DFLB – Chapter 1

Judge Zhou, when do you think you will have time to make a ruling on the Hongfa microfinance dispute case from a year or so ago? I know that your court has been busy recently, and there are not enough people in the court, but our client is waiting for results eagerly. When are you free, our law firm is willing to… “

“Our last objection regarding jurisdiction was overruled. We will be appealing against the ruling. In this way, the court date will be delayed until after the end of the year and there will be plenty of time to prepare the court materials.”

Near the end of the New year, many white-collar workers had taken a holiday ahead of time to go home for the Spring Festival, and there were fewer and fewer people coming and going in the office elevators. Most companies had already entered the vacation and preparation mode. However, the office of the Jingcheng Law firm was still very busy.

Qian Wei bit her pen while listening to her colleagues on their phones. She waited and waited until the office became quiet. The rest of her colleagues were attending court sessions or going out to see clients, and there were only a few interns left in the vast open floor office area. She encouraged herself again and then sneaked into the Law Partner Lu Xun’s office.

Unfortunately, Lu Xun was answering a phone call from an American customer when she arrived. So Qian Wei sat aside and waited quietly for Lu Xun to finish the call.

Lu Xun’s office faced the south and the winter sun shone in unsparingly. The light reflected on his face through the decorative green plants in his office, and cast a beautiful shadow that played across his face. His voice was fluent and beautiful voice and came steadily from behind his thin and perfect lips.

The man was mature, handsome, and strong. He seemed unassailable, like even the hair on his head was showing off that he was different. Qian Wei remembered that she heard several female interns discussing Lu Xun in the restrooms a few days ago who said, “Even the back of Lu Xun’s head is so handsome that one can recognize it in the crowd.” She had never studied the handsome back of Lu Xun’s head, but she had to admit that Lu Xun’s face was very handsome. Even if she had seen it for several years and should supposedly be immune to his appearance by now but occasionally she would see his cold glare and felt it was really impactful. At the moment, Lu Xun wore a pair of glasses and took sips of water in-between speaking on the phone. His Adam’s apple rolled slightly along his long white neck, and the prominent arc seemed to hint at his prominent male hormones. He had the aura of a beast dressed like an elite.

Lu Xun never said a word of nonsense on the phone and soon the call ended. He took off his gold-rimmed glasses and tossed them on the table before he looked at Qian Wei. He did not speak.

Qian Wei felt numb under his chilly eyes and dared not look him in the eye, so she stared down at her skinny hands and said obsequiously, “Boss…”

“No.”

“…” Qian Wei couldn’t help looking up. “I haven’t said anything yet!”

Lu Xun smiled coldly: “It’s never good when you start with this title.”

Qian Wei said with a smile, “How can you say that…?”

“Then what good thing do you have to find me for this time? Treat me to dinner? Give me a present?”

“This…” Qian Wei organized the words she wanted to say in her head, “I heard that you recently accepted a case in which Hi-Tech Machinery intends to buy a 65% stake in the parent company’s boiler company for US $1.4 billion. I am afraid that your team is not strong enough, so I am willing to volunteer to join this acquisition.”

“Dream on.”

Although he had a picturesque face, it was a pity that Lu Xun spat out such merciless words with his two beautiful lips.

“Lu Xun!” Qian Wei couldn’t help herself, “We are at least old classmates, you should not let our water flow to outsiders ah! Such a big case, I heard that you have already asked several trainee lawyers to join the case. I am at least half a senior lawyer who has worked with you for a year. Don’t I have a chance?”

Lu Xun pursed his lips and said nothing.

Qian Wei decided to play the sadness card: “You are so full that you don’t know the hunger of the hungry. Imagine that while you have so many cases that you have no choice but to put them off, your old classmate, me, is left chewing steamed corn bread in the ice and snow during the Spring Festival, worrying about the source of my next case and income for next year… “

“Steamed corn bread is a coarse grain, which is very healthy.”

“…” Qian Wei was ready to die, “Lu Xun, I said I was sorry to you, I was too young and impulsive back…”

“My hourly charge is 5000 yuan an hour.” Lu Xun pressed a timer on the table. “Is there anything else you want to say to me?”

“No, thank you, boss!”

