Chapter 159 - 103: Court Adjourned

Every single one of these was a factor calling for a strict and severe sentence!

Especially the facts that an adult had killed a minor, and that Liu Jingqi’s history—kidnapping a young boy at age six and murdering Yang Jiale at eighteen—proved she was an extreme danger to society and fundamentally incorrigible. These two points were the most critical of all!

Not to mention, the crimes of robbery and false imprisonment she had committed were also against minors...

She was rotten to the core!

Taking all this into consideration.

Presiding Judge Zhang Bingxin’s death sentence was absolutely reasonable and legally sound!

After coming to this realization.

"Haha, hahahahahaha!!!"

A laugh suddenly broke out on Huang Shi’s face. He leaned back in his chair, his chest vibrating with a deeply cathartic laugh.

Good is rewarded, and evil is punished.

This phrase is a moral axiom, but it is not the logic by which the world operates. It is not a law of physics, nor is it the cornerstone of societal law—reality is often quite different.

As a prosecutor, he had handled far too many tragic cases, full of joy and sorrow, partings and reunions.

He’d seen good deeds met with bad ends and evil deeds rewarded. He’d seen kind people suffer injustice while the malicious escaped punishment...

Every case was like a knife plunging into his heart, then twisting viciously!

Prosecutor Hu Guang had started as an emotional rookie, but after experiencing too much, countless cases had worn him down until he was like a machine.

It wasn’t that he became cold-blooded. It was just that if you allowed yourself to feel the emotions from a human perspective...

...the only thing awaiting you was a mental illness potent enough to warp your very being!

But now...

"So satisfying!"

Huang Shi took a deep breath and exhaled sharply. He stood tall, holding his head high, radiating an air of triumph.

Just as he said.

This case... was the most satisfying one he had handled in his entire decade-plus career!!!

The pent-up frustration in his chest was completely released in this moment!!!

Similarly.

According to the ’Law of Conservation of Emotion’...

...for someone to be happy, someone else must be sad.

...

The defense table.

A sharp intake of breath...

Unlike the lively and emotional scene at the prosecution’s table.

The entire defense table was utterly silent. No one spoke, no one moved. The only sound was breathing. Their breathing...

...was exceptionally heavy!

After a long moment.

The lawyer, Sun Bing, opened her mouth, turning to look at Zhang Wei, who sat beside her, frozen like a statue.

"Lawyer... Lawyer Zhang..."

She began to speak, but once the words were out, she didn’t know what to say. Her lips moved for a moment, but ultimately, no more sound came out.

But those two words were enough to snap Zhang Wei back to reality.

At the lawyers’ table.

Zhang Wei was in a daze. His face pale and haggard, he looked down at the stack of case materials on the table, then at his own hands.

’Death... the death penalty...’

’My client... got the death penalty?!’

’No... this is wrong.’

’My client was supposed to be a minor! There was no evidence at the scene to prove intentional homicide! We could even argue self-defense! Didn’t we have a massive, unbeatable advantage?!’

’How... How could she still get the death penalty?’

’And even the other two, Jiang Yu and Qiao Wang, got fifteen years at minimum?’

’This is wrong... This is all wrong... I clearly performed exceptionally.’

’During the first hearing, my debate with Huang Shi was a once-in-a-lifetime performance! My legal reasoning and courtroom improvisation were maxed out. I briefly outshined every lawyer in Lusen City!’

’An exceptional performance plus a huge advantage... shouldn’t the sentence have been less than ten years?!’

’What the hell is this one death and two fifteen-year sentences?’

’What a joke...’

Zhang Wei clenched his jaw tightly, his fists balled. A rush of blood sent his blood pressure soaring. His already pale face actually became flushed from the intense emotional turmoil.

Veins bulged on his forehead, throbbing visibly as he roared inwardly.

’WHAT A JOKE!!!’

Unfortunately.

No one else could know what he was thinking.

"The defendant, if you do not accept this court’s verdict, you may file an appeal by law within the specified period after the verdict takes effect."

On the judge’s bench.

After announcing the sentence, Presiding Judge Zhang Bingxin felt as if Mount Tai was pressing down on his shoulders.

He was about to say something else.

