Attention Sir, I Have Your Heart Handcuffed!

Chapter 286 - 184. He seemed to be the king ruling the entire courtroom (2 Chapters 1).

The court is now back in session.

When Huangfu Huazhang, as a key witness for the prosecution, walked into the courtroom, Shi Nian could clearly sense the change in Mark’s demeanor.

Previously, as the defendant sitting with Xiang Yuan, Mark had maintained a nonchalant attitude throughout the trial. No matter how the situation shifted between the prosecution and defense, his expression remained unchanged, as if he were a mere spectator, indifferent to guilt or punishment.

But at this moment, when he turned to see the courtroom doors open and Huangfu Huazhang standing at the threshold, his calm and amusement vanished instantly. His dark blue eyes fixed intently on Huangfu Huazhang, following him all the way forward, through the aisle past the seats, until he reached the witness stand. Standing still, he gracefully and elegantly bowed slightly to the court and jury, then declared his oath with a clear voice before sitting down leisurely.

Throughout the process, Mark never took his eyes off Huangfu Huazhang, as if he didn’t want to miss a single movement.

It was apparent that Huangfu Huazhang’s presence profoundly affected Mark, even more so than An Cheng’s deliberate choice of a school-like outfit.

The attending media instantly fell into a frenzy, with all camera equipment pointed at Huangfu Huazhang, scarcely anyone paying extra attention to Mark’s reaction.

Today’s court session was truly strange. Although Mark’s very identity was enough to draw media attention, and the incident taking place at Kangchuan University was noteworthy, today’s trial spotlight repeatedly shifted, leaving the defendant Mark as a sideline figure.

Huangfu Huazhang sat down and noticed Mark’s eager gaze, slightly raising his eyes to focus back on Mark. But their eyes only met for a fleeting moment before they shifted away, effortlessly, as if Mark did not even register in his view.

Others may not perceive this, but Mark appeared somewhat unsettled, his hands slightly trembling as he pressed them on the chair’s arms, as if wanting to stand up.

Xiang Yuan sensed something was amiss and softly warned, "What’s wrong with you? Calm down!"

In reality, Xiang Yuan himself was startled to see that it was Huangfu Huazhang personally appearing in court to testify. This mysterious figure who held the fate of the Xiang Family with ease had actually appeared in court today. The mere thought of having to personally interrogate Huangfu Huazhang later raised uncertainty and fear in Xiang Yuan’s mind.

From the moment Huangfu Huazhang stepped into the courtroom, without saying a word, simply walking over and taking a seat, his gaze was enough to unsettle both the defense and Mark... This feeling was terrible, akin to surrendering without battle.

In the shock of Xiang Yuan and Mark, their body language actually revealed much of their emotions, though Tang Yanqing couldn’t see the expressions on their faces, he saw their bodily movements. Bowing his head, he whispered to Tang Yanxi, "Having Huangfu Huazhang here, this case is already won."

Tang Yanxi was slightly surprised, "Isn’t it too soon to draw conclusions? Young Master, even if you are a behavioral analysis expert, the situation in court can change rapidly, no one dares to conclude so early."

Tang Yanqing squinted and curled his lips, "Wanna bet?"

Tang Yanxi wasn’t cowed, "What do I have? You seem to know better than me. So you say, what do you want?"

Tang Yanqing thought for a moment, then smiled and tilted his head, a mischievous look in his eyes, "If I win, let Auntie Huo host and treat us to a good meal."

Tang Yanxi squinted slightly, understanding in his heart, yet he feigned ignorance, "Who to invite? You? I don’t recall you ever showing interest in Mom’s cooking."

Tang Yanqing shrugged, "I’ll pass, lest Auntie Huo gets upset seeing me; An Cheng too, since their mother-daughter matters will be for you three to resolve later."

"I’m referring to Shi Nian. If I guess it right, let Auntie Huo treat her to a good meal."

Tang Yanxi’s heart was slightly stirred too, understanding his brother’s intentions. He nodded, "Alright, if I truly lose, I’ll make sure Mom treats Shi Nian to a meal."

Though he said so, Tang Yanxi still raised his chin, "But win first, then talk."

Tang Yanqing snorted lightly, "Just watch, it’s starting. Big cousin won’t let us down."

.

An Cheng stepped forward to interrogate, "Mr. Ford, can you describe the incident outside Kangchuan University, where you used your cane to strike the defendant Mark and rescue Shi Nian?"

Huangfu Huazhang nodded, remaining exceedingly calm and composed, completely unaffected by the tense atmosphere in the courtroom. Instead, he used his own personal charisma to suppress the courtroom’s atmosphere, causing it to shift according to his presence.

