199: Don't want to save face? Then forget it

At eight o'clock in the morning, the alarm rang on time, and Zhou Yun climbed out of bed; he basically had nothing left to do in Fengxian County.

The case returned for supplementary investigation was just for the deadline; a hearing would be held later, as this action itself represented the Procuratorate's attitude.

As for the evil force case, it would be heard at the Jinghai City Intermediate Peoples Court.

So now in Jinghai City, there was basically only one small matter left, which was to talk to the school.

Originally, Zhou Yun was waiting for Principal Tian to contact him, because no matter how you put it, the school definitely had problems with something like that happening on its premises.

If you make a mistake, you must admit it. The previous case was only temporarily suspended due to the criminal case, but in reality, the school was considered a third party.

In other words, the verdict of the criminal case actually had no conflict with whether the school bore responsibility. Existing evidence had already proven that the school had significant supervision issues.

In such a situation, if the other party took the initiative to contact him, the Court could mediate.

However, it was regrettable that the school had shown no movement until now, as if they thought everything was fine.

The Education Department had not taken any action, nor had the Court.

That was certainly not acceptable. Mr. Zhou had always believed in seeing things through from beginning to end.

Guo Zihao's case was more complicated; for the school to bear responsibility, self-defense had to be confirmed.

But the situation for the remaining five families was different; they were victims.

So today, Zhou Yun was going to resolve this matter. Of course, if it couldn't be resolved, he would put it aside for now. Anyway, there was nothing to worry about at this point.

Soon, Zhou Yun dialed Lao Fan's number. After all, everyone knew each other, so it was better to inform Lao Fan first.

In the Court office, Lao Fan answered the phone: "Hello, Mr. Zhou Lawyer, still in Fengxian County? Oh, not finished yet?"

Zhou Yun chuckled: "No choice, Dean Fan, I'm just trying to make a living. I discovered something, which is that your Court issued an investigation order for me last time, right?"

"Then I went to Fengxian County No. 5 Middle School to investigate, and the school leaders said the surveillance was broken. Even during the later Court session, they said the surveillance was broken."

"But when I reviewed the files a while ago, I found that, hey, the surveillance was perfectly fine."

"See? They dared to lie when facing the Court's investigation order, even when facing the judge, but they didn't dare when facing the Public Security Bureau... Anyway, I feel I can't tolerate it. What do you say, Dean Fan?"

Zhou Yun was joking, and Lao Fan naturally knew he was joking, but... the fact was indeed like that.

So what if it was the Court? They lied when they wanted to, but when the Public Security Bureau went, it was a different story. He knew what that implied.

However, Lao Fan was still very clear that Zhou Yun was asking him why he hadn't dealt with the previous matter yet.

Lao Fan quickly chuckled: "We are already handling that matter. It's actually not easy to fine the school; you understand that."

"So, we've been constantly communicating with the Education Department during this time, but there's no result yet..."

Zhou Yun understood. What Lao Fan said was quite simple: as a public welfare institution, a school is essentially no different from the civil service system; it relies on government funding.

Whether it's resisting a Court investigation order or speaking falsely in Court, if the Court were to impose a fine, it would be against the school as an entity.

This would create a problem: both sides receive government appropriations. It's like moving money from one pocket to another. If you fine them, the money still belongs to the state, and the school's deficit still needs state financial support.

It's basically just a transfer, and such a penalty loses its meaning. Therefore, under normal circumstances, the Court will not impose fines on such agencies.

Judicial detention and the like are even less likely...

This is unlike a Bank; a Bank is an enterprise, so they are fined without mercy when necessary... That's why Banks are said to be a vulnerable group.

As for now, if Zhou Yun were to report it, it would still be difficult because the evidence related to the criminal case had not yet gone through the Court, which would cause trouble later.

Thinking of this, Zhou Yun immediately said: "Dean Fan, how about this? I'll contact Principal Tian again and see if we can mediate the previous case."

Lao Fan heard this and said: "That Tian Xiashan might not agree, and given the current situation, he doesn't have the authority to agree either."

Zhou Yun chuckled: "That doesn't matter. Whether he doesn't agree or the education authorities later don't agree, I'm going to say something anyway."

"If they don't agree, then so be it. As a lawyer, with the case still suspended, I can't do anything to them, right? I'm hanging up now, Dean Fan."

After hanging up, Lao Fan shook his head. He had heard it clearly: Zhou Yun was practically hoping Tian Xiashan wouldn't agree.

Getting into a dispute with this person could only be considered bad luck for those involved.

Zhou Yun had already dialed Tian Xiashan's number.

"Hello, Principal Tian, are you busy right now?"

On the other side, at Fengxian County No. 5 Middle School, Tian Xiashan felt a bit numb when he saw Zhou Yun's call, but he had no choice but to answer.

He spoke now: "Not busy, not busy. What's up, Lawyer Zhou?"

