The Prosecutor Is Accustomed To Waiting For A Rabbit To Hit A Stump - Chapter 1

Chapter 1

Outside the First Courtroom of the Ding’an District Court in Nanchuan City, Z Province, a group of men stood or squatted. Every one of them was burly with tattooed dragons and tigers coiled on their arms. Standing together, they exuded a terrifying aura that would cause ordinary people to walk a wide path around them, immediately identifying them as not to be provoked.

Indeed, parties headed for trials on the second and third floors were all taking detours.

Standing opposite this group were court police officers in full uniform. Equipped with handcuffs, batons, ropes, powerful flashlights, net guns, and other gear, they stood like a row of straight green bamboo, guarding the main entrance of the First Courtroom.

Their righteousness was awe-inspiring; their presence was no less imposing than the men opposite, their piercing gazes locking eyes with the gang members.

Today was an ordinary Wednesday, no different from any other day.

But the Criminal First Courtroom was completely different from usual.

Here, Nanchuan’s largest local organized crime syndicate was to be brought before the bench to face the judgment of the law.

The entire Judicial Police Detachment of the Ding’an District Court was deployed. Some officers were responsible for escorting the defendants, having gone in police cars to the detention center to bring them in. Others were responsible for ensuring order during the trial. Manpower was still tight, so after careful consideration, officers from the Judicial Police sequence who usually handled enforcement duties were also pulled in.

The captain of the court police team, surnamed Zhang, walked over from the security check area with a stern face.

When he reached the courtroom entrance, he saw that the entrance to the courthouse was completely blocked by the large men, making it impossible for some parties to enter.

He frowned and said sharply, “Since you are here to observe, line up on the side.”

The scene was somewhat noisy, and the large men didn’t move.

“Cough, cough, cough.” A cough interrupted the noise, and the large men suddenly opened up a path.

Captain Zhang looked over and saw a man in a suit. His hair was slightly white, making him look about fifty or sixty years old, and he was sitting in a wheelchair, gaunt as a skeleton.

“Officer, we’ve just come to send off our brothers. We absolutely won’t cause you any trouble. We’ll line up right away.” As soon as the man spoke, the big men voluntarily dispersed. Some went to the small open area outside the courthouse to chat, and the rest, every single one, lined up.

The man was very refined and polite, sounding weak and breathless with illness. After a moment, he raised his wrist, revealing a luxurious Patek Philippe watch, and then asked courteously, “The trial is about to begin, Officer. Can we go in now?”

Captain Zhang took out his phone to check the time, then nodded to the officers standing at the courtroom door.

The wooden doors of the First Courtroom slowly opened.

The Ding’an District Court was housed in an older building.

The First Courtroom had been renovated with modern fixtures and materials. The lighting was bright, and the rows of dark-blue soft seating in the gallery looked very much like cinema seats.

Only the dark wooden main doors still bore the marks of time.

The man presented his observer’s pass and was the first to enter the First Courtroom. His wheelchair was parked in the first row of the gallery, next to the aisle, the closest spot to the defendant’s dock.

The polite smile he wore outside the door was gone. The man’s eyes flashed with a cold light, like a viper slowly raising its head, directly surveying the room in search of its prey.

His gaze landed on the prosecution side. Gu Ye, the prosecutor for this case, was organizing her materials for easy reference during the trial. Her distinctively long and slender fingers moved across the case files.

She wore the light-blue prosecutor’s uniform, the badge on her chest glittering under the lights, with the four characters “Hua Guo Prosecutor” (China Prosecutor) engraved on the golden outer ring.

The intensity of the man’s stare at Gu Ye was so sharp that she turned her head, her gaze like a drawn sword.

The courtroom lights framed her face with a subtle halo. The prosecutor’s looks were dazzling.

Beneath perfectly arched brow bones, her slender, dark eyes flashed with a keen edge. Her thin, tightly pursed lips had a very sensual cupid’s bow, and her prominent nose bridge combined with the contours of her facial muscles resulted in sharp, well-defined features.

