The judge motioned Dai Shiya to come to the bench and said in a low voice but with dignity: "Miss Dai, during the recess, someone tried to interfere with judicial justice. Fortunately, I discovered and stopped it in time."
Dai Shiya was startled, and Dai Xue's face full of resentment appeared in her mind. Could it be her?
As if to confirm her guess, the judge continued: "I have to remind you that justice may be late, but it will never be absent. Anyone who attempts to challenge the bottom line of the law will be punished accordingly!"
Dai Shiya took a deep breath and forced herself to calm down. She knew that now was not the time to let her guard down, as Dai Xue would never let it go.
The judge returned to the bench and announced loudly: "After deliberation, the court now makes the following judgment: The evidence provided by the defendant, Ms. Dai Shiya, is true and valid, and her actions do not constitute the crime of infringing on trade secrets. This court hereby declares the defendant, Ms. Dai Shiya, not guilty and released!"
The gavel fell, and the crisp sound echoed in the silent courtroom. Dai Shiya felt as if a huge stone had fallen from her heart. The long-standing repression and grievances turned into tears at this moment. Wei Qing excitedly held her hand, with tears in her eyes.
"Impossible! This is impossible!" Dai Xue suddenly screamed hysterically, "You must have colluded with each other! I don't accept this verdict!"
The judge slammed the gavel and shouted, "Defendant Dai Xue, please pay attention to court discipline! All the evidence in this case is irrefutable, and you will not be allowed to make trouble!"
Dai Xue wanted to continue to argue, but was pulled back by Lawyer Chen. Lawyer Chen's face turned pale, and he knew that the situation was hopeless and that no matter how hard he struggled, it would be useless.
"Your Honor, my client is very emotional and requests a recess for a moment," Lawyer Chen said in a low voice.
The judge looked at Dai Xue coldly and announced a ten-minute recess.
When Dai Shiya and Wei Qing walked out of the court, they were greeted by flash cameras and questions from reporters.
"Miss Dai, how do you feel now?"
"Are you satisfied with the court's decision?"
"What are your plans next?"
Facing the reporters' cameras, Dai Shiya took a deep breath and slowly said, "I always believe that justice may be late, but it will never be absent..."
Before she finished her words, the door of the court opened again, and Dai Xue and Lawyer Chen walked out. Dai Xue's face did not show any frustration, but a strange smile.
"Dai Shiya," Dai Xue walked up to Dai Shiya and said word by word, "Do you think you won? Let me tell you, this game has just begun!"
Dai Shiya looked at Dai Xue coldly, with a mocking smile on her lips: "Game? Your so-called 'game' is nothing but an ugly performance based on lies and deception. It's a pity that all your calculations will not escape the punishment of the law in the end!"
"What do you mean?" Dai Xue felt an inexplicable sense of uneasiness in her heart, but she still pretended to be calm.
"What do you mean?" Dai Shiya glanced at the people around her with a sharp look and said loudly, "Everyone, today I will expose in front of everyone how Dai Xue deliberately framed me and tried to destroy me completely!"
"What did you say?!" There was a commotion in the crowd, and everyone looked at Dai Xue in disbelief.
"Dai Xue was willing to do anything to get the company!" Dai Shiya's voice echoed outside the court. "She first forged the so-called 'commercial secrets' documents, and then bribed my former assistant to testify that I stole company secrets. In order to make me plead guilty, she even kidnapped my friends to threaten me!"
"You're talking nonsense!" Dai Xue's face turned pale, but she was unable to refute.
"You know whether I am talking nonsense or not!" Dai Shiya took out a document from her bag. "This is the evidence found by my friend Ms. Wei Qing. It can prove that Dai Xue had planned all this a long time ago, including bribing witnesses, forging documents, and even my assistant's testimony was written in advance!"
Wei Qing stepped forward, handed the documents in her hand to the judge, and said in a deep voice: "Your Honor, these evidences are enough to prove Dai Xue's guilt!"
The judge took the document and read it carefully. As the evidence page by page was presented, his expression became more and more solemn. The people in the audience were talking about it, and their eyes were full of contempt and anger when they looked at Dai Xue.
The Dai family finally understood the truth of the matter. They looked at Dai Xue in disbelief. They never thought that Dai Xue, who was usually gentle and kind, would do such a vicious thing!
"No, it's not like that. Let me explain..." Dai Xue panicked. She wanted to explain herself, but found that any words seemed pale and powerless.
"Explain? What else do you have to explain?" Dai Shiya pressed on, "Do you think you did it perfectly? Do you think you can really cover up everything?"
Dai Xue sat slumped on the ground with a blank look in her eyes. She knew that she was finished, everything was over...
