Chapter 160 - 104: Reporters Outside the Court

Xu De was not a humble or pretentious man.

Or rather,

He wasn’t the type to work hard in obscurity without recognition.

In his mind, if you screwed up, you took the punishment. If you did well, you had to enjoy the spoils of victory!

’Otherwise... wasn’t this case all for nothing!?’

If he were really working for the love of it, purely for the sake of justice, he’d have starved to death many times over.

So...

"Let’s go."

Xu De stood up. He clapped his two partners on the shoulder, then looked over at Yang Huan.

Yang Huan was still in a daze. He stared blankly at Liu Jingqi until the bailiffs led her away, then he broke down in tears.

He didn’t know why he was crying, or even when he’d started. By the time he realized it, his emotions had already burst their dam.

But as mentioned before, Xu De was not a humble or pretentious man.

’Let him cry. There isn’t a single law on the books that says men can’t cry!’

"At the very least... you got your revenge."

Xu De offered a word of comfort.

Then, he led the group and walked out.

Courtroom Two had many doors. Their exit was on the right, and soon, the four of them reached the doorway.

The two bailiffs in front of them saw them coming, paused for a moment, and then abruptly pulled the doors open.

WHOOSH!

The instant the doors opened, before anyone could react...

FLASH!

CLICK-CLICK-CLICK-CLICK!

FLASH!

A sea of cameras erupted in blinding white flashes. Countless reporters aimed their lenses at Xu De, instantly turning the afternoon dusk into daylight!

Immediately after,

a swarm of microphones was thrust forward. Dozens of people pushed to the front, holding their mics high, and urgently asked:

"Lawyer Xu, has the verdict been announced for the No. 18 Middle School case!? What were the three defendants sentenced for!?"

"Lawyer Xu, we’re from the Phoenix Newspaper! Please give us ten minutes. We’d like to do an exclusive interview with you! If you agree, the Phoenix Newspaper will dedicate a full page to you in both the morning and evening editions tomorrow!"

"Did the victims receive justice?"

"Can you walk us through what happened in the trial?"

"Lawyer Xu, are you worried the defendants will appeal? Do you think there’s a chance the verdict could be overturned on appeal?"

"..."

Countless voices merged into a cacophony.

A dense crowd swarmed around Xu De, pressing in on him.

It wasn’t just him. Lin Yue and Wang Chao didn’t escape either. Though not packed shoulder-to-shoulder, they were surrounded by countless people, looking as if they were caught in an ’Ambush from All Sides’.

As for these questions...

The three of them were no fools.

Some questions could be answered, but some could not.

First, the case involved minors. Even though the verdict was announced, the detailed case information couldn’t be disclosed. Even if everyone outside had already guessed and knew it in their hearts, it couldn’t be stated explicitly.

But then again.

What couldn’t be stated explicitly could still be hinted at!

"The verdict for the No. 18 Middle School case has been announced. As for the result..."

At this, Xu De paused, a smile spreading across his face. He said:

"My client is very satisfied!"

The client is very satisfied?

The reporters present were all sharp. Hearing this, they immediately started trying to deduce the verdict.

But the moment they did... the thought made them catch their breath.

The client is satisfied... What kind of sentence would it take to satisfy Yang Huan?

Remember, Yang Huan had lost his mother and sister. Before the trial, he had explicitly stated he wanted no financial settlement, only criminal accountability!

Would he be satisfied if Liu Jingqi got ten years?

No.

Twenty years?

Still no.

Even life imprisonment, or a suspended death sentence—which doesn’t exist for minors—wouldn’t be enough. The only possible outcome was...

The death penalty!!!

But the instant this answer surfaced, everyone on the scene was stunned. Emotions churned within them like roiling storm clouds, their eyes filled with shock and disbelief.

The death penalty?

Liu Jingqi received the death penalty? Could it be that what they thought they heard at the door wasn’t a mistake, not a hallucination, but the actual death sentence being pronounced for Liu Jingqi!?

This...

How is this possible? Liu Jingqi is 16; she can’t even get a life sentence. So...

"Was it the death penalty!? How did you do it!?"

Finally, someone couldn’t hold back and asked, shoving their microphone right up to his mouth.

Immediately, they were overcome with a desperate curiosity, their breathing shallow, consumed by the need to know.

Hearing this,

Xu De’s face broke into a professional smile.

"For the detailed case information, you can wait for the subsequent announcement from the court. I won’t be explaining much more here."

"You really can’t reveal anything?"

Someone asked, unwilling to give up:

"For example, about the sentence... can the victims rest in peace? Was a blood debt paid in blood?"

Although Liu Jingqi’s age had been corrected to eighteen, or rather, nineteen by now,

because the case still involved multiple minors like Yang Jiale, Qiao Wang, and Jiang Yu, it remained a confidential, non-public case. If Xu De rashly leaked the details, he would be held accountable.

But then again...

At that moment,

Yang Huan, beside him, suddenly became emotional and spoke up:

"They can!"

"...I’m so grateful to Lawyer Xu. If it weren’t for him, I would have had to just stand by and watch those butchers live on..."

As he spoke, Yang Huan’s eyes reddened again, and he couldn’t help but wipe away his tears.

"Thank you... Thank you!"

That was the truth of it.

In all of Lusen City, perhaps someone else would have been willing to take the case.

But no one else would have been like Xu De, aiming for the death penalty from the very beginning!

What would that have led to?

It would have led to the investigation going in a completely wrong direction!

The reason they were able to find the evidence was because Xu De doggedly pursued the age issue. Because he was going for the death penalty from the start, he kept a close watch on her age.

What if they had just pursued accountability within the known parameters, trying their best under the circumstances?