Me! A disgraced celebrity! Starting by seeking justice for impoverished students.

Judge Song Mingyuan's gaze fell on the defendant's dock, his voice steady and powerful.

"Appellant, please state your name, age, and place of residence."

Pei Yanzhou shuddered involuntarily, lowered his head even further, and spoke in a voice so faint that it was almost inaudible.

After verifying the information against the case file and confirming its accuracy, Song Mingyuan nodded slightly and announced loudly:

"This court has heard the case in open court in accordance with the law. The appellant, Pei Yanzhou, is dissatisfied with the first-instance criminal judgment of the Xuzhou Intermediate People's Court and has filed an appeal."

"Case charges: rape and obstruction of justice."

"This case is presided over by Judge Song Mingyuan, who will form a collegial panel with Judges Li Ping and Zhao Zhigang."

"Court clerk Lin Fei served as the court recorder; the Provincial People's Procuratorate appointed Prosecutor Zhang Hong to appear in court to perform his duties."

"The appellant, Pei Yanzhou, has appointed Wei Changfeng, a lawyer from Mingcheng Law Firm, as his defense counsel in the second instance."

"The victim in the original trial has appointed lawyers Shen Yi and Jiang Chen from the Army Family Legal Aid Center as their legal representatives in the second instance."

After the list was read out one by one, no one in the room raised any objections.

Song Mingyuan continued to inform him of his litigation rights in accordance with regulations.

"According to the provisions of the Criminal Procedure Law of the People's Republic of China, the appellant has the following rights during the court hearing: to apply for the recusal of the members of the collegial panel, the court clerk, and the prosecutor appearing in court; to defend himself/herself; to make a final statement; and to check the court transcript after the court hearing."

"Have you heard me clearly regarding these rights?"

"I heard...I heard you clearly."

Pei Yanzhou responded haltingly.

"Will the appellant, Pei Yanzhou, request the recusal of any member of the collegial panel, the court clerk, or the prosecutor appearing in court?"

Pei Yanzhou subconsciously glanced at Wei Changfeng beside him, and seeing that the other party shook his head almost imperceptibly, he quickly looked away.

"I will not apply for recusal."

Song Mingyuan turned his gaze to the plaintiff's seat.

"Did the plaintiff's legal representative in the original trial request the recusal of any members of the collegial panel or the court clerk?"

Shen Yi was the first to stand up, his voice loud and clear.

"I will not apply for recusal."

Jiang Chen then stood up and nodded, his tone calm: "I will not request recusal."

The two men took their seats, and the court proceedings continued.

Song Mingyuan picked up the first-instance judgment.

"Now, I will briefly read out the key points of the first-instance judgment."

"The court of first instance found that: the appellant, Pei Yanzhou, took advantage of the victim's intoxication and inability to resist, and forcibly had sexual intercourse with her, which constituted the crime of rape."

"After the incident, the appellant and his family offered the victim a large sum of money to sign a letter of understanding, intending to disrupt judicial order. Their actions constitute the crime of obstructing testimony."

"The two crimes are combined, and the appellant is sentenced to 23 years in prison. The appellant is also ordered to compensate the victim for all economic losses and mental distress."

"After the first-instance judgment was pronounced, the appellant Pei Yanzhou, dissatisfied with the judgment, filed an appeal with this court within the statutory time limit."

After he finished speaking, the courtroom fell silent.

The soldiers in the gallery straightened their backs even more, while Zhao Lei's eyes blazed with anger, but he didn't utter a sound.

Pei Zhenbang tightened his grip on the water glass, his heart leaping into his throat.

Song Mingyuan's gaze returned to the defendant's seat.

"Appellant Pei Yanzhou, it is now your turn to state the grounds for appeal and your appeal request."

"You may make your own statement or have your defense attorney read the appeal petition on your behalf."

Pei Yanzhou's throat tightened, and his mind was in a jumble.

He only knew that he didn't want to spend twenty-three years in prison, but when it came to clearly stating his reasons, he couldn't come up with a complete sentence for a long time.

Seeing this, Wei Changfeng slightly raised his hand in a gesture of greeting.

"Your Honor, the appellant requests that his/her defense counsel read the appeal petition and state the grounds for appeal."

