Jiang Chiyan stopped teasing him, his voice almost overflowing with tenderness. "All right, all right, I'll shut up."
Holding his now-cold coffee, Xiao Cheng asked uncertainly, "Can we... win this case?"
It wasn't that he doubted Jiang Chiyan's ability, but...
His novel was at a disadvantage because of its genre.
Since the Copyright Law had been enacted in China, there had never been a precedent of a danmei author winning a copyright dispute involving alleged plagiarism.
Not a single precedent!!
Xiao Cheng told Jiang Chiyan his concerns.
Jiang Chiyan poked the base of Xiao Cheng's ear with a fingertip and said softly, "Don't worry."
"A plagiarizing scumbag is a plagiarizing scumbag."
"If there's no precedent of winning, we'll set one."
As it turned out, before the case even went to trial...
That very evening, the plaintiff, author Seventeen Strokes, posted on Weibo and directly tagged Xiao Cheng's account.
Seventeen Strokes V: "Plagiarism is shameful. @Xiao Cheng V @Season V"
Season was Xiao Cheng's pen name.
Under the post, Seventeen Strokes included a Comparison Chart and various screenshots, evidence that Season was Xiao Cheng, and links to both their works.
Seventeen Strokes was a well-known author with three million followers.
But compared with Xiao Cheng's nearly ninety million followers, that number was rather insignificant.
The moment the post went up, the flood of abuse nearly blew up her account.
___: "Holy crap, our boy Xiao Cheng wrote novels too?"
___: "I think Brother Cheng is the original author. The writing style is a lot like his Weibo posts. I have a doctorate in literature from Tsinghua University. Don't argue with me!"
___: "Seventeen Strokes spent seven years writing historical romances without ever getting popular. How convenient that she blew up after writing a contemporary danmei with the same premise as Brother Cheng's? I have a doctorate in Chinese from Peking University. Trolls, back off!"
___: "Xiao Cheng is the original author! Season is the original author!! Seventeen Strokes, get out of the danmei community!"
___: "Oranges, stay rational. No cyberbullying. Let the law clear Brother Cheng's name!"
Xiao Cheng's fans were called Oranges.
Besides the Oranges firmly supporting him, there were also some diehard Seventeen Strokes fans.
___: "Are xc's fans seriously sick in the head? Bullying us because you outnumber us?"
___: "Exactly. Someone in show business can write webnovels? And hit it big with his very first book?"
___: "Sis Seventeen, ignore Xiao Cheng's brain-dead fans. Let the evidence speak!"
___: "The Comparison Chart is already out. If Xiao Cheng really didn't plagiarize, why hasn't he posted a Counter-Comparison Chart? Guilty conscience??"
Jiang Chiyan finished reading the comments.
Without another word, he logged into his main Weibo account.
Jiang Chiyan V: "The innocent need no defense. @Xiao Cheng V"
The image attached to the post was-
A power of attorney authorizing legal representation.
Not long afterward, Jiang Chiyan posted again.
Jiang Chiyan V: "Sorry, my premium membership expired. I just renewed it and changed my Weibo posting source."
He even took a screenshot of his posting source.
He circled it with a thick red pen for everyone to see.
[Weibo source: Xiao Cheng Fan Club President's vivo 20 Pro]
___: "Holy shit! Jiang Chiyan is handling the case!!!"
___: "A few hundred of us Oranges pooled our money to buy you fifty years of premium. Your membership expires in 2071. @Jiang Chiyan V"
___: "Jiang Chiyan, you have to hand your salary card over to Brother Cheng, right? Then Brother Cheng can even save on legal fees."
___: "The person above is savage! Leave some bamboo shoots for the pandas!!"
___: "Our Orange-in-law is mighty!"
Although the netizens teased them, few actually thought Xiao Cheng and Jiang Chiyan were together.
After all, one was a top star in show business who had fought his way to the peak from humble beginnings.