Qian Wei looked at the number ticking up on the timer, said nothing, and hurriedly got up from her chair and walked out the door. She had given up.

“Wait a minute.”

Did Lu Xun discover his conscience? Qian Wei thought with surprise. Then she looked back with a smile full of flattery.

“Next time, remember to knock at the door.” Lu Xun put on his glasses again and buried himself in the file without looking up. “Go out and close the door.”

“…”

Go to hell, Lu Xun!

Qian Wei and Lu Xun both graduated from A University Law School, in the same class, but unfortunately…

When Qian Wei thought of the past, she regretted so much that her intestines turned blue.

“At that time, how could I know that Lu Xun would be my boss one day? Obviously I am still a little lawyer but he raced all the way up the ladder and was promoted to partner. Partner! Partner! He is Partner Lu, but I am still Lawyer Qian! What can I do? I’m desperate, too! I also want to be Partner Qian! “

After work that day, Qian dragged Liu Shiyun out to complain at a light music bar.

Liu Shiyun was Qian Wei’s college roommate, although she was one of the few who did not work in law after graduation, she was Qian Wei’s best friend.

“There really are frozen bones and rotten wine and meat on the road to Zhumen!” Qian Wei drank up the cocktail in front of her. “Tell me, why is Lu Xun so narrow-minded? Didn’t I just offend him accidentally?”

“Think about how you offended him?” Liu Shiyun rolled her eyes. “You helped Qian Chuan pry into the corner of his wall and robbed his girlfriend Mo Zixin. Thinking of the hatred of stealing his wife, which man can bear it? Moreover, Lu Xun seems to have been in love for a long time and even until now. He’s still single after so many years, I am afraid that Mo Zixin was unforgettable in his heart. And having his corner dug like that is not only emotionally unacceptable but it also hurts a man’s self-esteem. And now, you still hang around under his nose all day, constantly reminding him of the humiliation of the past. I’m afraid the only reason he doesn’t directly stab you is because he doesn’t want to have his lawyer’s license revoked for the criminal offence!”

“…” Qian Wei muttered, “Is it really so serious?”

“Of course!”

“But strictly speaking, Mo Zixin was not Lu Xun’s girlfriend.”

“Yes, after all, they never made their relationship official, so you happily pried away at the corner of the wall. Qian Wei, have you ever heard that people always want what they can’t get? Lu Xun never had it. How strong do you think the regret and unwillingness in his heart are? Mo Zixin is the white moonlight in his heart.”

Qian Wei tried to make excuses for herself: “But Qian Chuan is my twin brother, no matter what family helps each other. If Lu Xun put himself in my shoes he would do the same!”

“You can tell that to Lu Xun. Anyway, you’ve two have a bad relationship and you shouldn’t expect him to make peace with you in this century.”

“Ai~!” Qian Wei sighed sadly. “Since you mentioned it, Lu Xun has become more and more gloomy recently. Last time, my aunt introduced me to a man who was not afraid of my identity as a female lawyer. It was extremely difficult for me to squeeze out one night from the client’s time to prepare for the blind date. But as a result, Lu Xun found out that I lost a case that night and caused me to work overtime on a new case every night for a month! When I was finally free, that man I was going to go on a blind date with already had a partner! Lu Xun’s mind must be out of balance. He can’t bear to see me trying to escape singledom.” 

“Say, How much was the case Lu Xun threw to you worth? What was the case?”

“Six million.” Qian spoke hesitantly, “It is a bad debt we’re collecting on behalf of the bank…”

“For a bad bank debt all you have to do is go through a litigation process and then some follow-up and write-offs. No matter how your lawsuit turns out, the bank will not put any pressure on you. This six million is tantamount to just sending you money.” Liu Shiyun looked at Qian Wei with disdain. “It seems Lu Xun really made the right move for this case, knowing that your love for money and giving you this kind of case. You should have a bit of backbone, too. You could go on a blind date even while taking a case. You deserve to be single!”

“If I were as rich as you, of course I could have backbone.” Qian Wei spoke dispiritedly. “If it wasn’t for the difficulties at home, who would want to come out and be a lawyer these days?”

Liu Shiyun was a second-generation entrepreneur who runs a chain hotel owned by her family. She took over the hotel management after graduating from A University Law School.

