The Prosecutor Is Accustomed To Waiting For A Rabbit To Hit A Stump - Chapter 9

Chapter 9

On the way back, Lao Chen and Lin Fan were silent the entire way.

Back at the Enforcement Bureau, Lin Fan immediately asked Chen Qian, “Does Lao Chen not have children?”

Chen Qian was the court’s “one-stop shop,” with inexplicably excellent information channels. He was currently setting up a “Center-to-Center” (total-to-total) network enforcement query for a newly filed case.

This nationwide network enforcement query system can instantly check a judgment debtor’s accounts, balances, and transaction information in various national financial institutions.

Hearing Lin Fan’s question, Chen Qian didn’t even look up. His eyes focused on the computer, checking accounts without missing one, and his mouth smoothly answered, “Lao Chen’s wife was paralyzed years ago, and he seems to have cut ties with his only son.”

“Why did he cut ties?” Lin Fan poured herself a cup of water and, while she was at it, added hot water to Chen Qian’s mug.

Chen Qian’s gaze casually drifted towards her, the corner of his mouth curving slightly. But the second Lin Fan finished pouring and looked up, he turned his head back to the computer. “Apparently, his son came out of the closet.”

“Came out of the closet!” Lin Fan’s eyes widened. Her round face paired with round eyes made Chen Qian let out a small laugh, adding a touch of bright, sunny beauty to his delicate, Korean-drama-lead-like face.

But the next second, he straightened his expression, and the Chen Qian machine gun came online. “What’s the big deal? Homosexuality and bisexuality are totally normal in today’s society. Stop being so jumpy; you don’t look like you’re from the ’90s. Were you born in 1890? Stupid! Besides, it’s none of your business. Why do you care so much about other people’s family affairs?”

Lin Fan wasn’t angry. She just held her little yellow duck mug in both hands and pondered for a few seconds. “Do you think we can bring it up to the court leadership? People like Lao Chen, who joined the court a long time ago, shouldn’t be included in the contract worker reform. It’s truly unfair. Serving the court for almost a lifetime, and now in old age, he has to compete with young people for a spot. Don’t you agree?”

Chen Qian glanced at her wryly. “Are you getting carried away with your bleeding-heart syndrome again?”

“What bleeding-heart syndrome? This is just a normal suggestion from an ordinary officer. It’s for the good of the unit. After all, the driver is very important for enforcement work. They know the police car, they drive steadily, and we can save a lot of time on the job. Plus, when we need to arrest someone, us young people don’t know the roads, but they’re old maps; just tell them the nameplate number, and they know where to go.”

Chen Qian smiled faintly, saying nothing.

Lin Fan glared at him. “I’m telling the truth, and I’m only making a suggestion.”

Chen Qian exposed her: “I think you’re just overflowing with sympathy and can’t stand to see others suffer. Go on if you want, but it’s just a waste of time, like a dog trying to catch a mouse when it’s not its job.”

Lin Fan smiled, made a face at him, and silently mouthed two words: “Heartless.”

Then she cheerfully put down her little yellow duck mug and went to find Cheng Yawen, the Deputy Director of the Enforcement Bureau.

Chen Qian watched her back hop away like a little rabbit disappearing from view, raised an eyebrow, and silently mouthed two words: “Idiot.”

The door to Cheng Yawen’s office was slightly ajar. Just as Lin Fan was about to knock, she heard a muffled “Puff!” Sound. She peeked in and saw a woman, clutching a 2-3-year-old child, kneeling before Cheng Yawen.

Cheng Yawen, who had been drinking water, quickly put down her cup in a flurry and stepped forward to help the woman up. “What are you doing! Let’s talk nicely.”

