What was the price? Or rather, what did Yang Guotao want?
He didn’t want anything.
Or perhaps... all Yang Guotao wanted was a chance to personally ’contribute’ something to Xu De!
For Xu De, this was a deal with no downside—a massive windfall!
"Brother Yang, since that’s the case... I’ll have to trouble you, then!" Xu De said without pretense.
Seeing this, Yang Guotao broke into a genuine smile and said repeatedly:
"No trouble, no trouble at all!"
"No, that’s not right. It should be... just let me know anytime you’re in trouble!"
He said it, and he meant it.
He was truly fed up with his position as Deputy Director. He genuinely wanted to advance in his career!
But there was nothing he could do. The legal environment in Lusen City was what it was...
The Intermediate Court didn’t dare to issue ’not guilty’ verdicts; they preferred to be more conservative!
But the law always has to move forward. If they remained this conservative, how could the environment possibly improve?
It wouldn’t. A poor environment meant the importance of lawyers would plummet. In criminal cases, it would become a situation of ’you can argue all you want, I’ll rule how I want,’ essentially turning the court into a one-man show.
While this approach prevented major errors overall, it created other problems.
What about public opinion!?
And how could the role of a lawyer be demonstrated!?
Regarding the former, if public opinion turned negative, Yang Guotao of the Justice Bureau would be the one to take the fall and face the criticism.
The latter was even more fatal.
The Justice Bureau’s job is to manage lawyers. If lawyers have absolutely no voice in court and can’t demonstrate their value, how could the Justice Bureau possibly earn any merit!?
Thus, he was trapped in a vicious cycle, and Yang Guotao had remained in his position, year after year.
Until... he received a piece of news yesterday.
The vicious cycle in Lusen City...
Had been shattered by the brute force of one young man’s punch!
"Little... haha, I’m going to take the liberty of calling you Xu!"
Yang Guotao felt a wave of relief. He hadn’t laughed so heartily in a long time.
The unwritten rule that had trapped him for so long and made him a scapegoat for years was gone, and it all happened because of the young man standing right in front of him!
To be honest, even if Xu De never took another case, the environment in Lusen City would never be as bad as it was before.
Why?
Because the first step is always the hardest.
And Xu De had already forced Hu Guang and Zhang Bingxin to take that most crucial and most important first step forward!
"Xu, are you in a hurry to register your law firm right now?"
Yang Guotao was in an excellent mood, his words carrying a hint of suggestion.
Xu De, however, didn’t fuss over how the man addressed him.
’Are you kidding me? Lusen City is a prefecture-level city. Yang Guotao is unequivocally a high-level leader, at least a deputy division chief. Becoming friends with someone like that on a legitimate, mutually beneficial basis would make my peers so jealous they wouldn’t be able to sleep at night!’
"I am in a bit of a hurry. I’m a little short on funds," Xu De said.
"Is that so... Rest assured, our Justice Bureau never mistreats those who have rendered meritorious service."
Yang Guotao thought for a moment, then took this small matter upon himself.
"I’ll take the documents. I’ll expedite the registration for your law firm."
"The loan will be even easier. I’ll just have to make a call for you when the time comes."
When he said expedite, he probably meant *really* expedite.
Besides, this was all above board. Even if the main director found out... he would only hate himself for not acting faster than Yang Guotao, not reprimand him.
After all, it was written policy for local governments to favor and recruit special talents.
For a talent like Xu De... delaying your recruitment offer by even a second would be a dereliction of your duty!
As for the registration time...
"Half a month. It should be done in about 15 days," Yang Guotao said.
"Then thank you, Brother Yang!"
Xu De smiled, and they immediately exchanged personal phone numbers.
They chatted for a little while longer before he finally left.
Although, Xu De had always believed a "win-win" meant he himself won twice. For example, his "win-win" with Li Youcai was a case of him having his cake and eating it too, winning twice!
But clearly, this situation was more in line with the common understanding of the term: both parties were very satisfied.
Xu De gained a host of valuable resources. The process, which would have taken at least 40 days, was forcefully compressed to just 15, allowing him to open for business 25 days earlier.
Yang Guotao also profited. He had invested in and recruited talent on behalf of the Justice Bureau. If this person developed well... it would be a major accomplishment on his resume!
"Liu, I’m giving special approval to expedite this file. Stamp it, then send it to the provincial office immediately."
Yang Guotao said with a smile, looking at his subordinate to the side, who still hadn’t eaten.
Hearing him, the subordinate snapped back to his senses and quickly took the file.
"Yes, sir!"
He hurried to process it.
Watching him, Yang Guotao sat back in his chair and chuckled. "Are you wondering who that lawyer was?"
Hearing this, Liu, who was in the middle of processing the file, paused, an embarrassed look on his face.
That was exactly why he had been dazed just now.
It couldn’t be helped.
Yang Guotao was a deputy division chief. You could say he was the top administrator of Lusen City’s legal circle, with a great deal of real power in his hands!
In the past, he’d been dismissive even when long-famous Gold Medal Lawyers or directors of major law firms came to see him. Why was he so happy with a young lawyer today...?
"Heh, you wouldn’t understand!"
Yang Guotao was in a wonderful mood today and decided to be mysterious. He changed the subject, saying:
"Tonight at 7:30 PM, the official Lusen City television station... you can watch it."
"After you watch, you’ll know who he is."
’7:30 PM? Prime time on the official TV station?’
’I’m going to find out about a young lawyer from *there*!?’
Liu was stunned. He looked up, but Yang Guotao had already left. He could only bury his confusion in his heart and silently make a mental note to watch the news tonight.
...
...
CREAK~
"You’re here? Let’s hear it. What exactly is going on!"
