A madman in France? How come he's always at crime scenes!

Chapter 1 I will not be an unscrupulous lawyer!

"So, you mean... during your marriage, you not only had a three-year cohabitation relationship with your spouse's best friend, but also used marital property to purchase a property for this third party?"

"Furthermore, you forged your husband's signature and changed the legal representative of the company you jointly operated after your marriage to your mother's name?"

The woman gently blew on her coffee and nodded matter-of-factly: "Yes, because I was thinking about divorce back then, so I wanted to prepare in advance."

Wu Liang took a deep breath, trying his best to maintain his professionalism.

"Adultery and cohabitation during marriage, malicious transfer of marital property, forgery of signatures to change the legal representative of the spouse, use of marital property to purchase large assets for the extramarital affair partner..."

"Madam, this is a very difficult case for us. Leaving aside the moral issues, your desire to secure a smaller share of the debt and a larger share of the assets in court is extremely..."

"A smaller share of the debt?"

The woman suddenly put down her coffee cup, interrupting Wu Liang, and looked at him with surprise.

"Attorney Wu, that's not my request."

Wu Liang was taken aback and instinctively asked, "So what is your demand?"

The woman took out a thick stack of printed papers from her exquisite limited-edition handbag and pushed them in front of him.

"Oh, that's how it is. After my husband found out what I did, he was so angry that he transferred all three villas under his name, which were paid for in full, to his sister's name, moved out, and didn't leave me a single penny in the company account."

"I want to ask if it's possible to sue him on the grounds of 'the husband maliciously transferring or concealing a huge amount of jointly owned marital property during the marriage'."

"Make him leave with nothing, and then compensate me for the wasted youth and emotional distress I've suffered over the past two years."

"By the way, could you also consider the remaining payment for the apartment I bought for my boyfriend as a joint debt of our marriage and make him bear half of it?"

Wu Liang: ?

……

Ever since he transmigrated to this parallel world, Wu Liang has felt that being a lawyer is becoming increasingly difficult.

Especially for lawyers like him who run a private law firm and have no legal qualifications.

No cases, no qualifications, no background.

After seeing off his only client of the day, Wu Liang slumped into a recliner and then angrily summoned the only employee in the law firm.

"Zhang Jiajing! From now on, before taking on a job, make sure the client is mentally sound!"

A woman's voice came from the kitchen through the back door, and she poked her head out.

"Boss, I have no choice. If I don't take any more cases, I'll go hungry. How about you try taking one like this?"

Wu Liang covered his forehead; what he said made so much sense that he couldn't refute it.

"Are there any more appointments? Is this the only one? Have any couples come in?"

"A couple, huh? Only this one."

Wu Liang sighed, feeling a bit of a headache.

As a rising star in the legal profession with a background in psychology, he never imagined that the saying "more certificates, more paths" would come so quickly and practically.

After all, who in their right mind would ever imagine time travel? It's not like writing a novel, and it's such a coincidence that I've time-traveled into the body of an unlucky law student who inherited his father's small, nearly bankrupt law firm.

This world is no different from the original legal system, but based on Wu Liang's experience in defending others, the courts here seem to focus more on legal procedures and less on human relationships.

Therefore, there will be even more bizarre cases, such as hitting someone and accusing the other party of hit-and-run, or cheating on your husband and accusing him of rape and demanding that he leave with nothing.

But some unscrupulous lawyers are given a chance to survive, so the reputation of lawyers in this world is far worse than in the previous one.

But reputation aside, they really do make money.

Wu Liang lit a cigarette, smacked his lips, and wondered if he really had to go along with the corrupt practices in order to make a living.

No, absolutely not!

Wu Liang stubbed out his cigarette fiercely, setting himself an ironclad rule.

Even if this law firm is run-down, it's still the wealth accumulated by the original owner's father over a lifetime. Although there's only five thousand yuan left in the account, barely enough to cover next month's rent and salary, one can't lose sight of basic human decency.

In his previous life, Wu Liang was a respectable psychology master's graduate and a tough guy who passed the bar exam on his first try. He didn't transmigrate here to be a dog for that kind of scum.

Oh, by the way, the original owner came from a single-parent family. Her mother passed away a long time ago, and her father died in a car accident a year ago.

It perfectly matches the orphanage on Qidian! How come?

but……

Wu Liang pulled a small booklet out of his pocket, opened it, and looked at the text recorded in it.

A girl from a rural area met a boyfriend in college and told him that she was almost abducted when she was a child, and her father led a group of people to beat the traffickers to death at the village entrance.

[The boyfriend thought for a moment and asked, "How do you know that the person who was beaten to death was definitely a human trafficker?"]

There is also a number at the bottom.

