0027 Self-Defense

Zhai had imagined countless places to meet Qu Zhong again: the subway station, the SG office building, the duty room of the C District Procuratorate... but he never expected that it would end up at the H University Graduate School.

He was invited to teach a class at H University on prosecutorial ethics.

H University's graduate school offers a course called Legal Professional Ethics for all majors. The instructors for this course are not fixed; the school arranges for various legal professionals to teach it. These include well-known lawyers from major firms, judges from the Shanghai High Court, and prosecutors who have handled typical cases. Essentially, one person teaches one class, and the instructor changes every class.

Those invited were either distinguished alumni of H University who had graduated many years ago, or units with academic exchange and cooperation with the college. Zhai's district procuratorate, C District, belonged to the latter.

Their college frequently hosts legal salons, inviting professors from H University to participate and discuss the theory and practice of some influential cases handled by their college. By identifying and addressing shortcomings in concluded cases, they aim to improve their case-handling capabilities, better handle similar cases in the future, and minimize the phenomenon of inconsistent handling of similar cases.

Zhai and Ling Yedong handled the case of Lao Zhou's car dealership, which was once used as the subject of a seminar entitled "Differentiated Judgment and Identification Standards for Criminal Cases Involving the Installation of Dangerous Goods on Urban Main Roads."

At that time, they invited Professor Wu Yunsheng, the dean of the Criminal Law School of H University and a nationally renowned criminal law scholar, to participate.

After the meeting, Zhai went to discuss with Professor Wu the feasibility and rationale of defining the crime of endangering public safety by dangerous means. The two even added each other on WeChat.

I came to teach this class at Professor Wu's invitation.

When he consulted with the head of the third department, the head readily agreed: "Go, you must go. Dress nicely, and it would be best if you could bring back two interns for our department."

After finishing the class, he saw Qu Zhong at the entrance of Nanfeng Building.

Qu Zhong returned to her alma mater to attend a reading group organized by her mentor.

Qu Zhong's graduate advisor was Professor Wu Yunsheng. Professor Wu was dedicated to academic pursuits, highly respected, and had countless students. Even graduates maintained contact with their professors, such as regularly returning to participate in book clubs with current students, ensuring that students from different years remained familiar with each other.

Qu Zhong deeply respects and is grateful to Professor Wu, who led her into the realm of criminal law. When choosing her major in her second year of graduate school, Qu Zhong sent emails to professors in various fields, including civil law, civil procedure law, economic law, tax law, and international law. She either received no reply whatsoever, or vague responses telling her to wait patiently for better news.

Seeing that her classmates had all chosen their advisors, Qu Zhong became increasingly anxious and began casting a wide net, sending emails to almost every graduate advisor's address. She even sent one to the wrong professor, who replied to her:

"Little Qu, thank you so much for your kindness. It's a pity I've been retired for three years and can no longer be your student. Best wishes."

Qu Zhong was incredibly embarrassed and gave up trying to argue. She thought she'd just wait for the college to assign advisors; everyone would have one eventually. Who she was assigned to and what field she would study didn't seem to matter much; graduating was all that mattered.

She intended to just give up, but unexpectedly received a text message from Wu Yunsheng. She still has a screenshot of that message saved; it read:

"Qu, I have received your email. I would be very happy to be your mentor. Please come to Nanfeng Building to find me after the start of the semester. I am in office 428."

That day was Qu Zhong's first time visiting Nanfenglou. Professor Wu had brewed a pot of Da Hong Pao tea and was waiting for her. When he poured her a small cup, she was flattered and stood up respectfully to accept it with both hands.

Professor Wu looked at her kindly and told her to relax, then asked her only one question: "Why do you want to study criminal law?"

Qu Zhong couldn't very well say it was because no other teacher wanted her except for you. So she made up a reason on the spot: "The principle of legality in criminal law is sacred and inviolable."

To everyone's surprise, Professor Wu smiled with satisfaction, indicating that he had not made the wrong choice.

Professor Wu's book club this time was about self-defense. When it was posted in the group chat, a group of fellow students stood up and egged him on:

—Self-defense, this junior sister Qu Zhong is familiar with it, let her handle it.

—Of course, without her, the book club couldn't even start.

—Agreed, please share your honest opinion.

—@Qu Zhong, you're the host for this book club meeting.

Qu Zhong pretended to be dead and remained silent.

They said this because when Qu Zhong was a second-year graduate student, she dated a senior student majoring in criminal procedure law. When they went to a hotel, she talked at length in bed about whether one could exercise self-defense against mentally ill people and dogs, and the senior student immediately lost his erection.

The two broke up not long after. Qu Zhong publicly stated that the reason for the breakup was a major disagreement between them regarding their academic views.

The story spread like wildfire, and the brothers and sisters in the sect exclaimed how awesome it was, often bringing it up in amusement.

