Fame and Fortune! The Morning Paper!

November 10.

Seven in the morning.

Green Parasol Province, Greenwood City.

Jinmao Law Firm, on the commercial strip of Torch Street.

Xu De stepped out of the firm's front entrance, crossed the road, and headed straight for the breakfast stall opposite.

The stall sold congee.

A few tables stood scattered along the street, with disposable chopsticks and tissues on them. Beside two steaming bamboo baskets, the vendor hurried to serve customers, sweat beading on his brow.

Breakfast covered one of the tables, where several people sat sharing the food.

They were Lin Yue, Wang Chao, and Wang Mei with her son. They had come from Li Family Village without getting any sleep.

"Tap, tap, tap..."

Xu De strode over through the morning light and dropped into an empty seat. With a flick of his wrist, a thick envelope landed in front of Wang Chao with a slap.

"As agreed, this is your payment."

"Oh?"

Wang Chao had been picking listlessly at his food, but his eyebrows shot up at once.

He put down his flatbread, picked up the envelope, opened it, and peered inside.

Ten crisp hundred-yuan notes stared back at him!

"Well, look at that!"

His eyebrows danced. Forgetting his food, he happily counted the bills.

There were only ten, but he counted them again and again, delighted every time.

Xu De looked away and went over to the vendor. After hesitating before the array of food, he bought only some cheap pickles and a bowl of plain congee.

Then he sat down and ate in silence.

At the sight,

Lin Yue paused. She glanced at Xu De's meager breakfast, hesitated, then used her chopsticks to put two golden, glistening meat patties on a small bamboo plate the stall had provided. She pushed it toward him.

Xu De stopped and looked up.

"Thanks for last night. Breakfast is on me."

Lin Yue turned her head away.

"Otherwise... I wouldn't have been able to handle this custody case."

Without Xu De, even if she had won custody in the civil suit, she could not have kept the child. True, it would not have left a blemish on her record...

But she did not fight cases just to polish her résumé!

"Mm. We helped each other."

Xu De said it casually. He had needed her professional standing to give his involvement a little more legitimacy, so it had been mutual. Neither owed the other.

Lin Yue paid that no mind. Instead, she asked,

"Last night... did you give Li Li money?"

Xu De paused. He did not deny it, merely smiling as he said, "When the road's blocked, money can open it."

"How much?" Lin Yue asked.

"Three thousand four hundred," Xu De said.

He did not have much money. Including what the firm had paid him yesterday, he had only 5,300 yuan in total.

He had spent 3,400 of his own money last night. After paying Wang Chao, he had less than a thousand left, with rent and utilities still to cover...

If the firm had not paid him yesterday, he could not even have paid Wang Chao!

Honestly, money was tight. He was in a bind.

But he was used to it. When he had been studying, he could not even bring himself to eat a moldy bun. Now, at least, he could take hearty bites of bread and pickles.

Still,

after hearing this, Lin Yue fell silent for a moment. She drew her legs together and took a wallet from her bag.

She rummaged through it, then simply took out all the cash and handed it to Xu De.

"In the end, this case affects me most... There's no reason you should pay for it."

"I don't have that much cash on me. Just seventeen hundred."

At that,

Lin Yue paused and turned to Wang Chao beside her.

"Heh, heh, heh..."

Wang Chao was still gleefully counting his money.

A thousand yuan. A whole thousand yuan!

Those lousy law firms would not hire him, claiming his professional skills were poor... But who was he? Wang Chao! Hadn't he just made a thousand yuan climbing a wall and picking a lock!?

It was easier and paid better than taking consultations and putting up with people!

As he counted to his heart's content...

a hand suddenly descended and snatched away all ten bills.

Wang Chao froze. Staring at his empty hands, he looked stunned.

"Hey!!!"

Someone dared rob him in broad daylight!

Then he looked up and met Lin Yue's eyes.

"You borrowed three thousand yuan from me two months ago," Lin Yue said. "It's time you paid me back. You don't need this thousand right now, so I'm taking it. You still owe me two thousand."

"Hey!"

Shock spread across Wang Chao's face.

He looked at his empty hands, then at the envelope in Xu De's hand. He had not even had time to warm it in his own.

Wang Chao sank into thought.

Who had made money here? And who had lost it!?

At last, irritation crossed his face, and he reached out and snatched back the envelope.

"You..."

Lin Yue was about to frown. He did not urgently need the money, and he did owe her.

