Chapter 4 - 2: This Lawyer Has No Morals

The door opened.

Zhang Hu followed Xu De toward the main hall.

On the way.

Colleagues in the hall noticed Zhang Hu’s grateful expression and raised their eyebrows.

’He solved it?’

Even the people in the finance office were a little surprised.

Inside the finance office.

"Li, could you please settle the bill for my client?"

Xu De said to a plain-looking female employee.

Hearing this, the woman looked up at Xu De, then over at Zhang Hu, a hint of astonishment on her face.

"Lawyer Xu, you resolved the consultation?"

Xu De nodded. "Yes."

At his confirmation, the female employee was quite surprised.

She knew this was a dispute case involving a package contract, the kind that required real strategizing!

For a case like this, even an elite lawyer’s solution would usually involve the client having to swallow their pride and accept a loss.

And yet, judging by the client’s expression... he was clearly very satisfied.

’What kind of advice did he give Zhang Hu!?’

Li finally suppressed her curiosity, took a deep breath, and said:

"Alright, please wait a moment."

A moment later, the invoice was in Zhang Hu’s hands.

He stared at it and suddenly froze, a look of astonishment on his face.

"Why is the fee only seven hundred!?"

Zhang Hu frowned. "I want to add twenty thousand. This is my choice, add it to the bill!"

Li’s eye twitched.

Before she could speak, Xu De, who was standing to the side, spoke up:

"That’s against the rules, Mr. Zhang. If you’re satisfied... just adding a few hundred is enough."

’Overcharging is no small matter. I don’t want any trouble for my legal license before I resign.’

Zhang Hu didn’t insist. He nodded.

"Then make it 999."

Hearing this, Li silently wrote out a new receipt.

This one-hour consultation... earned more than her entire month’s salary. She couldn’t help but think to herself:

’Is this still the same Xu De from before? How did he do it...?’

Meanwhile, Zhang Hu held the receipt and looked at Xu De with deep emotion.

"Lawyer Xu, I really can’t thank you enough for your help this time!"

"Just doing my job," Xu De said with a smile.

Zhang Hu turned to leave. He had to go home and tell his wife, "I love you, and I don’t want a divorce anymore."

However...

"Wait a moment."

Xu De looked at the extra money on the receipt and suddenly called out to him.

"Mr. Zhang, I remember you said the third party called you, and even showed you videos and photos of him and your wife? What was he trying to do?"

Zhang Hu, who was at the door, stopped in his tracks. He turned back and said instinctively:

"What else could he be doing? He was threatening me for money, or he’d expose the videos."

"Did you give him any?" Xu De asked.

Zhang Hu’s brow furrowed, and he said indignantly:

"Of course not! I hung up the phone as soon as he finished talking."

Hearing this.

Xu De feigned a sigh of relief.

"It’s a good thing you didn’t."

Zhang Hu was stunned. "What do you mean?" he asked, confused.

Xu De replied:

"If you hadn’t hung up and had instead offered him two or three hundred to destroy the video..."

"...he absolutely would have been enraged. At the same time, he’d realize there was money to be made. Then, if he’d gotten greedy and used the private videos to threaten you for a few million..."

"...and if you had been forced to agree and pay up, it would have been a disaster!"

"That would make him guilty of blackmail and extortion. It wouldn’t matter if your wife consented to the video or forgave him, because the crime against you would have been successfully committed. And that’s a felony!"

"The court would sentence him to at least ten years—a full decade! It would ruin his entire life!!!"

"Fortunately, you hung up the phone."

Zhang Hu: !!!

Those words struck Zhang Hu’s mind like a bolt of lightning.

His breathing grew rapid, and his gaze on Xu De became increasingly fervent, until he finally couldn’t help but ask:

"Is... isn’t that illegal?"

"What’s illegal? I was just reminding you not to get scammed," Xu De said evasively.

’A good lawyer...’

’This is the kind of good lawyer I’ve always wanted!!!’

Zhang Hu stared at him intently for a long time before finally taking a deep breath and walking out, energized.

As for Xu De, just as he placed his hand on the doorknob of the finance office, ready to leave...

A pale blue screen suddenly appeared before him again, and a voice sounded in his ears.

[Congratulations on completing Civil Consultation x1]

[(The client has expressed extremely high praise for your service and is very satisfied!)]

[Congratulations on receiving Gratitude Coin x10]

[Congratulations, your luck has exploded! You have obtained a Talent Skill: Culinary Skill Lv. 1 (0/10)]

Xu De stopped in his tracks.

’A skill? A reward?’

His heart skipped a beat, but he didn’t linger. He dismissed the screen and headed out.

CREAK~

The door to the finance office opened.

In the main hall, a few lawyers saw Xu De leaving for the day, and one of them couldn’t resist asking.

"Lawyer Xu, you resolved the consultation in Reception Room 103!?" a female lawyer asked, her face full of astonishment.