Chapter 234 - 136: Discussion

Xu De held the scarf, looked at her, and smiled.

"This isn’t safe."

"But it’s warm!" Lin Yue said.

"Forget it. Safety first."

Xu De shook his head and wrapped the scarf around her.

Lin Yue didn’t seem to mind. She took off one of her white, fleece-lined gloves and handed it to him.

"This is safe."

"Mm."

Xu De nodded, took the glove, and immediately slipped his hand into it.

Lin Yue had been wearing it for over ten minutes, so the inside of the glove was already toasty. Putting it on felt like slipping into a pre-warmed bed, the fleece lining pressing softly against his skin.

"Let’s go," Xu De said.

Then, the two of them stood up and headed outside.

In the snow, in the snow-blanketed Wutong City, two sets of footprints stretched out from the hotel as they walked and chatted idly.

...

The official reception center.

Around 10:30 in the morning.

WHOOSH.

Xu De felt the chill and exhaled a puff of warm air. He walked up to the reception center and pushed the door open.

The reception center was heated. As he stepped inside, the warmth enveloped him, and he couldn’t help but relax. Lin Yue began her "super disassembly," peeling off layer after layer of clothing.

He walked to the front desk.

"Hello, I’m looking for Huang Shi and Zhang Bingxin from Lusen City."

The receptionist nodded, asked a few questions, then picked up the landline and dialed a few room numbers.

Before long, by the elevators,

Huang Shi and Zhang Bingxin appeared. They hurried over to Xu De, their faces etched with confusion.

"What’s going on?"

"Let me be clear, we don’t have a case evaluation today, so we don’t have to go to any meetings... Of course, we can if you want."

Hearing this,

Xu De’s expression didn’t change. He pointed to a nearby waiting lounge and said, "Let’s talk in there."

Huang Shi and Zhang Bingxin paused.

Then, they instinctively glanced at each other.

Their intuition told them... with an attitude like that, he was definitely up to no good.

They grew wary but still followed him into the lounge.

A moment later, the four of them were seated on a sofa. Huang Shi and Zhang Bingxin frowned, looking at Xu De in confusion.

"What on earth is going on?"

Xu De didn’t speak. He just reached into his coat, pinched a smooth card between his fingers, then pulled it out and tossed it onto the table.

CLACK!

The plastic card landed on the table with a crisp sound.

The two men looked down, and their brows furrowed even deeper.

It was... a bank card!?

"What’s the meaning of this?"

Huang Shi looked up at Xu De, his eyes filled with confusion.

"Someone from Lanhua Law Firm gave it to me an hour ago."

Xu De stated succinctly, looking at the two men before him.

Lanhua Law Firm... Lanhua Law Firm gave it to you!?

"That’s not right. Why would they give you a bank card for no reason?"

Zhang Bingxin’s brow knotted. He sensed something was wrong and looked up at Xu De.

"To bribe me,"

Xu De said flatly.

A... a bribe!?

Huang Shi froze, his expression turning from shock to sudden understanding. He frowned and said,

"So..."

"The No. 18 Middle School case is connected to Lanhua Law Firm?"

"Is that Bar Association president one of Lanhua’s people? Dammit, I knew there was a reason the No. 18 Middle School case was mysteriously rejected!"

Huang Shi said in a low voice.

He was a smart man and instantly understood what Xu De was implying.

This move by Feng Ji was clearly the old ’stick and carrot’ routine.

Unfortunately, the stick had also inadvertently hit Huang Shi...

For someone like him, having handled a classic case was something to be proud of for a lifetime. Not to mention, it was extremely useful for one’s career path!

Something that had been a sure thing was sabotaged... Anyone in his position would be resentful.

However...

"Did you take the money?"

Beside them, Zhang Bingxin suddenly frowned, his gaze falling, intentionally or not, on the bank card on the table.

Xu De replied, "I was just gathering evidence."

The hotel lobby is a public space. There were receptionists and other staff around, and there were even security cameras in the corners.

