Chapter 51 - 43: Blank 30 Seconds

Tip for tat!

Suddenly, an invisible pressure radiated out from both sides, blanketing the entire First Tribunal. Everyone held their breath, staring wide-eyed at the trial area, determined not to miss a single detail.

’This guy... has some serious nerve!’

In the gallery, the reporter, Zhang Xia, swallowed hard, her heart pounding in her chest.

She watched the scene unfolding at the front of the courtroom.

The two sides were now at daggers drawn, a stark contrast to the first hearing.

If the last hearing was a debate of reason and sharp angles, like the precise incision of a scalpel...

...then this time...

...was a pure, head-on collision!

’Forcibly expressing a personal opinion...’

Wang Chao murmured from the side.

This act, which amounted to challenging the judge’s authority, was practically an open provocation.

As for why Xu De dared to do this...

It was because this was, for all intents and purposes, the final hearing!

At that moment, in the trial area, Xu De stood at the defense table, his expression exceptionally grave. He ignored Wang Wei’s displeasure and stared directly at the presiding judge, Zhang Bingxin.

’The prosecution has amended the indictment, and the evidence they’ve presented is substantial. The judge won’t grant an adjournment or a third hearing.’

’To win in a situation like this... you have to be aggressive. Backing down, even an inch, would be a disservice to my client!’

"Your Honor, the prosecution is judging the defendant based on their own subjective conjectures!"

"These so-called two separate actions were, in fact, a single, continuous act. From start to finish, the defendant never exceeded the bounds of justifiable self-defense, nor did he engage in excessive pursuit!"

Xu De spoke again, reinforcing his position.

At the prosecutor’s table, Wang Wei felt he was about to lose his temper.

’Conjectures? And what about him twisting my words and cutting me off before I could even finish? Isn’t that a conjecture?!’

"Your Honor, the defense attorney is disrupting the proceedings and ignoring the rules of the court. I request that he be issued a warning!" Wang Wei said, also turning to the judge.

On the bench, the three judges remained motionless, their expressions impassive.

Then, Zhang Bingxin raised the gavel.

BANG!

"Counsel for the defense, it is not your turn to speak. Please maintain order in the court!"

"This is a warning. If it happens again, the court has the right to take disciplinary action!"

The order of speaking in court is critical. If the disruption is severe enough, a judge even has the power to remove an attorney from the proceedings.

Xu De had no objection to the warning. In fact, he had already achieved his goal.

He had refuted the prosecution’s claim, thereby undermining the credibility of whatever Wang Wei was about to say next!

Zhang Bingxin said,

"Counsel for the prosecution, you may continue your statement."

Upon hearing this, Wang Wei took a deep breath, extinguishing the fire of rage in his chest. He looked back down at the document in his hands and continued,

"The foregoing was Wang Qiang’s first action that suggests he was being ’proactive.’"

"Next, the defendant, Wang Qiang, fully meets the criteria for ’Intentional Injury’ under Article 234 of the Criminal Law!"

As he spoke, Wang Wei paused, then delivered the second half of the sentence that Xu De had interrupted.

"After the defendant, Wang Qiang, pushed the victim out of the vehicle."

"The victim, Li Erniu, fell to the ground. It was only then that he snatched the weapon, a sickle, from the hands of a Li Family Village resident, Li Chunhua."

"Immediately afterward, Wang Qiang engaged him in a struggle, which ultimately resulted in the death of the victim, Li Erniu."

After speaking, he paused, then suddenly changed tack, honing in on the crux of the issue.

"Please note!"

"In this series of events, from the moment Li Erniu fell to the ground to the moment he snatched the sickle, there was a gap of nearly half a minute!"

"During this half-minute, a full thirty seconds."

"There was no one behind Wang Qiang. Nothing was stopping him. He could have gotten back into the police car to take shelter, left the scene for the police to handle, and thus escaped the immediate danger."

"There were several officers still in the squad car. He only needed to take a single step back to be out of harm’s way."

As he spoke, Wang Wei’s eyes grew heavy and his expression turned stern, exuding an authority that permitted no argument. He said,

"But he did not make that choice. Instead, he chose to advance and engage Li Erniu in a struggle."