"permit."

Wei Changfeng slowly stood up and adjusted his gold-rimmed glasses.

His hair was gray, but his expression was calm.

"Your Honorable Presiding Judge and Judges."

"Appellant Pei Yanzhou's appeal requests are as follows: He requests the appellate court to overturn the first-instance criminal judgment and acquit the appellant."

"If the appellant cannot be found not guilty, we request that the case be remanded to the original trial court for retrial, or that the appellant's sentence be significantly reduced in accordance with the law!"

He spoke slowly and deliberately, presenting each of his grounds for appeal.

"First, the original judgment was based on incorrect facts and lacked sufficient evidence."

"The existing evidence is insufficient to prove, exclusively, that the sexual intercourse was completely against the victim's true will."

"As a person with full civil capacity, the victim personally signed the criminal forgiveness letter and affixed his fingerprint. There was no violence or coercion throughout the process, and his expression of intent was genuine and valid."

"The first instance court's finding of 'psychological pressure and coercion' based solely on subjective presumption, and its subsequent conviction of the appellant for obstruction of testimony, lacks direct physical evidence and is severely insufficient in factual basis!"

"Secondly, the original sentence was obviously too harsh and the judgment was inappropriate."

"The first-instance trial of the rape conviction resulted in a 15-year prison sentence, and the first-instance trial of the obstruction of testimony resulted in an 8-year prison sentence. The combined sentence of 23 years is far beyond the normal sentencing standards for similar cases."

"The verdict was clearly influenced by the victim's status as a martyr's family member and by inappropriate online public opinion, resulting in a disproportionate sentence and violating the principle of balanced sentencing."

"Third, the original trial procedure was flawed and its impartiality is questionable."

"The entire first instance trial was broadcast live online. The plaintiff's lawyer brought his own audience and guided public opinion in court, which damaged the neutrality of the trial. Excessive public opinion intervened in the judicial trial and may have affected the collegial panel's fair judgment."

"This situation meets the statutory grounds for remanding a case for retrial as stipulated in the Criminal Procedure Law: 'potentially affecting a fair trial'!"

After stating his three reasons, Wei Changfeng bowed slightly.

"In summary, we respectfully request the appellate court to ascertain the facts and support all of the appellant's appeal requests in accordance with the law."

As soon as he finished speaking, he calmly sat down, his expression serene, as if victory was assured.

Jiang Chen raised an eyebrow slightly.

I could understand the first two points, but I never expected that the third point would be directed at me.

In the audience, Zhao Lei clenched his fists, his jawline taut.

The two rows of soldiers behind him were also extremely angry, but everyone adhered to court discipline and remained seated without moving.

Pei Zhenbang's heart, which had been hanging in suspense, finally settled down, and he secretly breathed a sigh of relief.

Wei Changfeng truly lives up to his reputation!

With just a few simple words, he exposed several flaws in the first-instance judgment, which sounded reasonable and well-founded!

This money... wasn't wasted.

In the plaintiff's seat, Tao Yi felt a tightness in her chest and couldn't help but want to speak up and refute.

Fortunately, Jiang Chen gently nudged her arm under the table and gave her a look.

Shen Yi, sitting in the center, remained sharp-looking, showing no sign of panic.

The live stream chat exploded instantly!

Good heavens! They've really managed to distort the truth! The chain of evidence is irrefutable, yet they still claim the facts were wrong?

[The old fox is indeed an old fox. He's no longer insisting on his innocence; his main strategy is to have the case sent back for retrial and to reduce his sentence. He's much more cunning than Lu Cheng!]

[They're even bringing up procedural flaws? So, broadcasting a trial live online means there's a procedural problem? What kind of twisted logic is that!]

Don't panic, Attorneys Shen and Jiang haven't said anything yet. They already refuted this point to death in the first instance!

He was just trying to stall for time and annoy people, but unfortunately, this time the other side was military legal aid, and they weren't falling for it!

[Twenty-three years is still considered excessive? Bullying the families of martyrs deserves the death penalty!]

Judge Song Mingyuan remained expressionless as he recorded the grounds for appeal, then looked up at the prosecution's bench.

"The grounds for appeal have been stated."

"Now, please let the prosecutor present their statement."