Old Tang walked out of the Xihong District Court with an unruffled demeanor, "If they want to appeal, let them," he thought.
Without new evidence, the second trial basically always upheld the original verdict.
At his side, the family of three also left the building, and since they had appealed, they would not be detained for now.
The looks they were giving him right now were all sort of wrong.
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If it had been another lawyer, they probably would have found a backdoor way out by now, but Old Tang couldn't care less. Stare all you want, he thought, if you can stare me to death, I'll accept it.
During the mediation, if only the other party had been willing to apologize and pay, none of this would have happened.
He didn't pay them any more mind and took a cab back to the law firm.
Behind him, Yu Erming was pale as a ghost, Wu Xiaozhen was clenching her teeth but said nothing; they knew they couldn't intimidate their opponent, but also felt that scuffling over a six-month sentence just wasn't worth it.
Why does someone like Tang Fangjing even exist in this world?
Business at Tengda was as usual, with people coming in every day and disputes growing more abundant each year.
But even if Tang Fangjing were made of iron, how many nails could he hammer in? So he took on cases he could handle and left others for his colleagues to tackle.
In such an atmosphere, the Chinese New Year was approaching.
At the entrance of Jingzhou City Intermediate People's Court, Wu Xiaozhen and her husband looked at the lawyer in front of them, their faces a picture of confusion.
"This, this second trial doesn't even hold a hearing and just issues a verdict?"
Yes, neither civil nor criminal second trials necessarily require a hearing.
If the defendant and their representative object to the facts and evidence determined in the first trial, affecting sentencing or, in cases where the defendant receives a death sentence, or the procuratorate protests, among other circumstances, the second trial court should convene a collegiate panel to hear the case.
"Well, let it be. We'll just make a slight change to the treatment. I think we can be a bit bolder..."
An hour later, Old Tang left the hospital unperturbed by whatever new treatment plan Old Guo had in mind, thinking, you're the experts anyway.
The law firm began to empty out again, but Old Tang still made his daily visits. What did the New Year matter? People would still sue even during the festival.
On New Year's Eve, while the outside was bustling with excitement, Old Tang ordered a table full of dishes and enjoyed his wine while watching the Spring Festival Gala alone at home, content with his life, accustomed as he was to this kind of living.
To him, his life was defined by his confrontations with the law. He had no thoughts beyond that.
After midnight, a barrage of WeChat messages and phone calls began wishing him a happy new year—from people he had helped in the past.
"Bro Tang, alone on New Year's again? You know, you should really find a girlfriend. Some people don't care about things like late-stage cancer," came a message from Chi Yan.
"Bro Tang, Happy New Year! It's so boring practicing independently. How about I come back to be your assistant again?" This was from Miss Xiao Yan.
"Bro Tang, can you refer some cases my way? I'm starving..." This was from Li Wanting.
Old Tang chuckled reading these messages, unable to help it. He was just too outstanding, despite his efforts to stay low-key.
The neighbors downstairs brought up a bowl of dumplings, which he appreciated, figuring he could offer them a discount if they ever needed legal services.
After the wine, Old Tang quickly fell asleep. The New Year passed just like that, without much care.
In Chi family's village in Lvzhou countryside, Chi Yan sighed while looking at the reply on her phone.
The person marked as "Bro Tang" replied: Better not, I really shouldn't go and bring disaster upon others. A life alone is quite good.
Can you believe what he's saying? What does he mean by "bring disaster"?!
Just one thing bothered her: he hadn't replied to any of the messages she sent after that. Could it be that Bro Tang had someone else there with him?
The new year arrived amid the sound of firecrackers. It was said that some provinces no longer allowed the use of firecrackers.