MWC – Chapter 35 Attack and Defense

I AM DROPPING THIS NOVEL. IF ANYONE WANTS TO CONTINUE THEY CAN. IF POSSIBLE PLEASE SHARE THE LINK SO I CAN BINGE READ TOO.

The opening statements from both the prosecution and defense lasted more than an hour, with Liu Hanming taking up the majority of the time—about fifty minutes. Lu Ming only took about ten minutes for his statement.

After the opening statements, Judge Cao adjourned the court for a ten-minute recess. Following that, it was time for the cross-examination of witnesses by both the prosecution and the defense.

In the hallway, a female lawyer in a gray suit approached Lu Ming. “Lawyer Lu, can we talk for a moment?”

The female lawyer was Liu Hanming’s assistant, and Lu Ming had already gathered information about her. Her name was Zhang Jingjing, an outstanding young lawyer from a good family background, Liu Hanming’s apprentice, and a trainee lawyer who had just started this year.

With an oval face and a charming demeanor, she handed over a business card. “Lawyer Lu, once this case is over, we welcome you to join Liu Hanming’s law firm. In your second year, we guarantee you will become a junior partner. We can discuss the specific terms in detail.”

Lu Ming looked at the business card and smiled, “Can you make that decision?”

“If you’re interested, my mentor will talk to you once the case is over.” Zhang Jingjing scrutinized Lu Ming, feeling puzzled about why her mentor valued him so highly. A rookie lawyer being offered a junior partner position in their second year was unprecedented in their firm’s history.

“Alright, I’ll consider it,” Lu Ming nodded.

…

The prosecution first called their witness, Du Laifu, the manager of Jincheng Hotel and the cousin of the deceased, Li Xiaoyan. He was the one who led Li Mingxuan to Li Xiaoyan’s room and witnessed Li Mingxuan leaving hurriedly. He also discovered the body at five in the morning and reported it to the police.

During Liu Hanming’s questioning, which guided him to recount the events, Lu Ming listened quietly. When it was his turn to cross-examine the witness, he asked only two questions: Was Du Laifu the first to discover the body at 5 a.m., and was there anyone else with him when he found the body?

The second prosecution witness was the forensic doctor, Liu Kuang, who explained the cause of death: blunt force trauma to the skull resulting in a fatal brain hemorrhage. The iron eagle sculpture found at the scene was identified as the murder weapon, based on the shape of the wound and forensic tests.

Lu Ming asked just one question: Were any fingerprints found on the murder weapon? Liu Kuang answered that no fingerprints were found.

The third witness was a police officer who described the arrest of Li Mingxuan and the discovery of several valuable items in his possession, some of which had belonged to the deceased, Li Xiaoyan.

Lu Ming asked three questions: Did Mr. Li Haoran resist arrest? Did he appear to be trying to escape? Where were these valuable items found? The detective answered no to the first two questions and provided precise locations for the items: some were in the bedside cabinet, and some were in the safe.

After the testimonies of the three witnesses, it was past five o’clock. Judge Cao was about to adjourn the court for the next day when Lu Ming stood up. “Your Honor, I request to call a witness, Wang Xiaocui, a waitress at Jincheng Hotel. It shouldn’t take long. I hope to expedite this case and save taxpayers’ money.”

Judge Cao glanced at him, “Is the witness here?”

“She’s in the gallery.”

Judge Cao nodded, “Witness Wang Xiaocui, please take the stand.”

Reminded by her neighbor, Chen Qinghua, Xiaocui snapped back to reality, stood up, and with a pale face, walked to the witness stand with her head down.

Lu Ming looked at her quietly, his tone encouraging, “Miss Wang Xiaocui, you’ve been sworn in, so you understand the consequences of perjury in court, correct?”

Xiaocui nodded lightly.

“Please tell us about your job.”

Xiaocui, trembling, said, “I… I’m a waitress at Jincheng Hotel, and I’ve been working there for more than a year.”

“What’s your relationship with the deceased, Ms. Li Xiaoyan?”

“Because Ms. Li often came to the hotel and liked the coffee I made, Manager Du usually assigned me to serve her.”

“Does Ms. Li Xiaoyan often visit your hotel?”

“Yes.”

“Jincheng Hotel is quite basic. Ms. Li Xiaoyan moves in high social circles, so why would she choose to come there?”

“I don’t know.”

“Is it because Manager Du Laifu is her cousin, and Jincheng Hotel is secluded, so she could do things there that she didn’t want others to know about?”

“Objection! Leading and speculative question!” Liu Hanming raised his hand casually, adept at handling such tactics.

“Objection sustained. The witness doesn’t need to answer that,” Judge Cao nodded.

“What happened on the night of April 25th, around 8 p.m., the day of the incident?”

Xiaocui’s face turned even paler, staring at the table on the witness stand. “That day, Ms. Li came to Jincheng Hotel again. Brother Li and a few others brought her. Then, Ms. Li gave me something to give to Brother Li, asking him to come to her room…”

“Brother Li, what is his full name?”

