November 10.
Green Parasol Province, Greenwood City Intermediate People's Court.
Afternoon.
"Oh no, we're late! If we don't get in there, the trial will be over!"
Outside the main entrance of the Greenwood City Intermediate People's Court.
A taxi had barely stopped when its door flew open.
A slim female reporter in flats climbed out, microphone in hand. One glance at the towering steps leading to the lobby, and she hurried up them.
"Tap, tap, tap..."
Her footsteps echoed through the air amid the commotion.
"Zhang Wang, you're done for! If we miss this story, I'll be the first to report you to our team leader when we get back!"
Reporter Zhang Xia gritted her teeth as she ran up the steps, breathless but still finding the energy to scold the man behind her.
A slightly overweight man wearing an ID badge around his neck followed, panting heavily and clutching a tripod and camera.
Zhang Wang looked utterly aggrieved. He wailed as he chased after her.
"Sis, how is it my fault the company car broke down and we had to take a taxi!?"
"All I did was forget the camera the first time we left, then accidentally bring a broken one when we went out again..."
Zhang Xia's chest heaved with anger.
They were siblings who had joined the same company after graduation and happened to be paired up.
Six months after graduating, they still hadn't dug up a single story. Their editor-in-chief's looks had grown increasingly ominous these past few days. When the Li Family Village Case finally broke, she'd wanted to seize the opportunity...
But they'd planned to arrive at noon to grab seats, only for Zhang Wang to delay them until now!
"And you have the nerve to say that!" Zhang Xia snapped without slowing down.
Zhang Wang was about to reply when he caught a sound. He stopped short and turned around.
At the sight of what was behind them, his pupils contracted, and he blurted out:
"It's the prisoner transport van! It's here!"
Zhang Xia stopped and looked back.
There it was.
A white police van rolled slowly through the court's main gate. It was the vehicle court bailiffs used to transport prisoners!
They watched until it turned a corner and disappeared.
"That must be Wang Qiang. The timing fits," Zhang Wang said quietly.
The defendant had arrived. The trial was about to begin!
Zhang Xia said nothing more. She turned and raced toward the lobby, breathing hard, a few strands of hair stuck to her forehead.
After climbing the last step, she entered the lobby.
Looking up, she saw a towering red-and-gold national emblem hanging high overhead, lending the place an air of solemnity.
She instinctively composed herself, glanced down the corridors, then strode into the one she needed.
The Li Family Village Case was being heard in the First Courtroom.
She took the elevator, then crossed a quiet hallway.
At last.
Zhang Xia stopped before the closed courtroom doors. She could faintly hear voices from within.
She took a deep breath, put her hand on the handle, and pushed.
"Click."
The door opened, leaving a narrow crack.
Through it, she could see the judges' bench at the front of the courtroom, raised above everything else. Three chairs stood behind it, a gavel rested on the bench, and the national emblem hung high on the wall behind them. The sight was dignified and imposing.
She pushed harder, widening the gap.
Below the judges' bench, in the center, stood the fenced Defendant's Bench. A row of seats for the prosecution was on the left, and a row for the defense on the right.
The trial had not begun, and those seats were empty.
Behind them rose a large, tiered gallery with at least four hundred seats by her rough estimate.
Every one of them was occupied. More than four hundred people looked down on the courtroom.
The murmur of whispered conversations filled her ears.
"We made it. It hasn't started!"
Zhang Xia let out a long breath. When she looked up again, she saw someone in the front rows waving to her.
"Over here!"
Zhang Wang didn't follow. He set up the camera at the back while Zhang Xia hurried over.
The female reporter who had waved pointed to a seat.
"Sit down, quick. Do you know how much abuse I got for holding seats, especially in the first three rows?"
"You're always so careless. Good thing you called me. Where would you sit next time if I wasn't here?"
At that.
"Thanks, Liu. Dinner's on me later."
Zhang Xia blushed but sat down at once, settled her shoulder bag in her lap, and took out a pen and paper. Then she looked toward the courtroom floor.
Though the gallery was packed, the area where the trial would take place was empty and strangely quiet.
The older reporter leaned toward Zhang Xia and whispered:
"Twenty minutes until it starts. They haven't arrived yet."
She paused, then said with a sigh:
"This case really has drawn a crowd. I didn't think even the First Courtroom would be big enough, and it can hold at least five hundred people!"
"They've even assigned judges from the First Criminal Division, Team One!"
The First Courtroom was the largest at Greenwood City's Intermediate People's Court, yet there were still people who couldn't find seats.
But judges from the First Criminal Division, Team One... Zhang Xia knew nothing about them.
"What's special about Team One's judges?"
Zhang Xia asked quietly, glancing at the nameplates on the judges' bench: "Liu Jianguo," "Zhang Bingxin," and "Sun Dong."