“Judge, I beg you, I beg you, please don’t take me to the detention center. My son is too young, and there’s no one at home to look after him! You’re forcing me to die! I really have no choice! I really don’t, woo woo woo…”

As the woman spoke, deep sorrow poured out. No matter how Cheng Yawen tried to pull her up, she wouldn’t budge. Instead, tears and snot streamed down her face, and the child in her arms, seemingly connected to his mother’s emotions, started crying loudly.

The office instantly became noisy.

“Stand up before you say anything! Okay?” Cheng Yawen was nearing fifty and had a daughter who had given birth to a grandson last year. She couldn’t bear to see this kneeling scene. But she had undergone major surgery for a serious illness last year and was physically weak and old. She simply couldn’t pull the woman up.

She gently tried to persuade her, but the woman refused to rise.

Stumped, her eyes shifted, catching sight of Lin Fan peeking through the doorway. “Lin Fan, come in and help!”

“Yes!” Lin Fan strode in boldly. With one hand, she grabbed the woman’s upper arm and pulled hard, lifting the woman up.

Lin Fan’s other hand gently protected the child. She quickly settled the sobbing woman onto a chair, then fumbled in her uniform pocket and pulled out a lollipop. She rapidly unwrapped it and placed it in the child’s mouth. The child licked it and instantly stopped crying.

Cheng Yawen finally staggered back a few steps, sat back in her seat, took out a tissue, and slowly wiped up the water spilled on the table. She pointed a finger at Lin Fan. “Sit down next to her.” She was afraid that if this happened again, her newly fixed lumbar spine might fracture once more.

The woman sat there, her face contorted with bitterness, crying.

Cheng Yawen paused, then said, “I know your situation; it is indeed very difficult.”

That one sentence made the woman’s heart feel like it was being warmed by a hot water bottle. She sat in the chair, tightly holding the child in her arms, sobbing quietly and pitifully. “Judge, I swear to God! I’m not trying to avoid paying the debt, I truly have no money. If I say one lie, may my son and I be struck dead the moment we leave this door!”

That oath was truly venomous, startling Lin Fan. Hearing this, Lin Fan finally realized the poorly dressed, messy-haired woman was the judgment debtor.

The woman continued: “After my husband went in, my mother got sick and became paralyzed, needing constant care. Not long after, my husband’s mother was hit by a car while selling vegetables and also became paralyzed… I’m looking after two elderly people and a child. I haven’t been able to work. These past few years, we’ve only survived thanks to the help and charity of relatives and neighbors.”

The woman’s eyes were dull, lacking any light. The child in her arms wore clothes that were clearly ill-fitting, and his small face beneath his messy baby hair was not as fair and plump as other children’s.

Cheng Yawen nodded. “I understand. When is your husband scheduled to be released?”

She didn’t let the conversation linger on this miserable state of affairs. Flipping through the case file, she asked about another matter.

When asked about this, a slight glimmer of hope appeared in the woman’s dark, dull, empty eyes, as if seeing a tiny future in the distance—a future that could be hoped for, a future worth looking forward to. “He behaved very well in prison and had his sentence reduced. He’ll be released in another month.”

If her husband was released, someone in their family could go out and work, giving them a source of income. They could save up and repay the execution sum owed from their small business venture years ago.

The woman forced a smile, pleading and humble, asking tentatively, “Judge, I beg you, if you have to detain me, could you wait until next month? Until my husband is released, someone can look after my child and my mother, and then you can send me to the detention center, okay?”

The woman knew that the execution applicant demanded she repay at least 10,000 Yuan today to reach a settlement. She truly couldn’t scrape together the 10,000 Yuan. If she couldn’t settle, she would be detained. She blamed no one for this consequence of defaulting on debt—it was fate! But couldn’t they wait a little longer?

Cheng Yawen was also considering this problem. This case was originally just a simple compulsory execution case.

The woman, pregnant at the time, and her husband planned to open a breakfast shop business to earn money to raise their child, so they borrowed money from the execution applicant, Zhang He.