“Li Haoran…”

“The same Li Haoran who is the defendant, correct?”

“Yes…”

Lu Ming slightly raised his voice, “What did Ms. Li Xiaoyan ask you to give to Mr. Li Haoran?”

Xiaocui hesitated, staring at the table silently.

Lu Ming looked at her, “Miss Wang, this is a murder case, so I hope you can tell the truth. Otherwise, you will never have peace of mind.”

Xiaocui bit her lip, “It was… it was a underwear…”

There was immediate murmuring from the gallery.

Liu Hanming frowned but didn’t react otherwise.

“Miss Wang, please repeat that. Whose underwear was it?”

“It was Ms. Li’s underwear. She took it off and gave it to me to give to Brother Li…”

The gallery and the jury were in an uproar.

Even Wang Da’an was stunned, looking at Li Mingxuan beside him.

At the prosecution’s table, Zhang Jingjing glanced at her mentor, her face slightly flushed.

“Did you give the underwear to Mr. Li Haoran?” Lu Ming asked.

“No… no… I threw it away…” Xiaocui lowered her head even further, “If I had given it to Brother Li, maybe this wouldn’t have happened…” she began to sob.

Lu Ming turned around, “Based on the witness’s statement, it is clear that Ms. Li Xiaoyan was willing to meet with Mr. Li Haoran. If he wanted to, Mr. Li Haoran had no need to rape and kill.”

When Lu Ming returned to the defense table, Liu Hanming slowly stood up and walked to the witness stand.

“Miss Wang, please raise your head and answer the question.” Liu Hanming’s tone was gentle, but his gaze was piercing.

The jurors couldn’t see his gaze, only hearing his gentle voice.

Xiaocui slowly raised her head, but under his intense stare, she quickly lowered it again.

“You’re lying, which is why you don’t have the courage to raise your head, right?” Liu Hanming sighed.

“Objection! The prosecution’s speculation is baseless!” Lu Ming raised his hand.

Judge Cao nodded, “Objection sustained.”

“You really like this Brother Li you mentioned, who is the defendant, Li Haoran, correct?” Liu Hanming suddenly asked.

Xiaocui was stunned, stammering, “I, I…”

“So, you lied to help Li Haoran avoid punishment, didn’t you?”

“I didn’t, I didn’t…” Xiaocui shook her head, tears streaming down her face.

Lu Ming stood up, but Judge Cao gestured to him that an objection would be overruled.

“Then tell us, do you like Li Haoran? I must remind you that lying on the witness stand is a crime!”

Xiaocui just shook her head without speaking.

Lu Ming rubbed his nose. As expected, Liu Hanming was no ordinary person. He had already made some guesses from how Xiaocui addressed Li Mingxuan, and now he had confirmed them.

“Your Honor, I have no further questions!” Liu Hanming bowed slightly.

Obviously, pressing a frightened, rabbit-like witness wouldn’t earn points with the jury.

And now, it looked like this girl really seemed to be lying for love.

Lu Ming stood up and walked to the witness stand, “Miss Wang Xiaocui, why do you like Li Haoran?”

Xiaocui was stunned, looking up at Lu Ming.

Lu Ming continued, “Before he was injured on his face, he was very handsome, wasn’t he?”

Xiaocui hesitated for a moment, then nodded lightly.

“Please answer with yes or no.”

“Yes, yes…” She suddenly glanced at Li Mingxuan in the defendant’s seat, quickly lowering her head again.

Lu Ming nodded, “So, when Ms. Li Xiaoyan gave you her underwear to give to Mr. Li Haoran, you were very jealous, right?”

Xiaocui lowered her head, murmuring, “Not, not really, I, I don’t know what I was thinking at that time, just, just didn’t want to give… to Brother Li…”

Biting her lip, she glanced at Li Mingxuan again but quickly withdrew her gaze in panic.

Lu Ming nodded and returned to his seat.

Zhang Jingjing watched her mentor sit motionless for a long time, shocked. It was the first time she had seen her mentor so hesitant in court.

However, that rookie lawyer was indeed formidable. Her mentor had suspected emotional involvement between the witness and the defendant, making lies likely.

Unexpectedly, the rookie lawyer quickly steered the narrative to the defendant’s former handsomeness, suggesting it wasn’t impossible for the victim, Ms. Li, to seduce him. If a young girl could be infatuated with a handsome guy, why not a 40-something-year-old woman?

Moreover, the girl’s reactions during questioning—natural, shy, embarrassed—were clearly not feigned.

Her mentor always rehearsed extensively with witnesses before court appearances, ensuring every detail was perfect.

Even for this case, which her mentor hadn’t initially taken seriously, he had still rehearsed with the witnesses.

She had always admired her mentor’s diligence, but today, everything seemed different. An unprepared witness might have been more effective if they were telling the truth.

Her mentor finally stood up, “Your Honor, I have no further questions.”

Zhang Jingjing was speechless. This round was lost.

Judge Cao banged the gavel, “Court adjourned. We will reconvene tomorrow at 2 p.m.!”