Three empty chairs stood behind them.
"You just graduated, so it's no surprise you don't know."
The older reporter explained:
"The judges of Greenwood City's First Criminal Division, Team One, are the most skilled, fairest, and most capable team in the city."
"They handle major, high-profile, and serious criminal cases!"
"Zhang Bingxin stands out even among them. He's the chief judge of Criminal Division One, with a deputy division-level rank at the Intermediate People's Court. He's known for being impartial and caring only about the evidence!"
She paused and sighed.
"He's stubborn, too. If the evidence in the Li Family Village Case goes against the defendant... there's a good chance he'll rule strictly by the book!"
In other words... he might ignore public opinion and even choose not to exercise his discretion!?
All at once.
Zhang Xia stared at the nameplate reading "Zhang Bingxin" before the center chair, unable to help feeling awed.
A man like that...
He might only inflame this case further!
As Zhang Xia thought this, a sudden sound came from the courtroom floor, and everyone fell silent.
"Creak."
A side door opened.
Several middle-aged men stood in the doorway. They wore black suits, white shirts, bright red ties, and red badges on their chests.
The man in front swept his gaze across the room without a flicker of emotion. As he stepped forward, he radiated authority.
He led the others to the prosecution seats and sat down calmly. Ignoring the hundreds of people behind him, he began sorting his documents.
"That's Hu Guang, leader of the Second Procuratorial Department, First Case-Handling Group."
The older reporter kept her eyes on prosecutor Hu Guang as she spoke quietly, her tone serious.
"He's a case-handling machine. Like Zhang Bingxin, he never lets personal feelings enter his work!"
"With the two of them on this case, the Li Family Village Case... things could get even hotter."
Two men who went strictly by the book, handling a case tangled up in human sentiment. The thought alone made her scalp prickle!
After Hu Guang and his team sat down, several others arrived.
"See them? At the civil plaintiffs' seats beside the prosecution are the victim's parents, Li Youcai and Liu Cui."
"The man in a suit at the victim's seat is their litigation representative, lawyer Chen Wei. He's a notorious legal shark in Greenwood City. He'll do anything for money!"
The older reporter spoke.
Zhang Xia looked over and saw two elderly people with vicious expressions, muttering to themselves.
There was also a man in gold-rimmed glasses who looked respectable on the surface but had a sinister air. He, too, was sorting documents, a smile on his lips and a shadow in his eyes.
Before long...
"The defendant and the defense are here!"
The older reporter blurted out.
Zhang Xia looked up. Two stone-faced court bailiffs had entered through the side door and were walking solemnly toward the Defendant's Bench in the center.
Between them was a gaunt figure in a yellow vest, with dull, vacant eyes and a hunched back.
It was Wang Qiang!
After sitting down, he instinctively looked to his side.
A young man in a neat business suit was walking slowly toward the defense table.
Despite his youth, his gaze was composed, and he showed no sign of nerves. Once seated, he simply sorted his papers.
At the sight of him.
Whispers swept through the gallery.
The older reporter frowned and clicked her tongue.
"The defense lawyer is Xu De, from Jinmao Law Firm. He doesn't have a single criminal case on his record. He's a rookie."
"A rookie lawyer!?"
Zhang Xia froze, her pen stopping mid-note. She looked toward the defense in disbelief.
Xu De sat alone at the defense table, making it look painfully empty.
She looked across at the prosecution.
Prosecutors Hu Guang, Wang Wei, and Zhang Qing...
The victim's litigation representative, notorious legal shark Chen Wei...
Li Youcai and Liu Cui, serving as witnesses and civil plaintiffs...
The difference...
Wasn't it a little too stark!?
The imbalance was obvious. Most of the gallery looked shocked, whispering as their gazes darted between the two sides.
Zhang Xia's thoughts churned. She didn't know what to say.
Until...
"All rise!"
The court clerk suddenly called out.
The moment the words rang out!
"Click!"
Several robed figures emerged slowly from the passageway.
The three wore solemn expressions, their gazes sharp and steady, without a hint of a smile. The instant they appeared, an invisible authority spread through the room. The gallery of more than four hundred people fell silent.
They were the three judges hearing the case!
Chief judge Zhang Bingxin walked steadily to the raised bench, the focal point of the courtroom, and took the Presiding Judge's seat!
Once all three were seated, the clerk said a few words.
Presiding Judge Zhang Bingxin looked up from the center seat. He swept his gaze across the courtroom, taking in everyone present. Then...
With his right hand, he picked up the Gavel and raised it high.
The next instant.
Bang!
The Gavel struck with a sharp crack. Then his resonant voice filled the First Courtroom.
"This case concerns the murder of Li Erniu, a resident of Li Family Village, Yangcheng County, Greenwood City, Green Parasol Province!"
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