Before Chief Lin could even ask about the background of this sudden arrival—a man whose appearance and aura screamed 'lawyer'—the man had already taken out his ID and began to introduce himself.
"I am Zhao Tianyi, Chief Attorney at Tianyi Law Firm. Ms. Liu Yutong is my valued client and the victim whose lawful rights and interests have been severely infringed upon in this incident."
"Regarding the video evidence provided by my client's side just now, I guarantee on the professional reputation of Tianyi Law Firm and myself that the footage is the original on-site recording, without any illegal editing or tampering. We fully support and welcome the police to commission a qualified third-party forensic agency to conduct a comprehensive and public technical appraisal of the video's originality, completeness, and the facts reflected therein."
Immediately after, he changed the subject, pointing at Qin Zi'ang, his tone suddenly turning severe: "At the same time, based on existing evidence and preliminary investigations, I hereby officially and solemnly represent my client, Ms. Liu Yutong, to report to your department that the man before you, Mr. Qin Zi'ang, is suspected of organized and premeditated implementation of the following serious criminal acts...
"First, he is suspected of illegally hiring and instructing idle members of society to openly intercept other people's vehicles on public roads, using weapons, blockades, and intimidation to carry out violent threats. This act is suspected of constituting the crime of picking quarrels and provoking trouble as stipulated in Article 293 of the Criminal Law, and the circumstances are egregious. At the same time, his behavior carries obvious violence and coercion, and may also be suspected of endangering public security with dangerous methods..."
"Second, his hired personnel were armed with weapons..."
"Third, organizing multiple people... suspected of engaging in illegal and criminal activities similar to those of underworld syndicates and evil forces..."
"Fourth..."
Zhao Tianyi listed several of Qin Zi'ang's illegal and criminal behaviors in one breath, each sounding more serious than the last.
"In summary, Mr. Qin Zi'ang's behavior shows great subjective malice, dangerous methods, and an egregious nature... We now officially request and urge your department to immediately file a criminal case for investigation into the above-mentioned serious illegal and criminal acts suspected by Qin Zi'ang, and to take necessary coercive measures against the relevant suspects in accordance with the law."
...
The private room was instantly in an uproar.
Highway robbery? Violent threats? Organizing a crime syndicate... Every single one of these charges sounded like a heavy felony!
Some people could not help but mutter in their hearts: This isn't right. Obviously, this group of men in black from the Wanlong Society looks more like a crime syndicate. How did Qin Zi'ang turn into the mobster coming out of this Attorney Zhao's mouth?
Sure enough, a lawyer's mouth... no, this was simply a silver tongue that could talk the living to death and the dead back to life. It was terrifying.
The color drained from Qin Zi'ang's face in an instant, leaving it as pale as paper.
He had hired Brother Biao to block Liu Yutong's car and scare her, originally just wanting to vent his anger. But he never imagined the other party would directly pin such serious charges on him. If these were proven true, it wouldn't be as simple as paying compensation and apologizing. He would really have to pack his bags for a long stay behind bars, and the sentence wouldn't be short.
"You... you're making baseless accusations! Nonsense!"
"I just... I just found someone to warn her a bit, I didn't want to do anything at all, just to scare her. I didn't even want to touch a hair on her head! Uncle Lin, this is a false accusation, they are trying to ruin my life!"
His eager defense was equivalent to personally admitting the facts of the other party's accusations.
This was exactly what Zhao Tianyi was waiting for. He let out an "Oh," and said, "Did everyone hear that? He admitted he did it."
Qin Zi'ang finally realized he had misspoken and hurriedly shook his head. "No... I didn't mean that... I just wanted her to stop being so arrogant..."
Just then, Lin Yeyun, who couldn't stand watching any longer, stepped forward.
"Uncle, aren't we missing the point? Shouldn't responding to this call be about handling the fact that my friends and I were beaten up by this group of people?"
"Look at my face, then look at my friends, and then at the other party's people. It's obvious at a glance who the real victims are."
Chief Lin's face turned stern upon hearing this. He nodded and immediately assumed an official, strictly-business posture, though he was clearly leaning toward his nephew, Lin Yeyun.
"Alright, stop arguing!"
"Attorney Zhao, your report and accusations have been recorded by the police. But right now, the situation at the scene is complicated, there are many people involved, the evidence is not yet clear, and there are major contradictions in the statements of both parties. All personnel involved in the brawl, including Miss Liu and your company's people, must return to the station with us for further investigation."
Zhao Tianyi knew as soon as he heard this that they were probably trying to smooth things over. He was just about to argue further.
Chief Lin saw his intention and said in a tough tone, "You are a lawyer, you should know the nature of obstructing official duties."
Zhao Tianyi: "You..."
Liu Yutong: "Tianyi, follow Chief Lin's arrangements. We will go and cooperate with the investigation."
Zhao Tianyi: "Yes, Miss!"
It was just that he still felt very stifled. This was obvious favoritism. But after all, this wasn't their turf, so for now, they could only endure it temporarily.
Immediately after, Liu Yutong made a move that everyone found hard to understand. She actually walked up to Chief Lin on her own initiative and held out her hands: "Chief Lin, do I need to be handcuffed?"
Chief Lin originally wanted to say no, but catching a glimpse of his nephew beaten to such a state in his own jurisdiction, if he, as an uncle, didn't show even a bit of a tough stance, it would be really hard to explain when he got back. Handcuffing Liu Yutong and taking her back would at least superficially vent some anger for his nephew, and procedurally it was barely justifiable.
Then he actually took out a pair of handcuffs and, with a click, cuffed Liu Yutong's wrists.
Little did he know, this would be the decision he regretted the most.
Zhao Tianyi's face instantly turned extremely ugly. He was just about to voice a warning when another hurried voice came from outside the private room door.
"President Liu? Is Ms. Liu Yutong here?"
As soon as the voice fell, a man wearing an executive jacket and glasses hurried into the private room.
The newcomer was none other than Secretary Chen from the General Office of the Demon City Government.
When he saw Liu Yutong surrounded by several police officers, with a pair of handcuffs on her wrists, the expression on his face instantly shifted from astonishment to anger.
"What are you doing?!"
Then he snapped his head to look at Chief Lin.
"Chief Lin, please explain this to me clearly right now. What is going on here? Do you know who she is?!"
Upon hearing Secretary Chen's words, Chief Lin's heart instantly skipped a beat.
Not good! Things were about to go south!
Secretary Chen was the closest secretary to the top leader of the municipal government. His attitude often represented the attitude of the top leader. For him to personally come looking for Liu Yutong at this moment, he must be acting on the leader's orders.
Sure enough, Secretary Chen's next words made Chief Lin's heart sink straight down.
"Then let me tell you, President Liu, Ms. Liu Yutong, is a VIP personally invited by the leadership to inspect Demon City!"
"You all sure have some nerve! To think you actually handcuffed CEO Liu on his very first day inspecting Mo City! I'd love to see how you're going to explain this to the higher-ups!"
.........