Suddenly, as if remembering something, he paused to think for a moment, then spoke:

"Regarding the matter of civil compensation, the division has been settled by both parties."

"Defendant Jiang Yu’s representatives shall compensate the victim’s family for emergency medical fees, funeral expenses... for a total of 30,000 yuan in damages."

"Defendant Qiao Wang’s representatives shall... a total of 30,000 yuan."

"Defendant Liu Jingqi shall compensate the victim’s family... for a total of 70,000 yuan in damages..."

"Defendants, and the defense counsel, do you have any objections?"

The compensation wasn’t much. 130,000 in total... 130,000 for two lives was indeed a paltry sum.

In fact, it would be even less!

Liu Jingqi was tried as an adult, so her family was not required to pay for her actions, and she herself had no savings.

Therefore, it was highly unlikely the 70,000 yuan from the judgment would ever be collected.

In other words, although 130,000 yuan was awarded, only 60,000 would actually be received!

However...

It was only money.

For Yang Huan, trading lower compensation for Liu Jingqi’s life was a very worthwhile bargain!

At the defense table.

Zhang Wei was still lost in his own thoughts, muttering to himself.

Seeing this, Sun Bing could only sigh. She looked at the judge’s bench, shook her head, and said, "Your Honor... we have no objections."

In the defendants’ seats.

Heads bowed, the constantly trembling Jiang Yu and Qiao Wang did not speak. Their faces were ashen, and they quaked internally.

The two of them had no complaints.

It was just a bit of money, and it was their parents’ money at that...

Compared to Liu Jingqi beside them, how could the two of them possibly object to a paltry 30,000 yuan? They were probably eager to pay up as fast as they could!

Liu Jingqi, on the other hand...

"I object! I object!"

In the defendant’s seat, Liu Jingqi seemed to snap, as if she had gone mad. Her face was a mask of sheer terror, her expression horrified.

"I object!"

"I admitted my guilt! I clearly admitted my guilt, so why are you still sentencing me to death?!"

Her tone was frantic, a hysterical roar.

But unfortunately.

A sentence was a sentence. Once pronounced, it could not be rewritten in the courtroom.

Presiding Judge Zhang Bingxin looked at the distraught woman and said coldly:

"If the defendant does not accept this court’s verdict, you may file an appeal by law!"

"Now..."

"Court is adjourned!"

As the words fell.

Zhang Bingxin took a deep breath, as if setting down a heavy burden, and stood up to leave.

Nearing the door, he suddenly stopped and looked back, his gaze falling heavily on the plaintiff’s counsel table.

’This case was real torture... they didn’t follow the standard evidence procedures at all, just launched one surprise attack after another!’

Thinking this.

Zhang Bingxin raised his hand again, this time pointing forcefully at the man before flicking his sleeve and departing.

At the plaintiff’s counsel table.

"Lawyer Xu, was the judge just praising you?"

Wang Chao watched Zhang Bingxin’s departing figure, raising an eyebrow as he spoke thoughtfully.

He thought the judge seemed pretty fair.

Even singling out the trial’s best performer for praise before he left!

"Heh."

Xu De ignored him. At that moment, he let out a long, heavy breath and leaned back into his chair.

After letting his whole body relax, he suddenly opened his eyes and spread his palm open.

It was already slick with sweat.

He had pushed himself to the absolute limit on this case. From evidence gathering to the timing of its presentation, to the cross-examination phase, everything had been executed to perfection.

But... the prosecution only has the right to accuse.

The power to judge and convict lies in the hands of the judge!

If Zhang Bingxin had been unwilling to bear the pressure... he could have easily just handed down a suspended death sentence.

There were many interpretations of a suspended death sentence in 2002. Sometimes, a person might not even serve fifty percent of the eventual prison term. You could say that if the sentence had been suspended, Xu De would have considered it a loss.

But the good news was...

They had won.

They had won the case!

One death sentence and two fifteen-year sentences—this could be called a landslide victory!

At this thought, Xu De stood up. It was as if he’d lost ten pounds; his whole body felt light. He clapped Wang Chao and Lin Yue on the shoulder.

Xu De looked towards the main entrance and smiled.

"Let’s go."

"It’s time to go enjoy the spoils of victory!"