Zhou Yun's voice came from the phone: "Oh, I just wanted to ask Principal Tian, regarding our previous case, does the school have any intention of mediating?"

Tian Xiashan said: "Oh, that case. Lawyer Zhou, we do have the intention to mediate."

He had already communicated with his superiors about this case. The leaders' meaning was simple: money could be compensated, but Zhou Yun could not post this matter online.

If he absolutely had to post it, then it was fine, but he couldn't post the truth...

If Zhou Yun insisted on posting, then so be it; they would just stall for time, because based on Zhou Yun's previous behavior, even if they mediated now, he would still post it.

Receiving Zhou Yun's call suddenly today, Tian Xiashan prepared to speak according to what had been discussed before, just to stall for time.

"Yes, we want to mediate, but Lawyer Zhou, we have an idea: the school actually doesn't bear much responsibility in this matter."

"Because there really aren't any good management methods, wouldn't you say?"

"So, you see, if you post videos afterward, could you please help us say a few words?"

By now, Zhou Yun was basically a golden brand. If he said the school had little responsibility, public opinion would generally not place the blame on the school, because everyone trusted him.

Hearing this, Zhou Yun immediately laughed: "So, Principal Tian means that I need to help the school make excuses, and if I don't, you won't agree to mediation, is that right?"

"Then I can clearly reply that I definitely won't agree. Afterward, I will post the entire matter on the internet exactly as it happened, you can rest assured about that. Whatever the truth of the matter is, that's what I'll post."

"Including the fact that you said the surveillance was broken one moment and then produced it the next!"

Zhou Yun always liked everyone to win together, but some people didn't deserve to win. Although this school had poor student enrollment, the fact that it had turned out this way indicated that the school had significant management problems.

Therefore, he certainly couldn't compromise on this issue; he wanted everyone to see how some people manipulated surveillance!

Tian Xiashan quickly said, "Lawyer Zhou, you are..."

However, he was interrupted before he could finish: "Principal Tian, I am giving you an opportunity now. When the criminal case comes down, it will be too late for you to mediate."

Mediating now would mean lax supervision, and the school leaders would be responsible, but it wouldn't be too much trouble.

However, once the criminal case is decided, it will be different. If an evil force is formed, how did you, as a leader, manage that?

Zhou Yun was genuinely giving them a chance now, but the other party seemed intent on stalling.

From the other party's perspective, it was actually normal. Anyway, it was already like this, and Zhou Yun would post it online later. How much worse could it get? It was better to prepare for how to handle public opinion.

At that time, they would just show the measures the school had taken. At most, they would be scolded for a few days, and then the principal would be dismissed, and they would actively compensate. After a while, they could just reinstate him, which was all routine operation.

The most sensational part of the whole incident was actually the gang rape, but that happened outside the school, so the school had some responsibility, but not much.

This had all been discussed by the leaders.

It's like some cases of minors committing murder; if it happened outside school, you can't possibly say it can all be blamed on the school, right?

The plan was indeed well-thought-out, but the leaders probably racked their brains and couldn't have imagined that a certain handsome young man would take a different approach and define it as an evil force, completely disrupting the entire situation...

Tian Xiashan naturally didn't know all this. Upon hearing Zhou Yun's words, he quickly said: "Lawyer Zhou, please don't be anxious. We need to ask the leaders about the situation again... Hello, hello?"

Zhou Yun had directly hung up the phone. If he gave face and they didn't take it, then so be it.

Tian Xiashan looked at his phone and sighed. This was basically the worst-case scenario the leader had mentioned. Next, he had to prepare to deal with public opinion.

After thinking for a moment, he still dialed the leader's number, preparing to explain the situation.

On the other side, after Zhou Yun hung up the phone, he immediately packed his things. He was preparing to return to Jinghai, hoping that when the verdict came out, Principal Tian would still be like this.

That afternoon, Zhou Yun returned to Jinghai, informed Old Zhuang, and then waited for the case to go to trial.

In Jinghai No. 2 Detention Center, Lü Xinhao had already moved into his new home, but his face was filled with fear.

He had suddenly received a notice yesterday, being transferred here from Fengxian County Detention Center.

The No. 2 Detention Center was Jinghai City's specialized Detention Center for juvenile suspects. This was no longer a single cell; it was a large common bunk room, and everyone inside was a minor.

Those people, after learning about his situation, first taught him a lesson.

After the lesson, someone said: "You were transferred from the county, right? I'm telling you, someone like you might get life imprisonment, otherwise, you wouldn't be transferred here..."

What? Upon hearing this, Lü Xinhao was so scared he couldn't even cry. Life imprisonment?

...

Just like that, the day of the trial finally arrived. Guo Xitian rushed over from Fengxian County. Guo Zihao was a victim, and as a victim's family member, he could participate in the trial.

Lü Dehai and his wife also arrived in Jinghai. They also wanted to participate in the trial, mainly to see how their son was doing.