But then, the next second...

Whoosh!

Wang Chao pulled out the ten bills and stuffed them back into Xu De's hand, keeping only the empty envelope with its woody scent. He held his head high and insisted,

"I owe you money, not an envelope! This envelope is mine!"

Xu De stared at him, speechless. For once, his calm, quick mind stalled. After a long moment, he said,

"Fair enough!"

He did not hand the money back.

He truly needed it. Without money, he would have to stay at Jinmao Law Firm after this case and earn enough before he could leave.

"Thank you, Lord God of Wealth," he said.

The corners of Lin Yue's lips lifted, and she raised her chin slightly. Then she caught herself and quickly put on a serious face.

"I'm not a lord!"

"Mm-hmm. Lord of Longevity is right," Xu De said with a nod.

Lin Yue was about to say more when an argument suddenly broke out nearby.

"Huh? A recess? They didn't even deliver a verdict in court!?"

She stopped.

Then she and Xu De turned toward the people at the neighboring tables.

There,

several passersby who had been reading the morning paper over breakfast stared at it in a daze. Astonishment spread across their faces.

People beside them leaned in to look, curiosity in their eyes.

"What didn't get a verdict?"

Hearing the question,

the reader snapped out of it. Forgetting his breakfast, he laughed and pointed at the paper.

"That trafficking case in Li Family Village!"

"Come look! The morning paper says the hearing was yesterday. They didn't sentence the defendant! All the prosecution's evidence is being reinvestigated!"

All the prosecution's evidence had been rejected?

How... had the defense managed that!?

"Let me see! I thought this case was hopeless just a couple of days ago!"

"How did they do it?"

"Did the presiding judge think the defendant was innocent? Was the judge on his side?"

"Bullshit! The paper says it plain as day. Some defense lawyer came out of nowhere and argued the prosecutor and the plaintiff's lawyer into silence!"

"What? He left the prosecutor speechless? Let me see!"

At that, everyone else put down their bowls and crowded around the man with the newspaper.

Seven or eight people, strangers and acquaintances alike, packed together.

"Look, it's right here in the headline."

The man who had bought the paper pointed excitedly at a headline and read aloud.

"[Shocking Turnaround! In the Li Family Village Case, a Defense Lawyer Took On the Entire First Courtroom at Greenwood City Intermediate Court for Three Hours! All Prosecution Evidence Rejected! Lawyer Personally Pleads Not Guilty for Defendant!]"

"[A Startling New Angle on the Case! Of More Than Forty People at the Scene, Not One Could Prove the Defendant Killed Anyone!]"

"[Three Hours Against the Entire Court! Who Is This Young Defense Lawyer? Our Investigation Reveals...]"

"[A Stunning Reversal! One Lawyer Dominated the Entire Courtroom! Where Did the Lawyer Who Made the Defense His Personal Stage Come From!?]"

"[...]"

Headline after headline, article after article.

Their eyes widened as they read, their breathing quickening. By the end...

"One man argued against the entire courtroom!?"

Someone sounded stunned.

"Wait, the Li Family Village case... there's hope!?"

At that, the crowd understood.

If the prosecutor had been outargued, didn't that mean the defense had torn holes all through the indictment?

If the indictment collapsed, Wang Qiang would surely be acquitted!

In other words...

"Damn!"

A rough-looking man dressed like a construction worker spoke, his face flushed.

"He pleaded not guilty and went after the prosecution... That lawyer's got guts!"

He could not read, but just hearing it and picturing the scene sent his blood racing.

While others had been afraid to take the case, this man had stepped up. And he had not just taken it—he had dared to plead not guilty.

What did it mean to turn the tide?

This was it!

"Xu De? Never heard of him. Which firm is he with?"

"No idea... But after today, that lawyer's going to make a name for himself. With a case like this, how could he not?"

"Tsk. Not just anyone could pull that off..."

"..."

And it was not just the breakfast stall.

Government offices, markets, buses, intersections...

Anywhere people gathered around a newspaper, they stared in disbelief, marveled at the story, and felt their blood surge with exhilaration.

At that moment,

though the case had yet to be won,

Xu De's name had already spread across Greenwood City!

Back at the breakfast stall,

"Tsk."

Lin Yue glanced at the excited crowd next door, then turned back to Xu De. He ate quietly beside them, as though none of it had anything to do with him.

The newspaper readers had no idea the man they were discussing was right beside them,

eating at a roadside stall just behind their backs.

