Attention Sir, I Have Your Heart Handcuffed!

Chapter 290 - 188. Loving You is a Destiny (2nd Update Part 1)

The court is back in session.

The judge asked the foreman of the jury, "Has the jury reached a verdict?"

All eyes in the courtroom gathered on the foreman. Both parties held their breath, and in the short wait, their hearts threatened to burst.

The foreman was a tall and thin older gentleman, with a head full of white hair neatly combed back.

He wore an English-style flannel shirt with suede patches on the elbows. His khaki trousers were neatly tucked into the shirt. The belt was slightly worn, the surface color faded, but the buckle’s metal parts were polished bright, everything meticulously tidy.

This gentleman instinctively made one think of professional roles requiring expertise and skills, such as a university professor, doctor, writer, or painter. Such people might be serious and reserved, yet easily become leaders in a group, possessing a special authority. Seeing such an older gentleman as the jury foreman, everyone felt convinced.

The gentleman stood up and bowed slightly to the judge, "Your Honor, we’ve reached a unanimous verdict."

Though the final result wasn’t spoken yet, this sentence caused a low murmur of astonishment to ripple through the seats.

Charges involving serious offenses like murder require unanimity among all 12 jurors. No matter how vigorous the arguments between prosecution and defense in court, without securing unanimous consent from all 12 jurors, all prior effort would be in vain. That today’s jury reached a consensus so swiftly allowed seasoned observers to already guess the outcome.

Xiang Yuan shut his eyes abruptly, intertwining his fingers tightly.

After a brief pause, the foreman responded concisely and clearly, "... We unanimously find the defendant guilty of assault and murder!"

.

As the words fell, An Cheng and Bian Jian from the prosecution stood in jubilation, rushing to the spectator seats to embrace Shi Nian.

An Cheng looked aside searching for Huangfu Huazhang, "Hey? Where is Mr. Fude?"

Shi Nian smiled, "He left early. He texted me to convey his congratulations. He said we would definitely win."

An Cheng seemed a bit regretful, "Thanks to Mr. Fude today, I really wanted to thank him in person."

Shi Nian could only smile, "Perhaps there will be another chance to meet him in the future. After all, he’s always been that way."

As Shi Nian spoke, her gaze casually lingered beyond An Cheng’s shoulder, towards the defense seating area.

Earlier, Mark had been taken out by bailiffs due to an outburst and didn’t return to court. So now only Xiang Yuan remained at the defense table, standing alone and looking over.

Amid the courtroom’s excitement and the prosecution’s victorious celebration, he stood there by himself.

Shi Nian felt a tug of compassion, quietly reminding An Cheng, "... The defense lawyer is waiting to shake hands with you."

An Cheng quickly suppressed his smile, inhaled deeply, and turned to walk towards Xiang Yuan to shake his hand.

Xiang Yuan, looking weary, forced a smile, "An Cheng, congratulations."

An Cheng controlled his joy, showing respect to his opponent, "Lawyer Xiang, your performance today was also remarkable. Honestly, seeing Huo Danru testify caught me off guard, I nearly lost my composure."

The two exchanged courteous words, each going their separate ways.

An Cheng had already noticed Tang Yanxi standing silently in the spectator seats, looking over.

With countless microphones and recorders thrust towards her, she ignored them, walking toward Tang Yanxi.

Xiang Yuan packed his briefcase, headed toward the doors, and unexpectedly saw Shi Nian still standing at the aisle, also ignoring the media.

She was waiting for him.

Xiang Yuan felt a warmth surge inside, walked forward, his eyes inexplicably sore and swollen, unsure how to face her.

Upon reaching her, he took a deep breath and said, "I’m sorry."

Shi Nian shook her head, "If you were still my husband, I might blame you, or perhaps even slap you. But we are no longer married, you were just doing your professional duty, you didn’t do anything wrong."

Xiang Yuan felt his eyes burn even more, only deep breaths could help control the spreading warmth.

He smiled gently, "Thank you. Today is the first time I felt gratified after losing a case."

Shi Nian nodded seriously, "No matter how others view you, A Yuan, I understand you better than anyone else." She shook hands with him, stepped forward, and whispered, "In my eyes, you’re always an outstanding lawyer. A Yuan, you didn’t give your all in court today."

At this moment, Xiang Yuan’s eyes were finally blurred with mist.

No one else noticed, as long as she did, it was fine.

