They stayed in a hotel arranged by the buyer.
They had only been inside for a short while when the door was knocked open, and the police took them away along with the evidence.
"If the antique is fake, does that mean it doesn't constitute a crime?" A mischievous idea popped into A Lei's eyes.
“It’s not easy,” Attorney Sun said, shaking his head with difficulty. “We can try to prove that the antique is fake, which would be a crime of trafficking in cultural relics. But if we do that, they will ask for too high a price, which would constitute fraud.”
"Which crime carries a lower sentence?" Qin Xiaoyu had no choice but to settle for second best.
“They’re all quite high. The problem is, after spending a few years in prison, this guy will probably be ruined when he gets out,” A Lei pondered.
Would it be better to extradite them back?
“It’s not a good solution. Extradition isn’t an option for his case,” Attorney Sun shook his head again.
After discussing for a long time without finding a good solution, Attorney Sun took his leave. Although Qin Xiaoyu was feeling heavy-hearted, she still mustered her spirits to call home and let them know she was safe.
After she finished talking with Zhou Xing's mother, she realized that A Lei had disappeared from the room at some point.
It was already dinnertime, and A Lei hadn't said how he planned to solve the problem, nor had he returned. Qin Xiaoyu didn't know where to look for him, so she could only come downstairs by herself.
When she reached the door, the doorman opened it, and Qin Xiaoyu had no choice but to go out.
In an unfamiliar city, there was a fresh and exciting feeling. Qin Xiaoyu's previously depressed heart felt much better after being blown away by the night breeze.
But she still didn't have the courage to step into the darkness. After hesitating for a long time, she turned back and went up the steps.
“I’ve been watching you for a while.” Jing Tian emerged from the shadows, and surprisingly, he was fully conscious.
"What are you doing here?" Qin Xiaoyu felt a wave of nausea. She quickly ran up the steps; going into the hotel was the safest option.
"Don't run! Don't you want to save your nephew?"
Jing Tian's words left Qin Xiaoyu frozen in place; little did anyone expect that Jing Tian was the one who did it.
When Tang Long got into trouble, everyone thought it was because Xiao Pang hadn't handled things well. Now, it seems that the buyer's passport issue preventing entry was all a trap, just waiting for Tang Long to fall into it.
What do you want to do?
"Do you even need to ask? Give me the child, and I'll have my buddy drop the charges. It's that simple. Just assume he came here to buy counterfeit goods. At worst, he committed perjury, but there won't be any serious consequences. He'll just be fined a little. I think Boss Qin is definitely not short of money. It's a win-win situation."
Jing Tian's face was truly deserving of a beating, but Qin Xiaoyu couldn't beat him and didn't dare to. One Wang Lei was enough.
"Don't even think about it. Even if Tang Long leaves the child inside, he won't give it to you." Qin Xiaoyu walked into the lobby and realized she was covered in a cold sweat.
She didn't dare wander around outside, so she went back to her room, locked the door, and just hoped that A Lei would come back soon.
But he seemed to have vanished without a trace.
Without a cell phone, when he called Shanghai, Mrs. Fang had no idea where he was.
For a moment, Qin Xiaoyu was worried that A Lei had fallen into Jing Tian's trap, but from Jing Tian's tone that day, she couldn't tell that he had already taken A Lei hostage.
The trial date was fast approaching, but Attorney Sun couldn't find A Lei, so he had no choice but to proceed as planned and plead not guilty.
“This is almost useless. The buyer has already acted as a tainted witness, and all the charges are against Tang Long,” Attorney Sun told Qin Xiaoyu the truth.
On the day of the trial, Qin Xiaoyu saw Jing Tian sitting in the corner as soon as she entered the courtroom.
Qin Xiaoyu found a seat in the front row so she could be closer to Tang Long. Tang Long nodded when he saw her.
Attorney Sun is right. The evidence is unfavorable to Tang Long, and even he himself knows that he is making a futile defense.
Under pressure from the prosecution, Attorney Sun requested a ten-minute recess.
Qin Xiaoyu and Attorney Sun left the courtroom and went into the adjacent lounge. They looked at each other in silence.
"I'm going out for a bit." Attorney Sun walked out with her briefcase.
Time flew by, and seeing that Attorney Sun hadn't come in, Qin Xiaoyu had no choice but to enter the courtroom herself.
The judge quickly announced the start of the court session. Qin Xiaoyu was horrified to discover that Attorney Sun's seat was empty; he hadn't shown up!
This also caught the attention of the judge, who beckoned the court clerk over and began whispering among themselves.
Just then, the courtroom doors opened, and Attorney Sun and A Lei, dressed in a black lawyer's robe, walked in.
“Attorney Alxe has taken over this case, and these are the relevant documents.” Attorney Sun submitted the documents he had signed one by one.
Qin Xiaoyu was puzzled. This guy had been gone for so long. Had he gone home to catch up on his studies?
“Your Honor, this is the firsthand information I have obtained, which proves that the bronze tripod sold by the defendant is a fake.” A Lei presented the evidence directly.
A heated discussion broke out in the audience, and the judge picked up a rubber mallet to maintain order.
Qin Xiaoyu couldn't help but steal a glance at Jing Tian, a cold smile playing on his lips. He had already guessed that A Lei was going to do this.
The trial had to be postponed due to the emergence of new evidence.
As Jing Tian predicted, Tang Long was next prosecuted for fraud.
"Are you going to fabricate evidence?" Qin Xiaoyu knew that A Lei had connections everywhere and it would be easy for him to create fake evidence.
"What can we do if we don't fake it? That foreigner is not easy to deal with. We can't bribe him either."
"Don't bribe him! He's Jing Tian's man!" Qin Xiaoyu exclaimed in fright.
Looking at A Lei's ambiguous smile, he realized that A Lei already knew the situation and had been tricked again.
“I had a feeling something was off a long time ago. After checking, I found out that Jing Tian had been to Guangzhou, so I guessed that he had done something. This guy’s cunning is all inherited from his mother.”
"What do we do now? Just convict Tang Long of fraud?"
"Let's try to get a reduced sentence. Maybe I'll be out in five years." A Lei shrugged.
"No way! Five years in there will ruin a person!" Qin Xiaoyu jumped up.
"My little darling, I really have no other choice. How about we each take a gun and break them out of prison?"
"Are you kidding me?" Qin Xiaoyu slumped back onto the sofa, hugged a cushion, rested her chin on it, and looked ahead pitifully, tears welling up in her eyes.
"Don't be angry, I really have no other choice. I can only try to reduce my sentence." A Lei's tone softened.
"How am I going to explain this to my cousin's wife when I get back?"
“What can we do? We’ve done our best. This is, after all, a British colony, not our own country. There’s so little we can do,” Are whispered, slowly moving closer.
"Get off me!" Qin Xiaoyu pushed his hand away, stood up abruptly, and walked towards the balcony.
The balcony was open, and standing there with the sea breeze blowing in her eyes helped her clear her head. She knew A Lei's personality; he must have done his best. If he couldn't do it, she couldn't force him. It seemed she could only leave it to fate.
"Come in, have something to eat, it'll make you feel better," A Lei called to her as he opened the balcony door.
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