Of course, Prosecutor Zhu also said that there is no direct evidence proving that the object found in the man’s box was the evidence discovered by them. But I would also like to say, Prosecutor Zhu surely can’t deny the possibility that the evidence obtained isn’t the same object the man left in your office, right?"

Zhang Wei said this, a smile on his face as he looked at Zhu Yuansi.

The latter’s expression startled, but soon turned dark.

Indeed.

What Zhang Wei said made sense, somehow this black umbrella had appeared in her office.

And from the video surveillance, it was very likely that the black umbrella was placed there by the man dressed in the maintenance worker’s uniform.

Although there was no evidence to prove this point, she also had no evidence to refute it.

And once unable to refute, it meant that such a possibility indeed existed.

Based on the principle of ’in dubio pro reo’ in criminal justice, once this case went to court, the defense only had to present this reasonable argument and the suspect Guan would certainly be acquitted.

Even if the jury disagreed, Judge Bao would inform them of this basis.

Therefore, the defense had found a reasonable doubt!

Zhu Yuansi had some regrets; she hadn’t chosen to investigate the black umbrella thoroughly after receiving it that day.

If she had been more thoughtful at the time, maybe she could have checked the surveillance outside the Procuratorate Headquarters and discovered this doubt.

Regrettably, she was too agitated by Zhang Wei that day, consumed by anger whenever she thought of Zhang Wei’s audacity.

Having suddenly acquired strong evidence, she hadn’t first thought about its origins but how to embarrass Zhang Wei.

Hatred had blinded her eyes and also her intuition as a prosecutor.

There was no denying it; she deserved this loss.

Thinking thus, Zhu Yuansi finally sighed heavily and then glanced at the laptop in her assistant’s hand.

"Um, may I ask, can you eat a laptop screen?"

"Ha, Sister Zhu, are you confused? How can you eat a computer screen?"

"It’s nothing, I was just asking..."

Zhu Yuansi wouldn’t tell her assistant that she had just unwisely set herself up.

"Prosecutor Zhu, now I want to ask, after our side has presented this evidence, do you still wish to prosecute my client?"

"After thorough consideration, the prosecution has decided not to press charges against your client!"

Zhu Yuansi had no choice but to accept it.

After she finished, she nodded towards Judge Bao, indicating that her side had made its decision.

"Ahem, this court announces that this hearing is formally concluded due to the prosecution’s decision to withdraw the charges. Thank you to all the hearing officers for your participation, thank you everyone!"

Following Judge Bao’s announcement, the hearing was finally adjourned once again.

Zhu Yuansi gave Zhang Wei a meaningful look and left the scene with her assistant, looking rather dejected.

This time, she had lost.

But next time, she swore to defeat Zhang Wei!

Unfortunately, she wasn’t sure if she could make it happen next time.

And Zhang Wei, at this moment, was staring at the maintenance worker on the screen with a strange expression.

"That rogue is Green Snake. Considering how respectfully they are treating this person, could this be the Qing Jiao Gang’s big boss himself, Qing Jiao?"

Zhang Wei watched the man on the screen without taking his eyes off him.

Only after the screen was turned off did he retract his gaze.