Grassroots lawyers also have their day

Pan Jinlian, her face contorted with rage, glared at Hao Renyuan after Zheng the jerk left, her eyes wide with fury: "Little Hao! Little Hao, I've been so good to you, giving you all the meat from my stir-fried pork rice bowl, and you're helping Zheng the jerk bully me... Humph!"

Pan Jinlian's cold snort made Hao Renyuan tremble.

"I can't eat spicy food... and those slices of meat are too fatty! I told you I wouldn't eat it, but you insisted on making me eat it..." Hao Renyuan said with a wronged expression.

"Little Pan! Do not do to others what you would not have them do to you!" Zheng Pengzi said as he returned with a glass of water.

"...Go back and drink your water, you're everywhere! Do you think this is environmentally friendly?!" Pan Jinlian blurted out after a long pause.

"I'm just saying something, what does it have to do with environmental protection! ... Pshaw!" Zheng the troll said, dissatisfied.

"Don't talk too much and drink too much water! Don't you know that the country's drinking water resources are limited? The South-to-North Water Diversion Project is all your fault! Do you know that? You still keep going on and on. Just stop it and do something for the country!" Pan Jinlian finally found a way to get through to her.

"snort!"

"Hmph! Hmph!"

The daily duel finally came to an end, and Wang Chuan finally had some peace and quiet.

At this moment, Wan Sheng, the fat man, returned to his workstation after completing the formalities. His workstation was next to Wei Ping's and directly opposite Zheng the jerk.

Zheng the troll and Pan Jinlian are senior members of the "appearance association," so they naturally look down on the unattractive Wan the fat man. However, Zheng Yi, Wang Chuan, and the tool-like Hao Renyuan do not have the habit of judging people by their appearance.

During a break to smoke, Zheng Yi finally found a like-minded person—Wan Pangzi. After that, whenever they had free time, the two would go downstairs together for a smoke.

On Monday morning, Wang Chuan and Wei Ping arrived at the South Square of the West Railway Station at the agreed time. After meeting Zheng Yi, the three of them boarded the train heading south.

Wang Chuan and Zheng Yi, two grown men, brought nothing but the documents and materials needed for the court hearing (except for bottled water). They figured they could go and return the same day, and there were plenty of trains available.

Wei Meimei was carrying a backpack that was bulging inside. Wang Chuan couldn't understand why Wei Ping was carrying a backpack when he and Zheng Yi were going to the court hearing and were going and returning the same day without staying overnight.

Once on the train, the mystery was revealed! Wei Ping started pulling out all sorts of snacks—roast duck, sausages, beef jerky, and more—filling the small table in front of her, giving off a feeling of going on a spring outing.

The three sat in a row, and with Wei Meinu's half-offering, half-gifting, and half-forceful stuffing, Wang Chuan and Zheng Yi each had a huge pile of food and drink in front of them, like small mountains.

Wang Chuan originally planned to find a place to eat after getting off the train before going to the labor arbitration committee for his hearing, but his stomach was stuffed full of snacks that Wei Ping had brought him along the way. More than an hour later, the train arrived at the station, and Zheng Yi's stomach was also full when he got off.

Seeing that the two had eaten quite a lot, Ms. Wei was very happy.

She bought all the food and drinks last night. When her parents saw that their beloved daughter had brought back a whole backpack full of food and drinks, they were shocked. They knew how much she ate; such a big backpack of food and drinks would be enough for her to eat for a week.

The Wei family is quite open-minded. As long as their daughter's affairs don't go beyond the circle, her parents won't interfere. So, although they were surprised, they didn't ask too many questions. They just assumed that their daughter was working hard as an intern at the law firm and was buying these snacks to take to the firm to replenish her energy.

Wei Ping had her own plans. She was on this trip thanks to Wang Chuan and Zheng Yi, so she bought extra food and drinks to give to them on the train as a treat. Of course, these were all Wei Ping's little schemes, and she naturally wouldn't tell Wang Chuan and Zheng Yi.

