Chapter 124 - 86: Paternity Test Report, Negotiation

What’s a surprise?

Let me translate. What the fuck is a *goddamn* surprise?

A surprise is ambushing the court with new evidence!

"So *this* is the surprise!"

Lin Yue realized with a start. Unable to contain herself, she gently covered her lips with her hand, her eyes crinkling into crescents as she smiled.

"So, this surprise... does it go by another name?"

"Like ’trial by ambush,’ for example."

"Ah, Lord Lin, that’s where you’re wrong!"

Xu De shook his head. His expression turned serious as he looked at the young woman with earnest gravity.

"’Trial by ambush’ is malicious. It’s an illegal stalling tactic. What’s more, it’s a procedural violation done without proper justification!"

"Do you think I wanted to just throw this into court without verification, forcing a three-day adjournment and a new trial?"

Xu De gestured to the red, plastic-covered household registration book in his hand and sighed deeply.

"My hands were tied!"

"We didn’t have time to submit evidence, nor did we have any existing, substantive, objective test results. There was really no other way."

"In any case..."

"This time, we have a legitimate reason!"

The fact remained.

There is no law that forbids trial by ambush, nor is there any statute that rules evidence from a trial by ambush inadmissible.

What’s that? You’re asking why he said ’this time, we have a legitimate reason’? Does that mean the last trial by ambush was purely malicious?

Don’t you worry about that.

It’s best not to pry into a lawyer’s business. Asking too many questions won’t do you any good!

The most crucial thing was...

Xu De really did have a legitimate reason this time!

Having no time to submit evidence after it was obtained is a top-tier justification for a "trial by ambush."

However, Wang Chao, who was standing to one side, suddenly spoke up.

"Is the judge really going to believe that excuse?"

A doubtful look crossed his face.

"In the judge’s eyes, isn’t this a case of ’the boy who cried wolf?’"

Once is normal; twice is highly suspicious.

In a single case, the victim’s legal representative keeps bouncing back and forth on the court’s bottom line like a spring, constantly ambushing the proceedings. If you were the judge, even if the party presented solid evidence...

Would you really believe his hands were truly tied?

Even though his hands really *were* tied this time... and even though he himself wanted to get the evidence cross-examined before the hearing, it was a pity that presenting groundless evidence without backing would just get it rejected. It wouldn’t stop the hearing from starting unless there was an expert report from a judicial body.

But that whole process is complicated and would take at least half a month.

This time, Xu De’s hands really were tied!!!

However...

"Who cares what the judge thinks."

Xu De, for his part, was not at all concerned about the judge’s personal feelings.

And in truth, he didn’t have to be.

As he’d said in the past, as long as the evidence was irrefutable, the judge would have no choice but to hold his nose and accept it!

He took a transparent plastic sleeve from his briefcase, placed the household registration book inside, and then labeled it with an evidence number.

Then, after a moment’s thought, he looked up at Old Zhou.

"Sir, I’d like to ask... Liu Jingqi... I mean Nan. Where is Nan’s mother now?"

He had casually mentioned to Wang Chao and the others before.

In court, evidence cannot stand alone; it’s what’s known as isolated evidence.

Take Wang Mei from the last human trafficking case, for example. Even though she was a victim in that case, personally imprisoned and abused by Liu Cui and Li Youcai, and so theoretically should have been telling the truth...

In reality, Wang Mei’s testimony alone was isolated evidence. Only when combined with the ’IOU,’ ’real-world logic,’ and ’witness testimony’ could it form a chain of evidence, leading to a powerful and solid accusation.

The current case was no different.

The household registration book alone could indeed prove that the person listed on it was an adult.

But... it couldn’t prove that the woman named ’Zhang Yueyue’ on the book was actually Liu Jingqi. Consequently, they couldn’t logically deduce that Liu Jingqi was also an adult!

Unless other evidence existed to corroborate this isolated piece, forming a complete evidence chain.

And of all the other information available to them, the most useful was...

Liu Jingqi’s biological parents!

A household registration book by itself was useless, but... add a DNA test report to the mix, and it would be enough to nail them to the wall!!!

"Nan’s birth mother?"

Old Zhou, a dry pipe dangling from his lips, smacked his mouth a few times. He thought for a moment, then pointed into the distance and said:

"Just around two corners."

"You can go on your own. I still have to roll some tobacco to smoke."

As he spoke, Old Zhou put down his pipe, pulled a box from a drawer, and opened it to reveal large piles of shredded tobacco.

He then tore off a few calendar pages, rolled up the tobacco, and twisted it into a crude cigarette.

Seeing this, Wang Chao grew anxious.

"Sir, don’t bother rolling! Let’s smoke these!"

Anxious, Wang Chao pulled several packs of cigarettes from his breast pocket—Chunghwas, no less—and, without even opening them, stuffed the whole lot into the old man’s hands.

Old Zhou’s eyebrow shot up. He chuckled and, in return, offered the cigarette he’d just rolled to Wang Chao.

"Young man, those are no good. That’s what old ladies smoke."

"*This* is what a real man smokes!"

However, he didn’t refuse their request. He stood up immediately, gathering the stray tobacco threads on his clothes and packing them into his pipe.

"Follow me. Tao Ming’s place isn’t far, just a few hundred meters."

With that, the three of them quickly made way for him and followed him out of the thatched hut.

The paths in Taocun Village were difficult to walk. There were no concrete roads, just pitted and uneven dirt tracks where a careless step could easily lead to a sprained ankle. The best paths were merely paved with a smattering of stones.

The four of them walked in silence, one after another.

Along the way, an unbearable curiosity got the better of Wang Chao. He stared at the crude cigarette the old man had rolled, now resting in his palm. Finally, he pulled out a lighter and flicked it on with his thumb.

CLICK!

The flame licked the tip of the cigarette.

Wang Chao took a hard drag, filling his lungs with smoke. The next second...

It was as if the cigarette had sucker-punched him in both eyes, then delivered a combination of blows to his lungs. Before he could even react, his vision went black. He staggered, nearly losing consciousness and collapsing to the ground.