"Judge Zhou, when do you have time to enforce that Lufax micro loan dispute case? I know your enforcement court is busy recently, you don't even have enough cars, but we litigants are eagerly waiting for you. Whenever you have time, our law firm is willing to provide cars..."
"The objection to jurisdiction in the last case was overruled. We will appeal the ruling and delay the trial date until after the new year, which gives us plenty of time to prepare for the hearing."
With the year-end approaching, many white-collar workers had already left early for home to spend the holidays. The office elevators had increasingly fewer people coming and going. Most companies had already switched to holiday mode. However, at Zhengcheng Law Firm, it was still a busy scene.
Qian Wei bit her pen and waited, as the phone calls from her colleagues continued in the office. The other associates who had hearings or client meetings to attend gradually left, until only a few interns remained in the huge open office space. Only then did she pump herself up again, and surreptitiously slip into partner Lu Xun's office.
Unfortunately, Lu Xun was on a call with an American client. Qian Wei sat to the side quietly like a docile chicken, waiting for Lu Xun to finish the call.
Lu Xun's office faced south. The winter sun shone in generously, illuminating his fair complexion through the potted plants in his office. The upright bridge of his nose cast a nice shadow on his sculpted face. His thin lips with a perfect shape were spouting fluent American English.
This man - mature, handsome, powerful, seemed impeccable. Even the few strands of hair sticking up from his head seemed to indicate he was extraordinary. Qian Wei was reminded of what she overheard a few female interns discussing in the bathroom stalls a few days ago - "Even the back of Lu Xun's head is handsome enough to recognize him in a crowd." She hadn't examined whether the back of Lu Xun's head was handsome or not, but she had to admit, even after seeing his face for so many years, his looks should have lost their appeal from overexposure by now. Yet during certain moments when she happened to glance at him unexpectedly, his visual impact still remained strong. Right now, Lu Xun had on a pair of gold rimmed glasses. He took a sip of water during a break in his phone conversation. His Adam's apple slid up and down his fair and slender neck, and the protruding curve seemed to exude pheromones, giving off an aura of an elite who was prim and proper externally but a beast within.
Lu Xun never had any small talk during phone calls. He ended the call efficiently, took off his gold rimmed glasses and casually tossed them on the desk. He looked at Qian Wei without saying anything.
Qian Wei felt somewhat uneasy being subjected to his gaze. Not daring to make eye contact, she stared at his hands on the table, long fingers and distinct knuckles. Mustering her courage, she spoke in a fawning tone, "Boss..."
"No."
"..." Qian Wei couldn't help but raise her head now. "But I haven't said anything yet!"
Lu Xun gave a cold laugh. "When you start with that form of address, it's never anything good."
Qian Wei awkwardly smiled. "Why would you say that..."
"So what good thing brings you looking for me today? Inviting me to dinner? Bringing me a gift?"
"Well..." Qian Wei considered her words. "I heard you took on a new case recently, Gaoke Machinery plans to acquire 65% of its subsidiary Boiler Company for 1.4 billion USD. I'm afraid your team is shorthanded, so I'm voluntarily requesting to join this acquisition case."
"Dream on."
Although blessed with a poetic and picturesque face, unfortunately the two beautiful lips of Lu Xun uttered the heartless words.
"..." Qian Wei tried hard to make a last ditch effort. "Lu Xun! We were classmates, don't shut out an old friend! This is a huge case, I heard you even named some interns to join for the learning experience. I graduated together with you, I'm at least half a senior associate now! Don't I even have a chance?"
Lu Xun pressed his lips together without speaking.
Qian Wei decided to play the sympathy card. "You don't know the struggles of your old classmate here. Imagine when you have to turn down cases because you have too many, I, your old classmate, am chewing on steamed buns in the cold winter struggling to find next year's cases and income..."
"Steamed buns are coarse grains, quite healthy."
"..." Qian Wei was about to continue her desperate struggle. "Lu Xun, I was wrong back then. I was too young and impulsive..."
"My hourly rate is 3000 RMB." Lu Xun pressed the timer on his desk. "Anything else you want to say to me?"
"Nothing, thanks Boss!"
Seeing the numbers jumping on the timer, Qian Wei stood up from her chair without another word and walked out the door. She was determined to give up.
"Wait."
Could it be Lu Xun had a change of heart? Qian Wei thought hopefully, a smile on her face again as she fawningly glanced back.
"Next time remember to knock before you come in." Lu Xun had put his glasses back on and was absorbed in reading case files again without even raising his head. "Go out and close the door."
"..."
Damn you Lu Xun!
*****
Qian Wei and Lu Xun graduated from the same class at A University Law School. Unfortunately...
Whenever Qian Wei thought about the past, she regretted it to the point of feeling blue in the guts.
"How was I to know back then that Lu Xun would one day become my boss? We graduated the same year, yet I'm still a junior lawyer while he has smoothly risen to partner! Partner! He's Lu Partner while I'm still Qian Lawyer! What could I do, I was desperate too! I also want to be Qian Partner!"
After work that day, Qian Wei met up with Liu Shi Yun at a quiet music bar to vent her grievances.
Liu Shi Yun was Qian Wei's college roommate. Although she did not pursue a law-related career after graduation unlike most of their classmates, she remained Qian Wei's best friend.
"The rich man's home stinks of meat and wine, while the poor man's roadside bones freeze to death!" Qian Wei downed her cocktail in one go. "Can you believe it, how petty is Lu Xun being? Just because I inadvertently offended him a bit!"
