Chapter Summaries

Su Bai challenged the evidence used to convict He Dongsheng of insurance fraud, arguing that Quanan Insurance had relied on leading questions and circumstantial claims to portray him as having fraudulent intent. The presiding judge rejected Li Shuangjun’s attempt to have Su Bai’s doubts struck and warned him not to interrupt again.

• Su Bai outlined the five forms of insurance fraud and explained that the first-instance court had found He Dongsheng guilty of deliberately disabling himself to obtain insurance benefits.
• Su Bai recounted how Quanan Insurance initially treated He Dongsheng’s injury as a valid claim, then denied it over his high blood pressure and suspected fraud only after he planned to sue.
• Su Bai questioned Quanan Insurance’s reliance on statements from He Dongsheng and his mother, comments from his colleagues, and a specialist’s estimate that the accident had only a five-percent probability of occurring.
• Hu Bing confirmed that the prosecution’s first-instance accusations relied on the points Su Bai had described.
• Li Shuangjun asked the court to strike Su Bai’s doubts as biased, but Su Bai argued that he had only raised questions and challenged Li Shuangjun’s objection.
• Du Linmu denied Li Shuangjun’s request and warned him against interrupting the hearing again.

Su Bai questioned Gu Bin and He Dongsheng about Quanan Insurance’s inquiry into the insurance fraud allegations, then asked the court to rule on whether the questioning had been leading. Presiding Judge Du Linmu found that Quanan Insurance’s counsel had used biased leading language, while making no ruling on He Dongsheng’s claim that Gu Bin had advised him to surrender.

• Du Linmu allowed Su Bai to continue his statement and question Gu Bin about his private contact with He Dongsheng and his mother.
• Gu Bin declined to recount his questions, so Su Bai asked the court to let He Dongsheng describe them.
• He Dongsheng said Gu Bin repeatedly raised insurance fraud, questioned his policy and injury, urged him to turn himself in, and implied that his mother had accused him of fraud.
• Su Bai argued that Gu Bin’s questioning had steered He Dongsheng and his mother toward admitting fraud, and challenged Quanan Insurance’s omission of the alleged advice to surrender from its evidence.
• Gu Bin said the submitted evidence was complete and accused He Dongsheng of making unsupported claims; Du Linmu declined to rule on the surrender allegation because neither side had proof.
• After Gu Bin raised no objection to the other statements, Du Linmu ruled that Quanan Insurance’s counsel had used biased leading language when questioning He Dongsheng and his mother.

At He Dongsheng’s second-instance hearing, the presiding judge ruled that Quanan Insurance’s questioning involved inducement and rejected its evidence, strengthening the case for acquittal. The judges agreed He Dongsheng should be found not guilty, but left open whether Quanan Insurance had maliciously prosecuted him, pending further arguments and evidence.

• Du Linmu ruled that Quanan Insurance’s questioning of He Dongsheng and his mother involved inducement and asked whether it had other evidence of fraud.
• Li Shuangjun argued that He Dongsheng’s high-value policy and accident soon afterward suggested insurance fraud, but Su Bai played a recording of a salesperson urging him to buy more coverage.
• Su Bai argued the recording explained He Dongsheng’s insurance purchase and that neither the policy nor the later accident established criminal intent; Li Shuangjun raised no objection to his factual basis.
• Du Linmu adjourned the hearing and announced that the court would determine whether He Dongsheng had committed insurance fraud when it resumed.
• During their discussion, Zhang Huan and Li Chengxiu agreed with Du Linmu that He Dongsheng should be acquitted, while the judges said more evidence was needed to determine whether Quanan Insurance had acted with malicious intent.

The court ruled that He Dongsheng had no intent to commit insurance fraud and ordered Quanan Insurance to pay his contractual benefits. Su Bai then challenged Gu Bin over why he had used leading questions before referring He Dongsheng for investigation, leaving Gu Bin struggling to explain his purpose.

• Du Linmu ruled that the insurer’s questioning was induced, the supporting testimony was insufficient, and the evidence did not prove He Dongsheng deliberately injured himself to obtain benefits.
• Hu Bing, Su Bai, and Li Shuangjun raised no objection to the ruling that He Dongsheng lacked fraudulent intent.
• Su Bai confirmed claims for insurance compensation and damages over Quanan Insurance’s alleged malicious accusation, and the court ordered the insurer to pay the contractual benefits.
• Su Bai questioned Gu Bin about his leading questions and whether he intended to expose He Dongsheng to criminal liability.
• Gu Bin said he had suspected insurance fraud based on his judgment and denied intending to frame He Dongsheng, but Su Bai pressed him to explain why he had used inducement.

