(Tomorrow is Saturday, and Author Germ will start updating two chapters a day, with each chapter still being 5,000 words, oh! Dear readers, please vote more, and add the story to your favorites. After all, recommendation tickets are available every day, and favorites just need a click, they're free (*^▽^*). Author Germ thanks everyone here~)
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"They are just farting!"
It was hard to imagine that a girl who looked so meek and mild would become so agitated that she roared in court.
What kind of conflict must it be, to make Han Yu lose her wits and spout eloquence in front of the whole school?
"Ahem, Han Yu, please don't get too excited."
Zhang Wei hurriedly reminded her, but he was equally curious, "However, I would like to ask Han Yu, why do you become so agitated when mentioning the defendant Jia Meili?"
Han Yu couldn't hold back at once and complained, "That's because I have been very tormented these past few years!"
"I am a journalism student and also the editor of the news section of the forum. I have to stay up all night writing articles, and sometimes it's common to rush articles at midnight. And when I rush my articles, I like to be a bit more peaceful alone, to avoid disturbing my roommates while they rest, I always stand in the corridor to write. But the neighbor dormitory's Jia Meili and her gang, it's just too infuriating. She and Feng Li would party outside until very late, and when they come back, they talk loudly and make noise, disturbing my progress in writing articles. I tolerated them for a year and eventually couldn't bear it anymore and reported them to the school committee's life office!"
At this point, Han Yu became even more indignant, "Unfortunately, despite being warned many times by the life office, they didn't constrain themselves at all, and instead got even worse. They would make noise until past two in the morning every day, greatly affecting my efficiency in writing articles, to the point where I developed dark circles from staying up late and had to attend classes drowsy. It's been too hard for me!"
As Han Yu accused, the jury cast sympathetic glances at her, and there were whispers directed at Jia Meili in the audience.
"Objection, the witness has no factual basis!" Zhang Hui immediately stood up to interrupt.
If Han Yu kept on, Jia Meili would become the target of public criticism.
Zhang Wei, however, smiled, "Senior sister, don't be in a hurry, Han Yu hasn't finished yet…"
Zhang Hui immediately retorted, "These are baseless claims, they are hearsay evidence, and cannot…"
"Who says I don't have evidence!"
But Zhang Hui's words were interrupted by Han Yu.
She took out a USB drive, furiously saying, "I've waited a long time for this moment, today I will expose their crimes!"
Zhang Wei promptly cooperated, "Your Honor, the prosecution submits this recording as evidence. The recording can prove the authenticity of what Han Yu has said, and further shows that Feng Li is lying!"
"I object!" Seeing things take a bad turn, Zhang Hui immediately countered, "Your Honor, a secretly recorded audio file is not legally protected and cannot be used as evidence!"
Zhang Wei, however, was well prepared and walked to his seat to retrieve a record sheet.
"Your Honor, I would like to clarify that recordings made by the witness inside her own dormitory are legal and not illegally obtained. Furthermore, copies of the recording were submitted to the life office and students' union dormitory management office as evidence. Both the defense and the school can obtain this public backup file from the students' union, therefore, I believe this file can be accepted as evidence."
"Since the file was not secretly recorded, it is admissible!" Geng Hongxia nodded, not rejecting it.
Zhang Wei, prepared for this, then plugged the USB into the computer beside him and began to play it.
"Hahaha, Li Li, you sang really well today!"
"Of course, I plan to become a big star in the future~hic~"
"We are Law School students, we should aspire to become great lawyers, what future is there in being a big star? You might even end up getting taken advantage of."
"I just like the glory in the public eye, being a lawyer means having to accompany clients every day, prepare trial materials and flip through case records, it would bore me to death~"
Zhang Wei pressed the pause button and explained, "This recording has a timestamp, marked at 2:13 AM."
"Sounds like in the recording, Jia Meili and Feng Li had just returned from a KTV off-campus, and they seemed a bit drunk too. I wonder if they really enjoyed themselves that night?"
Although Zhang Wei was making a joke, there was a stir among the jury and the audience.
Zhang Wei then continued to play the second part of the recording.
"Hahaha, Zhang Wei helped you with your homework again today, didn't he?"
"Why bring him up, he's just a bootlicker."
"Exactly, a bootlicker. It's bad luck to mention him. We better think about your side business. This time, we..."
"Shh! Are you crazy? Why bring that up?!"
