0055 Cooling-off Period (Part 2)
On the other end, Qu Zhong felt much better after crying and venting her emotions. She waited for ages, but Zhai Shi didn't return, nor did he send a single message; it was as if he was waiting for her to contact him first.
No, absolutely not. Whoever speaks first loses.
As a lawyer, Qu Zhong was well-versed in legal negotiation; she would never take the initiative. Besides, after calming down and thinking it over for a long time, she couldn't see what she had done wrong. Everything she said was clearly reasonable; his problem was much bigger.
He actually dared to run away from home? Fine, since he wants to cause trouble for her, then she'll play along. She's not Haitian Catering, nor is she Cheng Quan; she's Lu Wei, and she has plenty of patience.
Qu Zhong wouldn't let personal feelings affect her work, and she quickly threw herself into the case.
Not long after, a copy of Lu Wei's complaint was sent to Guanzheng Law Firm.
Qu Zhong opened the express delivery bag and looked directly at the amount of her lawsuit claim: the principal, interest, late payment fees and default penalties for overdue rent, calculated up to today, totaling 435,487.5 yuan.
Just as Su Rongqin had predicted, Lu Wei ultimately asked for more than 300,000 yuan. She scanned a copy and saved it on her computer, then gave the original to Su Rongqin.
Su Rongqin glanced at it briefly and put it aside, remaining calm: "Don't worry, I'll only pay a quarter at most."
He remained so calm because Haitian Restaurant had been dissolved and announced two days prior, and was now in liquidation proceedings, with Cheng Quan serving as the head of the liquidation team.
Qu Zhong hummed in response, said nothing more, and did not leave his office.
Su Rongqin looked at her and asked, "What are your thoughts?"
Qu Zhong pursed her lips and expressed her inner struggle: "I don't know if this counts as helping him, but I can't think of a better way."
“Attorney Su, I’m starting to wonder what the value of all this work I’ve done is.”
The phrase "Attorney Su" sounded like a distress signal, causing Su Rongqin to pause for a moment in thought.
He often needed to think deeply when talking to Qu Zhong. Because she was different from the other young lawyers in the firm; she was too opinionated. He had noticed this even when she was still an intern.
This is undoubtedly her strength, but if she doesn't exercise restraint, even the greatest strength can turn into a weakness.
Therefore, he needs to step forward from time to time, as a senior in the legal profession, a senior at H University, and even more so as someone who is not her mentor but is more like one, to guide and remind her.
Qu Zhong, what do you think a lawyer is?
He first posed a question to her, prompting her to think while he offered his answer, transforming "what it is" into "what it is not," thus making the answer sound less superficial and empty.
"Lawyers are not judges; they cannot stand in a neutral position to judge right and wrong or to uphold fairness and justice. You've been doing criminal defense for so long, you understand this yourself without me having to say more. Lawyers are not saviors either; they cannot satisfy everyone. The work we can do is very limited, and we just need to do our best within those limitations."
As he spoke, he took a copy of Lu Wei's complaint and turned it to face her. "Take Cheng Quan's case for example. You think dissolving the company is a bad idea. But think about it from another angle. Compared to other options, such as gritting your teeth and fighting a lawsuit you're destined to lose, being unable to pay after losing and being listed as a dishonest person subject to enforcement, continuing to operate Haitian and eventually going bankrupt, isn't dissolving the company and forcing Lu Wei to settle, reducing the amount of compensation to the minimum, the best option for Cheng Quan?"
He was like a teacher standing on a platform, imparting knowledge and skills, and solving seemingly difficult problems with the simplest formulas.
Qu Zhong stood opposite him, listening to him speak word by word, and her malfunctioning brain seemed to be gradually activated.
Seeing her thoughtful expression, Su Rongqin's tone suddenly turned from sunny to gloomy, "I think you've done too much criminal defense work, you're too stubborn. Let's not talk about it before the New Year, there aren't many days of holiday left. After the New Year, you can do some other cases, it's time for you to change your mindset."
Qu Zhong's face stiffened, surprised: "Change what shape?"