He nodded at An Cheng, smiled elegantly, and leisurely recounted the events of that day in his British-accented speech. His narrative, while objectively similar to what Shi Nian and others described earlier, left a markedly different impression on the listeners.

An Cheng was unsurprised. She nodded slightly, then went straight for the jugular: "Mr. Ford, I have two documents here for you to review."

As An Cheng spoke, she simultaneously presented the two documents to the judge, who permitted them to be projected onto the screen.

An Cheng used a remote laser pointer to highlight the first document: "This one is the medical examination report of defendant Mark after he was struck by your cane. The report states that the defendant was hit on the back of his neck, causing him to go into shock. Although the defendant’s physical condition was not seriously affected and he quickly regained consciousness, undoubtedly, your method effectively stopped his harmful actions, preventing the victim from suffering even more severe harm."

Huangfu Huazhang nodded slightly: "I’m the sort of person who likes to measure accurately, doing things just right."

An Cheng quickly followed up: "You, a person who is skilled in restraint, took such a severe measure to render Mark unconscious, suggesting the severity of his injuries. Otherwise, you would not have struck so hard, correct?"

A person who values precision can incapacitate someone with a single blow, proving the force of their strike.

Huangfu Huazhang candidly smiled, "Correct. As for why I did it, I believe the prosecutor can find the answer in the second document."

An Cheng was slightly surprised.

Before appearing in court, Shi Nian and Jian had helped him to a certain extent; however, due to the urgency of the situation and the fact that these documents had already been submitted as evidence and were managed by the court paperwork, Huangfu Huazhang had not had the chance to see the originals of the two documents beforehand. How could he know what the second document contained?

An Cheng’s surprise caught Huangfu Huazhang’s attention, but he was not surprised, merely smiling comfortably: "Because Shi Nian also fainted at that time. Although the ambulance arrived, they could not revive her at the scene, which made me very uneasy. So, I drove after the ambulance to the emergency center. Upon arriving there, I inquired about her condition with the doctors and thus learned about her situation."

As Huangfu Huazhang spoke, he gently raised his eyebrows and lifted his hand to point at the second document displayed on the screen, then smiled and nodded at An Cheng: "Please enlarge the description of Shi Nian’s condition in the second document."

An Cheng had originally intended to do this anyway, so she cooperatively enlarged the document and identified the corresponding words with a laser pointer.

Huangfu Huazhang nodded with satisfaction and smiled: "Security, Judge, members of the jury, everyone can see the description on the medical report: Shi Nian’s cervical vertebra was compressed at the time, causing the respiratory sphincter muscles to relax slowly, meaning her breathing was already affected. She could have suffocated to death at any moment due to complete relaxation of the respiratory sphincter muscles."

"That’s why, at that time, after realizing Shi Nian’s condition was critical, I hit hard to immediately render the defendant unconscious, creating the opportunity to get Shi Nian treatment in time, preventing any possible resistance from the defendant that would delay this precious rescue time. Generally, the interval from this condition to suffocation and death is only 5 minutes; even with an ambulance present, the viable time to save a life is only 8 to 15 minutes. Every minute, even every second, is precious and must not be wasted."

Everyone in the courtroom, including An Cheng, breathed a sigh of relief and nodded, inwardly praising Huangfu Huazhang’s appropriate handling of the situation.

If it weren’t for someone like him with impeccable timing, precious rescue time could have been wasted due to unnecessary fighting, potentially costing Shi Nian her life. But there aren’t many people in this world with such precise timing; perhaps Shi Nian was just very lucky.

The audience focused on Huangfu Huazhang’s precision, yet An Cheng noticed that Huangfu Huazhang had subtly managed to reveal the main point right before her.

This witness didn’t need the prosecutor’s guidance; he could identify the most crucial issue himself, even guiding the prosecutor in return.

Such an experience was unprecedented in her long career.

Since everything was laid out, she gladly took the opportunity to get straight to the point.

"Mr. Ford, to be honest, before you testified, the defense had indeed tried to depict the harm caused by the defendant to Shi Nian as minimal. It seemed like the harm wasn’t severe at all, and they were willing to compensate for the related medical expenses."

"The situation seemed to be true as well, given that Shi Nian is now sitting right in front of everyone. She has no external injuries, no lasting after-effects; it was as if she had merely fainted for a moment and woke up from it as if nothing happened. But just as Mr. Ford mentioned a moment ago, not only was Shi Nian gravely injured, but if Mr. Ford hadn’t intervened in time, Shi Nian might have already lost her life!"

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[Second update in the morning~]