「7:00 PM.」
Torch Road, Jinmao Law Firm. All the lawyers had gone home for the day, but one office remained brightly lit.
Three people were gathered in the office.
A television hanging on the wall was quietly broadcasting the news, its voice calm and clear.
Director Han sat in the main seat. He capped his pen and looked up, his grim face fixed on the lawyer who had just entered.
The man was the head of the criminal division, a senior executive under the firm’s director.
He had originally planned to meet with him this morning to get a clear answer, but a client’s case couldn’t be postponed, so he had to wait until after court adjourned to see him.
"This business with Lawyer Xu... what the hell is going on!?" Director Han’s face was dark, his tone laced with suppressed fury.
Seeing his expression, Section Chief Zhang of the criminal division subconsciously glanced to his side at Section Chief Jin of the civil division, who had arrived earlier.
Section Chief Jin saw his look, sighed softly, and gave him a nod.
"Xu De?"
Section Chief Zhang was also a bit stunned. He looked at Director Han; this situation seemed to be different from what he had expected.
When he didn’t answer, Director Han pressed again, "Lawyer Xu terminated his contract."
"He left!?" Section Chief Zhang blurted out, stunned.
"Heh, with something like this happening at the firm... if it were you, wouldn’t you leave!?"
Director Han could barely contain the rage in his chest, his voice dripping with aggression.
With that, he stared intently at the man and said bluntly:
"Section Chief Zhang, you tell me, this business about Lawyer Xu only making three thousand seven hundred yuan in consultation fees over three months... does it have something to do with Sun Hao!"
Section Chief Zhang’s heart skipped a beat. He hesitated, wanting to speak but holding back, before finally nodding.
"Yes."
As soon as the word was out, Director Han took a deep breath, closed his eyes, and leaned back in his chair.
Before the man arrived, he had already asked Section Chief Jin. The answer he received was... Sun Hao had been making things difficult for Xu De!
’That idiot! He sabotaged the very talent I sent him to build a relationship with, someone I was relying on!!!’
And the reason?
Section Chief Jin guessed it was jealousy born from insecurity... it was such a ridiculous, even absurd, answer!
At the time, Director Han had even thought the man was joking with him.
’Why would you be jealous of a talent like that? Wouldn’t it be better to build a good relationship with him and reap the practical benefits!?’
But that was the reality of the situation.
Furthermore, because Sun Hao was his relative, Section Chief Jin and Section Chief Zhang hadn’t been certain and had indirectly assumed he had authorized it, so they never dared to report it up the chain...
He even deduced that...
The bonus he had privately given Sun Hao to pass on to Xu De to ’build a relationship’ had all been fucking embezzled by Sun Hao!
He even embezzled the seven hundred yuan, not leaving a single cent behind. When Director Han came to this conclusion, he nearly coughed up a mouthful of blood and fainted on the spot!
Three months, only 3,700 yuan in consultation fees, and even losing money on criminal cases... Now he finally understood why Xu De was willing to walk away without even taking the two hundred thousand...
"Idiot..."
Director Han was now trembling with anger, veins bulging on his forehead, his chest heaving violently.
He roared in fury:
"You IDIOT!!!"
The two men beside him were startled and quickly tried to calm him down.
"Director, please don’t be so angry. Sun Hao was indeed a bit foolish, but... it’s not like he caused a huge disaster, right?"
"Lawyer Xu is young, after all, and doesn’t have many resources. We don’t have any sunk costs in him. Besides, his case might not have been a complete success. Otherwise, the morning papers would have already been running special reports on it."
"Maybe the client was sentenced to six years, or three, leading the authorities to ban the spread of such negative news."
Hearing these words, Director Han’s anger subsided slightly, though he was still furious.
Indeed.
Xu De’s case might have been a win, but it was highly unlikely to be a major victory. Otherwise, knowing those reporters, they would have been broadcasting it everywhere by now.
So, his departure from the law firm, while a significant loss for them,
wasn’t the kind of loss that was so painful it was suffocating.
"Tell Sun Hao to get his ass over here to see me tomorrow."
Director Han suppressed his anger. After speaking, he stood up, ready to leave. Section Chief Jin and Section Chief Zhang also breathed a sigh of relief.
However, just as the three of them were preparing to pack up and leave, a clear and familiar voice suddenly came from the color TV hanging on the office wall.
"Welcome to today’s ’Lusen News.’ I’m your host, Wang Zhen..."
"Yesterday afternoon, at 5:30 PM, the Lusen City Intermediate People’s Court announced its verdict in the Li Family Village case. In the case, the defendant’s defense lawyer achieved victory through his professional competence."
"This lawyer demonstrated a solid foundation in legal theory, unique insights, and meticulous logic, along with outstanding critical thinking skills, all while balancing human ethics and upholding fairness and justice."
"..."
In a daze, the office fell deathly silent.
The three men who were about to leave froze in their tracks, as if time had stopped. It was so quiet they could hear each other breathing.
Director Han turned back, staring blankly at the news studio on the television screen.
’This is...’
’Xu De’s case?’
’Didn’t they say the result might not be satisfactory, that the morning papers weren’t even reporting on it, that there wasn’t a single mention in the newspapers...?’
’But... how did it end up on television!?’
Director Han’s gaze, fixed on the TV, gradually filled with astonishment.
The host’s voice, transmitted through the television, reached every corner of Lusen City, ringing clearly in everyone’s ears.
"As soon as the verdict was announced, it quickly sparked widespread public discussion."
"Regarding this case, cadres from the Lusen City Political and Legal Affairs Commission have praised it, and the judicial authorities have called it an unrepeatable case!"
It wasn’t just him.
At this very moment, in households all across the city, residents who had finished dinner and were sitting on their sofas watching TV were staring, utterly stunned.