"Oh, sorry sorry, I'll shut up, I'll shut up..."
With the recording over, Zhang Wei added, "This recording is even better, timestamped at 11:35 PM, not even midnight, and it happens to be right after I finished tutoring Jia Meili."
"But I never imagined that in Jia Meili's eyes, I would be nothing more than a bootlicker, not even worthy of a mention~" He said, laughing wryly at himself.
The reaction from the jury was growing stronger, and once again there were murmurs from the spectators.
But at this moment, Zhang Wei approached the defendant, Feng Li, "Classmate Feng Li, may I ask what the defendant's side job is?"
As soon as these words came out, Feng Li's expression changed, and Jia Meili also clenched her fists tightly, looking extremely unnatural.
"What side job? I don't know!" Feng Li quickly denied.
"Is that so? You don't know, but hasn't classmate Jia Meili been working hard and living frugally?" Zhang Wei asked with a look of surprise, "I just want to ask what the nature of her part-time job is. As her best friend, don't you know?"
"Objection, this line of questioning is irrelevant to the case!" Zhang Hui spoke out.
"Sorry, I retract the question," said Zhang Wei with a smile, then gestured toward the front row of the spectators.
"Classmate Feng Li, there was a male student who showed up in the spectators' seats today, can you tell me who he is?"
Turning her head, Feng Li followed the direction Zhang Wei was pointing and her complexion changed.
"He, he is..."
"Let me reveal the answer then. He is your boyfriend, a student from the Aeronautics and Astronautics Academy, and he is also majoring in pilot training, isn't he? Your boyfriend truly has a bright future!"
"Objection, this question is meaningless!" Zhang Hui interjected again.
"Fine, I withdraw the question and end my cross-examination. Thank you for your cooperation, classmate Han Yu!"
Feeling vindicated, Han Yu gave Jia Meili and Feng Li a smug look, enjoying a sense of retribution fulfilled.
"Your Honor, and members of the jury, after the refutation of the evidence provided by witness Han Yu, our side can clearly state that witness Feng Li's testimony is not credible—she lied in public!"
Zhang Wei emphasized his point forcefully, then his gaze swept over to the defendant's seat, "Classmate Feng Li, are you still going to commit perjury on the stand? If you don't want to come up, I can understand, haha."
Faced with such questioning, Feng Li's face flashed wildly, and in the end, she could only look helplessly at Zhang Hui, who then looked at Jia Meili. The three girls' eyes communicated their turmoil.
"Your Honor, the defense calls Jia Meili to testify in court!"
In the end, Zhang Hui was forced to resort to her last strategy, having the person involved explain things personally.
Zhang Wei, as if anticipating this, quietly returned to his seat, yielding the stage.
Jia Meili stepped up to the stand, becoming a witness for the defense.
Zhang Hui, aware of the unfavorable situation, got straight to the point without mincing words, "Classmate Jia Meili, there's a big misunderstanding about you in court right now. Do you have anything you wish to clarify for yourself?"
Of course, Jia Meili had a lot to say, almost wishing she could grow another mouth on her face.
She organized her thoughts and began to narrate:
"Actually, everyone has misunderstood Feng Li and me. We're not like what Zhang Wei described. Han Yu might also be mistaken about us. The days she recorded were precisely when we had passed our assessments. Naturally, with good results, we wanted to treat ourselves."
"As for the so-called tutoring sessions, I will repeat what I have said before: I relied on myself. I never asked Zhang Wei to tutor me—I only reluctantly agreed because he offered and I did not want to turn down his kind offer."
"Although Zhang Wei has been diligent and responsible throughout, I believe my own academic performance isn't poor either. The improvement in my subject grades is the result of my own efforts. On the other hand, Zhang Wei, he..."
Here, Jia Meili's eyes began to redden slightly, her expression carried a cry in it, and she even struggled to continue speaking for a moment.
"Witness, please don't get upset, just explain the situation slowly. I believe everyone in the court is reasonable and will listen to what you have to say!" Zhang Hui immediately soothed.
On the side, Xiao Lubu nudged Zhang Wei, "Why aren't you objecting? Isn't this leading the witness?"
Xia Qianyue also tugged at Zhang Wei's sleeve, "This woman is going to slander you again, won't you respond?"
"Don't worry, let them jump around for a bit," said Zhang Wei calmly, with a wave of his hand.
