Gu Yuan was still wearing his judge's robes, sitting calmly in the central position. As the others gradually took their seats, a familiar figure, Prosecutor Fang Lichang, slowly entered the courtroom, trailing at the very back.
Since the court adjourned two days ago, Fang Lichang had been hiding in the Meli Hotel, never appearing in the sight of Gu Yuan and the others. His sudden appearance now immediately drew strange looks from the court officials.
Fang Lichang naturally felt these gazes, but he paid them no mind. Instead, he looked at the elderly back sitting on the judge's bench and sneered inwardly.
"No matter how brilliant you were in your youth, one still has to concede to old age," he thought. "Today, I will make you, old man, and this antiquated court lose all face.”
As Fang Lichang thought this, he walked towards the prosecutor's seat. Out of the corner of his eye, he saw Gu Yuan slightly turn his head to look at him. He unconsciously straightened his back, not even glancing at Gu Yuan. Since they had reached such a point of hostility, there was no need for superficial courtesies.
"Fang Lichang," Gu Yuan suddenly spoke. Fang Lichang acted as if he hadn't heard, and continued walking.
"Fang Lichang!" As Gu Yuan raised his voice and called out again, Fang Lichang finally stopped.
"Your Honor, is there something you need?"
"Fang Lichang, what are you doing here?"
Fang Lichang met Gu Yuan's gaze directly and spoke unhurriedly, "Naturally, I am here to fulfill my duty of fairness and justice, and to complete the judgment against the defendant, Han Meng…”
"That won't be necessary," Gu Yuan said flatly. "Didn't you see the internal position adjustment announcement? As of yesterday… you are no longer a prosecutor.”
Fang Lichang stood frozen.
"You… what did you say?"
"Following an internal audit, we discovered that former Prosecutor Fang Lichang repeatedly used his position to intimidate and bribe subordinate officials during his tenure, with the illegal aim of manipulating court judgments and influencing sentencing," Gu Yuan's aged voice slowly echoed through the courtroom. "After a series of reviews and assessments, Fang Lichang has been officially stripped of his prosecutor position. Regarding Fang Lichang's conviction and sentencing, a separate trial will be held on a later date…”
This sudden turn of events stunned not only Fang Lichang but also the other attendees in the gallery.
Chen Ling's gaze swept around, noticing that not only Fang Lichang but also several jury members had been replaced. In their place were young, unfamiliar faces.
The group that supported Fang Lichang in court two days ago had all been replaced. These new individuals were likely Gu Yuan's trusted protégés, handpicked by him.
"This Gu Yuan is quite interesting…”
At this point, Chen Ling could clearly see that Gu Yuan was determined to protect Han Meng, and had even used this opportunity to orchestrate a major overhaul of the entire trial court. This was undoubtedly unexpected good news for Chen Ling and the survivors from District Three.
"No… When were these reviews and assessments conducted?? Why was I not informed??” Fang Lichang grew agitated, immediately retorting.
"Ordinarily, an internal audit and assessment would require notifying you for rebuttal… Unfortunately, we couldn't find you,” a young enforcement officer said slowly as he walked past Fang Lichang. He then sat in the prosecutor's seat, which had originally belonged to Fang Lichang, and smiled as he spoke,
"If Mr. Fang Lichang has any objections to this decision, your defense lawyer may address them when the court convenes for your trial.”
Fang Lichang stood below the judge's bench. Above him was a solemn row of black-robed enforcement officers. Under this oppressive, ironclad presence, he stood rooted to the spot, like a statue.
Gu Yuan glanced at him. "Court is about to begin. Uninvolved parties, please leave.”
Several enforcement officers stepped forward, ready to escort Fang Lichang out, but he broke free directly. He stared intensely at Gu Yuan. "Fine… Even if I'm not a prosecutor, as the primary accuser in the previous round, I should still remain as the accusing party in this round… There shouldn't be an issue with that, right?”
"No,” Gu Yuan nodded.
Fang Lichang let out a cold snort, broke free from the two enforcement officers, and walked directly to the accuser's seat, his face as grim as water.
He knew, of course, that Gu Yuan was deliberately targeting him. But no matter what, he had to remain present. Only by staying could he ensure that the situation didn't fall completely under Gu Yuan's control…
Thump— As Gu Yuan struck the base with a new gavel, a dull thud immediately silenced all murmurs in the courtroom.
"Bring in the defendant, Han Meng.”
Han Meng, clad in black prison attire, was slowly escorted out by two enforcement officers, returning to his defendant's seat. His gaze swept the surroundings again, seeing the people from District Three in the gallery… and Chen Ling sitting in the front row.
His eyes lingered on Chen Ling for a moment before he turned his head to look at the judge's bench above.
"Defendant Han Meng, abusing his official position, engaged in underground transactions of organs and drugs outside Aurora City, extorted protection money from District Three residents, and later joined the Twilight Society, the highest-priority wanted organization in the Domain. As Spade 6, he colluded with Heart 6 to release a virus within the city, leading to multiple deaths…”
Fang Lichang, standing nearby, solemnly repeated the accusations: "In summary, due to his extremely heinous actions, and having committed crimes knowingly, in accordance with the laws of Aurora City, he should be sentenced to death by slow slicing, to be carried out immediately!”
As these words were spoken, the spectators in the gallery immediately began to whisper, occasionally nodding and looking at Han Meng with anger.
Gu Yuan was not surprised by this. He merely turned his head slowly to look at Han Meng’s side: "Defense counsel, do you have anything to say?"
The defense lawyer this time was also a completely new face. He wore a sharp suit and nodded gravely to Gu Yuan:
"Your Honor, the prosecution’s accusations are entirely baseless. The defendant never engaged in any illegal activities during his tenure in District Three. The transactions involving organs and drugs mentioned by the prosecution are absolute fabrications!”
"Baseless?” Fang Lichang sneered. “I have physical transaction records here as evidence, detailing every secret transaction the defendant made. The profits he amassed over the years are astronomical… How can you claim this is a fabrication? Do you have any evidence?”
The defense lawyer raised an eyebrow and spoke with a light chuckle: "It seems the prosecution hasn’t seen today’s Aurora Daily?"
"The Aurora Daily?” Fang Lichang paused, a look of disdain in his eyes. “Since when can articles fabricated by the media serve as a basis for judgment in court?”
The defense lawyer unhurriedly took a stack of newspapers from nearby and tossed them onto the floor in front of Fang Lichang. "See for yourself.”