Su Bai challenged Gu Bin’s claim that Quan'an Insurance had only made an inaccurate report, pressing him on the use of induced answers to open a case against He Dongsheng. The Presiding Judge questioned Gu Bin on the same point, and Su Bai introduced a recording of Quan'an Insurance offering an eight-hundred-thousand settlement; after a recess, the parties awaited the verdict.

• Gu Bin argued that he had questioned He Dongsheng by inducement because of strong suspicions of insurance fraud, not with intent to make a malicious accusation.
• Su Bai challenged Gu Bin to explain why he had used induced answers to open a case and submit evidence if he had no malicious intent.
• Presiding Judge Du Linmu questioned Gu Bin about using evidence he knew was illegal, and Gu Bin could offer no supporting evidence for his explanation.
• Su Bai submitted a recording of Quan'an Insurance offering He Dongsheng eight hundred thousand to withdraw the lawsuit, and Li Shuangjun said the offer was meant to protect the company’s reputation.
• Du Linmu called a ninety-minute recess before the court statements and verdict, while Gu Bin and Li Shuangjun worried that they were at a disadvantage.

The collegial panel ruled that He Dongsheng was not guilty, ordered Quan'an Insurance Company to pay his insurance benefits, emotional-distress compensation, and legal costs, and found that the company had maliciously accused him using illegal evidence. Li Shuangjun and Gu Bin were sent for investigation as the case moved toward public prosecution.

• Du Linmu, Li Chengxiu, and Zhang Huan agreed that Quan'an Insurance Company had maliciously accused He Dongsheng and used illegal evidence.
• Li Shuangjun apologized for He Dongsheng's wrongful conviction but denied that the accusation had been malicious, while Su Bai argued that the insurer was responsible for the case.
• Du Linmu announced that He Dongsheng's criminal conviction was overturned and he was found not guilty, and ordered Quan'an Insurance Company to pay him 958,674.52 yuan in insurance benefits, 10,200.23 yuan in emotional-distress compensation, and his litigation costs and legal fees.
• The court found Quan'an Insurance Company's accusation malicious and said relevant personnel would be held accountable for false accusation and perjury through supplementary proceedings.
• Court police took Li Shuangjun and Gu Bin for examination and investigation, while Hu Bing left and Su Bai told He Dongsheng and Li Xuezhen that follow-up proceedings remained.

After Quanan Insurance lost its case, Su Bai helped He Dongsheng respond to the company’s pressure to sign a confidentiality agreement and submitted a threatening call recording to the court. The case drew major media and online attention, leaving Quanan Insurance facing a growing public-relations crisis.

• Wang Haiyang reported the loss and the arrests of Li Shuangjun and Gu Bin to Feng Yuan, who blamed the legal department and worried about the company’s reputation and planned listing.
• Quanan Insurance offered He Dongsheng extra compensation for signing a confidentiality agreement and implied that refusing could cause problems, so He Dongsheng recorded the call and contacted Su Bai.
• Su Bai reassured He Dongsheng that the court judgment could be enforced without a confidentiality agreement and asked whether he would agree to an interview.
• Su Bai submitted the recording to the enforcement judge, who promised to compel Quanan Insurance to pay He Dongsheng’s court-awarded compensation.
• Li Wenqian arranged for Southern Capital Metropolitan News to interview those involved and publish the story, after which online discussion pushed Quanan Insurance onto Trending Searches.

Feng Yuan learned that Quanan Insurance’s listing had been halted amid a public backlash, while Wang Haiyang and Feng Yuan were placed under investigation. Su Bai closed out He Dongsheng’s case and reorganized the firm’s criminal caseload, as Li Xuezhen spotted news of the investigations.

• Feng Yuan faced angry calls from Quanan Insurance’s shareholders, learned that the court had enforced payment to He Dongsheng, and then discovered the company’s listing had been halted amid a wave of public complaints.
• Procuratorial authorities questioned Wang Haiyang about alleged malicious accusations and perjury, then asked where they could find Feng Yuan.
• He Dongsheng received the written judgment from Su Bai, who told him that he could apply for state compensation for his time in custody.
• Su Bai held a routine firm meeting and assigned Xu Xiang to handle cases such as intentional injury and defamation, while Fang Yuan took assisting-information-network-crime cases and other charges.
• Li Xuezhen read that Wang Haiyang and Feng Yuan had both been placed under investigation and review.