Feeling powerless, Luo Xiaobu and Xia Qianyue had no choice but to stay quiet.
In the courtroom, Jia Meili finally composed herself and continued, "Zhang Wei repeatedly used tutoring as a pretext to make advances on me, and even... he even used assessment scores to threaten me, pressuring me to... mm-mm..."
Tears shimmered in Jia Meili's eyes, as if she recalled a heartbreaking memory, looking on the verge of tears.
Her weeping cast a wave of commotion over the jury and the spectators, and the students became unsettled.
However, some older professors seated there watched with a cold eye.
Young students with little experience of life might be moved by Jia Meili's "performance," but these old-timers weren't easily fooled by such acting.
"There's no other choice, to resort to such a desperate move!" Yang Qingquan shook his head as he watched Jia Meili on the witness stand.
Clearly, the girl was lying, which also meant she was committing perjury.
If this weren't a mock trial, he would have had trouble restraining himself from chastising the opponent.
A girl, being suppressed at every turn during the trial, and then planning to use a woman's innate advantages to elicit sympathy—this tactic had already become cheapened.
"Let's see how Zhang Wei will respond," Yang Qingquan couldn't help but feel some anticipation, wanting to see Zhang Wei's counter-attack.
If this move could be warded off as well, the kid had a promising future indeed!
In court, as Jia Meili cried, Zhang Hui ended her questioning.
For her, using Jia Meili as a last resort was already the limit; success or failure was now up to fate.
Zhang Wei rose with a smile and walked toward Jia Meili.
He had been waiting for this moment for a long time.
Zhang Wei said cheerfully, "Jia Meili, please don't cry anymore. If you keep it up, I'm going to start shedding tears too!"
Despite his words, his expression was relaxed, suggesting no possibility that he would cry.
Jia Meili indeed stopped crying, but her reddened eyes glared at Zhang Wei relentlessly.
She swore that if murder carried no legal consequences, she truly wished she could bite him to death.
"May I ask, Jia Meili, when you say that I have tried to take advantage of you multiple times, is it true?"
"Yes!" Jia Meili responded through clenched teeth, looking at Zhang Wei with extreme disgust.
"So, I can't even touch you a little bit?"
As he spoke, Zhang Wei raised his hand towards Jia Meili's face.
She immediately stood up to avoid it.
"Objection!" From the defendant's bench, Zhang Hui too stood up to express her discontent.
"I apologize, I just wanted to confirm whether Jia Meili really values her chastity so highly. It seems she does, to the point where she can't even allow a man to touch her!"
Zhang Wei looked as though he had discovered something fascinating, then with a stern expression, he interrogated, "Then let me ask you, can Yuan Dong touch you?"
Jia Meili didn't suspect a trick and after some thought, she replied, "Yuan Dong and I are in a boyfriend-girlfriend relationship, of course he can touch me!"
"So you're saying, only if someone is in a boyfriend-girlfriend relationship with you, they can touch you?"
"Of course! Except for my boyfriend, nobody can touch me, you certainly not!"
"Understood!" Zhang Wei took a deep breath and then returned to his seat.
"Your Honor, due to the testimony of Jia Meili, I would like to submit to the court evidence for rebuttal!"
As he spoke, Zhang Wei took out another plastic bag, inside of which were a copied flash drive and several papers.
"Objection, the prosecution has violated the evidence disclosure rules, I have not seen any of these pieces of evidence!" Zhang Hui exclaimed immediately upon seeing this.
Zhang Wei, having anticipated this, calmly stated, "Your Honor, these evidences are for the purpose of rebutting the testimony of the witness. I believe for the sake of fairness in the trial, to ensure the credibility of the witness, and to allow the jury to make an accurate judgment, I implore you to admit these pieces of evidence!"
"Both of you, come forward!" Geng Hongxia, left with no choice, gave a discreet signal with her eyes towards the two.
Upon her signal, Zhang Wei and Zhang Hui moved towards the bench as directed.
"Zhang Wei, what is this about? This is the second time already, what evidence is this?"
"Your Honor, give me 3 minutes, and I will prove that Jia Meili has committed perjury in court!"
Geng Hongxia, seeing Zhang Wei's confident demeanor, reluctantly nodded, "Just make sure to watch the time!"
Following that, she struck the gavel and announced, "The court permits the submission of the evidence!"
Zhang Wei, upon receiving the order, immediately plugged the flash drive into the computer and began to project and play the footage.