When Zheng Yi led Wang Chuan and Wei Ping into the arbitration tribunal, the previous hearing had just ended. The arbitrator was a middle-aged woman in her forties. Perhaps due to years of sitting and lack of exercise, she had a very large bottom, a barrel waist, elephant legs, and her chubby arms stretched her uniform tightly. Her face looked weathered and worn, which even a ton of small blue bottles couldn't hide.

Beside her was a chubby clerk, wearing glasses and carrying a stack of case files, who looked rather silly.

Upon seeing Zheng Yi and his two companions enter, she asked impatiently, "Which case are you involved in?"

"Hello, this is the labor dispute case involving Hetong Company. We are the company's representatives," Zheng Yi said, handing over the prepared agency documents.

The chubby clerk took the documents, glanced at them, and nodded to the arbitrator: "The paperwork is complete!"

"Hmm, the employee hasn't arrived yet. How much compensation are you planning to pay the other party in this case?" The middle-aged arbitrator glanced at Zheng Yi and Wang Chuan, then fixed his gaze on Wei Ping: "Is she with you?"

As the middle-aged arbitrator spoke, the clerk looked at Wei Ping behind Wang Chuan, a hint of jealousy inadvertently flashing in her eyes. That figure, that appearance, she had a pretty face, a great waist, and a great chest—why didn't she have them all on her own body?

"Oh, she's our colleague, she's here to sit in on the proceedings," Zheng Yi quickly explained.

"Xiao Fang, go and help her with the attendance procedures." The middle-aged arbitrator gestured, and the clerk took Wei Ping out.

Xiao Fang? I bet if Comrade Li Chunbo had met a Xiao Fang like that in the village back then, he definitely wouldn't have been able to write the popular song that swept the whole country back then—Xiao Fang!

Just as Wang Chuan was lost in thought, the middle-aged arbitrator spoke up: "This case is simple. You just need to reimburse the other party's medical expenses, and give them some nutritional allowance and compensation. After all, the employee's accident happened in the dormitory, so you can't escape responsibility."

What? Pay up? The case hasn't even been heard yet, and you're already asking my client to pay up? Are you crazy?!

Zheng Yi and Wang Chuan were both shocked. Although Wang Chuan had appeared in court a limited number of times, he had never encountered anything like this before! Zheng Yi, who had been a lawyer for several years, had never encountered anything so direct.

You just touch your upper lip to your lower lip and expect the customer to pay? What gives you the right? The labor bureau won't even recognize it as a work injury, so why should we pay you? Do you think you're the emperor?!

At this moment, Zheng Yi and Wang Chuan were angry, but they couldn't argue with her, because doing so would not benefit their side.

"The labor bureau doesn't recognize it as a work-related injury, so why should our client have to pay compensation? He got the illness on his own, it has nothing to do with our company!" Wang Chuan said, suppressing his anger.

"Alright, we'll talk about it in the court session later. I'm doing this for the company's sake. Sit down, get ready for the court session!" The middle-aged arbitrator's tone was clearly displeased.

A moment later, two men and a woman walked in. The woman was in her fifties and had a troublesome look on her face. One of the men was burly and had a simple, honest face, while the other had slicked-back hair and a sleazy demeanor.

They sat down next to Wei Ping as soon as they entered, clearly there to listen in, just like her. The sleazy-looking man kept glancing at Wei Ping, his eyes filled with greed.

"Second Aunt, we've got your back. Don't be afraid of them. If they don't give us an explanation today, they're not leaving!" the thuggish-looking man shouted at the woman in her fifties, his tone clearly meant to intimidate her.

The middle-aged arbitrator glanced at the thuggish-looking man: "The hearing is about to begin, so don't talk nonsense. Be mindful of the rules of the arbitration panel."

Zheng Yi didn't even glance at the two men sitting below. He didn't want to cause trouble, and simply pretended it was just dogs barking.