What's wrong with this lawyer?!

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But he was out of options, so he thought, might as well call that lawyer friend and hear their advice.

After all, he did have a bit of a connection to the case, as they were the victims.

He hadn't even started to explain when his lawyer friend on the other end said, "Director Ding, you don't have to say anything, I watched the live broadcast of the trial. All I can say is that this verdict... it's quite bold."

The two of them chatted casually for a bit when the lawyer friend chimed in, "Director Ding, let me ask, about the compensation your side previously received... you should start thinking of a way to deal with it..."

What? Ding Deshui was startled and said, "No, wait, Lawyer Zhou, what do you mean 'start thinking of a way'? What about the compensation?"

He didn't understand the implication at all.

Lawyer Zhou on the other end probably felt confused too, but quickly explained, "Director Ding, aren't you aware? I found out from the live broadcast—the Lincheng Court has rescinded the previous criminal and attached civil judgments, which means that all the money the other party compensated you has to be returned!"

What? The words stunned Ding Deshui, "Lawyer Zhou, are you joking? We have to give back the settlement money? Old Third was chopped to a bloody mess by the other party and stayed in the hospital for over a month, all that money was spent on the hospital. Why should we return it?"

"They were practicing self-defense... anyway, Director Ding, let's leave it at that, I have other matters to attend to..."

It was evident that Lawyer Zhou couldn't be bothered to explain further. Trying to make Director Ding understand the meaning of self-defense was going to be tough.

This clever maneuver was Lawyer Tang's trademark move, and Zhou was well aware of it.

Tang had pulled off a similar stunt in an earlier forced demolition case, and to Zhou's amazement, succeeded once again. All he could say was that it was truly impressive.

Ding Deshui put down the phone with a darkening expression. He had thought that even if the other side managed to reverse the verdict, it would not affect them. Your next read is at My Virtual Library Empire

Who could have imagined that they'd have to return the previously received compensation? Was there no justice, no law?

No, he had to find someone else to ask about what was really going on!

Of course, Ding Deshui was unaware that Old Tang was already on a bus headed for Changlu County.

There was no other option, Lincheng was poor, and Changlu County even poorer; no high-speed trains, and the regular ones were terribly slow; a bus was faster.

It's easy to fall asleep on the bus, and after dozing off for about three hours, he arrived.

Old Tang got off the bus, walked out of the tiny bus station and looked around—the hallmark of a small county town was apparent at a glance.

One could tell that the economy wasn't doing well without needing to compare it to the prosperous parts of the country; even compared to other counties under Jingzhou, it was significantly lacking.

Taking a random taxi, Old Tang quickly reached the entrance of the Public Security Bureau of Changlu County. Ten minutes later, the duty leader of the legal affairs department, Jia Zhaoming, appeared before Old Tang.

"It must be Lawyer Tang, truly young and promising. Please, have a seat over here!"

That was the advantage of having a good reputation; other lawyers reporting a case wouldn't have received such treatment.

One does not slap away a smiling face, so Old Tang had nothing to say against it, and followed to the adjacent office.

"Please, Lawyer Tang, have some water first."

After watching Tang Fangjing take a sip of water, Jia Zhaoming finally smiled and said, "Although I've never met Lawyer Tang before, I've heard from colleagues in Jingzhou—you're quite direct. So, tell me, what brings you here?"

Upon receiving the call, Jia Zhaoming was a bit perplexed. Wasn't Tang Fangjing supposed to be in court this morning at the Lincheng Intermediate Court? How could he have arrived in Changlu County so soon.

Thinking it over, it seems he came straight to Changlu County after the court session had ended.

A person who reached his position, Jia Zhaoming could quickly guess that Tang Fangjing's visit was definitely related to a previous case.

Old Tang, oblivious to Jia's thoughts, simply stated, "Actually, Chief Jia, I'm here to file a report."

"Report a case?" Jia Zhaoming felt a twinge of worry, but still smiled and asked, "What kind of case does Lawyer Tang wish to report?"

Old Tang replied with a chuckle, "It's about the deliberate destruction of my client Huang Licheng's property by the village committee of Er Tou Village in Gao Family Town."

Jia Zhaoming's brow furrowed immediately; as he feared, Lawyer Tang was here for that case.

"Lawyer Tang, but a report must be accompanied by evidence, and you are a professional..."

Upon hearing this, Old Tang began pulling things out of his briefcase and said, "Chief Jia, I understand the rules."

"This is the first piece of evidence, the judgment from the Lincheng Intermediate Court, just issued this morning. It states that my client Huang Licheng acted in self-defense. Since it's self-defense, there must be an illegal infringement. According to the judgment, the offending party is the village committee of Er Tou Village."

Jia Zhaoming took the judgment, looking puzzled. A fresh judgment used as evidence... this approach was unusual.

But before he could even digest the information, Old Tang continued:

"If you feel the judgment is not sufficient, no worry, I have more evidence."

"What other evidence?" Jia Zhaoming asked reflexively.

"These are the pieces of evidence initially transferred from the Changlu County Public Security Bureau to the Changlu County Prosecutor's Office, which include Huang Licheng's interrogation transcript, and..."

Several copied pieces of evidence were laid in front of him, with key content highlighted by Tang Fangjing, demonstrating that the demolition of the orchard continued while Huang Licheng defended himself.

Also, photos taken by the police at the scene after Huang Licheng had been subdued, proving that plenty of fruit trees had already been forcibly removed at that point.

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