This was surveillance video evidence. Zhang Wei adjusted the time, and soon the footage appeared.
The footage showed a pharmacy; a figure entered the store and started to interact with the on-duty pharmacist.
Quickly, the pharmacist handed over a bottle of medicine to the person, who then turned around, allowing a clear view of their face.
"Feng Li!" Upon seeing the buyer, Jia Meili's facial expression subtly changed.
"Indeed, it's Feng Li!" Zhang Wei hit the pause button and froze the frame at the moment Feng Li turned around.
Zhang Wei immediately questioned, "Classmate Jia Meili, do you know what medicine Feng Li bought at the pharmacy on Xiuyelou Commercial Street?"
Jia Meili glanced at Feng Li in the defendant's seat and quickly denied, "I... I don't know!"
Hearing this answer, Zhang Wei said with a look of surprise, "So that means, the person who bought this compound preparation wasn't you, but Feng Li?"
"Compound preparation?"
"What does that mean?"
The listeners and the jury all looked puzzled.
Everyone turned their gaze towards Feng Li, but some also looked at Zhang Wei, not understanding what kind of medicine this was.
"Ahem, Classmate Feng Li, since the defendant denies it, does that mean all these medicines were bought by you?" Zhang Wei naturally wouldn't let go of this opportunity and walked up to Feng Li to question her.
At this moment, Feng Li completely panicked and dared not speak.
"Let me remind everyone, this compound preparation consists of estrogen and progesterone, and you all know its other name, which is 'birth control pills'!"
As soon as these words came out, the entire courtroom was in an uproar.
Feng Li quickly looked towards the listening area, only to see a sunny and handsome boy angrily stand up, snorted at her, and turned to leave.
"I..." Feng Li, seeing this, hurriedly tried to get up and follow.
But Zhang Wei stood in her way and questioned her again, "Classmate Feng Li, since the birth control pills were bought by you, why did you buy them? To my knowledge, you and your boyfriend rarely see each other, and you should have taken protective measures, right?"
"Get out of the way, let me through!" Feng Li pushed Zhang Wei, looking desperate.
"Classmate Feng Li, please answer my question, otherwise I will not let you pass. This is a court; you can't come and go as you please!"
Zhang Wei stood his ground, and Feng Li became more anxious.
Seeing that everyone around was watching her, and her boyfriend was about to leave the auditorium, Feng Li felt extremely anxious inside and finally couldn't bear the pressure.
She broke down, crying on the spot.
"Wuu wuu wuu... It wasn't me; it was Lili who asked me to buy them, she told me to buy them!"
"The birth control pills were all for her use, they were all part of her side business; I was only responsible for running errands!"
"Really, you have to believe me, I didn't take any birth control pills, I really didn't..."
Feng Li's breakdown was an unexpected turn for everyone in the courtroom.
Seeing that his objective was achieved, Zhang Wei did not stop Feng Li anymore.
"Husband, wait for me, listen to my explanation, listen to my explanation, wuu wuu wuu..."
Feng Li ran while chasing out of the auditorium.
Watching Feng Li leave, all eyes in the room converged on Jia Meili.
At this moment, everyone's gaze was filled with suspicion, doubt, and distrust.
Zhang Wei also took this opportunity to fan the flames, "Classmate Jia Meili, now I'm very curious, what exactly is the side business that Feng Li mentioned?"
"I, I don't know!" Jia Meili's eyes darted about in evasion, but she still denied it.
"Is that so, you don't know?" Zhang Wei smiled, looked towards Yuan Dong at the listening area, and asked with a smile, "Classmate Yuan Dong, since you and Jia Meili are in a boyfriend-girlfriend relationship, have you two 'rounded the bases' yet?"
This question was rather explosive. Zhang Hui should have stood up to stop it, but at this moment, she too had forgotten to do so.
And Yuan Dong, his face turning alternately pale and flushed at this moment, clearly understood the implication behind Zhang Wei's words.
He didn't answer, but turned his head away, not letting Zhang Wei see his complexion.
Suddenly, the looks from the boys around him carried a trace of sympathy.
"It seems that Classmate Yuan Dong has also given his answer; let us offer a token of sympathy for his plight!"
Zhang Wei fanned the flames again and turned his head to look at Jia Meili.
At this moment, Jia Meili finally felt the pressure.
An overwhelming sense of oppression hit her head-on!