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

After half an hour.

The gavel struck, and the court session began.

Everyone took their seats, and Jiang Chen sat in the plaintiff's seat.

Zhang Xiaoyu sat beside him, her lips tightly pressed together, her palms sweaty.

I'm extremely nervous!

"This hearing is the second trial of the case of Zhang Xiaolu being intentionally injured."

The judge's gaze swept across the entire room.

His name is Zhou Zhengping, the presiding judge of the Criminal Division of the Donglin Intermediate People's Court.

He was in his early fifties, with gray hair and a serious expression.

Those sharp eyes seemed to see right through people's hearts.

"First, let's announce the verdict of the first instance!"

As soon as he finished speaking, the clerk stood up.

The first-instance judgment is as follows!

"Defendants Zhao, Wang, and Li are guilty of intentional injury and are sentenced to six months in prison. Defendants Zhao, Wang, and Li are jointly and severally liable to compensate the plaintiff for medical expenses, subsequent treatment expenses, disability compensation, and mental distress damages, totaling RMB 1.5 million."

The clerk finished reading and sat down.

Jiang Chen nodded, seemingly lost in thought.

This was the verdict in the first instance.

This verdict focuses more on subsequent compensation than on imprisonment.

Clearly, the opposing lawyer was quite capable during the first trial.

Otherwise, a crime like intentional assault could easily land them in jail for several years.

But now, it's only been six months.

Presiding Judge Zhou Zhengping looked at both sides.

"During the second instance proceedings, did either party submit any new appeal requests or supplementary opinions?"

In the dock.

Zhao Peng's father, Zhao Guoqiang, sat beside him, his fists clenched nervously, his eyes fixed on Huang Wen.

Huang Wen tilted his head slightly, gave him a look, and spoke in a low voice.

"No rush, let them speak first."

Only if Jiang Chen makes the request first can he find a loophole.

After all... weaknesses are always revealed when the opponent takes the initiative!

In the plaintiff's seat, Zhang Xiaoyu looked at Jiang Chen.

Jiang Chen slowly stood up.

"Your Honor, we have a new appeal request!"

Zhou Zhengping nodded: "Please proceed."

Jiang Chen took a deep breath and smiled slightly.

"We request... that the defendant be exempted from paying 1.5 million yuan in damages!"

The courtroom fell silent instantly upon hearing this.

In the audience, someone stared wide-eyed.

He stared at Jiang Chen in disbelief.

What did he say?

Does this directly exempt the defendant from paying 1.5 million in compensation?

This appeal request was unexpected by everyone.

Judge Zhou Zhengping raised an eyebrow slightly, clearly somewhat surprised.

On the other side of the defendant's seat, Zhao Guoqiang's eyes suddenly widened.

What does that mean?

Does he not want the money anymore?

It seemed like he had taken a step back, but Huang Wen, a veteran of countless battles, realized something was wrong.

He suddenly sat up straight, his gaze sharpening.

He stared intently at Jiang Chen.

"No money? Then what do you want...?"

He knew that Jiang Chen wouldn't give up 1.5 million for no reason.

This is a huge sum of money for the plaintiff's family!

There must be other reasons for saying this!

He must be preparing something amazing!

Viewers in the live stream were completely dumbfounded!

What? Compensation waived?

[Jiang Chen, are you crazy? That's 1.5 million!]

Holy crap, was what he said outside the courthouse true?

【They just give up 1.5 million like that? What are they doing?!】

[No, there's definitely more to this! Jiang Chen isn't the type to suffer a loss!]

Wait a minute... he only mentioned waiving the compensation payment, he hasn't said what he wants yet!

[That's right! Jiang Chen must still have something he wants, right?]

As expected, Jiang Chen did not sit down after stating his appeal request.

His voice remained calm as he spoke slowly.

"At the same time...we request that, based on the principle of cumulative offenses, the defendants be sentenced to twenty years in prison!"

This caused an uproar in the courtroom!

Some people in the audience gasped, while others stared wide-eyed.

Judge Zhou Zhengping's pupils contracted slightly.

Zhao Guoqiang suddenly stood up, his face ashen.

"What?! Twenty years?!"

"You...you don't want money! You want my son's life!"

It should be noted that Zhao Peng is still a minor.

If he were to be sentenced to twenty years in prison, Zhao Peng would be in his thirties or forties when he gets out.

What is this?

The best time of his life was wasted in prison!

This is worse than killing him!

The bailiffs immediately stepped forward to stop them.

"Silence in the gallery!"

Zhao Guoqiang was pushed back into his seat, feeling as if all his strength had been drained.

His lips were trembling, and his fingers were shaking.

He's not afraid of losing money.

But if my son goes to jail for twenty years, he'll be in his thirties or forties when he gets out, and his whole life will be ruined!

He looked at Huang Wen, his voice anxious: "Attorney Huang, please say something!"

Huang Wen's expression was also very unpleasant.

He originally thought Jiang Chen would fight tooth and nail for compensation.

In that case, he could argue his case from the perspectives of "actual losses" and "family difficulties."

But Jiang Chen simply gave up on compensation.

He wants a prison sentence!

Twenty years!

Huang Wen took a deep breath and slowly stood up.

"Your Honor, we also have a new appeal request."

Zhou Zhengping looked at him and said calmly, "Please state your case."

Huang Wen nodded, his tone becoming cautious.

"We request... that the amount of compensation awarded in the first instance be appropriately reduced!"

"The reasons are as follows: First, some of the medical expenses determined in the first instance judgment are irrelevant to this case."

"Secondly, the victim's subsequent treatment costs lack a formal assessment report from an authoritative medical institution."

"Third, the amount of compensation for emotional distress is excessive and does not conform to local judicial practice standards!"

"Fourth, the tragedy was also related to the victim's own words and actions, and the entire responsibility should not be placed on the party at fault."

He paused, then spoke with even greater emphasis.

"At the same time, we have collected new evidence for the case, which we can submit promptly!"

"Therefore, we request the appellate court to reassess the compensation amount and reduce it from 1.5 million yuan to a reasonable and realistic figure!"

After saying this, Huang Wen slowly sat down.

But his expression was not relaxed.

He knew that he and the opposing lawyer were on completely different sides in the lawsuit.

Jiang Chen wants to extend his sentence.

And what about him?

They just wanted to suppress the amount of compensation awarded in the first instance!

The live stream chat exploded!

In this comparison, Jiang Chen was definitely more aggressive; he didn't care about the money, he wanted the other party to serve twenty years in prison!

Even now, the opposing lawyer still wants to hold off on paying the money. Is it really that simple?

[Compared to the lawyer on the other side, his perspective is completely ruined!]

[It's clear that the defendant isn't afraid of paying compensation, but can't stand going to jail!]

Jiang Chen's move was ruthless! Giving up 1.5 million yuan in exchange for a 20-year prison sentence—that's practically killing the defendant!

At first, I thought Jiang Chen was crazy for not wanting money, but now I think it's good that he's crazy!

[By the time you're thirty or forty years old after twenty years, your life is basically ruined!]

This is a million times worse than losing money!