Li Xuezhen tracked news that prosecutors had taken two Quanan Insurance executives in for investigation, while Su Bai moved White Jun Law Firm to larger premises and learned he was invited to a lawyers' conference. After reviewing case inquiries from the firm's short-video account, Li Xuezhen brought Su Bai a major case involving an unfinished housing development.

• Li Xuezhen forwarded Su Bai news that prosecutors had taken Wang Haiyang and Feng Yuan in for investigation, and Su Bai told her to keep following the case.
• Su Bai moved White Jun Law Firm to a larger office, celebrated with a red-envelope giveaway, and welcomed Xiao Haibo, who told him the Bar Association might invite him to a lawyers' conference.
• Xiao Haibo and Su Bai discussed their firms' cooperation and the possibility that the Qi Feng Case would become an example in future guidance on justifiable self-defense.
• Su Bai praised Li Xuezhen for growing the firm's short-video account to fifty-six thousand followers and asked her to compile its case inquiries.
• Li Xuezhen reviewed the inquiries Wang Kexin had organized, found a major case involving an unfinished housing development, and brought it to Su Bai.

Su Bai reviewed Ma Cheng’s messages about the unfinished Southern Capital Xiushui Garden and agreed that White Jun Law Firm would consider the difficult civil case. Ma Cheng’s family celebrated the reply, while Ma Xiangzhi cautiously hoped the case might recover their money or home.

• Su Bai read Ma Cheng’s messages and researched the unfinished Southern Capital Xiushui Garden development, noting how difficult it would be to enforce a judgment or restart construction.
• Su Bai explained to Li Xuezhen that the case could raise the firm’s profile but required more information and careful preparation; he agreed to meet the prospective client.
• Ma Cheng argued with his son Ma Xiangzhi and insisted that Su Bai could help recover their family’s money or hold the developer accountable.
• Ma Cheng received Su Bai’s reply inviting the family to White Jun Law Firm to discuss the case, and he told Ma Xiangzhi and his wife the news.
• Ma Cheng’s family welcomed the reply, while Ma Xiangzhi began to hope they might win the lawsuit.

Su Bai agreed to meet the Xiushui Garden homebuyers and investigated the stalled development, then learned from Xiao Haibo that an earlier attempt to represent buyers had failed to recover their money. As Li Xuezhen researched Nanjian Real Estate’s lawsuits, Old Li offered to buy her a home in Southern Capital, but she declined for now.

• Li Xuezhen showed Su Bai Ma Cheng’s messages, and Su Bai scheduled a meeting with the prospective clients for two in the afternoon the day after tomorrow.
• Su Bai reviewed the stalled Xiushui Garden project and learned that Nanjian Real Estate had repeatedly promised delivery without resuming construction.
• Su Bai attended a bar association meeting with Xiao Haibo, met several senior lawyers, and discussed possible cooperation between their firms.
• Xiao Haibo told Su Bai that Haifang Law Firm had previously represented Xiushui Garden buyers but stopped because winning the case had not enabled them to recover money.
• Li Xuezhen found that Nanjian Real Estate faced nearly twelve high-risk lawsuits, while Old Li offered to buy her a home in Southern Capital and she said she did not need one yet.

After discovering that Nanjian Real Estate was preparing to evade its debts through bankruptcy, Su Bai took Ma Cheng’s case and found that Nandu Bank had improperly transferred homebuyers’ funds to the developer. He filed materials that led to bankruptcy proceedings being halted and a case being accepted by the Supreme People's Court, leaving Ye Zhenghuan and the bank facing legal action.

• Li Xuezhen told Su Bai that Nanjian Real Estate might be entering bankruptcy proceedings, so he urgently summoned Ma Cheng and Ma Xiangzhi to sign an authorization.
• Su Bai reviewed the earlier case files and discovered that Nandu Bank had transferred the advance purchase payments to an account not specified in the contracts and before the contractual conditions were met.
• Su Bai and Li Xuezhen submitted materials to the Southern Capital Procuratorate, and the Supreme People's Court accepted the case after verifying the evidence.
• Ye Luo ordered his secretary to push Nanjian Real Estate’s planned bankruptcy forward so another company could take over without completing construction.
• Ye Zhenghuan learned that the bankruptcy proceedings had stalled and received a court summons, while Nandu Bank’s legal chief Xu Zhiqiang discovered that the bank had been sued in the Supreme People's Court.