“But you know, I always wondered, you were never going to be in the legal profession anyway so why on earth did you study so hard in law school? Why were you studying so hard? It was a mistake for you to even apply to a law school!”

Liu Shiyun sipped her drink and said, “Ever since I was a child, I was determined to be a profiteer. If I don’t study the law well, how can I better exploit the loopholes in the law?”

“…”

After the rare get together with Liu Shiyun, Qian could only devote herself to work again. There were still many things to clean up before the end of the year, so she could not relax for a moment.

On the contrary, a few interns, who had nothing to do but help with photocopying and sorting out the case files, got together to chat during the lunch break.

“By the way, have you ever heard of a small temple on the edge of Anlan Mountain Villa? It is said that it was built more than a hundred years ago. It is now a culturally preserved building, and it is very lucky. As long as you have make a wish there, it seems to come true.”

“I know! It’s amazing! You can have whatever you want!”

Qian Wei was sorting out the evidence catalogue and listening to their chattering conversation, admiring their youth and vitality, but just as she was ready to continue listening, the interns seemed to collectively go silent.

Qian only looked up and found that Lu Xun had opened the door of the office and was walking towards the open office area.

With a bang, a stack of materials was thrown onto Qian Wei’s desk.

“What’s this?”

Qian Wei was startled, and the cause of the commotion, Lu Xun, stood in front of her desk. His tall body blocked all the sunlight at once.

“Source files.” Lu Xun cherished the words like they were gold. He gently tapped on the stack of materials with his fingers. “To be used on your case.”

“Oh, okay.” Qian Wei nodded subconsciously.

In the past, Lu Xun would have left immediately after Qian had responded, but today Lu Xun lingered at Qian Wei’s desk for a while.

“Are you going tomorrow night?”

Qian was stupefied for a moment but then realized that Lu Xun was talking about the college reunion tomorrow night. Liu Shiyun told her that the place was near the law firm.

“I’m going. Do you have anything you want me to bring to anyone?” Because he was so busy, Lu Xun seldom attended such gatherings. But now, apart from the lawyers, most of his college classmates worked in public security bureaus, procuratorates, and the courts, which could be regarded as his personal circle and sometimes they would do each other favors, like bringing materials over or talking about a case. Qian Wei usually only wanted to go home to sleep and would never attend this kind of party but this time Liu Shiyun agreed to go on her behalf.

“No, I’ll be going.” Lu Xun said, but did not leave. He just stared at Qian for a moment, then looked at the stack of materials he had just put down on the table. He lowered his gaze and his eyelashes quivered gently in the sun, leaving a fan-shaped shadow for a moment. “Take a good look at the materials of this case. Be sure to look carefully and look at it right away.”

With that, without waiting for Qian to react, Lu Xun turned and left.

“Wait! Lu Xun! ” It was Qian Wei who stopped him, and she fiddled with the case material in front of her. “Why are you suddenly so… why have you given me the source files for the case so kindly?”

“You have so many questions, is it because you’re not tired of eating steamed corn bread?”

“…”

In any case, Qian Wei felt deeply moved. She looked at Lu Xun’s back and thought guiltily that she would never speak ill of Lu Xun behind his back any more. She had really wrongly measured the heart of a gentleman with her own villain’s heart. Lu Xun deserved to be called ‘The Light of A University Law School’ back then. Sure enough, his moral character and his appearance were both outstanding.

She wondered what kind of case Lu Xun gave her? Normally any case that Lu Xun casually let slip out of his hands, even the small ones, the income would not be small, Qian happily flipped open the first folder and the first thing she saw in the material were the words “Pro Bono”, big and bold.

Shit, this was a pro bono case, no money! Not even a penny!

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TL NOTE: So “窝窝头” (steamed corn bread) got mentioned a few times in this chapter and it’s apparently some food you eat when you’re really poor? I dunno. There are also a few mentions of “digging/prying at corners” which is some sort of metaphor for chasing another man’s woman? I think.

Also this project is a LOT harder to muddle through than my other project. The formatting of the raws are these big bricks of text that don’t play nice with MTL. On the plus side the chapters are more consistently sized and also shorter.