He said quietly, "If I weren’t Mark’s defense attorney, with the financial power of the Lin Qi family, they could still hire a stronger legal team, and I would have even less control over the situation then. Having the time... Being Mark’s defense attorney is to save Huatai Hall, and at the same time, it’s also to better control the situation... I’m sorry I couldn’t protect you before, I just want to help you in any way I can."

Shi Nian lowered her head, "I understand everything, A Yuan, don’t blame yourself anymore."

The two of them spoke in such low voices at close distances that some media had already caught a whiff of it and quickly diverted from An Cheng’s side, wanting to see what the two were saying.

Both of them noticed, so Xiang Yuan first let go of Shi Nian’s hand and stepped back. They nodded in a courteous farewell, and Xiang Yuan steeled himself, turned around, and left.

What he could do for her was only this much; the time he could stay by her side was also just this brief.

.

An Cheng seemed to be heading toward Tang Yanxi, but she stopped in front of Tang Yanqing. She took a step forward, stood on tiptoe, and hugged Tang Yanqing.

"Boyfriend, thank you..."

The one who shone the most in court today was Huangfu Huazhang, but the real decider of the trial’s outcome was the jury. Tang Yanqing didn’t comment much on the witnesses’ testimonies, he just watched the 12 jurors’ body language and facial micro-expressions closely. He passed notes to Secretary Jian with every change in the jury’s stance so An Cheng could be informed immediately and adjust the courtroom strategy accordingly.

If today’s trial were a stage play, everyone was engrossed by the plot and acting, enjoying the spectacle; but only this person was watching the essence, completely ignoring the glamour and focusing only on the critical points.

Tang Yanqing warmly embraced An Cheng in return, smiling, "If you really want to thank me, later be a bit more pleasant towards my brother. Girlfriend, even though you’re the winner today, I can’t help but pour cold water on you: I didn’t come for you today, half of it’s for my brother. So you don’t need to thank me; thanking my brother is what’s proper."

An Cheng quietly rolled her eyes, pinched his inner arm secretly, "Can saying something not ruining the mood kill you?"

Tang Yanqing chuckled softly and replied by her ear, "... Can saying something not ruining the mood in front of my brother kill you?"

The two of them pushed each other away simultaneously, laughed and glared at each other for two seconds, and then each turned and headed in opposite directions.

Tang Yanqing naturally headed towards Shi Nian’s direction, so An Cheng had no choice but to meet Tang Yanxi’s gaze.

She thought for a moment and still took the initiative to reach out her hand. Tang Yanxi sighed but still held it steadily.

The embrace she gave her brother was a standing on tiptoe big hug, but for him, it was just a barely willing handshake.

But, it’s better than nothing.

Otherwise, with her usual temperament, she wouldn’t even shake hands; she wouldn’t even look back as she turned and left, treating him as if he didn’t exist.

"Congratulations," Tang Yanxi sincerely said, feeling the coolness and dryness of her hand in his palm.

She’s not the type of girl like Shi Nian; her hand lacks the softness and pliability associated with women, it’s bony and strong. Just like her temperament, her uncompromising nature in life.

But he just likes girls like her, he can’t help it.

Perhaps it’s also due to his mother’s influence? It’s said that the girls a man falls for often reflect their mothers. So seeing his mother confronting her in court, arguing with a fierce glint in their eyes, he was worried but couldn’t help feeling a sense of destiny—it’s fate; her strong demeanor is just like his mother’s.

Honestly, if she stood with Shi Nian, it would look much like how his mother and Aunt Wan stood together back in the day.

Shi Nian’s sweetness, amiability, and a small bit of playful nature resemble Aunt Wan to a great extent; and An Cheng always seemed to vaguely echo his mother’s traits.

As for him and Yanqing, both brothers, sons of their father, one loves the gentle and clever Shi Nian, and the other, the cold and bone-deep An Cheng.

Isn’t that just another kind of destiny?

.

Tang Yanqing was a step late in talking to An Cheng. By the time he found Shi Nian, she had already left the courtroom, avoiding the media who wanted to interview her.

Being a media person herself, she was colleagues with many of those journalists, and naturally, she couldn’t be too rude in refusing their interviews; so she slipped away tactfully whenever possible.

When Tang Yanqing found her, she was moving against the flow, running to the second-floor balcony, hiding behind a green plant.

He tiptoed over, intending to cover her eyes, but heard her speaking softly on the phone through the greenery.

"...Chairman, we won. Thank you."

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[Second update of the morning~]