Chapter 16

The case Partner Wang had taken on was for a defendant who was already in custody at a detention center. The facts were largely clear. In ten days, he would be sentenced in criminal court.

The client’s name was Shui Baifang. The prosecution would charge him with intentional assault.

The night before they went to see Shui Baifang, Partner Wang patiently laid out the case details for Jiang Mian.

Shui Baifang had gotten into a conflict with someone at a club last month and used a vase to beat the other person severely. The victim was not only disfigured, but had also lost all vision in one eye.

It was inevitable that Shui Baifang would serve time, but Shui Baifang’s parents had paid a hefty sum to hire Partner Wang, hoping he could reduce the sentence.

Partner Wang also told Jiang Mian that they would be attempting to reduce the charge from intentional assault to negligent assault.

Intentional assault carried a sentence of three to ten years. Negligent assault, however, was under three years.

As they departed the law firm for the detention center, Partner Wang glanced at Jiang Mian, who was driving. “Little Jiang, you know a lawyer’s professional ethics, right?”

Jiang Mian nodded and recited smoothly: “We prioritize the client’s interests, and adhere to the duties of confidentiality and reporting.”

The legal profession was not about upholding the law as the primary duty, but about putting the client first.

It wasn’t that studying law meant you were supposed to break it. It was simply the professional ethics of a lawyer.

Lawyers were different from prosecutors and judges.

Partner Wang smiled, then added meaningfully, “If there’s anything you don’t understand, wait until we’re out to ask. Inside, you’re only responsible for taking notes. No need to speak. This is a lesson many people don’t learn until long after they leave. It’s something school professors won’t teach you.”

Jiang Mian was a little puzzled but nodded his agreement.

Meeting with a client as his lawyer was no difficult task. After passing through security, they entered a sealed meeting room. On the other side of the reinforced glass, Shui Baifang emerged and took a seat.

Shui Baifang was a young man, not very tall but solidly built.

His file said he had just turned twenty-one this year and was attending university, though it was a foreign school his family had paid for.

Once the three were seated, Partner Wang pulled out a business card and placed it upright against the glass. “Mr. Shui, hello. My surname is Wang. I am your lawyer.”

He gestured. “This is my assistant, responsible for recording our conversation today.”

Jiang Mian nodded at Shui Baifang, who was sizing him up. “Mr. Shui, my name is Jiang Mian.”

Shui Baifang immediately suppressed the amazement and amusement in his eyes. He had indeed been drawn in by Jiang Mian’s face and aura, but he also knew the Rong family’s status in the South Boundary and understood Jiang Liaoyi’s network in the legal and political circles.

“I know you,” he said.

A flicker of deference crossed his features. “Cousin of Boss Rong, right?”

Jiang Mian didn’t respond. Shui Baifang then looked at Partner Wang with a sloppy, insolent attitude. “You, I don’t know. Can you actually do this?”

Partner Wang wasn’t annoyed, just smiled. “Mr. Shui, no dialogue or actions within this room will be recorded. So, you can tell me anything.”

Jiang Mian clicked his ballpoint pen, quietly waiting to take notes.

Shui Baifang seemed to find Partner Wang too rigid. He clicked his tongue and said, “What’s there to talk about? Can you get me out of here so I don’t serve time?”

He paused, leaned in, and asked quietly, “Can you reduce the sentence?”

Lawyers never gave absolute guarantees, so Partner Wang evaded the question before asking him about the events of that day.

Jiang Mian had already reviewed the case details with Partner Wang. The incident had happened very suddenly.

Shui Baifang and the victim had bumped into each other in the club’s corridor. The victim accidentally bumped into Shui Baifang and didn’t apologize. Shui Baifang’s temper flared, and he shoved the victim, knocking him to the ground. He then swept a vase off a nearby surface. It smashed onto the victim’s face, breaking his nasal bone, knocking out several teeth, and, worse, injuring his eye, causing irreversible damage.

Thus, it was ruled as a severe injury.

In the documents sent by the court, during interrogation, Shui Baifang had not mentioned any prior grudge with the other party.

But both Jiang Mian and Partner Wang knew there was a grudge. One the prosecution hadn’t uncovered. Shui Baifang’s friends had told them about it.

