Chapter 349: The Courtroom Upheaval

“A reasonable explanation?”

Not only had the entire courtroom fallen silent, the live stream chat was blank too. Gao Nan, standing nearby, stared at Zhang Yida in disbelief.

The defendant actually questioned that the plaintiff’s claimed compensation was too low? In all these years, so many people have never seen such an audacious request.

“Lawyer Zhang, what are you doing?”

Snapping back to reality, Gao Nan glared fiercely.

“Don’t worry. I’ve got this! Didn’t you see we completely caught them off guard?”

Waving his hand dismissively, Zhang Yida shot Gao Nan a confident look.

“Th-this…”

For a moment, Gao Nan was speechless. Meanwhile, Zhu Qiang and Zhang San across the room were clearly baffled—especially that ‘Outlaw Zhang San,’ who never expected to encounter such a scenario in his career.

“The defendant? Are you sure that’s your claim?”

The presiding judge leaned forward from the bench.

“I’m certain. Now, I want a reasonable explanation from the plaintiff! Of course, I will continue to state our claims shortly.”

Zhang Yida nodded in agreement.

“Plaintiff, then you…”

After a brief pause, the judge turned to look at Zhu Qiang and Zhang San.

“Honorable Judge, we admit our mistake. Once this session concludes, we hope to have the opportunity to submit supplementary materials. However, if the court disallows, we will appeal based on the current compensation amount.”

Zhang San then looked over,

first glancing at Zhu Qiang before turning his eyes to the bench.

It was the first time in his career that he had to admit his unpreparedness and the need for additional documents. As for an explanation? What explanation was there? One could only cite his incompetence.

“Alright! This item is deferred for further discussion. Defendant, please continue stating your claims.”

The presiding judge nodded and then turned his gaze back to Zhang Yida.

“Very well!”

Immediately, Zhang Yida pulled out a stack of documents from his briefcase and began,

“While we admit that our previous actions caused significant economic losses to Mingsha City, under no circumstances will we compensate the plaintiff for any monetary damages!”

“Admit it but refuse to compensate?”

The judge was dumbfounded once again.

Today’s case was truly eye-opening.

“That’s right! Our legal representative had already transferred all assets overseas before these proceedings. In Long Kingdom, there are no assets left for execution! Here is the evidence of the asset transfers and detailed records of all financial transactions for the court’s review! And,

let me make one thing clear—our agent’s decision to transfer assets beforehand was his own, and I have nothing to do with it.

Furthermore!

The legitimacy of our agent’s assets is also of no concern to me! I have ample evidence to prove that these matters have nothing to do with me. At the same time, I must criticize the opposing lawyer—our agent didn’t even apply for asset preservation before transferring assets from Mingsha City.

That is not the calibre expected of a professional lawyer!

After finishing calmly, Zhang Yida signaled to the court staff to collect the documents from his hand.

“Transferred assets in advance? And even provided evidence proactively…”

In the next instant, the courtroom fell deathly silent once more.

Even Zhang San widened his eyes in astonishment.

Chuckle! “What is Zhang Yida doing? How did he get hold of Gao Nan’s detailed account records?”

Jiangcheng

In a river-view office building, Chen Yuan, who was closely following the trial, was suddenly struck with alarm as his expression changed dramatically.

Half an hour ago, Gao Nan had messaged him saying everything was ready—assuring him. And now, this is what he sees?

Gao Nan’s account was intricately linked to him. If cross-examination began, wouldn’t it implicate him as well?

Worse still, Zhang Yida openly criticized the opposing lawyer!

“Chairman Chen, something isn’t adding up!”

Across the desk, a young woman in a short skirt was also watching the trial intently.

“Ridiculous! With things going like this, Gao Nan won’t have to pay a dime, yet he might be looking at decades behind bars. I really wonder what he’s thinking—hiring such an oddball and then claiming that Zhang Yida is the best lawyer he’s ever seen! That’s it?”

Chen Yuan gritted his teeth and immediately shut down his computer.

He simply couldn’t watch any longer. His heart wasn’t strong enough—seeing this until the end might really break him.

An asset transfer like this had removed any uncertainty from the case; even Mingsha City wouldn’t get another word in.

“Chairman Chen, then we…”

After a brief silence, the young woman whispered,

“No, hurry up and book us two tickets to Country M. We need to get out and hide. If the court digs deep into these details, they might trace it back to our company.”

Chen Yuan leapt to his feet in an instant.

“Alright!”

Minute by minute, time slipped by. Before long, it was noon. At this moment, both online forums and the Long Kingdom Legal Network were buzzing with chatter.

“Hahaha, this is priceless! What kind of lawyer is this? Utterly hilarious! Today’s trial is even more entertaining than Haofang Culture’s ‘Joy of Life.'”

“Exactly!”