Su Rongqin took a sip of the hot tea beside him and explained, "From now on, when people mention you, they will think of you not just as a criminal defense lawyer, but as a dispute resolution lawyer."
Dispute resolution—that's what the team Qu Zhong interned with at Huanli did. Those four words sound impressive, but to put it simply, it means taking on any case. They do everything a lawyer is legally permitted to do under the Lawyers Law—truly accepting all comers.
Before Qu Zhong could speak, Su Rongqin put down his water glass, clasped his hands together, and said, "In the entire Guanzheng, apart from you, no one only handles one type of case. You must know that."
Qu Zhong knew, of course, that if Guan Zheng only handled one type of case, it would be impossible for the company to survive in Shanghai.
But Su Rongqin should also know why she has this privilege.
"This is what you promised me back then."
One morning three years ago, Qu Zhong had just finished her interview and walked out of the gate of Huanli. Xu Xinzhou's words, "You are not suitable to be a lawyer," left her completely bewildered. She wandered around aimlessly for a long time, unable to find the bus stop to return to school.
Just when she was questioning her life choices, she suddenly received a call from an unknown number. During that period, she was frantically sending out resumes and frequently receiving calls from HR, but the interview results were always unsatisfactory.
Having just been dealt a blow by Xu Xinzhou, she answered the phone with almost no hope, and said "hello" in a sullen voice.
The person on the other end of the phone seemed surprised by her reaction and confirmed her identity: "Are you Xiao Qu?"
"Little Qu," this is the first person I've addressed as such since I started job hunting.
It felt like I was back in graduate school, back in my second year of graduate school when I chose my specialization, back in the first criminal law class where I heard a professor talk about the principle of legality in criminal law.
Qu Zhong's expression immediately lit up at the address, and she quickly changed her tone to reply, "Yes, that's me."
The man continued, "I'm Attorney Su from Guanzheng Law Firm. We received your resume. We'd like to schedule an interview for you this afternoon at 3 PM. Is that convenient for you?"
To be honest, Qu Zhong had submitted so many resumes that she couldn't even remember applying to this law firm. But she still said "convenient" twice, asked for the address, and said she would be there for the interview on time.
Good heavens, what an incredible turn of events! Just moments ago, Qu Zhong thought she was doomed, that she would never find a job in Shanghai. She had even considered going back home to farm. She never expected things to turn around so quickly.
Even more miraculously, she suddenly looked up and discovered that the bus stop she had been looking for was actually just across the street not far away.
Qu Zhong returned to her dormitory to rest for a while, adjusted her state, and arrived at Guanzheng Law Firm at the agreed interview time.
When she was introducing herself, Qu Zhong could hear her voice trembling, which was quite embarrassing.
Because she had failed too many times before, and also because she felt that she could succeed this time.
Su Rongqin understood and told her to relax and not be nervous, adding, "I also graduated from H University, so I'm your senior. Just think of it as coming here to discuss academics with your senior."
Qu Zhong smiled and nodded, her nervousness vanishing instantly.
The atmosphere of the academic discussion was excellent. Qu Zhong answered Su Rongqin's questions fluently, occasionally throwing in a few jokes using French slang. Throughout the conversation, she could clearly see Su Rongqin's eyes smiling behind his mask.
She believed he had also seen her smiling eyes.
At the end of the interview, Su Rongqin said, "That's all I have to ask. What else do you want to ask us? Or what are your requests?"
Qu Zhong only asked one question at the time: "Can I do criminal defense? Just criminal defense, is that okay?"
Su Rongqin replied calmly, "I did promise you, but it seems that focusing solely on criminal defense won't be very helpful to your legal career. I believe that developing a well-rounded approach will broaden your horizons. The more you see, the less you'll dwell on these kinds of issues."
Qu Zhong wanted to say something to refute him, just like many times before, she recklessly argued with him for the sake of the case. But now she couldn't find the confidence to continue doing so, and she couldn't think of anything else to say.
Finally, her eyes dimmed a few degrees, and she sighed almost imperceptibly: "I understand, I will consider your opinion."
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