"Then we shall proceed," the judge dismissed. "Miss Song Mei, can you step forward and present the case: Su vs. Sun Group?" asked the judge.
Qian Meigui nodded. She placed down her notes on the table, not needing them. She prepared for this, for weeks.
Qian Meigui stepped forward. "I am representing Mr. Su Feng. The plaintiff accused the defendant, Sun Group, for illegal and fraudulent activity."
The Judge stared at her with the eyes of a hawk, face unfriendly, neutral. But Qian Meigui did not waver. The Judge then glanced over at the representative of Sun Group, "do you deny the accusation?" she asked coldly.
"The defendant, Sun Group, denies the claims and we have evidence," their attorney said.
Qian Meigui breathed in a sharp breath. Their attorney was one of the smartest lawyers she"s heard before. He had a doctorate in criminology.
He stepped forward to the three judges, bringing them doc.u.ments of audits from every year Su Guiren had been working there. The judges gripped their gla.s.ses, observing them diligently. Qian Meigui waited.
It felt like a long wait as they read the pages. Then the middle judge, their leader, glanced up at Qian Meigui. She raised the doc.u.ments, "these conflict Mr. Su"s accusations against Sun Group." Qian Meigui"s eyes widened. "May I see them?" she asked.
The judges glanced at each other, sputtering amongst themselves. "You may," said one of the others.
Qian Meigui approached them, swiftly picking up the doc.u.ments. Her eyes darted back and forth on the flawless pages and accounts. She then approached Zhong Liu and Wen Zhaohui coolly, showing them the records. They skimmed through, eyeing her as they finished and sighing. Qian Meigui nodded. She had searched through Su Feng"s audits before and it matched theirs, but the issue was there some subtle inconsistencies.
Qian Meigui looked through the audits again. She highlighted some of them and gave it back the judges. When they observed the doc.u.ments once more, one of them said, "Miss Song brought to my attention that wire and securities fraud may be involved with the audits; possible forgery may be involved as well. We will be in recess until we can identify the relations," the judge said.
Qian Meigui loosed a breath. Wen Zhaohui patted her on the back for what she"d done.
During recess, Qian Meigui went outside to take a breather. Song Sheng stepped to her side, smoking.
"How are you holding up?" he asked her.
Qian Meigui smiled at him, "as good as I can be."
"You"ll do great," he said. He reached out to ruffle Qian Meigui"s hair. Qian Meigui stretched out like a cat, grasping his hand quickly, brus.h.i.+ng their fingertips before she rose. She then stepped into the courthouse again, speaking to the legal team. Song Sheng proceeded to smoke.
An hour later, the recess was over.
The judges returned, and everyone settled in their seats. The chief judge addressed Sun Group, "According to the audit sent by the Wen legal team, we have confirmed that there is some fraudulent activity involved. But it is not enough to criminally indict the defendant"s; therefore, they can fix the inconsistencies by providing compensation for fixing their mistake, and pay the legal fees involved."
Su Guiren smiled smugly, eyeing Qian Meigui, then glancing towards Song Ren. Song Ren"s face twisted with disgust. Song Sheng didn"t reveal any emotions. Even Su Guiren"s lawyer smiled smugly with a wickedly cruel smile.
Qian Meigui loosed a breath as she heard others sighing in defeat. The case was about to be dismissed quickly, when Qian Meigui blurted out, "I would like to bring forth some evidence of another criminal offence."
The judges raised a brow before nodding. Qian Meigui went to collect a folder of doc.u.ments she carried when Zhong Liu bent down and whispered, "What are you doing?"
"Just watch," Qian Meigui a.s.sured him.
Qian Meigui had prepared for all types of scenarios. She undermined Sun Group by focusing on the fraudulent activities involved in the audits, diverting their attention for the real case she was about to bring. It was a gamble, but she was willing to risk it.
"I have here," she said as she raised her files, "Evidence pertaining the unethical aspects that were run by Su Guiren"s medical department." She pa.s.sed the folder to the judges. "If you notice here," she points at the batches of medicine from one of the facilities. "The medication created are raw, untested; and therefore, sold on the shelves due to earning quick revenue. Moreover, while these medicines still contain the ingredients accepted by the Health Department, it was purposefully contaminated to bring them to their local hospitals, which are also owned by Sun Group."
Qian Meigui looked towards the audience, her back straightened; her chin held up high. "While this was happening. Some of the other medical facilities were selling drugs that contained side effects, while these effects are common and subtle, it prompted them to buy different types of manufactured drugs for obtaining more money from consumers. Regardless, it made people sicker, rather than helping them."
Qian Meigui knew that by bringing this up, Sun Group would receive a hefty fine, but it would also not criminally charge them, which is what she wanted. The further she can bring down the reputation, the more Su Guiren would be more pressured to resign.
Su Guiren no longer appeared to be smug, nor did his lawyer, or any of the others.
After she said her peace, the judges then said, "No one will get criminally charged. But we will be charging Su Guiren and the Chief financial officer of Sun Group on the accounts of fraudulent activity, stealing money, and harming the public by not meeting the ethical standards. Case dismissed."
The judges rose, and Qian Meigui felt dazed. Did she win?
She didn"t hear Su Feng approach her when he lifted her into the air, twirling her around. When he dropped her down, Song Ren ran up and embraced her hard.
"You did it!" she said to her.
Still dazed, Qian Meigui responded, "I didn"t do anything. There is no guarantee that Su Feng will win back his company."
Song Ren smiled at her brightly, "But you gave us a chance," she said.
Qian Meigui felt excitement roil in her body. Song Sheng then approached her, maintaining his composure. She felt like wrapping her arms around him, but instead, they flashed each other a playful smile.
Yu Qingge hired a private investigator to follow Qian Meigui and Song Sheng. He snapped photos of their movements, liaisons, and other such places they"ve been: mainly his apartment.
He dug some research on the Song family records; there was an inconsistency; as there was no medical record of Yang Rei birthing a girl between her eldest daughter, Song Ren, and the twins she had after.
What"s more strange was she only appeared in the family records, eleven years after her alleged birth.
Yu Qingge went to meet him. "Did you find anything?" she asked him.
The investigator rolled his eyes. "It took me weeks," he began. "None of this was easy and very much illegal."
"I"m paying you a lot of money, so don"t back out now. What do you have?"
The private investigator provided her with a photo. Yu Qingge ripped it from his hand eagerly. It was a photo of a young girl with her two parents. "Her real name is Qian Meigui," said the private investigator.