The breakfast shop had just opened, and customer traffic was decent. Everything was flourishing and looking up. The judgment debtor also looked forward to life getting better, with their family happy and harmonious after the child’s birth. Though life was hard, it wasn’t bad.

But who would have thought that just a few days after the breakfast shop opened, her husband was sentenced to prison for injuring someone while helping a friend? That friend, on the day of the court verdict, shoved a few thousand Yuan into the woman’s arms and left the city to work elsewhere.

He left so urgently; I wonder if his conscience hurts. Cheng Yawen mused silently.

But Zhang He’s money was not easy to borrow. In previous years, he would file 25 lawsuits a year in court, with debtors of all genders and ages, but all were people who had borrowed money from him.

In recent years, with rumors and small talk circulating, the cautious Zhang He gradually stopped filing lawsuits in court, and his cases gradually decreased.

Since this case was assigned to her, Cheng Yawen specifically looked at Zhang He’s previous cases and found that he hadn’t filed a lawsuit this year.

This current case was judged at the end of last year.

Furthermore, Zhang He hasn’t even come to the Enforcement Bureau this time; all communication has been via phone, and he is very demanding.

He wouldn’t waste words with Cheng Yawen, simply stating that if he didn’t receive the 10,000 Yuan today, he absolutely would not settle.

Cheng Yawen looked at the judgment debtor, whose eyes held a tiny bit of hope. This woman, not yet thirty this year, already had white hair. Her impoverished life had etched lines onto her face, especially deep wrinkles between her brows, making her look just like Lin Fan’s mother’s generation.

Cheng Yawen hadn’t met Lin Fan’s mother, but she couldn’t help but sigh, Some sayings are true: everyone has their fate, and life’s hardships often begin with the face.

Lin Fan sat there, her round face with flawless, snow-white skin, a delicate, small nose above rosy lips, like a beautiful peach blossom cleansed by snow. And those round, deer-like eyes, smiling and moist, seemed to write several words across her face: A happy girl who hasn’t been crushed by life yet.

Human circumstances are so different; everyone’s fate is so unique.

Cheng Yawen sighed again. She told the woman tightly holding her child: “I called Zhang He before you arrived. He doesn’t want to come to court. I’ll go to his house later to see if there’s any room for maneuver. However,” Cheng Yawen said seriously, “I looked at the case file. You were present in court, it wasn’t a default judgment. He lent you this money without ‘cutting the interest’ (hidden fees); it was a genuine loan. Debt must be repaid—that is a matter of natural justice.”

“I know, I know. I will never run away. My child, my mother, and my mother-in-law are all here. I can’t escape, Judge. Please, I beg you for your trouble! Please help me!”

After seeing the woman off, Cheng Yawen turned to Lin Fan. “What did you need to see me about?”

Lin Fan briefly explained Lao Chen’s situation. Cheng Yawen frowned. “Did Lao Chen ask you to see me?”

Lin Fan shook her head, her heart skipping a beat, but showing no sign of it. Instead, her big eyes darted around, and she spoke smoothly with a smile, “He wouldn’t bother talking to a little girl like me about this. He’s so chauvinistic; he probably doesn’t even want to deal with me.”

“Then why are you speaking up for him?”

“But I think his casual complaint is actually valid. I’m just scouting out the situation for you and reporting the bureau’s dynamics, so you can sit back and listen to what’s happening.” Lin Fan smiled.

Cheng Yawen looked at this face that hadn’t been battered by life and couldn’t say any harsh words. She could only nod in acknowledgment. “I will discuss it with Director Wang and have him talk to President Chen.”

Actually, Cheng Yawen didn’t mention the second half of the plan: the Party group was already planning for the people like Lao Chen. The Vice Presidents were discussing a suitable cut-off time, before which older employees who joined the court would not be subject to this contract worker reform.

However, some of Lao Chen’s non-standard use of the official car was indeed wrong, and she was planning to use this opportunity to have a good talk with him.