There’s no expectation of privacy there. The entire process of Sun Jianshan giving me the bank card was clearly visible. You could even read his lips!

But that raised another question.

"What are you gathering evidence for?"

Zhang Bingxin was stunned. Realizing this was bad news, he crossed his arms in a defensive posture and watched Xu De warily.

Evidence has only one purpose.

To be presented!

But again, the question was, how would he present it? Or rather, who would he present it to!?

"Gathering evidence..."

Xu De paused, then without any hesitation, he revealed his intentions.

"To present it, of course, and protect my own interests!"

"On January 23rd, tomorrow, the evaluation for the Li Family Village case begins. If necessary... I will try to launch a counterattack against Feng Ji during the evaluation."

A counterattack during the evaluation!?

Almost at the same time.

"No!"

Huang Shi and Zhang Bingxin immediately spoke out to stop him, their brows knitted in a serious frown.

"That... is against the rules."

After a moment of thought, Zhang Bingxin shook his head. "There will be a lot of people there. Wutong City is the provincial capital, and Feng Ji is the president of the Provincial Bar Association."

"More importantly, the evaluation assembly is the most authoritative body in the entire province."

"Presenting evidence during the evaluation... You’d be challenging the judiciary itself."

Official bodies need to maintain their authority.

This kind of provocative act... is very likely to displease people.

Just think about the four judges down in front...

What do you think will happen if you provoke them in public?

"What about a different approach?"

Huang Shi thought for a moment and couldn’t help but ask.

"For example, reporting him privately?"

Huang Shi was furious.

In fact, he’d been furious ever since he got back on the afternoon of the 20th.

During the evaluation meeting, he had clearly done his utmost to present the case in its entirety, and even the judges had been satisfied.

But then... Feng Ji had to go and meddle, and just like that, it was all for nothing.

If you had to say which of the three of them hated Feng Ji the most... it was definitely Huang Shi!

But despite his hatred, he was still rational. He wasn’t the type to throw caution to the wind with an extreme desire for revenge.

"Reporting it after the meeting is useless."

Xu De shook his head.

"I’m willing to bet this matter doesn’t violate any criminal laws."

In fact, this kind of thing happens in every province.

The reason it’s never been corrected is twofold. First, it doesn’t violate criminal law. These are subjective judgments, and a personal explanation can easily circumvent judicial scrutiny.

Second, the parties involved don’t even need to communicate!

That’s right.

The Bar Association members and those professors just need to look at Feng Ji’s expression.

If he indicates ’no’ at the evaluation assembly, they vote ’no.’ If he indicates ’yes,’ they all vote ’yes’ in unison.

What about communicating before the meeting?

There’s no need. Communicating beforehand would be a waste of time and create evidence that could be used against them.

So...

"The only way to handle this is to expose it..."

Xu De said slowly.

Only when you have evidence in hand can you expose it in front of everyone and flip the table on them.

Only then can you take them down.

And it has to be done somewhere with important people present!

If you were to expose it at some small-scale regional event... you wouldn’t be flipping the table, you’d just be engaging in ’private discussion,’ ’speculation,’ or ’suspicion.’

Even if it did cause a stir, at such a low level, Feng Ji could use his connections to sweep it under the rug.

Therefore...

"Right now, the only stage grand enough for this is the evaluation assembly."

Xu De said slowly.

The two men before him grew more hesitant, clearly having reservations.

And they had good reason to.

Zhang Bingxin was in his fifties and still had a chance for further advancement.

Huang Shi, even more so, had reached this level at only thirty-five. With this nomination, he might even be promoted from a deputy to a full position in ’03.

After that, climbing even higher would be a sure thing!

Making mortal enemies of everyone at this juncture...

You didn’t need to think twice to know it was a terrible move.

However...

"Don’t worry."

Xu De crossed his arms. He looked at the two men and suddenly began to explain,

"This matter..."

"...has nothing to do with the judicial system, actually."