218: Should we commend him? - 1

In the interrogation room—

"Name."

"Jiang Ye."

"Age."

"22."

"Occupation."

"Stu... Brother An, we're so familiar with each other, you..."

An Zhengjun slapped the table with a "bang," making the pen holder on the desktop jump:

"Who are you calling brother?! Be serious! Tell me what happened!"

Jiang Ye clicked his tongue and sighed helplessly: "Brother An, I really acted bravely for a just cause. Those hooligans were bullying a young girl, and I just couldn't stand it..."

"Right, right, right, you're always acting bravely for a just cause!"

An Zhengjun glared at him irritably: "I won't mention the previous times, but this time it escalated into a fight. Is that still acting bravely for a just cause? Hurry up and confess honestly!"

Jiang Ye was utterly exasperated, spreading his hands: "Brother An, be reasonable, okay? They attacked me first. Should I just not fight back?"

"Three against one, and you knocked all three down without a scratch on yourself. Are we filming a movie here?"

An Zhengjun pointed at the record book: "Your little friends with the colorful hair have already confessed, saying you're 'Little Uncle'... Come on, let's talk. Is this your gang nickname?"

"..."

"..."

Jiang Ye twitched the corner of his mouth, looking speechless: "Brother An, are you serious?"

An Zhengjun stared at him for a few seconds, then couldn't hold back himself, his mouth twitching as his tone softened:

"Alright, alright, I won't scare you anymore. I've already heard the general story from the bar's security guard..."

He rubbed his temples: "Jiang Ye, I've told you many times, don't act impulsively when something happens—call the police first! You... don't know how to hold back. If they really push it and refuse to let it go, you won't be able to avoid a charge of excessive self-defense."

"What excessive?"

Jiang Ye blurted out: "It's been so long since I..."

"Stop joking around!"

An Zhengjun's face darkened as he grabbed a pen from the table and threw it at him: "I'm talking about the scale of defense! Fine, I don't want to argue with you. I'll go talk to those kids later and see if we can mediate."

Jiang Ye let out an "oh," knowing the other was helping him downplay the situation, and nodded.

Sigh, this damn mission... Why do I end up at the police station every month? Do all elegant gentlemen have to be regulars at the police station?

An Zhengjun gave him a few more reminders, then stood up: "Stay here for now. I'm going to meet those kids."

With that, he turned and left the interrogation room.

As soon as he stepped out, he saw a young female officer holding a tablet, waiting at the door.

"What's up, Officer Xiao Ning?"

"Captain An, take a look at this..."

Officer Officer Xiao Ning's expression was complicated: "Even when I studied cases at the police academy, I've never seen such... such a textbook example of justifiable self-defense footage."

"...?"

An Zhengjun was taken aback. He took the tablet, instinctively glanced through the glass window at Jiang Ye inside, who seemed to be lost in thought while stroking his chin, then tapped open the video on the tablet.

The video was shot by the bar's security guard on a phone, capturing the entire conflict in the alley.

As the footage played, An Zhengjun's expression gradually shifted from serious to... colorful.

In the determination of justifiable self-defense, there are several key elements:

Cause (unlawful infringement), timing (infringement in progress), subjective intent (defensive intention), target (directed at the infringer), and limit (not significantly exceeding necessary limits).

In the video, the cause was the other party attacking first—no issue there;

Jiang Ye's subjective intent was to stop the fight and protect those present—also no problem;

The target was always the three who attacked, with no harm to bystanders;

Both sides were unarmed, with equal means. Jiang Ye's counterattack only temporarily incapacitated them, not exceeding limits.

All of this was reasonable.

But the most critical, and often scrutinized, element is timing—the unlawful infringement must be "in progress."

Many cases ultimately judged as "excessive self-defense" are because the counterattack occurred when the other party's infringement had already stopped or paused, no longer posing an immediate threat.

But this guy Jiang Ye... In the video, Crew Cut Man threw the first punch, stopping mid-motion, his fist pointed straight at Jiang Ye, creating a still frame of "about to hit but not yet hitting."

From a legal perspective, the punch neither missed nor was withdrawn—it just hung there, constituting a continuous, real threat, with the infringement "in progress."

Jiang Ye's counterattack, while the punch was thrown and the threat hadn't been neutralized, was impeccable in timing.

Later, when Crew Cut Man made a move to kick, stopping mid-leg extension, it similarly fell under infringement in progress.

And the punch that later landed squarely on Jiang Ye's back further confirmed the other party's infringing intent and danger.

No wonder Officer Xiao Ning called it "textbook-level justifiable self-defense." This video could be used directly as a police academy case study with some blurring.

After watching the video, An Zhengjun opened his mouth but said nothing for a long time.

He looked up again at the guy in the interrogation room, who seemed to be daydreaming, his entire face scrunching up, his feelings indescribably complex.

After a long silence, An Zhengjun handed the tablet back to Officer Xiao Ning, rubbing his throbbing temples:

"Follow procedure. Those kids who attacked first—disorderly conduct, detain them for a few days to teach them a lesson. Those girls—focus on criticism and education, fine them as appropriate. Have Miss Lin and the other girl sign and wait at the door. I'll say a few words to this kid inside and then let him go."

Officer Xiao Ning let out an "oh," took the tablet, and hesitantly asked in a low voice:

"Captain An, about him... should we apply for a commendation for acting bravely for a just cause?"

As soon as she finished speaking, she saw An Zhengjun give her a look she'd never seen before—a mix of speechlessness, frustration, and even a hint of wanting to stab someone.

Officer Xiao Ning immediately realized she might have asked a stupid question. She quickly hugged the tablet, decisively turned around: "Understood! I'll handle it right away!"

"..."

An Zhengjun vigorously rubbed his face, sighed with a mix of amusement and exasperation, adjusted his expression, and reopened the interrogation room door.