The other was a powerful figure with connections on both sides of the law, a lawyer with a mysterious background.
Their identities and backgrounds were far too different.
The two men at the center of the fans' heated discussion were having a late-night meal together.
Scrolling through the comments, Xiao Cheng had already gone numb.
Afraid of looking fat on camera, he put down his chopsticks after only a few bites of boiled greens.
Across from him, Jiang Chiyan was eating spicy crayfish, peeling them and occasionally replying to fans.
He had no concern whatsoever for maintaining an idol image.
Originally, Xiao Cheng had been a little nervous about the lawsuit.
He had never gone to court in person; the studio's legal counsel handled all legal disputes.
But over the next few days...
Xiao Cheng sat in the public gallery and listened to Jiang Chiyan argue five or six cases.
Whenever a case was heard publicly, he went.
After listening for a few days without seeing Jiang Chiyan lose once, he finally relaxed completely.
Several days later, the copyright dispute between Xiao Cheng (Season) and Tong Shiqi (Seventeen Strokes) officially went to trial.
A huge number of Oranges logged onto the Court Trial Publicity Network early that morning to wait for the trial livestream.
The website crashed several times.
An ordinary case would draw anywhere from a few hundred to a few thousand livestream viewers.
But Xiao Cheng's case drew... over twenty million.
Several prominent fan accounts with legal expertise from Xiao Cheng's fan club even opened a livestream room specifically to provide live commentary.
Viewers in the livestream saw Xiao Cheng and Jiang Chiyan enter the courtroom together.
The plaintiff hadn't come, sending only her lawyer.
The plaintiff's lawyer looked a little intimidated as soon as he saw Jiang Chiyan.
Utterly shameless, Jiang Chiyan even strolled over. "Hi."
"Don't be nervous. Lose gracefully. There's no shame in losing to me."
Beside him, Xiao Cheng shot him a glare. "Get back to your seat at counsel's table!"
Jiang Chiyan raised both hands in surrender. "Whatever you say."
Then he obediently returned to counsel's table and sat down without the slightest protest.
The livestream's scrolling comments exploded at the sight.
___: "Haha, Jiang Chiyan really is arrogant! And he really is scared of his wife!!"
___: "Jiang Chiyan is so soft!"
___: "Jiang Chiyan: Honey, I'll show you how hard I am when we get home!"
Soon, amid the flood of livestream comments, the trial began.
After the plaintiff's lawyer finished reading the complaint, Jiang Chiyan rose elegantly.
Speaking entirely without notes, he improvised on the defense statement submitted to the court.
His delivery was unhurried and expressive, his voice pleasing to the ear, like jade pieces lightly touching.
Seated in the defendant's seat, Xiao Cheng looked up at Jiang Chiyan, who stood ramrod straight.
Listening to him argue a case was a pleasure.
When they reached the presentation and examination of evidence...
Jiang Chiyan displayed the Counter-Comparison Chart he had commissioned from professionals on the projection screen and explained it with a faint smile.
With every sentence he spoke, the plaintiff's lawyer grew a shade paler.
Jiang Chiyan cited authoritative sources as though he were a walking law library.
He drew effortlessly on theories, cases, and legal provisions, his logic clear and every sentence barbed, leaving no room to fight back.
The plaintiff's lawyer's face flushed red, and during the debate, all he managed to choke out was, "But this is a danmei novel..."
There was no way to win a copyright dispute over a danmei novel!
Jiang Chiyan nodded like a gentleman. "Yes."
"Under Articles 2 and 10 of the Copyright Law... (look them up yourself; I'm not padding the word count), my client, Mr. Xiao Cheng, presents the following three points in his defense..."
"Furthermore," Jiang Chiyan swept his gaze around the room, "original works in every genre deserve respect."
"Everyone is equal before the law."
After the hearing ended and the collegiate panel began its deliberations...
Jiang Chiyan's phone chimed.
He lowered his eyes to glance at the message, and his expression changed.