【20180818】

This leather-bound book appeared on Wu Liang after he transmigrated, and it contained only this short story.

But after studying it for more than half a year, Wu Liang found nothing except that it would automatically reappear next day after being thrown away or destroyed.

Time flies, and today has arrived, which is the date numbered below the story: August 18, 2018.

But it was past closing time, and apart from a bizarre divorce case request, nothing else came my way!

Isn't that how you use cheat codes?

"Boss, actually I think..."

Zhang Jiajing came out of the kitchen carrying two bowls of plain noodles, her apron still covered in scallions.

This girl graduated from university a year ago with a law degree. She missed the bar exam by three points last year and is still reflecting on it.

Currently, he works as a receptionist, secretary, cook, and cleaner, earning a monthly salary of 2,800 yuan plus Wu Liang's one-on-one legal exam tutoring. He lives in a dormitory converted from a storage room behind the law firm.

"What do you think?" Wu Liang took the noodles and slurped them up.

"I found that lady's logic quite interesting," Zhang Jiajing said, sitting across from her with sparkling eyes. "Think about it, it's a fact that she used marital property to buy a house for a third party during her marriage. But it's also a fact that her husband, after discovering this, transferred all three villas to her name in a fit of anger and emptied the company's accounts."

"so what?"

"So—" Zhang Jiajing tapped the rim of her bowl with her chopsticks, "the amount of assets the man transferred is far greater than the amount the woman transferred."

Wu Liang paused in his hand as he picked up the noodles.

"If—and I mean if," Zhang Jiajing lowered her voice, "that woman's actions could be considered 'squandering marital property,' but the man's actions constitute 'malicious transfer and concealment of marital property.' The legal consequences of these two actions are different during property division. The squandered portion might result in a smaller share at most. But the maliciously transferred portion can be ordered to be returned in its entirety by the court."

Wu Liang raised his head and re-examined the intern in front of him who was always clamoring for meat.

"You've researched this?"

"Of course," Zhang Jiajing said matter-of-factly. "Although I haven't passed the bar exam, I'm a gossip. You can find tons of these kinds of cases online with a simple search, and I've practically memorized the patterns."

Wu Liang lowered his head and continued eating his noodles.

No regrets. Just thinking about the face of that person who made the request makes his stomach ache.

Even if you win a case, working with someone who can confidently ask, "Can my husband pay off my mistress's mortgage?" will be an absolute ordeal of mental torture.

But Zhang Jiajing's words did remind him of something.

In this world, legal principles carry far more weight than personal sentiment in court. This means that lawyers have much more room for maneuver in their defense than in their previous life.

The outcome of a case does not depend entirely on who is more pitiful or who cries more, but rather on who can dissect the legal provisions in a way that is elegant enough.

In other words, he doesn't need to empathize with the client. He just needs to find a legally sound entry point.

But figuring it out is useless; the prerequisite is being able to get cases and support yourself first.

"Never mind, time to go home!"

Wu Liang stretched. The law firm usually closes at five o'clock, but today he waited an extra half an hour, and nothing happened.

I'm going to do some community legal consultation later.

It's not exactly formalism; at least he takes on more of these kinds of events. Wu Liang's Yuanda Law Firm is quite well-known in the area, and people are willing to come to him for everyday disputes.

This is also why the law firm is still able to survive.

"Boss, I'll go with you."

Wu Liang glanced at Zhang Jiajing in surprise. This girl used to run faster than a rabbit when she was doing legal education, why is she interested today?

"Hehe, I'm almost out of money, I'm afraid I'll treat myself again tonight..."

Zhang Jiajing scratched his head and chuckled.

Wu Liang glanced at her speechlessly, took out his phone to check the location of today's community legal consultation, and his brows furrowed immediately.

The location for community legal counseling has changed.

"Due to pipeline construction, the original location at the square has been temporarily changed, and the information center will now be located in... Shiqiao Village?"

The story in the booklet suddenly popped into Wu Liang's mind.

"Boss, why are you looking like you've seen a ghost?"

Zhang Jiajing leaned over and glanced at the phone. "Shiqiao Village? The one next door? It's not far, only a 20-minute bus ride."

Wu Liang didn't reply, but subconsciously touched the booklet in his pocket.

【20180818】

Today!

"Let's go!" Wu Liang stuffed the booklet back into his pocket, instantly becoming energetic.

Zhang Jiajing was startled by his sudden enthusiasm: "Your change of expression is fast enough to perform Sichuan opera."

"Enough talk, bring your legal education brochures. Today, we're going to take the initiative."

Wu Liang was secretly plotting something. If that tattered booklet really held any secrets, today was the chance to find out.

Two and a half hours later.

At the entrance of the Shiqiao Village Committee, there is a folding table, two plastic stools, a banner that reads "Yuanda Law Firm Pro bono legal consultation," and—

The place is deserted.

