Chapter 194: Chief Judge: Do You Know What You're Saying?

CREAK~

The door in front of him let out a soft creak, and a gap opened.

Xu De, who had just woken up, still looked groggy. He was in his pajamas, and a helpless expression crossed his face as he saw Lin Yue knocking at his door.

“I’m suddenly starting to think moving into White Cloud Temple wasn’t such a great idea.”

It was the crack of dawn.

Lin Yue was already full of energy, having eaten, washed up, and made her bed.

‘And here I am, just getting out of bed…’

“Hmph, hmph. You old man.”

Lin Yue crossed her arms and snorted like a little piggy.

But then, her gaze drifted to the gap in his loosely worn pajamas, where she caught a glimpse of something nice.

A second later, Lin Yue’s expression froze. She uncrossed her arms and slammed the door shut.

SLAM!

“Get dressed first! I told the kitchen to save you some food!”

Xu De just splashed some water on his face before getting dressed and washing up.

This branch of the Daoist Temple was different from what most people imagined.

Most people probably thought only Daoists lived here, but that wasn’t the case.

It was open to the public, and you could pay to stay here.

This was true even in ancient times. Some people would come to a Daoist Temple to pray and burn incense, staying for several days at a time. They couldn’t be expected to travel up and down the mountain every day, could they? So, they would pay to stay in the temple’s side rooms or guest quarters. And where there were guests, there had to be a kitchen to cook for them.

White Cloud Temple wasn’t a modern construction, so it had naturally inherited this tradition.

However, the residential quarters were divided into two areas.

The official tourist area, and the area for people like Xu De, Lin Yue, and Lin Guodong.

「8:30 AM.」

In the dining hall.

“You’re so lazy!”

Lin Yue chided, pushing the breakfast she had saved for him across the table.

Looking at the steaming hot meal, Xu De had another change of heart.

“On second thought, moving into White Cloud Temple was a very wise decision.”

Lin Yue started to ramble.

She sat across from Xu De, watching him eat while counting on her fingers as she nagged:

“Don’t just sit there. The hearing at the Basic Court is at one-thirty this afternoon. If you keep dragging your feet, we might as well just surrender!”

“What were you doing last night? Why did you sleep in so late?”

“Even though you’re in good shape, I think you should ask the master to teach you how to cultivate your spiritual energy…”

Xu De, who was just trying to eat his breakfast in peace: “…”

‘Damn it, and so early in the morning…’

‘Is it going to be like this every day from now on?’

Xu De suddenly felt that living at White Cloud Temple wasn’t as great as he had imagined!

Fortunately, Lin Yue’s nagging eventually made her thirsty.

While she was off getting a drink of water, Xu De quickly polished off his breakfast.

When she returned, there was no longer any room or reason for her to nag him!

“Let’s go. It’s getting late. First to the law firm to get the documents, then to the Basic Court!”

Xu De took a deep breath, stood up, and headed for the parking lot.

Lin Yue got up and followed him.

All the evidence was at the law firm, and the Basic Court was on the way, so they wouldn’t waste much time.

However.

「9:10 AM.」

Torch Road, Houde Law Firm.

“Where’s Wang Chao? How come I haven’t seen him the last couple of days?”

Inside the law firm, Xu De had planned to take Wang Chao with him to the Basic Court for the case, but after looking left and right, he couldn’t find him anywhere.

He immediately turned to Lu Jinshan, who was off to the side.

“Lawyer Lu, have you seen Wang Chao?”

Lu Jinshan, who was getting some coffee, heard him and thought for a moment before replying:

“Lawyer Wang seems to have taken some time to go see another lawyer these past couple of days… after finishing his work, of course.”

“See another lawyer?”

Xu De was surprised, but then it dawned on him.

He remembered that he had put Wang Chao in charge of recruiting a top student from Shuimu University, who had been introduced by Master Guanxin.

Qian Hao?

‘Hasn’t Wang Chao processed his firm entry yet!?’

Lu Jinshan added:

“Deputy Director Wang said he ran into an ‘uncivilized barbarian’ who would damage our firm’s image if he joined.”

“He plans to ‘correct’ him before bringing him in.”

Lu Jinshan guessed,

“It should only be another day or two.”

‘A barbarian?’

Xu De raised an eyebrow, amused.

‘So he’s finally met his match, huh!?’

He immediately grew curious about what kind of person this Qian Hao was to have kept Wang Chao busy for nearly a week.

But he didn’t dwell on it.

“Alright.”

Xu De nodded, decided not to call him, grabbed the files and documents, and left with Lin Yue.

VROOM!

The car’s engine roared to life.

A short while later, they were on their way to the Nanshan District Basic People’s Court.

「Meanwhile.」

Sun Li and Yang Chunping were also having a little chat.

“When the hearing starts, you stick to the point that you’ve been taking care of the child and that he lacks paternal affection!”

“Hmph, you washed Wang Yu’s clothes, cooked his meals, and acted as his maid for so many years. How could he possibly get away without paying you some compensation!?”

“And that lawyer of his is no good either, daring to refuse a seventy-thirty split…”

Sun Li’s tone was sharp and a bit caustic as she instructed Yang Chunping.

“Once we’re in court, we’ll demand an eighty-twenty split. He won’t know what hit him!”

Yang Chunping was thrilled. She had already spent last night dreaming about how she would enjoy the money once she got it.

The two of them exchanged another look of eager anticipation, then excitedly headed toward the courthouse.

…

…

Nanshan District.

Basic People’s Court.

Basic Courts primarily handle civil cases. For criminal cases involving serious injury or death, the first trial is handled directly by the Intermediate Court.

Similarly, the nature of a case also affects the conditions of the judgment.

In a criminal case at the Intermediate Court, a judge can’t just turn around and convict the plaintiff mid-trial. At most, a separate case would be opened for a new investigation and hearing.

But civil cases are different.

It’s entirely possible for the plaintiff to end up losing the case and being penalized!