Too Bad I Take Things Seriously

If one wasn't careful... they might very well find themselves in trouble.

「Jin City.」

「Linghe Law Firm.」

After leaving Qi ZhaoYu's office, Bai Shuirong, persistent and unyielding, sought out another renowned law firm. She firmly insisted on appealing the case.

However, after reviewing the first-instance judgment, Ling He too fell into deep thought. The disparity between Bai Shuirong's version of events and the facts determined by the court's judgment was simply too vast. Seeing Bai Shuirong's vehement conviction and righteous indignation, he even suspected that the court might have committed a miscarriage of justice.

"This case of yours... might be a bit difficult to handle," he said in a grave tone after a moment.

Bai Shuirong frowned, slightly displeased. "Why do all you lawyers like to say that? If it were easy, would I have come to you?

"Just tell me, how much will the lawyer's fees be if we win the lawsuit or reduce the compensation to 10,000?"

Ling He couldn't help but give a wry smile. He explained, "It's not like that. An appeal isn't something you can just file on a whim.

"Generally speaking, after the first-instance judgment, you have fifteen working days to appeal.

"But when appealing, you must submit new evidence and litigation requests; otherwise, there's a high probability that the intermediate court will dismiss it without even accepting the case."

The trial system dictates that the second instance is final, but that doesn't mean every case qualifies for a second trial. For some cases with clear facts that don't require a retrial, the higher court, after reviewing the files and case records, will not accept the appeal. It will be directly dismissed. Without new evidence, a second trial is unlikely to be initiated unless the first-instance judgment is extremely unreasonable.

And from the current judgment, the case details were straightforward and the facts clear. There was no unreasonable situation.

"What? Not accepted?" Bai Shuirong exclaimed, her face etched with shock upon hearing this news.

Ling He nodded. "Yes, so it's best if you can find new evidence proving you bear less responsibility or that the other party's claims are unreasonable."

Bai Shuirong gulped, her complexion suddenly turning unsightly. After the judgment was issued, she had originally thought that finding a more capable lawyer and fighting the lawsuit again would suffice. But now it seemed she no longer even had the chance for another trial.

"Doesn't that mean… we must pay the 1.14 million in compensation?" Bai Shuirong gazed at Ling He, seeking confirmation once more.

Ling He nodded. "The court's judgment is legally binding, and as citizens, we must comply. If it isn't abided by…"

He then thoroughly explained the consequences of not complying with the court's judgment: criminal charges for refusal to obey, being listed as a discredited individual…

After hearing the possibility of imprisonment, Bai Shuirong became utterly panicked. She finally realized the severity of the consequences of keying the car.

In the end, Ling He also refused the case. "I cannot take on this case; you should see if other law firms will."

With a gloomy mood, Bai Shuirong stepped out of the law firm, her steps equally heavy. But she still refused to give up.

No! That was just his side of the story; maybe he was deceiving me! There are so many law firms in Jin City; I can definitely find a lawyer willing to take this case!

Immediately after, she relentlessly went in search of law firms, presenting her request to appeal.

However, the situation was much the same as with Qi ZhaoYu and Ling He; after she presented her litigation requirements, all the lawyers declined.

There were a few young intern lawyers who indicated they might be able to help her win the case. At first, she was a bit excited, but after checking, she found these intern lawyers had never handled a case before. She immediately gave up. Although she wanted to win the lawsuit, she wasn't desperate enough to hire such unreliable lawyers.

「Jin City.」

「The nursing home.」

In the afternoon, Zhang Qingyuan and the others gradually returned to the nursing home. Just as Qin Mu had guessed, Old Zhang and the rest had indeed gone to the wrong courtroom. They had attended a different criminal trial. It was only after the trial started that they realized they were in the wrong courtroom.

But the hearing had already begun. With dozens of them occupying the entire public gallery, it would have been too embarrassing to walk out. So, they braced themselves and listened to the trial. Midway through, as the case was exceedingly boring, many of the elderly started dozing off, sleeping for several hours.

"Ah, Xiao Qin, we're sorry. We went to the wrong place and couldn't cheer for you."

"It's all Old Zhang's fault for leading us the wrong way! He didn't even understand the difference between civil and criminal cases!"

"And you? You supposedly understood, but you didn't realize we were in the wrong place either, did you?"

"What? Your side was over in half an hour?"

"..."

Upon seeing Qin Mu, these elderly folks felt quite guilty, believing they had let him down.

Qin Mu's mouth twitched. He was momentarily speechless.

He just wondered what the defendant in that day's criminal trial must have thought upon seeing so many unfamiliar elderly people who had come just for the spectacle.

Subsequently, he found a moment of leisure to play with his phone, scrolling through the Study Law Alliance forum. He even witnessed the lively scene in the homeowners' group chat.

Zhang He was probably furious. He had first apologized to the neighbors, then at two in the afternoon, began "disciplining" the brat. This, however, was something Qin Mu hadn't expected.

In the homeowners' group chat, many parents had also joined the commotion, engaging in 'group disciplining' of children. However, their clamor was nowhere near that of the 28th floor. The screams and wails reportedly lasted until four o'clock—a full two hours of punishment. Some neighbors, fearing it might lead to serious injury, even went over to intervene, and Zhang He finally stopped.

They're all just too spoiled, Qin Mu thought, shaking his head and sighing softly.