"Boss, shall we pack up and leave?"

Zhang Jiajing was lying face down on the table, with a copy of the "Judicial Interpretation of the Marriage Law" covering her face.

"It's been two hours since I arrived, and only one old man has come to ask what to do if his grandson doesn't support him. You gave him some advice, but he complained that the legal procedures you mentioned were too complicated and said he'd rather go back and yell at the village officials to resolve the issue."

Wu Liang leaned back in his chair, his expression gradually shifting from anticipation to disappointment.

No. Nothing at all.

There were no girls, no human traffickers, and no one was beaten to death at the village entrance.

He looked around and saw a big locust tree at the entrance of the village, under which several elderly men and women were sitting and enjoying the cool air. It was the perfect place to film a promotional video for rural revitalization.

"Alright, let's pack up and leave." Wu Liang sighed, realizing he had been overthinking things.

Just then, a strong female voice came from afar.

"Oh my! Attorney Wu! It really is you!"

Wu Liang looked up and saw a woman in her fifties running over enthusiastically, carrying two old hens in her hands.

I remember now, last month I helped this lady resolve a neighborhood dispute. It started because the neighbor's dog killed three of her chickens. In the end, the mediation was successful, and the other party paid her two hundred yuan in compensation.

"Aunt Liu, what are you doing here?"

"My family is from this village! Oh, what a coincidence, I just got back to the village and saw Lawyer Wu setting up a stall here."

Aunt Liu grabbed Wu Liang's arm. "Come on, come on, let's go eat at my house! My mom made some chicken soup. I still remember the time you helped me last time!"

Wu Liang was about to decline when he heard Zhang Jiajing behind him swallow hard.

"Zhang Jiajing, where is your professional ethics?"

"Boss, my professional ethics tell me that refusing the goodwill of the people means being out of touch with reality."

Wu Liang: "..."

When the two came out of Aunt Liu's house, it was already completely dark.

Zhang Jiajing patted her belly contentedly and let out a burp: "Boss, I've decided that once I pass the certification exam, I'll take on more cases in rural areas."

"Is that all you've got?" Wu Liang said, taking out his phone to call a car.

The current queue size is 53 people. Estimated waiting time: ? ?

"Alright, let's walk back, it'll be good for digesting our food."

Aunt Liu chased after him and handed him a flashlight: "Lawyer Wu, it's dark on the road, take this! This thing is very bright, my old man fixed it, it can light up for miles!"

Unable to refuse, Wu Liang thanked him and led Zhang Jiajing onto the village road.

The flashlight was indeed powerful; once turned on, the beam shot out a long distance, illuminating the entire road like a crime scene.

Zhang Jiajing followed behind, her neck hunched: "Boss, please turn off the flashlight. This light is terrifying; it makes everything look like a body dumping site."

"If you turn it off, will you still be able to see the road? What if you step on a snake?"

"A snake?!" Zhang Jiajing instantly pressed herself against Wu Liang.

"No, I was just kidding."

"Boss, this isn't funny!"

The two were arguing when a rustling sound suddenly came from the roadside bushes.

Wu Liang subconsciously shone his flashlight in that direction.

As the beam of light passed, two startled faces were suddenly revealed in the bushes—a man and a woman, dressed in remarkably eco-friendly clothes, entangled in a position that posed a significant legal risk.

Holy crap!

"ah--!!!"

The woman screamed, and the two of them jumped up as if they had been electrocuted. They tried to separate in a flurry, but because they were still in a stalemate, they tripped and tumbled into a ditch by the roadside.

"Ouch, ouch, ouch—"

"My back!"

Wailing cries echoed from the pit.

"See, what did I tell you?" Wu Liang turned to Zhang Jiajing and said, "This light can indeed illuminate things."

Zhang Jiajing was so embarrassed she wanted to bury her head in the ground: "Stop talking, go check if he's alright!"

Wu Liang walked to the edge of the pit, squatted down, and called into the pit, "Hey, are you alright?"

But then he realized that he had forgotten to turn off the flashlight.

A vast expanse of white.

Wu Liang quickly moved the flashlight to the side to avoid seeing any more images that needed to be blurred.

With this movement, the beam of light shone into the soil at the corner of the pit.

Wu Liang glanced at it subconsciously—

A stark white skull lay there silently.

His jaw seemed to be grinning maliciously, and his dark, hollow eyes were staring intently at me!

The young couple in the pit were still cursing and tidying up their clothes, completely unaware of what was less than 30 centimeters away from their feet.

Zhang Jiajing peeked out from behind and took a look.

then.

"ah----!!!"

A scream pierced the night sky, startling a flock of birds in the distant mountains and forests.