Shui Baifang was gay. He had taken a liking to a friend of the victim’s younger brother. That was half a year ago, though. The guy he liked wasn’t interested, and the victim had nothing to do with that situation.

Shui Baifang simply knew the victim was a friend of that guy’s older brother, so…

As far as Jiang Mian was concerned, this was a thoroughly ridiculous case of misplaced anger.

Even facing his own lawyer, Shui Baifang didn’t mention this. Jiang Mian said nothing, just lowered his eyes and took notes. Partner Wang seemed quite satisfied.

He then showed Shui Baifang the security footage. On the tape, Shui Baifang appeared to deliberately sweep the vase off the table.

But Partner Wang then produced another video, taken by a bystander sitting on a chair. From that angle, it looked like Shui Baifang was looking at the bystander, not the vase. Even the hand sweeping the vase looked like it accidentally hit the object amidst the chaotic scene.

While this video couldn’t overturn the security footage, Partner Wang could use it as a starting point for his arguments in court.

Before Partner Wang could say more, Shui Baifang smirked. “I really did it by accident.”

That was also what his testimony stated.

Partner Wang nodded. “Mr. Shui, when you get to court, just stick to your deposition. Leave the rest to us.”

Hearing this, Jiang Mian understood Partner Wang’s strategy.

He pursed his lips slightly. Even though a vague discomfort settled in his heart, he never opened his mouth.

He knew he was a lawyer now, and his duty was to prioritize Shui Baifang’s interests.

It wasn’t until they left the detention center, on the way back to the firm, that Jiang Mian finally spoke. “He actually did it on purpose.”

Partner Wang chuckled, not at all surprised by Jiang Mian’s words. “Little Jiang, we are lawyers. Not judges. Not prosecutors.”

Lawyers worked on the principle of prioritizing the client’s interests.

Of course, Jiang Mian understood that.

He had been silently reciting that phrase since the very day he chose to work part-time at the law firm.

But that didn’t mean he could abandon his own principles.

Partner Wang’s voice was gentle as he continued, “When I first graduated, I was just like you.”

“The law we study is just and sacred.” Partner Wang said. “Back then, I also felt my clients deserved heavy sentences. But I was their lawyer. I had to work for them, defend them.”

“That is the duty of a defense attorney.”

Either refuse the case, or do your duty thoroughly.

Jiang Mian was clear on all these principles.

He stared at the red light ahead. After a moment of silence, he slowly said, “But we clearly know he did it intentionally…”

“How do we know?”

Partner Wang laughed. “Just because his friend said so? Mr. Shui insists he didn’t even know the victim. Do you have any evidence to prove Shui was aware of such a convoluted connection?”

They didn’t.

Not only did Jiang Mian not have it, but even the materials provided by the prosecution hadn’t uncovered it.

Because it was just too absurd.

Silence filled the car again for a long moment. Finally, as the car parked in the underground garage, Jiang Mian murmured, “But the victim suffered severe injuries.”

The victim was only twenty-two, disfigured and blinded in one eye.

They got out of the car just as Li Yue and Lawyer Luo were heading out to meet a client. The two greeted Partner Wang, who nodded back at them before patting Jiang Mian on the shoulder. His tone was still gentle and kind. “But our client is Mr. Shui Baifang.”

Partner Wang hadn’t bothered to lower his voice, so Li Yue and Lawyer Luo heard him clearly.

Li Yue glanced at them curiously. “What’s going on?”

Partner Wang waved a hand dismissively. “Nothing. Our Little Jiang is getting stuck in a mental rut.”

Li Yue understood instantly. “That’s normal. I was the same way when I first started as an assistant.”

He smiled along. “It gets better after you handle a few more cases like this.”

They all seemed rather unperturbed. But this matter was like a thorn lodged horizontally in Jiang Mian’s heart.

Jiang Mian felt that handling more cases wouldn’t make it better at all.

He understood a lawyer had professional principles, but he also had his own principles as a person.

Sitting quietly in his office, Jiang Mian stared at the “Lawyer” nameplate on Li Yue’s desk across from him, and for the first time, he felt a sense of disorientation.

Back when he decided to study law, the first thing he had thought was to get his Lawyer Qualification Certificate and practice.

One could say he was influenced by Jiang Liaoyi. He was also very interested in criminal cases, especially that one time Jiang Liaoyi helped someone get an acquittal, leading the prosecution to successfully charge the real perpetrator instead.