But this matter wasn’t urgent. The most important thing now was how to persuade Zhang He.

“Are you free this afternoon?” Cheng Yawen asked, taking a sip of tea.

“I don’t have any mandatory tasks to complete,” Lin Fan replied cautiously, thinking that if Director Cheng assigned a task, she would say that although it wasn’t mandatory, it had to be finished before the end of the day.

She really is a clever little girl~

Instead, Cheng Yawen instructed: “Then come with me to Zhang He’s house, and call Chen Qian too.”

Having heard Zhang He’s infamous reputation, Lin Fan had long wanted to see what kind of person he was. She immediately put aside her cautious thoughts.

“Yes! I guarantee I’ll complete the mission!” Lin Fan responded promptly and crisply.

After lunch, Lin Fan laid out her simple cot in the office, preparing to lie down and rest her eyes. Chen Qian came in carrying a takeout container of fried chicken and said, “Eat and then sleep? Are you a pig?”

Lin Fan lay peacefully on the cot, having thoughtfully covered her stomach with a towel to avoid catching a chill. Hearing this, she immediately retorted, “You eat at the cafeteria and still order takeout? If you’re not a pig, you’re wasting food! We’re going to Zhang He’s house this afternoon; I need to conserve my energy.”

“Hmph, you clueless person. We’re not going to arrest him; we’re going to appease him and talk him around. We need our mouths. That’s the main reason Director Cheng insisted you bring me. But your brain is only so-so. At least you’re a pleasing decoration, so our team isn’t too smart because of me.”

Lin Fan rolled her eyes, turned to her side, and ignored Chen Qian.

Chen Qian smiled at Lin Fan, sat down in his seat, and began eating the fried chicken.

Lin Fan’s phone vibrated, interrupting her growing sleepiness. She opened it and saw a notification for a unit meeting.

After reading it, she was about to close it, but suddenly felt an impulse and clicked on the WeChat public account for the Anding District Procuratorate.

She immediately saw a photo of Gu Ye.

The Anding Procuratorate had published an article introducing Prosecutor Gu Ye today.

The cover image was a photo of Gu Ye in court, and she seemed to glow.

The corner of Lin Fan’s mouth unconsciously curved into an arc, her crescent-like eyes radiating a sweet delight.

But she had a big battle to prepare for this afternoon. Maybe she could look at it while eating dinner.

Lin Fan reluctantly glanced at the cover photo of Gu Ye. This prosecutor is getting more beautiful the more I look at her, both stunning and enduring. How does she do it?

Being her colleague must be so happy. They get to see her every day. Lin Fan’s small round face blushed slightly, but her mouth involuntarily lifted into a sweet smile—cute and sweet. This is the little white rabbit image people have of her through a filter.

Resting and conserving energy was important.

Lin Fan turned off her phone.

Zhang He’s house was a three-story Western-style villa. Lin Fan looked at the luxurious interior and recognized that the painting placed on the TV cabinet was a fake.

She was certain not because she had high taste but because this highly famous painting by the master artist was currently hanging in her father’s office.

Lin Fan retracted her gaze and listened to Director Cheng trying to work on Zhang He. “Zhang He, her husband will be released in a month. She promised us that once he’s out, he’ll work as a food delivery driver. She estimates that if he works very hard, she can guarantee to pay you 4,000 Yuan per month. They have two paralyzed elders and a young child to care for. Could you possibly give them some leeway?”

Zhang He, dressed head-to-toe in designer brands, a complete nouveau riche, sprawled on the soft sofa, his large belly prominent, his arms and legs spread wide. He waved his hand, adorned with a gold ring, in the air. “No! If she had any intention of paying back, why would I have to sue her in court?! Now that it’s time for compulsory enforcement, she says she wants to pay? I don’t believe it. I lent her the money because I felt sorry for her, but I think she’s just waiting for her man to get out of prison so they can flee to another province to hide from debt!”

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