MWC – Chapter 18 Claims (2)

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A few minutes later, someone came to invite Ms. Wang out, likely to discuss with Charlie Tang.

After another ten minutes, Charlie Tang and Ms. Wang returned to the conference room.

Both of them looked rather unhappy.

Lu Ming slowly sipped his coffee. Recently, in Beiguan, he had often been served coffee in various places, but this law firm provided the best quality coffee for its guests. Rich and delicious, truly a display of their wealth, using premium coffee beans for their hospitality.

As for this case, it wasn’t entirely this firm’s fault for being ignorant.

Nowadays, much like the time when modern laws were properly established in his previous life, rapid technological advancement necessitated the revision of many old laws. Additionally, the progress in humanities further promoted many principles of modern law.

Comparing the cases of this era with those from his previous life was an eye-opening experience, making him very attentive to new cases that represented legal progress.

However, for a small-town lawyer like Charlie Tang, it was natural not to pay attention to so many details.

Charlie Tang’s face was ashen as he wrote a number on a piece of paper and swiftly pushed it over.

Lu Ming opened it and saw “500”. He smiled, “Lawyer Tang, if you don’t want to waste time, I hope your client can show some sincerity.”

“You should show this number to your client and see if she is satisfied. Please adhere to the lawyer’s code of conduct!” Charlie Tang said with a stern face.

Lu Ming smiled, “My client has instructed me that anything below 2500 yuan is not up for discussion.”

Charlie Tang suppressed his anger, “Your client purchased the machine for only 700 yuan. Even with repair costs, it’s only 1100 yuan!”

After whispering to Ms. Wang, she nodded, and he wrote another number and handed it over.

This time, the number was “1000”.

Charlie Tang said grimly, “This is our final offer. Otherwise, see you in court!”

Lu Ming spread his hands, “Then what about the rent during the downtime? The workers’ wages? And my client’s expected income during this period?” He paused, “As for the mental distress my client suffered because of this, my client is willing to forgo that compensation.”

Charlie Tang sneered, “Your client’s laundry shop barely had any customers even when it was operating. Is that location suitable for a laundry shop?”

Lu Ming took another sip of coffee and said blandly, “That’s because the laundry shop breaks down constantly, causing customers to lose confidence. I will prove this to the judge and jury.” He then turned to Ms. Wang, “Manager Wang, if this goes to court, I will thoroughly investigate all your past transaction records. I believe my client isn’t the only one who has suffered such losses from your second-hand appliances. I will find as many victims as possible. I hope you are prepared for a class-action lawsuit.”

Ms. Wang’s face turned pale immediately. Charlie Tang stood up abruptly, “Lawyer Lu, you are threatening my client!”

Lu Ming leaned back in his chair, spreading his hands nonchalantly.

Inwardly amused, he thought he probably looked quite annoying, but that’s how lawyers operated. Threats, bluffs, and anything to win the maximum benefit for the client was the hard truth.

Ms. Wang’s face alternated between green and white. She leaned over and whispered something in Charlie Tang’s ear.

Charlie Tang frowned, trying to dissuade her, but she waved her hand resolutely.

Ever since she realized that her lawyer had no clue about what the other side’s lawyer was saying and needed to look up the information, she had lost confidence in Charlie Tang.

Charlie Tang, resigned, instructed the clerk next to him, “Prepare the settlement agreement.” Then he turned to Lu Ming, “2500 yuan, but you must sign a confidentiality agreement!”

Lu Ming looked at Pamela, “Mrs. Pamela, are you willing to sign a confidentiality agreement for 2500 yuan in compensation?”

Pamela, dazed, had her long, beautiful nails digging into her thigh. She nodded gently, “I agree…”

Charlie Tang looked at Lu Ming, “Lawyer Lu, I hope to have the chance to learn from you in court someday.” Deep down, he was likely frustrated and unconvinced, but using the word “learn” with a rookie lawyer implicitly acknowledged his own inferior position.

Lu Ming smiled and didn’t engage in a verbal sparring match.

……

In front of the clock tower building of the Imperial Bank’s Beiguan branch, Lu Ming sat in the passenger seat of the Snow Dragon Phantom, bored and flipping through a fashion magazine.

With the sound of clicking footsteps, Pamela walked back and got into the driver’s seat, having likely deposited Ms. Wang’s check into her account.

2500 yuan, probably more than Pamela had saved up when she first moved to Beiguan.

After several months of back and forth, she ended up making a profit.

Pamela opened her beautiful rose-colored handbag, took out a checkbook, wrote a number, tore it off, and handed it to Lu Ming. “This is for you.”

Lu Ming took it and was taken aback. The number on it was “1000 yuan.”

“That’s too much!” Lu Ming smiled.

“I was worried you’d think it’s too little! And there’s also for Bess’s case.” Pamela’s deep blue eyes showed gratitude. “I know the rules. This money is not much.”

