Chapter 226 - 133: The Labeling Tactic

A buzz of discussion rose from the audience below the stage.

On the surface, however, the vast majority seemed quite satisfied.

For instance, the governance measures implemented after the case.

The accountability of the No. 18 Middle School administration, the handling of the teachers, the city-wide sweep to uncover other similar vicious incidents, and the resolutions and results of those newly discovered cases.

Huang Shi reported on each of these points. The presentation far surpassed the previous administrative case from Hedong City; it was thorough, logical, and complete from beginning to end.

However...

"First, the verdict was beautifully handled. On the surface, it’s a perfect score."

Then, suddenly.

A middle-aged man in a long robe, sitting in the front row, abruptly spoke up.

He wore a black robe with a bright red placket adorned with four gabardine buttons, and his cuffs were embroidered.

Embroidered on his left breast was the legal emblem: wheat sheaves, a gear, an ornamental pillar, scales...

His eyes, which seemed to see right through a person’s heart, stared intently at Huang Shi on the stage as he said,

"But, just as Lu Guohua remarked regarding the previous case,"

"In this case selection, we value cases that offer a permanent solution, that can ’stop the bleeding’."

"Campus bullying is a recurring issue at the grassroots level. The Lusen City No. 18 Middle School case was resolved with excellent results, but in terms of the methods used..."

As he spoke,

Song Xuejiang’s brow furrowed, and his voice rang out, making hearts pound.

"In my opinion, this is a completely failed, textbook example of how *not* to do things—one that treats laws and regulations as if they are nothing!"

The moment the words fell,

Huang Shi’s heart tightened on stage.

’Calling it a textbook negative example right off the bat!? This...’

But Song Xuejiang paid no mind to his reaction, immediately firing off an extremely sharp question that struck at the very core of the case.

"From what I understand, the investigations cited in this case were all trial ambushes, presented without prior cross-examination before the hearing."

"My question is..."

"Did your side, in handling this case, deliberately circumvent the judicial evidence-gathering process!?"

’Deliberately circumventing the evidence-gathering process?’

In short, it was a circumvention of procedure.

Procedure. Most people might see it as nothing more than a burden.

After all, a case requires going through many procedures. Sometimes, by the time you get the warrant to make an arrest, the suspect has already fled. Conversely, you might catch them if you act without one.

In reality, this is a mistaken view.

Procedure...

It is the sacred weapon that symbolizes legal authority and axiomatic justice!

All governance in society is conducted through procedure. All legitimacy is channeled through procedure, seeping down layer by layer from the highest authorities to the grassroots, ultimately reaching every citizen.

If this accusation from Vice Dean Song of the Provincial High Court were to be confirmed...

Forget about the case.

The Lusen City Municipal Prosecutor’s Office itself would be put under a full investigation!

"Our side..."

On stage, the realization instantly drenched Huang Shi in a cold sweat. He racked his brains, desperately trying to figure out how to respond.

He flipped through the prosecutor’s office script in front of him, searching for a long time, but couldn’t find an answer to this question.

The prosecutor’s office had anticipated being challenged over the trial ambush, but this angle of deliberately circumventing judicial procedure... they truly hadn’t considered it.

Until...

Then, in a blur,

Huang Shi caught a glimpse of a figure in the very back of the courtroom out of the corner of his eye. The person was making a page-turning motion at him.

He paused.

Without a moment’s hesitation, he immediately pulled out a second script. After flipping just a few pages, his eyes lit up.

The next second,

"First, regarding Vice Dean Song’s question, our side would like to make a declaration."

"We did not deliberately circumvent the process, nor did we show contempt for the court’s trial procedures!"

Huang Shi declared,

"In the preliminary stages, we proactively submitted leads multiple times."

"However, because the involved parties colluded to protect each other, covering things up at every level, these leads could not be substantiated."

"Therefore, our side was aware."

"Presenting the evidence before trial would have inevitably led to the perpetrators retracting their confessions, witnesses changing their testimony, and the destruction of original evidence!"

If Xu De had presented this information as evidence at the first hearing, then in the subsequent twenty days, Lv Guangjun and Zhang Wei would have had time to alter the evidence accordingly.

This wasn’t just a scary thought; it was what the other party had already done. The three parties had coordinated their stories, which would have drastically diminished the power of the evidence.

"It is for this very reason—to protect the objective judicial evidence from being compromised by other factors—that we chose to act this way."

"In conclusion."

Huang Shi stared at the script.

The corner of his eye twitched. He opened his mouth, really not wanting to say the next words, but forced them out against his will.

"This was not a trial ambush."

"It was merely a... delayed submission!"

’Not an improper ambush?’

’But a delayed submission of evidence!?’

When those last two words fell, Song Xuejiang paused for a moment.

Even the hundred-odd people in the conference room all raised their eyebrows in unison. A look of astonishment spread across their faces as they stared at him, dumbfounded. They were clearly stunned.

’Delayed submission...’

’What a "delayed submission"!’

Although the action was a trial ambush, framing it with those two words—"delayed submission"—changed the entire flavor of it.

The art of language!

「In the last row of the conference room.」

"When did the prosecutor’s office get so shameless..."

Zhang Bingxin watched Huang Shi read from the script, his brow furrowed in suspicion.

’A trial ambush is a trial ambush. After ambushing them, they even forced them into cross-examination, and it didn’t just happen once...’

And yet, when faced with the question of the "ambush,"

their answer was that the representing attorney wasn’t maliciously ambushing anyone.

’He was merely delaying the submission of evidence!’

’Unbelievable. They’ll really say anything to win...’

To one side, a satisfied smile spread across Xu De’s face. He was extremely pleased with the script he had written.

...

On stage,

Song Xuejiang said no more.

Just as Huang Shi saw this and was about to breathe a sigh of relief...