"Ultimately causing the death of the victim, Li Erniu!"

"Combined with the shove inside the squad car—a suspected ’intentional’ act—the prosecution believes..."

"...that the defendant, Wang Qiang, was emotionally agitated and acted with subjective ’intent.’ His actions constitute ’Intentional Injury’ under Article 234 of the Criminal Law!"

"Furthermore, his actions exceeded the scope of justifiable self-defense."

"The circumstances perfectly align with ’Excessive Defense’ as defined in Article 20 of the Criminal Law!"

As these words fell, the courtroom instantly erupted in an uproar.

The theory was solid, the points were sharp, the reasoning was sound and evidence-based, and the logic was airtight.

"The prosecution really came prepared this time..."

"Definitely. Based on what he just laid out, it’s almost enough to seal the conviction."

"A thirty-second gap... An average person could run over two hundred meters in that time. Usain Bolt could run three hundred. In a car, he could have gone almost seven hundred meters..."

"But the defendant chose to keep fighting... How do you even argue against that?"

In the gallery, the spectators couldn’t hold back, murmuring to each other with furrowed brows.

At the defendant’s table, Wang Qiang sat on the cold chair with his head bowed. His hands were clenched so tightly that the knuckles on his withered fists turned white. His breathing grew ragged and anxious.

At that moment, listening to the murmurs from the gallery behind him, Wang Qiang’s perception of reality warped. The judge’s bench, the prosecutor’s table, and the defense table began to expand infinitely. Hu Guang, Zhang Bingxin, and even his own lawyer, Xu De, towered over him like giants.

And he was just a tiny ant, small as a grain of sand, trapped in the center, awaiting his final judgment.

The pressure and despair became a tangible, icy flood, drowning him, suffocating him!

Until...

"Objection!"

From the defense table, in just a few short seconds, Xu De had already formulated his rebuttal. His expression was stern, but his eyes held a calm, rational clarity.

On the bench, Zhang Bingxin was still processing Wang Wei’s argument when he heard the outburst. He turned to Xu De, nodded, and said,

"Counsel for the defense, you may state your objection."

Xu De nodded.

He took a deep breath and slowly rose to his feet.

Crafting a rebuttal on the spot is incredibly difficult. It’s challenging enough in a simple job interview, let alone in a courtroom, where one faces high-intensity, surprise questions that demand immediate, articulate, and logical responses!

But as he’d thought before...

’This is a defense for an acquittal... and I’m going to win it!’

"Your Honor, Adjudicators."

"The prosecution’s claim of ’Intentional Injury’ is completely unfounded in reality. It has no basis and cannot stand!"

"First, the defendant Wang Qiang’s actions inside the squad car were not driven by subjective intent or emotion. They were an act of justifiable self-defense, a Good Samaritan act, part of a single, continuous defensive action!"

"Second, regarding the events outside the car..."

Xu De paused for a moment, and then a torrent of words echoed through the courtroom.

"According to Article 20, Paragraph 3 of the Criminal Law, in addition to ’General Justifiable Self-Defense’ and ’Excessive Defense,’ there exists a third category: ’Special Defense’!"

"Otherwise known as the right to unlimited defense!"

"The original text explicitly states: ’When taking defensive action against a violent crime in progress—such as assault with intent to kill, murder, robbery, rape, or other acts that seriously endanger personal safety—which results in the injury or death of the unlawful aggressor...’"

"’...it shall not be considered excessive defense, and the defender shall bear no criminal liability!’"

"During the incident in question,"

"...after Li Erniu seized the sickle, the level of threat escalated. It transformed from an assault on Wang Mei into a violent, life-threatening crime against Wang Qiang, perfectly meeting the criteria stipulated in the third paragraph of the law!"

"In other words, during that time, the defendant, Wang Qiang..."

Xu De’s expression was grim as he rapped the knuckle of his right index finger hard against the table, producing a sharp KNOCK KNOCK.

"...had the right to unlimited defense!"

"Therefore, even if the deceased, Li Erniu, died as a result of that defense, the defendant is still..."

"Not guilty!!!"