You Guessed Right

The next day.

November 5.

Seven in the morning.

Dawn was barely breaking. The autumn chill swept through the streets on a howling wind.

Xu De left his rented apartment carrying some leftovers. He pulled his coat tighter and joined the pedestrians on the street. Before long, he stopped at the mouth of an alley.

In a corner.

A head poked out from a nook inside the alley. When the child saw who it was, he came over reluctantly.

Once the child reached him, Xu De held out a hand and said,

"Shake."

The scavenger child unwillingly held out a hand and shook Xu De's.

He stood about five foot three, with a frail frame. The hand resting in Xu De's palm was gaunt, its bony fingers slightly uncomfortable to touch. It was dirty, too.

Xu De said, "Turn around."

The child clutched the hem of his clothes with both hands. Looking thoroughly embarrassed, he turned around reluctantly.

"Too slow. Do it again," Xu De said, clearly dissatisfied.

The child's eyes widened in disbelief.

Spinning around quickly in this bitter cold was miserable... Wasn't he already suffering enough? Didn't Xu De have any sympathy!?

But then he remembered who was making the demand. Somehow, it made sense. So he turned around again, faster this time.

As he spun, his thin clothes fluttered, letting cold wind rush through the gaps. Goosebumps rose all over his skin.

"Great!"

Xu De was more satisfied this time and handed him the leftovers.

"Go on, eat."

Once the child took the food,

Xu De stopped teasing him, turned, and continued toward the law firm.

The child watched him leave, wanting to say something. After hesitating a moment, he murmured, "Thank you."

Then he vanished into the alley as fast as a mouse.

Seven thirty.

Jinmao Law Firm.

Creak.

The firm's front door opened, and Xu De headed to the attendance clock as usual.

A colleague in the lobby froze briefly at the sight of him, then stood and called out,

"Attorney Xu, someone came looking for you."

Wang Mei and her daughter?

A little surprised, Xu De clocked in and gave his colleague a questioning look.

"Did she leave?"

His colleague shook his head. "No, she's waiting for you in a reception room. Just go to Reception Room 001."

"All right. Sorry for the trouble."

Xu De nodded and headed for the reception room.

To be honest,

few people would come looking for him. If it wasn't Wang Mei and her daughter... then it had to be Lin Yue, the "Lord of Longevity."

After all, he'd told her last night to come find him.

But it was only seven thirty... Would she really come this early?

Xu De was still mulling it over when he reached the door of Reception Room 001 and pushed it open.

Creak.

As the door swung inward,

a man's face came into view through the gap.

The man seated on the sofa paused when he saw Xu De, then smiled warmly.

"Hello, Attorney Xu. We meet again."

It was...

Chen Wei!

The lawyer representing Wang Youcai and his wife!

Xu De's heart skipped a beat. Instead of entering, he asked,

"Attorney Chen? What brings you here?"

Chen Wei stood with a genial smile.

"Attorney Xu, the court has issued the summons. The hearing is in five days."

"As for why I've come today..."

He paused.

Then Chen Wei picked up the briefcase on the sofa, took out a document, and placed it before Xu De with a smile.

"This is the main reason."

Xu De looked down at the document and froze.

It was an unusual document. Its title consisted of just three characters:

[Letter of Forgiveness.]

Xu De narrowed his eyes.

Eight o'clock.

Creak.

A tall figure in a trench coat pushed open the firm's front door.

"Phew."

Feeling the warmth in the lobby, she took off her scarf, revealing an expressionless face, striking and cool. Her lively eyes swept the room before she asked softly,

"Excuse me, does Attorney Xu De work here?"

Her clear voice rang out.

A lawyer working in the lobby looked up and paused at the sight of her. Then he recovered and asked,

"May I have your name?"

"I'm Lin Yue. I know Xu De."

As she spoke, Lin Yue breathed out, then shivered as the warmth sank in. Her cool expression gradually softened.

Clearly, she wasn't aloof. The sudden drop in temperature had simply left her half-frozen.

The lawyer said, "Attorney Xu is busy in Reception Room 001 right now. You can wait a while."

Reception room?

Lin Yue paused and was about to head for the waiting area. But as she turned, her brows lifted slightly.

The hearing should be coming up soon. At this hour... could it be Xu Hong and Wang Mei?

With that thought,

"Thank you."

After thanking him and confirming where the reception room was, Lin Yue headed toward it.

Wang Qiang's case was pressing, and it was closely tied to the custody case she had taken on. A few reminders before the hearing would be worthwhile.

But...