"You call that just offending him a bit?" Liu Shi Yun rolled her eyes. "You helped Qian Chuan steal his girlfriend, Mo Zi Xin, you practically snatched her away, that's tantamount to destroying his marriage prospects. What man can take that lying down? Also, Lu Xun seems like the loyal type. After so many years he's still single, he probably can't forget Mo Zi Xin. 'Our love was deeper than the sea, only Mount Wu can compare'. He didn't even get to date her, so his regret and dissatisfaction must be immense! Mo Zi Xin is the moonlight in his heart."
Qian Wei still tried to defend herself. "But Qian Chuan is my twin brother. No matter what, you have to side with family not reason. If put in his shoes, Lu Xun would do the same!"
"Save that rationale for Lu Xun. In any case, you've created an uncrossable chasm between him and you. Don't expect a grand reconciliation from him."
"Ah!" Qian Wei heaved a distressed sigh. "With what you've said, Lu Xun has gotten more and more passive aggressive lately. The other day, I finally got my aunt to introduce me to a guy who wasn't intimidated by female lawyers. I squeezed out time from work for a blind date with great difficulty, but Lu Xun got wind of it and dumped a case on me that night, causing me to work overtime on that case for a whole month! By the time I was free, that guy was already taken! Lu Xun must resent that I've remained single and can't stand seeing me find a partner. He'd rather we both die lonely!"
"Then what was the case Lu Xun gave you? How much was it worth? What kind of case?"
"Six million..." Qian Wei reluctantly admitted. "A bank bad debt case...I represented the bank..."
"Bank bad debt cases just go through the litigation process for write-off. No matter how you handle the case, the bank won't pressure you. A case worth six million is like handing you money. " Liu Shi Yun looked at Qian Wei scornfully. "Why don't you show some backbone. You could have turned down the case and gone on your date! You deserve to be single!"
"Easy for you to say when you're so rich." Qian Wei said resentfully. "No one would become a lawyer nowadays if not for family difficulties!"
Liu Shi Yun was a hotelier heiress. Her family ran a chain of hotels, so after graduating from A University Law School, she took over hotel management.
"But I have to ask, since you don't plan to have a law career, why did you study so hard in law school? What made you decide on such a pointless path? Applying to law school was a mistake!"
Liu Shi Yun took a sip of her drink and enunciated clearly, "I've aspired since young to become a profiteer. How can I exploit legal loopholes better without properly studying law?"
"..."
After the rare chance to meet up with Liu Shi Yun, Qian Wei had no choice but to throw herself back into work. There were still many things that needed to be finished up before the new year.
The interns, on the other hand, had nothing else to do besides photocopying and organizing case files after lunch break. They gathered together and chatted.
"Oh right, have you guys heard? There's a small temple near Anlan Manor, built over a hundred years ago. It's a preserved historical site now, but is especially efficacious. Any wish made there will come true, guaranteed."
"I know about it! So powerful! Wish for anything and it'll be granted!"
Qian Wei was compiling an evidence index while listening to their lively chatter, feeling somewhat envious of their youth and energy. But just as she was about to continue eavesdropping, the interns seemed to have a tacit understanding to suddenly fall silent collectively.
Qian Wei looked up to see Lu Xun had opened his office door and was walking toward the main workspace.
A stack of documents landed heavily on Qian Wei's desk with a "thud".
"What's the matter?"
Qian Wei was startled. The perpetrator, Lu Xun, stood in front of her desk, his tall frame completely blocking out the sunlight.
"Case source." Lu Xun was sparing with words. He lightly tapped the stack of documents with his finger. "Take this case."
"Oh, okay." Qian Wei nodded reflexively.
In the past, Lu Xun would have left after getting this acknowledgement from Qian Wei. But today, Lu Xun lingered at Qian Wei's desk for a while more.
"Are you going tomorrow night?"
Qian Wei was confused for a moment before realizing he meant tomorrow night's college reunion that Liu Shi Yun mentioned would be near the firm.
"I'll be there. Do you have anything you want me to pass to someone?" Since he was always too busy, Lu Xun rarely attended such gatherings. But their college alumni were mostly in the legal field now, so it was a circle for connections. Sometimes they would help pass on materials or discuss cases. Qian Wei normally just wanted to go home and sleep, never attending these events either, only agreeing this time because she couldn't turn down Liu Shi Yun.
"No need, I'll go," Lu Xun said before leaving. Instead of leaving, he just looked at Qian Wei for a moment, then glanced down at the pile of documents he had just put on the table. His long eyelashes fluttered gently in the sunlight, casting fan-shaped shadows underneath.
"The case files here are good, be sure to read them carefully and start right away," he added without waiting for Qian Wei's response. Then he turned and left before she could react.
"Wait! Lu Xun!" Qian Wei called out to stop him. She shuffled through the case files in front of her. "Why are you suddenly being so...friendly and giving me a case?"
"You ask too many questions. Have you not eaten enough savory pancakes?"
"... "
In any case, Qian Wei was deeply moved inside. As she watched Lu Xun's receding figure, she felt guilty and thought she would never speak ill of him behind his back again. She had underestimated his character with her petty mind. As expected of the star law student from A University, his morals matched his good looks.
What kind of case did Lu Xun give her? It must be a small case he happened to let slip through his fingers. The income wouldn't be low either. Qian Wei eagerly opened the file bag, only to see the words "Legal Aid" jump out at her immediately.
Damn, this was a legal aid case without any money, not a cent!