"Lawyer Chen," Dai Shiya suddenly turned to look at Lawyer Chen, whose face was livid, "Do you have anything else to say?"
Lawyer Chen was stunned for a moment, his eyes flickered, and he wanted to speak, but was blocked by Dai Shiya's next words...
Lawyer Chen saw that the truth had been revealed, and beads of sweat oozed from his forehead. He hurriedly closed the document in his hand, his eyes wandering, trying to find an excuse to get out of the situation. "Ms. Dai, you misunderstood. I was just... just commissioned by Ms. Dai Xue, and I don't know the truth of the matter..."
"Really?" Dai Shiya sneered, took out another document from her bag and threw it in front of Lawyer Chen. "Then how do you explain this document, Lawyer Chen?"
Lawyer Chen opened the file with shaking hands, and his face turned pale instantly. The file contained emails between him and Dai Xue, which clearly recorded how he helped Dai Xue forge evidence and collude with witnesses, and even how much bribes he received from Dai Xue.
"This... this..." Lawyer Chen was speechless for a long time. He never thought that Dai Shiya actually had such detailed evidence, blocking all his excuses.
"Lawyer Chen, do you have anything else to say?" Dai Shiya's tone was cold and her eyes were as sharp as a knife, as if she could see through all the secrets in his heart.
Lawyer Chen sat dejectedly in the chair. He knew that he was finished, completely finished.
Dai Xue in the courtroom had already collapsed. She cried and screamed, trying to defend herself, but no one believed her anymore. Her family, who had once doted on her, now looked at her with disgust and contempt, as if she was a disgrace to the family and a stain in their lives.
"It's not like this, it's not like this..." Dai Xue cried out at the top of her lungs, her tears and makeup mixed together, distorting her originally delicate face into a hideous and terrifying one, "I just... I just want to protect my own time, I want to protect my own things..."
"Things that belong to you?" Dai Shiya sneered, "When did it become your turn to make decisions about the Dai family?"
Dai Shiya's words were like a heavy hammer, hitting Dai Xue's heart hard. She slumped on the ground, her eyes empty, and she had lost all her vitality.
The judge banged the gavel and announced: "In this case..."
Everyone held their breath, waiting for the final verdict. However, Dai Shiya's eyes passed through the crowd and fell on a corner of the court, with a meaningful smile on her lips. She won this battle, but the greater challenge has just begun...
"…In this case, the defendant Dai Xue was sentenced to three years in prison, suspended for five years, for fabricating evidence and malicious slander, with serious circumstances!"
The gavel fell, and there was an uproar in the audience. Dai Xue collapsed to the ground helplessly. Dai Shiya, who was once just an ant in her eyes, was now like a towering mountain, completely crushing her.
When Dai Shiya came out of the court, her family welcomed her with unprecedented enthusiasm. Dai's father held her hand with a guilty look on his face, "Shiya, I am sorry for you. I trusted the wrong person and made you suffer so much."
The stepmother who had always treated her coldly also put on a loving motherly attitude at this moment, "Shiya, it was my fault before, and I apologize to you. From now on, you can stay at home with peace of mind. Your home will always be your support."
Dai Shiya smiled faintly and accepted their apology. She knew how much of it was sincere and how much was forced by the situation, but she didn't care. She won this battle, and that was enough.
In the following days, Dai Shiya's name frequently appeared on the front page of financial news. She dealt with the incompetents in the company with great vigor and decisiveness, and decisively acquired several potential companies, expanding the business of the Dai Group into new areas. She proved with her strength that she was not only the daughter of the Dai family, but also a business elite with outstanding talents.
At the family gathering, relatives praised Dai Shiya with admiration and flattery. Those who once avoided her now rushed to curry favor with her, as if she were their long-lost relative.
"Shi Ya, you are really young and promising, and you are as good as any man!" An uncle raised his wine glass and complimented with a smile on his face.
"Yes, Shiya, the Dai Group will depend on you in the future. You must give more support to us younger generations!" Another cousin also came over, speaking in a flattering tone.
Dai Shiya responded with a smile, as if everything was under her control. However, as she drank and chatted, a barely perceptible cold light flashed in the depths of her eyes.
After the banquet, Dai Shiya and Wei Qing walked side by side on the way home.
"Shi Ya, do you feel that those relatives today seem a little..." Wei Qing hesitated, as if choosing her words.
"Too enthusiastic?" Dai Shiya took over her words and a meaningful smile appeared on the corner of her mouth.
"Yes, they are just too enthusiastic." Wei Qing nodded, "I always feel that they seem to be trying hard to please you, but they also seem to be... afraid of something."
Dai Shiya stopped and turned to look at the brightly lit city night scene. Her tone was calm but with a hint of chillness, "Because the fun has just begun..."