She had the cold, aloof, and extremely imposing appearance of an older-sister-type authority figure.

The look she returned was even sharper, like a fine blade—righteous, imposing, and completely above board.

In the few seconds of eye contact with the man in the wheelchair, Gu Ye did not flinch. Instead, the man was the first to look away, the fingers resting on his wheelchair moving slightly before he raised his head to look at Gu Ye again.

This time, the man offered Gu Ye a somewhat ingratiating smile.

Gu Ye’s expression remained cold. She turned her head to look at the judge. The trial was about to begin.

Captain Zhang stood at the main door, managing the situation and maintaining order. From a distance, he saw a petite figure running over. Upon closer inspection, it was Lin Fan from the Enforcement Bureau.

She was wearing a dark blue everyday uniform. The epaulets with one bar and two stars (indicating a lower rank police officer) reflected the spring sunlight. The words “Court” were written above the Great Wall on her uniform arm patch. The solemn uniform made her look heroic and very trim. Beneath her brimmed cap, her skin was snow-white, and her eyes were like a clear pool of water. She didn’t appear out of breath after running all that way, though her round, oval face had pink cheeks.

“Captain Zhang, I just finished handling an enforcement case. I’m late. What do you need me to do?” Lin Fan was not affiliated with the Judicial Police Detachment. She had joined the court three years ago, right at the critical time of “breaking the difficult enforcement hurdle,” and was sent directly to the Enforcement Bureau to work alongside enforcement judges.

So, although she belonged to the Judicial Police sequence, she did the work of an enforcement judge. Despite being a small and cute-looking girl, she ranked at the top of the internal competitions every year.

“It’s alright. I knew you were away on duty, so you weren’t originally scheduled. Since you’re here, just watch with me.”

Captain Zhang smiled kindly. As his words fell, the court clerk began reading the court rules.

Lin Fan took off her brimmed cap, the silver-white badge facing forward and clipped under her left armpit. She stood at attention next to Captain Zhang.

Once settled, she directed her gaze inside the First Courtroom. She heard that today’s trial was an organized crime case.

After the court clerk finished reading the rules, the defendants were brought in by the court police. A large, dark mass of short-haired men stood in a line in the defendant’s dock.

They wore restraints and hung their heads. Many of their arms also had aggressive dragon and crane tattoos, which, for a moment, seemed to echo the large men in the gallery.

The judge seated in the center of the bench frowned. From his angle, he could just see someone in the gallery waving and winking at the group of defendants.

When the lead defendant entered the First Courtroom from the left side door, his first sight was the man in the wheelchair wearing the Patek Philippe watch in the first row. His mouth moved silently—Brother Ze.

The man nodded. His full name was Zou Ze, but everyone in the underworld was used to calling him Brother Ze.

Before the group could exchange any more glances, the judge struck the gavel, declaring the court open.

This was a case involving the nature of organized crime, with charges including organizing, leading, and participating in organized crime, assembling a crowd for brawls, provoking trouble, intentional injury, illegal detention, extortion, forced trading, intentional property damage, operating a casino, etc., involving 12 defendants.

The head of this organized crime group was named Wang Yi, nicknamed Brother Yi.

He also nodded towards Zou Ze upon entering the courtroom, his wolfish eyes still flashing brightly.

Zou Ze’s expression was solemn. As their eyes met, no one knew what information the two were silently conveying.

In this strange and tense stage of the court investigation, Gu Ye began to read the indictment.

Her voice was cold, like water from an ancient mountain well. The not-so-thick indictment in her hands was the result of her and her task force fighting for a full four months, compiling a review report that spanned nearly a thousand pages.

The lights in the First Courtroom were dazzling. The light hitting the prosecutor’s face from the oblique side became mellow and cool. In the fine specks of light, only her profile looked soft. For a second, Lin Fan’s gaze lingered on that profile, and she involuntarily held her breath.

This Prosecutor Miss is truly too beautiful.