Just as she reached Reception Room 001 and raised a hand to knock...

"Attorney Xu..."

A man's voice suddenly came from inside, reaching her ears.

That's...

Not Wang Mei and her daughter.

Lin Yue stopped, then rose onto her toes to slip away. Before she could move, the voice sounded again.

"Attorney Xu, think carefully. The court won't initiate mediation between the parties in a criminal homicide case!"

"If you aren't prepared to sign this letter of forgiveness now... then when the time comes,"

"it won't be so simple if you decide you want to sign!"

That voice... Chen Wei?

Lin Yue suddenly recalled the scene she'd witnessed earlier in the police station lobby.

She had no time to think.

The next second, Xu De spoke.

"See yourself out."

"You!"

Inside the room, Chen Wei slapped the table and glared at Xu De, but couldn't find anything to say.

After a long moment,

he took a deep breath and said darkly,

"You don't know what's good for you..."

"Then I'll see you in court!"

With that,

Chen Wei grabbed his briefcase and stalked out in frustration.

Bang!

The reception-room door flew open, its edge sweeping past someone's face.

Lin Yue, who had been listening intently outside, jumped. By the time she recovered, all she saw was Chen Wei's retreating back, which vanished in an instant.

"What's he slamming doors for? Hasn't he got any manners?" she muttered in protest.

Before she could collect herself,

a voice sounded behind her.

"Heard enough?"

She turned to find Xu De leaning against the doorframe, a curious smile on his face.

As he spoke, he raised a hand and tapped the glass beside the door.

Tap, tap!

The frosted window serving as the reception room's wall gave a crisp sound.

The glass wasn't completely transparent, but while he and Chen Wei had been talking, anyone who wasn't blind could have seen the blurry figure crouching by the door and pressing against it.

"Lord of Clairvoyance, did you hear everything we said in there? I didn't sell out my client behind her back."

Xu De was teasing her.

At his words, a blush spread across Lin Yue's pale neck and reached her ears in the blink of an eye.

"What do you mean, eavesdropping? I wasn't eavesdropping. I just... I just... I just stopped by the door for a moment!"

"And what's with 'Lord of Clairvoyance'? I told you, I made that up on the spot."

Lin Yue avoided his gaze and mumbled her reply.

Xu De said nothing. He merely folded his arms and looked at her with teasing eyes, making her flush with indignation.

After a while, they finally returned to the matter at hand.

"Was that Chen Wei just now?"

Lin Yue glanced in the direction Chen Wei had disappeared, raised an eyebrow, and asked in surprise,

"What did he want with you?"

Xu De said, "He claims the victim's family now wants to 'forgive' the defendant. He came to persuade me to have my client sign a letter of forgiveness."

The victim's family wanted to forgive the defendant?

"Forgive him? They have the nerve to use that word!?"

Lin Yue cried out in disbelief. Then she paused, rubbed her chin, and, after a moment, her eyes lit up.

"But... you really called it!"

Wang Youcai was using the letter of forgiveness as leverage!

Deep down, he was beginning to realize that Wang Qiang's conviction would do him nothing but harm!

So he was trying to squeeze every last bit of value from his bargaining chip before the hearing and get what he wanted.

All of it...

was exactly what Xu De had predicted!

And he'd said it twelve days ago!

He had accurately predicted every move the other side would make, even their thinking, twelve days in advance... Could a lawyer really do that!?

Especially when he'd worked it out by analyzing a major case that had seemed like a dead end. In the legal world, an ability like that put him in a league of his own!

Since when had Greenwood City produced someone like him?

Lin Yue studied Xu De in disbelief. After a long moment, she asked suspiciously,

"You work at Jinmao Law Firm? I've never heard of a top lawyer here named Xu De."

As she spoke, she looked him up and down with suspicion.

But Lin Yue soon stopped thinking about it.

Because...

She suddenly realized something else.

If things were unfolding just as Xu De had predicted, did that mean... the solution had to be the one he'd proposed, too?

If it had been an ordinary solution, she wouldn't have minded. But Xu De's approach...

It was the sort of thing a criminal mastermind would dream up!

"Wait. You're not about to tell me..."

Lin Yue's eyelid twitched. Her heart pounded as she stared wide-eyed at the gentle, tall man beside her, disbelief filling her voice.

She cried out.

"You're actually going to break the law next?!"

The reception room fell into an eerie silence.

They looked at each other.

Lin Yue's eyes grew wider, unease creeping into her heart...

Then a smile appeared on Xu De's face.

"You guessed right. Except..."

"I'm going to do it, but... I won't break the law!"