“I can’t figure out which side this lawyer is really on. He could have negotiated a better deal, but look at this—Gao Nan might temporarily dodge payment, but the case has now veered into criminal territory! We’re looking at a minimum of twenty years on the line.”

“But you know, Zhang Yida did manage to fulfill Gao Nan’s litigation demands.”

“I have to admit, he’s impressive! What he said made perfect sense—no one from Mingsha City could counter those arguments.”

“Absolutely brilliant! When presenting evidence about Gao Nan’s preemptive asset transfer, he provided such detailed data on every single step. Most lawyers couldn’t pull that off. Gao Nan isn’t stupid; he wouldn’t reveal such details to his lawyer.”

“And most importantly, he got Zhang San to admit his mistakes not once, but twice!”

“Hahaha, no doubt. So far, he seems to be the only one able to get Zhang San to confess his errors.”

“What’s even funnier is that Gao Nan’s own supporters, who were all so arrogant at first, have all vanished.”

“Enough, stop it! The more we talk, the funnier it gets.”

Haishi Dino Park Headquarters

Cole glanced at his computer screen and abruptly shut down the power with a snap.

“After waiting for days, they show me this?”

Lighting a cigar casually, Cole turned his attention to Adam beside him.

Just days ago, when Gao Nan started stirring up public opinion, Dino Park had been secretly helping. They even thought Gao Nan had found his ace, which is why he was so confident. Instead, not only did it fail to pressure Mingsha City, it put many of them on the defensive.

“Boss, what do we do now?”

Adam, looking exasperated, responded in kind.

Every time they hired internet trolls, it wasn’t cheap—and Gao Nan had already cost them a pretty penny.

“What now? We stick to our original plan—steer public attention to the Long Kingdom Technology Expo, and find a way to create a scene there! As long as Mingsha City uses its old buildings as the Exhibition Hall, we can seize the opportunity to crush them!”

Cole said angrily.

“Boss, I’ve heard that Long Kingdom’s officials are aware that an early Technology Expo would catch Mingsha City off guard, so they no longer have strict demands on the exhibition halls.”

Adam paused for a moment before replying.

“Never mind! The attitude of officials is one thing, but public opinion is another! Sometimes public sentiment is far more powerful. Besides, I’ve already contacted Peter, the Regional President of Mark Corporation in Long Kingdom!”

Cole once again glanced at his monitor.

“You contacted Peter of Mark Corporation?”

Adam appeared slightly surprised.

Although both hail from Country M, they belong to different financial groups—they are part of the Ross Consortium, while the other is from the Child Family. They don’t normally interact closely.

“Yes! Mark Corporation is also taking part in the expo this time. Peter and I agreed that as soon as they arrive, they’ll immediately leak news claiming that Mingsha City’s preparations are subpar. That will certainly make the officials look bad.”

“Boss, you’re brilliant as always.”

Adam’s face lit up as he gave Cole a thumbs-up.

“By the way, these next couple of days, get in touch with Fengdu Scenic Area in Chongshi. After the Technology Expo, we’ve got a tough battle ahead.”

Rising to his feet,

Cole poured himself a cup of coffee.

“Boss, are you really going to collaborate with Fengdu Scenic Area?”

At this, Adam hesitated for a moment.

“We have no choice. A single Technology Expo isn’t enough to completely crush Mingsha City. If things go as expected, Mingsha City will certainly be rated a 5A destination in Long Kingdom. Until our Magic Academy is built, only by leveraging Fengdu Scenic Area can we put pressure on Mingsha City.”

“Oh!”

“But we still need to negotiate the projects—we should aim to shut down that second Entertainment City in Mingsha. For now, that’s the plan.”

Turning around, Cole reminded,

“Understood, Boss!”

Adam eagerly nodded.

“Also, this afternoon, accompany me to Haishi Grand Hotel to meet with Chairman Qin of the Long Kingdom Scenic Rating Committee! If our Dino Park doesn’t achieve 5A status, we’ll fall behind Mingsha City. That would severely undermine our ‘East Dino, West Mingsha’ strategy!”

Cole raised his hand to check the time.

“Hmm!”

At dusk, as the sun set, Xu Hao, having just finished his work, was about to go have dinner with Han Xiaoqing when he received a call from Zhu Qiang.

He had been so wrapped up with matters concerning the Technology Expo that he hadn’t been keeping up with external developments.

“Qiangzi, what’s wrong?”

Xu Hao answered the call.

“Brother Hao, I might not be back in Mingsha City until the day after tomorrow!”

In the next moment, Zhu Qiang’s voice came through the phone.

“The day after tomorrow?”

“Yeah! Today, we had the trial with Gao Nan. Although we won, the compensation might not reach our expectations. Lawyer Zhang felt he lost completely today and wants to set up a meeting with the opposing lawyer to see if he can recruit him into Mingsha City’s legal department.”

There was a hint of complexity in Zhu Qiang’s tone.