For this lawsuit, both sides didn’t formally sign an agency agreement, but typically, in such compensation cases, if there’s no formal agreement, the default is a percentage of the amount in dispute, with lawyers taking a commission of 10% to 30%, plus additional costs for labor, materials, and consultation fees.

Pamela had clearly paid according to the highest commission rate, and the 100 yuan lawyer’s fee for Bess’s case was well worth it given how beautifully it was handled.

Then, she rounded up the total amount.

Lu Ming looked at the check and nodded. This woman was not stingy.

“Now that you have money, do you still want to keep running your laundry shop? I can give you a discount on the rent.” Lu Ming said with a smile.

Pamela looked at him with her blue eyes. “A few days ago, you told me you had a job opportunity for me. Have you taken that back?”

Lu Ming was taken aback, then smiled, “Of course not. But I didn’t expect…” Wasn’t she worried about my ulterior motives?

Pamela stared at him. “I realized that if I work for you, maybe it’s my good luck coming.”

If in Bess’s case, there was a sense that the judge sympathized with a young child, then in this case, it was clear that this young lawyer, neighbor, and landlord was truly extraordinary.

It wasn’t just that he won the case, but from start to finish, his performance was on a completely different level from the opposing lawyer.

Although she had been naive as a child, her parents’ teachings often came back to her now.

As a child, she had seen many outstanding and significant people come and go in her home. Those top-tier individuals seemed to naturally possess a certain quality.

This young man was undoubtedly one of them.

Such remarkable people are ones that ordinary people might never encounter in a lifetime.

To have the opportunity to interact with such a person was indeed a fortunate thing.

People like this usually wouldn’t do something special just for beauty; their thinking was on a completely different plane from ordinary people.

Of course, he wasn’t helping her without reason, but no matter what, if she let this opportunity slip away, she might regret it later.

And if such a person were actually infatuated with her looks, it would be something to be proud of, wouldn’t it?

What am I thinking about?

Pamela was startled, sighing inwardly. Sometimes, she admired the loyalty of Zhongzhou people. Being proud of captivating a man was her old world’s way of thinking. Noblewomen, like her mother, were like this. But she didn’t expect that she, too, was subconsciously the same. It wasn’t easy to change one’s bloodline.

But what if he really did fall for her? What would she do then?

Pamela felt momentarily lost. From an emotional and rational standpoint, being entangled in a romantic relationship with a Zhongzhou man would be embarrassing.

Lu Ming had no idea what Pamela was thinking. Seeing her suddenly dazed, sometimes her blue eyes were lost, sometimes she seemed a bit ashamed, he waved a hand in front of her eyes and roughly said, “Hey, hey! Time to take in the laundry before it rains!”

Pamela snapped out of it and couldn’t help but laugh. Maybe she was overthinking. He really was different.

Being with him felt particularly comfortable.

Pamela sighed softly, “Do you think I’m very brainless? I’ve thought it over. This money, after paying the workers’ wages, there’s not much left. To cover Bess’s school fees, the rent, and to give Bess a good life without her worrying about me at such a young age, if I don’t accept your offer now, I will regret it later!”

Lu Ming smiled and extended his hand, “Alright, then I officially welcome you to join my team!”

Pamela hesitated for a moment before extending her fair hand, with light green nail polish, to shake Lu Ming’s. “Okay, b…boss…”

The pronunciation of the word for “boss” in Western languages was similar to “BOSS.” She used the Western term to ease the awkwardness of calling someone “boss” for the first time. This had nothing to do with whether Lu Ming was from Zhongzhou or not. Even in her rough times, she had her pride and had never worked for anyone.

Lu Ming laughed, “My team finally has two people now!”

Pamela was stunned and then burst out laughing, “So, you’re a one-man team!”

Her smile was very similar to Bess’s, very sweet. After all, she was just a 23-year-old girl.

Lu Ming said with a laugh, “What? Regretting it already? Let me tell you, a verbal agreement is equally binding. If you regret it now, the check you just deposited won’t be enough to compensate.”

Pamela shook her head lightly, “I never regret my decisions.”

Lu Ming was taken aback, not expecting her to become serious suddenly.

Pamela then smiled, her blue eyes looking at Lu Ming, “Boss, I don’t know why, but I’m starting to like you!” Then she laughed, “Don’t get me wrong! It’s not that kind of like. You Zhongzhou people always misunderstand when we say ‘like’.”

Lu Ming snorted, “You think you can love me whenever you want?” He rolled his eyes, opened the car door, and said, “Let’s go. Let’s check on Bess. She’s probably upstairs playing with Hanzhu again, right?”

Watching Lu Ming’s back, Pamela finally understood what “you think you can love me whenever you want” meant and burst out laughing again, inexplicably feeling very happy.

She got out of the car and followed him.

She was tall, almost as tall as Lu Ming. The beautiful Western woman, with her red puff skirt revealing her smooth shoulders and creamy white back, her golden hair and blue eyes, tall and sexy, her enticing white feet in red high heels, walking with confident elegance beside Lu Ming, made him feel like he was back in his previous life.