But he had never imagined he would first encounter this side of being a criminal defense attorney.

Jiang Mian sighed inwardly.

He finally understood why Jiang Liaoyi had suggested he work part-time at a law firm before graduating university.

Jiang Liaoyi wasn’t with a firm. He took cases through personal channels and could screen them himself.

The cases Jiang Mian saw through him weren’t like Shui Baifang’s.

Jiang Liaoyi wanted him to realize that being a lawyer had two sides.

His mood was a mess, so during his lunch break, Jiang Mian went downstairs and stood on a bridge near the firm’s building, gazing out at the sea in the distance.

He took out his cell phone, wanting to talk to someone, but found he didn’t know who to turn to.

Besides, he wasn’t the type of person accustomed to sharing his burdens with others.

So in the end, Jiang Mian just took a picture of the sea and posted it on his Moments feed.

The sun wasn’t too harsh today, but it was shining just right.

The sunlight shimmered on the sea surface. A warm, slightly muggy sea breeze blew gently against his face.

There was a harbor nearby, and a large ship was docking, its horn sounding a long, deep “Wooo,” making everything sound peaceful and idyllic.

Jiang Mian rested his elbows on the railing, watching the likes and comments pile up in his feed, but the tightness in his chest remained, his mind still a chaotic mess.

He wasn’t a particularly decisive person to begin with. Suddenly discovering that his dream and goal of so many years didn’t align with what he imagined, Jiang Mian truly didn’t know what to do.

[Chen Yishen: (Like) Lawyer Jiang, great photography skills.]

[Zhou Yuhui: Your photography skills are way better than Chen Yishen’s.]

[Zuo Yao: Back from the dead?]

…

Jiang Mian put away his phone, stood quietly for another moment. When the sun started to feel a bit too hot on his skin, he decided to head back.

But just as he turned, a shadow fell over his head, blocking the late August heat.

Jiang Mian paused, and when he looked up, he met Chen Gu’s smiling eyes. “Lawyer Jiang, enjoying the view without inviting me? Isn’t that a bit much?”

“…” Jiang Mian was a bit stunned. “What are you doing here?”

Chen Gu said leisurely, “I was nearby buying paints. Saw your post and thought I’d ask if you’d eaten yet, maybe grab something together.”

Jiang Mian indeed hadn’t.

And the moment Chen Gu mentioned the word “eat”, Jiang Mian’s stomach traitorously rumbled.

Jiang Mian wasn’t embarrassed, just asked, “What to eat?”

Chen Gu raised an eyebrow, looking a little surprised. “When do you start work?”

Jiang Mian checked his watch. “Two o’clock. Still an hour and a half.”

But a lot of people around here were office workers eating lunch at this hour.

“Then let’s grab something quick, Western style?” Chen Gu thought for a second. “I saw a coffee shop on the way here. They have sandwiches.”

Jiang Mian knew the place. After all, he’d been working part-time for so long and lived in the South Boundary for many years—there was practically no place he didn’t know. “Okay.”

They walked off the bridge. Jiang Mian glanced again at the umbrella Chen Gu was holding over his head.

Before he could speak, Chen Gu said casually, “Bought it on the way here. Was worried you might get heatstroke.”

Jiang Mian paused, then said slowly, “I’m not that delicate.”

Chen Gu nodded. “I am.”

Jiang Mian: “…”

Chen Gu tilted his head and looked down at him, feigning innocence. “I was afraid of standing with you under this blazing sun until your shift starts. Without an umbrella, you’d have to be responsible for me when I got heatstroke tonight.”

Jiang Mian: “.”

He hadn’t asked Chen Gu to come, had he?

He didn’t know if it was because the shade blocked the too-intense sunlight, or because of this playful banter, but his chaotic thoughts somehow settled down.

The two maintained a two-fist distance between them, so their shoulders inevitably still caught some sun. It was still a bit hot. But under this umbrella, Jiang Mian could catch a hint of Chen Gu’s scent.

He didn’t know what that scent was. It was unique, but pleasant.

Like the smell of oil paint he remembered from a previous gallery visit. Probably because Chen Gu painted, and the scent had clung to him over time.

It was a bit… reassuring.