The moment she snapped out of it, she quickly withdrew her gaze, deliberately focusing with solemnity on the unremarkable backs of the bulky defendants.

Lin Fan, it’s work time! Be serious!

Gu Ye’s voice, neither loud nor soft, echoed through the quiet First Courtroom.

“…Defendant Liu Yi should be held criminally responsible for the crimes of participating in an organized crime organization, assembling a crowd for brawls, and illegal detention.

Defendants Wang Yi, Zhang Er, Zhang Jia, Qian San, Zhang Wu, Huang Liu, Wang Fa, Song Cheng, Ying Kaixin, Ying Junlang, Chang Feifei, and Liu Yi committed multiple crimes and should be given concurrent sentences for multiple offenses.

Defendants Wang Zou and Zhang Er were previously granted probation but committed new crimes during the probation period, so their probation should be revoked, and they should be given concurrent sentences for multiple offenses. Defendants Wang Zou and Zhang Er are repeat offenders and should be given a heavier punishment. All defendants voluntarily pleaded guilty and accepted punishment after being apprehended and may be dealt with leniently according to law.

In accordance with Article 176 of the ‘Criminal Procedure Law of Hua Guo,’ the public prosecution is hereby filed. The court is requested to render a judgment according to law.”

Gu Ye closed the indictment, her eyes slowly sweeping over the 12 men.

She had interrogated them many times before this. They were all as they were now, heads bowed and outwardly compliant, as if following orders from someone, or perhaps knowing their efforts to maneuver were futile.

Looking at them, it was hard to believe that this group of capable men, instead of doing honest work, had specifically banded together to use violence, threats, and other means to systematically and extensively carry out group brawls, provoke trouble, illegally detain, force transactions, extort, and intentionally injure others.

They also utilized the organization’s notorious reputation or strong position to act as thugs, arbitrarily interfering in the disputes of others. The injury reports of the victims filled a thick stack on her desk.

Thinking of the victims and their immediate relatives who were persecuted, Gu Ye’s gaze hardened again. It would be best for such scumbags to enter prison for reform sooner rather than later.

However, the defense lawyers sitting opposite her clearly disagreed. With 12 defendants and 20 defense lawyers, the defense benches were also a sea of dark heads.

There was not a single legal aid lawyer among them. Furthermore, Gu Ye recognized several famous criminal lawyers in Nanchuan City.

During the court debate stage, a well-known senior lawyer spoke first. As soon as he opened his mouth, Gu Ye knew that this group of lawyers was likely aiming for lighter sentencing.

The senior lawyer pleaded earnestly: “The main reason Zhang Jia participated in the crimes was his low level of education and weak legal awareness. His association with Wang Yi and Zhang Er was entirely due to the camaraderie of being fellow provincials. Unfortunately, he failed to keep his actions within bounds.”

“Based on the above circumstances, and since Zhang Jia did not directly develop or lead subordinate members, we suggest that he be sentenced to three years of fixed-term imprisonment for the crime of participating in an organized crime organization. For the part involving assembling a crowd for brawls, Zhang Jia was rallied by Wang Yi and did not directly cause injury to the victim; we suggest a sentence of three years of fixed-term imprisonment. For the parts involving provoking trouble and illegal detention, Xiao Bo’s involvement was mainly directed by Wang Yi for debt collection, and we suggest a lighter punishment within the scope of the plea-bargaining sentencing range.”

“In summary, the defense counsel believes that the sentencing recommendation proposed by the prosecutor’s office under the plea-bargaining agreement is too severe. However, we are willing to respect the sentencing recommendation of the prosecuting authority but only hope for and suggest the maximum possible leniency and mitigation within the plea-bargaining sentencing range. In conclusion, given that Zhang Jia was led astray only because of his lack of legal knowledge and that he genuinely admitted and regretted his guilt after being apprehended, we hope to give Zhang Jia a chance to reform and be given the maximum possible leniency within the plea-bargaining sentencing range.”

The speech was deeply heartfelt and moving.

Gu Ye remained expressionless, watching their performance.

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