Liu Yutong briefly explained the tasks to Yun Cheng and the others before returning to school.
In the final three weeks before the college entrance exams, the atmosphere on campus grew increasingly tense, with a palpable sense of urgency hanging in the air.
Liu Yutong fully immersed herself in this environment, focusing intently on her studies.
After returning from the hospital, Zhao Zhu and her friends had noticeably toned down their behavior and no longer provoked her.
Whether it was because they had been frightened by Liu Yutong’s earlier reprimand or because they had lost Liu Hao as their backer, they had clearly changed.
In any case, Liu Yutong could finally enjoy some peace and concentrate on her exam preparations.
Outside the county courthouse,
Ma Da, as usual, would squat by the courthouse entrance whenever he had free time, observing the comings and goings of the crowd.
He had been pondering what the "rule of law" that the young mistress mentioned truly meant.
Though he still hadn’t fully grasped the concept, it didn’t matter—watching the drama unfold at the courthouse was entertaining enough.
Today, he witnessed an elderly man throwing a tantrum at the courthouse entrance, clinging to his lawyer and rolling on the ground.
The lawyer was at his wit’s end.
"Sir, could you please stop making a scene? The facts are clear, and the evidence is solid—what else can I do for you?"
The old man retorted, "I don’t care! I’m not a thief! I just picked up a rope from the ground—why should I have to pay for it?"
The lawyer sighed. "Then why don’t you mention that the other end of the rope was tied to a cow?"
No matter how patiently the lawyer tried to reason with him, the old man refused to listen, nearly working himself into a fit.
Finally, the lawyer had no choice but to refund the old man’s legal fees.
As soon as the money was in his hands, the old man sprang up, pocketed the refunded thousand-yuan fee, and walked away as if nothing had happened.
The lawyer shook his head helplessly and left.
There was nothing he could do. Even as a lawyer, some situations were beyond his control.
With someone as old as this man, if anything happened during an argument, the lawyer would be the one facing trouble.
Reluctantly, he had refunded the fee to avoid further conflict.
Just as Ma Da was about to leave after his usual courthouse stakeout, a young-looking lawyer suddenly blocked his path.
"Hey, I’ve noticed you here for a while. Do you have a tricky case? You can hire me," the young lawyer said, handing Ma Da a business card.
Ma Da glanced at it: "Tianyi Law Firm, Attorney Zhao Tianyi."
"You’re a lawyer?"
Zhao Tianyi nodded. "That’s right. I specialize in criminal cases."
To him, Ma Da looked like a street thug.
Someone like him loitering around the courthouse was probably concerned about a criminal case—maybe his boss or a buddy had been arrested for assault.
That’s why Zhao Tianyi had approached him, hoping to land a case.
Admittedly, as the head of his own law firm, soliciting clients at the courthouse was a bit undignified.
But his firm was on the verge of bankruptcy.
Zhao Tianyi had previously worked at another firm, where he was constantly targeted by his boss. Fed up and with five years of practice under his belt, he impulsively quit to start his own practice.
Now, he truly understood the saying, "Haste makes waste."
Without a steady income and with employees to pay, the early years of a legal career were tough. Desperate, he resorted to courthouse stakeouts, scraping for whatever cases he could find.
Seeing Ma Da frequent the courthouse, Zhao Tianyi assumed he must have a case—and a big one at that.
Otherwise, why would someone keep coming back?
Plus, despite his rough appearance, Ma Da seemed like a loyal guy.
Most thugs wouldn’t care this much about how their boss or friend was sentenced.
But because he was so loyal, that made him an easy mark for legal fees.
Ma Da had planned to brush him off and leave, but when he heard Zhao Tianyi specialized in criminal defense, his eyes lit up.
Could this be the real reason the young mistress had told them to observe the courthouse?
To find a knowledgeable criminal lawyer and learn from them, truly understanding the concept of the rule of law.
The realization hit him like a brick.
Ma Da suddenly slapped himself across the face. "How could I be so stupid? It took me this long to figure out the young mistress’s plan!"
Zhao Tianyi, witnessing the unexpected self-slapping, became even more convinced of his theory.
This guy was clearly a sentimental gangster, and his brother or boss was in trouble—possibly because of him.
Maybe they took the fall for him or sacrificed themselves to save him.
The guilt must be eating him alive, hence the self-punishment.
With a little smooth talking, Zhao Tianyi could easily squeeze some cash out of him.
His law firm might just be saved.
"Listen, I won’t brag, but I’ve got nearly a decade of experience in criminal defense. Handled all kinds of cases—you won’t regret choosing me!" Zhao Tianyi rounded up his five-plus years of practice to a full decade.
Ma Da, none the wiser, eagerly grabbed his hand. "Perfect! You’re the one! Let me call someone to pick us up."
Zhao Tianyi’s heart soared at the mention of a car. This guy must have money!
In this day and age, owning a car was rare. This was a golden opportunity.
He started brainstorming ways to milk as much as possible from them.
A short while later,
a rickety van, sounding like a tractor, pulled up in front of them.
Zhao Tianyi’s jaw dropped. "This… this is your car?"
Ma Da grinned. "Yeah, it’s a bit old, but the performance is top-notch. Want my buddy to show you some drifting?"
Zhao Tianyi hastily waved his hands. "No, no! Let’s focus on the case. How about we head to my office first?"
Ma Da nodded eagerly. "Sure, sure!"
Soon,
Ma Da and his crew arrived at Zhao Tianyi’s law firm.
Staring at the so-called office, Ma Da and the others were stunned.
"Wait… this is really a law firm?"
In their minds, law firms were supposed to be high-end, lavishly decorated spaces.
But Zhao Tianyi’s office had just a few desks, two computers, and almost nothing else—even the walls were unfinished.
Zhao Tianyi flushed with embarrassment and quickly explained, "Minimalist style is all the rage now."
Ma Da nodded. "Ah, I see! Very… minimal!"
Zhao Tianyi called out, "Assistant Wang, bring some stools and tea for our guests."
A middle-aged woman, leisurely cracking sunflower seeds, shuffled over and unceremoniously tossed a stack of plastic stools onto the floor.
Then, she poured a few cups of plain water for Ma Da and the others using disposable cups, tossing in a few random tea leaves she’d scrounged up from who-knows-where.
Ma Da: "......"
Seriously? Could she be any more half-hearted?