Of course, Qu Zhong still came to participate and took the opportunity to visit Professor Wu.

After the book club ended, she didn't leave immediately, but strolled around the campus for a while, eventually ending up at Nanfeng Building.

Then, she couldn't move her feet.

She didn't know why she saw him here.

Zhai Shi, dressed in a black overcoat, was clearly standing not far away; he must have seen her too.

He couldn't count how many days it had been since they last saw each other. Zhai only knew that when he saw her, he became numb, sluggish, his mind a jumbled mess, his heart pounding wildly. His feet felt like they were on superglue, and so did his gaze, wanting to stay glued to her forever. It was as if that way, she would always remain in his sight, never disappearing again.

They stood there, silently staring at each other for a long time. Neither of them stepped forward, nor did they turn back. Like two cars racing through the mountains, they were secretly competing at every speed. But at the final bend, neither was willing to admit defeat.

Finally, Zhai was the first to brake because he encountered a checkpoint where he had to stop.

A female student ran up to him and asked for his WeChat: "Professor Zhai, your class today was so good! Can I do an internship at your department?"

"Heh, it really is in high demand." Qu Zhong's lips curled into a slight smile as he turned and walked in the opposite direction.

Zhai completely forgot what the director had told him before he left, and flatly refused: "I'm sorry, our department is not recruiting interns right now."

Before the female student could speak again, he walked past her and strode after her.

Qu Zhong's steps did not falter, nor did she turn back; she was determined to walk in the opposite direction.

"Qu Zhong." Zhai shouted out as they were finally catching up.

A familiar yet long-lost voice landed precisely on her eardrums.

The moment she heard her name, a gentle breeze stirred, the air warmed, and the strokes of the document seemed to be disassembled and reassembled, transforming into joyful musical scores, making her heart dance.

Qu Zhong didn't run away, but she didn't look back at him either.

At the same time, the campus loudspeaker blared. Today it was playing a Cantonese song, the clear and ethereal female voice seemingly singing in your ear: "Her eyes seem to be crying but not crying, what is she praying for that she can't say, I'm with you as we exhale smoke rings, and I can't express the satisfaction on my lips..."

As lunchtime approached, more and more students came out to find food. Zhai remembered that she seemed to dislike talking to him in public before, downstairs at the SG office building. So he went up to her, grabbed her wrist, and pulled her to the corner behind the basketball court.

This was so familiar that Qu Zhong had no idea who the actual student of H University was.

She shook off his hand, subtly tilted her head, put her hands in her pockets, leaned against the wall, and cleared her throat: "Did you need something?"

Qu Zhong wore a loose little bun today, a short white down jacket on top, and light blue jeans on the bottom. She didn't look like a criminal defense lawyer at all, but more like a female college student who had just finished his class.

Zhai lowered his eyes, gazing intently at her. He seemed to be trying to make up for everything he had missed during the days he hadn't seen her, all in that short time, with just that one look.

He didn't say anything, but naturally reached out and tucked a strand of hair behind her ear.

When his fingers touched her ear, Qu Zhong instinctively shrank back, caught off guard: "Can you please not... touch me like that?"

After saying that, she seemed to realize something, and her cheeks flushed slightly. He'd already been quite physical with her, hadn't he?

Zhai didn't reply, but gave her a brief glance and pursed his lips: "Aren't you cold wearing so little?"

Qu Zhong was wearing a low-cut cashmere sweater underneath, with her entire neck exposed, and the wind kept blowing in.

So what if it's cold?

"None of your business."

After saying that, she made a move to leave.

Zhai's breathing quickened, and without a word, he blocked her path: "Are you going to run away again?"

"What do you mean 'again'?" Sensing the slight resentment in his tone, Qu Zhong was even more displeased. She raised her eyes and questioned, "Prosecutor Zhai, didn't we already end things?"

He said it himself: Qu Zhong, we're finished.

Upon hearing this, Zhai Shi's chest heaved for a long time, filled with a complex mix of emotions: regret, helplessness, and a reluctance to repeat the same mistake. He lowered his arms, sighed softly, and asked her helplessly, "Where are you going?"

Qu Zhong still said, "It's none of your business."

"I send you."

His tone sounded sincere and kind. After a brief silence, Qu Zhong tossed her chin, fluttered her eyelashes twice, and stared at him, asking, "Okay, I'm going to the Renaissance Hotel to book a room with a man. Will you see me off?"

The Renaissance Hotel. Where their relationship began, and where it ended. Now she tells him she's going to be there with someone else…

Just then, the song on the radio was nearing its end, and the last line was sung in an extremely melancholic voice: "The sky is already gray-blue, I want to say goodbye, but it's not too late."

Zhai had no way of knowing whether she was telling the truth or not; he simply looked at her face and let two words rise from his heart to his lips:

"Get in the car."

*

The Cantonese song is Faye Wong's "Ambiguous".