Su Bai brought Ma Cheng’s unfinished-housing case against Nanjian Real Estate and Nandu Bank before the Supreme People’s Court, seeking compensation and penalties for alleged debt evasion and improper loan disbursement. After Su Bai stated the claims, Ye Zhenghuan remained unconcerned while Xu Zhiqiang feared the consequences of losing.

• Nandu Bank learned that White Jun Law Firm had sued it and Nanjian Real Estate over improperly disbursed home-purchase funds, and Wang Wu told Xu Zhiqiang the bank had to win.
• Su Bai obtained records of Nanjian Real Estate’s finances and confirmed they supported his case.
• Before the hearing, Ma Cheng worried about disappointing the unfinished-housing group, while Ye Zhenghuan and Xu Zhiqiang considered their respective risks.
• The Supreme People’s Court began the livestreamed hearing, and Luo Daxiang’s viewers recognized Su Bai and joked that he would send someone to prison.
• Su Bai requested contractual compensation from Nanjian Real Estate, penalties for alleged malicious debt evasion, and joint liability from Nandu Bank, leaving Xu Zhiqiang worried about the bank’s prospects.

Su Bai argued that Nandu Bank should share responsibility for the unfinished Southern Capital Xiushui Garden development because it released escrow funds before the required conditions were met while earning substantial loan interest. The hearing moved into arguments over causation and Nanjian Real Estate’s alleged debt evasion, and Su Bai ended by pressing the bank to explain why it should enjoy the profits without bearing responsibility.

• Wang Jiangyang denied that Nanjian Real Estate had maliciously evaded its debts, while conceding the plaintiff’s other claims.
• Xu Zhiqiang argued that Nandu Bank had only supervised the escrow funds and that its improper transfers had no legal causal link to the unfinished development.
• Luo Daxiang explained to livestream viewers that the case hinged on whether the bank’s failure to supervise caused or contributed to the project’s abandonment.
• Zhu He identified the bank’s causal responsibility and Nanjian Real Estate’s alleged debt evasion as the hearing’s two main issues.
• Su Bai questioned Xu Zhiqiang about the bank’s loans to roughly 1,630 homebuyers and the over 100 million yuan in returns it earned.
• Su Bai challenged Nandu Bank over its early release of escrow funds and its claim of no responsibility, leaving the courtroom silent.

Su Bai argued that Nandu Bank’s unlawful release and inadequate supervision of escrow funds contributed to the unfinished development, making the bank jointly liable alongside Nanjian Real Estate. During recess, the judges agreed that the bank bore secondary responsibility, leaving the liability allocation for the judgment.

• Su Bai rejected Xu Zhiqiang’s attempt to frame the case around the bank’s interest earnings and argued that its mishandling of escrow funds contributed to the unfinished development.
• Presiding Judge Zhu He questioned Nandu Bank and Nanjian Real Estate about responsibility, and Wang Jiangyang denied that the developer alone caused the project to remain unfinished.
• Zhu He recessed the hearing for thirty minutes after both sides said they had no further arguments.
• During recess, Ma Cheng praised Su Bai’s arguments and asked whether they would win, while Xu Zhiqiang resented Wang Jiangyang’s refusal to let Nanjian Real Estate shoulder all the blame.
• In the discussion room, Li Mingfei and Wang Dong agreed with Zhu He that Nandu Bank bore secondary responsibility because its violations contributed to the misuse of escrow funds.

The Supreme People's Court ruled that Nandu Bank's violations were causally linked to the unfinished Xiushui Garden development, and Xu Zhiqiang raised no objection. Su Bai then argued that Nanjian Real Estate Company had deliberately evaded debts through its bankruptcy, leaving Ye Zhenghuan uneasy as the dispute continued.

• Zhu He announced that Nandu Bank's inadequate supervision and violations had a legal causal relationship with the unfinished Xiushui Garden development.
• Xu Zhiqiang accepted the ruling without objection, while Wang Wu watched the livestream and angrily blamed him for failing to fight back.
• Li Xuezhen stared at Ye Zhenghuan, who asked Wang Jiangyang whether the case could send him to prison; Wang Jiangyang assured him it could not.
• Zhu He opened arguments on whether Nanjian Real Estate Company had deliberately entered bankruptcy to evade debts.
• Su Bai cited the failure to notify creditors, the halted construction, and the use of regulated funds for investments and executive dividends as evidence of malicious debt evasion.
• Wang Jiangyang denied that the company had deliberately harmed creditors, while Su Bai privately intended both to recover misused funds and to put Ye Zhenghuan behind bars.