"Well, Lawyer Xu? Any words on your big moment?" Lin Yue asked, smiling despite herself.

Xu De smiled but seemed unmoved. Seeing that everyone had finished eating, he wiped his mouth and said,

"Let's go."

"Time to give the prosecutor something to do!"

With that,

Xu De stood and headed off first.

Watching him go,

Lin Yue gave a helpless laugh and shook her head. She put on her coat and followed with the others.

And just after they hailed a taxi and climbed in...

by the roadside,

someone suddenly froze.

"Hey! Lawyer Xu, what a coincidence. You're late too—"

Li, the firm's cashier, was running late for work when she spotted Xu De by the roadside. She smiled and started to greet him, but before she could finish, he climbed into a taxi and vanished from sight.

The rest of her greeting stuck in her throat.

She was the cashier at Jinmao Law Firm. She had handled Zhang Hu's payment for the divorce case, and she got along well enough with Xu De.

"Why was he in such a hurry?"

Li watched him leave, puzzled. Just then...

"A remarkable young man! Truly remarkable!"

"Those veteran star lawyers in Greenwood City ought to be ashamed. They're not even as good as that young lawyer, Xu De!"

Xu... Xu De?

What had happened to Xu De?

Li stopped short.

She turned toward the passersby gathered around a newspaper, curiosity plain on her face.

Then she craned her neck to see what they were reading. One glance was all it took...

In an instant.

Shock swept across Li's face, and her mind reeled.

"The charges were dis... dismissed!?"

She knew exactly what kind of case Xu De had taken on.

Calling that case impossibly difficult would have been an understatement!

Never mind a new lawyer—even a star lawyer would have struggled to argue his way through it in court.

So why had that glimpse of the paper said the prosecution had been driven back at every turn!?

And what did it mean, the defense had seized the initiative!?

Unfortunately, Li had only caught a glimpse before someone blocked her view. By then, she could hardly contain herself.

"The newspaper rack. Right, there's one at the firm!"

The answer flashed through her mind.

The firm had a public newspaper rack and subscribed to both morning and evening editions. That paper had to be there!

With that thought.

She wasted no more time.

Driven by impatience, she ran across the road toward Jinmao Law Firm.

Bang!

Li shoved open the firm's glass door. The noise drew the attention of her coworkers, who had just arrived and were still lounging at their desks in the lobby.

They turned to see Li standing at the newspaper rack, reading a paper with shock written all over her face.

"Well, Li, did you buy a lottery ticket? You're awfully eager to check the paper. Did your numbers come up?"

Someone sprawled in a chair, teasing her lazily.

"Not me. Xu De."

Li answered without looking up from the paper.

"What happened to Lawyer Xu?"

The teasing continued around the lobby, but after a moment's thought, someone asked:

"Did something go wrong with Xu's case?"

"Honestly, that wouldn't be surprising. I heard Hu Guang was leading the prosecution. I saw him in court once when I was representing a plaintiff, and even looking at him scared me. He has a presence ordinary prosecutors just don't have. Imagine facing him as the defendant. Losing would be perfectly normal."

"Exactly. Even the director, who's always had faith in Xu, never expected him to win."

"Xu's still young and well educated. Given time, becoming a star lawyer is just a matter of course. He has a long way to go before then, though, and cases like this are stepping stones."

"..."

Li listened to them.

She lifted her head from the newspaper, her face flushed red. As she looked at her coworkers chatting away, she opened her mouth, then closed it again. She wanted to say something, but couldn't find the words.

Xu De still had a long way to go?

It would be normal for him to lose to Hu Guang, a prosecutor even star lawyers considered a formidable opponent?

That was true.

But the problem was...

Why did the newspaper say a lawyer fresh out of the tutorial had overwhelmingly defeated Hu Guang, the prosecutor who might as well have been the game's final boss?

Could that really be true!?

Li looked around the firm's lobby.

The chatter filled her ears, and her face grew redder still. Finally, she drew a deep breath and shouted:

"This is insane... The court's gone insane!"

"Come read the morning paper!!!"

P.S. Please vote, please vote!

It's Monday, and the new-book rankings have rotated. I'm here to ask for monthly votes to give this book a push.

It's been fourteen days since the new book launched, and I've posted over a hundred thousand words—more than some authors post after going premium. Please take pity on me and spare a monthly vote, QAQ.

Once the book goes premium, I'll definitely put out a huge batch of chapters!