At Nanjian Real Estate’s hearing, Ye Zhenghuan admitted knowing that regulated funds had been diverted but claimed the company’s failed investments and bankruptcy were not intended to evade debts. The court recessed before final statements and a verdict, while Ye expected to escape serious consequences and homebuyers hoped he would be imprisoned.

• Presiding Judge Zhu He summarized the parties’ arguments and questioned Wang Jiangyang and Ye Zhenghuan about Nanjian Real Estate’s use of regulated funds.
• Ye Zhenghuan admitted he knew funds had been diverted, but said failed investments caused the company’s financial collapse and denied intending to evade debts.
• Su Bai argued that Nanjian Real Estate had also diverted quality assets, and the court concluded the hearing and scheduled its verdict for after a two-hour recess.
• Li Xuezhen and Ma Cheng hoped Ye Zhenghuan would be sent to prison, while Ye and Wang Jiangyang believed the case would not cause serious trouble for him.
• During the recess, viewers on Luo Daxiang’s Legal Commentary livestream urged the court to punish Ye harshly, and Luo Daxiang remained silent.

The Supreme People's Court ruled that Nandu Bank bore thirty percent of the liability for the unfinished Xiushui Garden development and ordered compensation, while dismissing the claims of malicious bankruptcy and debt evasion against Nanjian Real Estate for insufficient evidence. After the hearing, Southern Capital procurators arrested Ye Zhenghuan on separate charges uncovered through Su Bai's report and investigation.

• The Collegial Panel agreed that Nandu Bank should bear a share of the liability but found insufficient evidence to rule that Ye Zhenghuan had maliciously evaded debts or declared bankruptcy.
• Southern Capital procurators waited outside the courtroom, prepared to arrest Ye Zhenghuan on charges tied to concealed assets, fraudulent bankruptcy, and obstruction of liquidation.
• Xu Zhiqiang argued that Nanjian Real Estate should bear most of the liability, while Wang Jiangyang admitted the company had misused supervised funds but challenged its share of responsibility.
• Su Bai asked the court to consider Ma Cheng and Ma Xiangzhi's debts, unfinished home, and financial hardship when deciding compensation.
• Zhu He announced that Nandu Bank bore thirty percent of the liability, ordered compensation and recovery of misused funds, and dismissed the malicious bankruptcy and debt evasion claims for lack of evidence.
• Southern Capital procurators entered the courtroom after the verdict and handcuffed Ye Zhenghuan, telling him that a case had been filed and public prosecution initiated.

After Ye Zhenghuan was taken into custody following his trial, the case prompted banks to tighten oversight of regulated funds, and Ma Cheng and Ma Xiangzhi settled with Nandu Bank. The chapter ended with law enforcement officers arresting Nandu Bank president Wang Wu on suspicion of a duty-related crime.

• After the verdict, procuratorial officers arrested Ye Zhenghuan in court, and Su Bai reassured Li Xuezhen that the evidence against him was conclusive.
• Luo Daxiang noted that the ruling prompted major banks to strengthen their supervision of regulated funds.
• Ma Cheng and Ma Xiangzhi reached a settlement with Nandu Bank, and Su Bai told them Southern Capital Xiushui Garden was expected to be completed and delivered.
• Wang Jiangyang visited Ye Zhenghuan and found that the prosecution's evidence made an acquittal unlikely.
• After public criticism over its handling of regulated funds, Nandu Bank president Wang Wu was summoned by law enforcement officers on suspicion of a duty-related crime.

Ye Zhenghuan, Wang Wu, and the other defendants received prison sentences in the unfinished housing case, boosting White Jun Law Firm’s reputation in property disputes. At Nandu University of Law, Wang Kexin discovered Li Xuezhen’s annotated criminal law book and asked to borrow it, revealing that she shared Li Xuezhen’s enthusiasm for cases that send people to prison.

• Nandu Intermediate Court tried Ye Zhenghuan, Wang Wu, and nine other defendants together in a public livestream hearing.
• The court sentenced Ye Zhenghuan and Wang Wu to eight years in prison each, while the other defendants received sentences of one to five years.
• Ye Zhenghuan protested the judgment and announced that he would appeal, but the presiding judge left without responding.
• Online praise for Su Bai and White Jun Law Firm grew, and the firm received more property dispute inquiries before passing some cases to Haifang Law Firm.
• Li Xuezhen studied offenses involving perverted judgments and suggested that Wang Kexin write her thesis about wrongful judgments, then lent her an annotated criminal law book.
• Wang Kexin praised Li Xuezhen’s annotations as a guide to sending people to prison and asked to borrow the book, delighting Li Xuezhen.