Chapter 397: Sudden Reversal

Zeng Qing sat calmly in her seat. She was just about to speak when the masked man beside Zeng Ru suddenly stood up and led her before the throng of Video Cameras.

"Step aside."

The man was unrelenting. Mist-like weird energy materialized around him, forcefully carving a path straight through the courtroom.

Facing the Video Cameras, Zeng Ru cleared her throat. "Hello, everyone. I am Zeng Ru, former executive director of Nuochen Biotech. We at Nuochen Biotech deeply apologize for the errors we have committed."

With that, she bowed ninety degrees to the Video Cameras.

"Going forward, we will absolutely turn over a new leaf. We hope everyone will continue to believe in us and support us..."

In their seats, Zeng Qing and Yan Jing remained calm as a barrage of camera flashes washed over them.

Yan Jing yawned. "Your sister's bow is textbook. That must be a mandatory class for you corporate helmsmen. How come I've never seen you bow?"

"I still have much to learn."

Zeng Qing replied flatly.

Right then, Zeng Ru finally finished her lengthy apology. She pointed to Zeng Qing in her seat and declared, "Following a shareholder resolution, we have decided to dismiss Zeng Qing and the other senior executives involved in this incident. At the same time, we ask that you all give Nuochen Biotech a chance to make amends!"

In the corner, Tianxuan looked at the Holographic Screen and smiled.

Just as expected, the pump had begun.

No one knew the tricks of these corporate giants better than she did. Entering the market at the right moment guaranteed a two-hundred-percent profit—and this was only the beginning.

The megacorporation's pump was merely the First Ring of her plan. What she really wanted was a much larger rebound.

"Furthermore, we will provide the victims of this incident with ten times the compensation—"

Hearing Zeng Ru's words, the anthill residents were visibly moved.

Ten times the compensation—this was far more than they had expected.

Smiles lit up many faces; some even wept tears of joy.

Soon, the entire hall was filled with harmonious joy.

Zeng Ru was happy; she could finally resume her position as executive director.

The lawyers and the judge were happy; someone had taken the fall, meaning this whole affair was finally over.

The reporters were happy; they had a massive piece of news to break.

The anthill residents were happy; they had received an apology and their compensation.

Tianxuan was happy too; her stocks were steadily surging.

It was a picture-perfect happy ending for everyone.

But right then, a voice rang out abruptly.

"Hold on. Your Honor, I have an objection."

In the joyous hall, those words were incredibly jarring, like a bucket of ink splashed across a masterpiece.

No one expected Crocodile to be the one speaking up now.

The judge froze. Not just the judge—practically everyone froze.

"What is your objection?" the judge asked.

Crocodile adjusted his tie. "I believe that in this incident, there are other participants involved aside from Nuochen Biotech."

"Nuochen Biotech did indeed exceed emissions standards, but the true cause of those children's deaths lies elsewhere."

These words immediately caused a massive uproar.

Almost everyone was stunned.

"What are you saying, Lawyer Crocodile—"

"Yeah, Lawyer Crocodile, this... this isn't right—"

"Who else could be the murderer behind the scenes? What kind of nonsense is this—"

Faced with the crowd's confusion, Crocodile remained calm. "Your Honor, I wish to present new evidence that clarifies several suspicious points in this incident."

Present your fucking ass.

That was the judge's inner monologue, but with the Video Cameras practically shoved in his face, he coughed twice and said, "Presentation of new evidence is permitted."

Crocodile immediately pulled up several images. "Everyone, please look. On the left is the pollution distribution map for Nuochen Biotech in this instance. Compared to the previous maps on the right, we can clearly see that this time, the pollution formed a uniform fan shape."

"This is the first suspicious point: why did the pollution spread completely differently this time?"

"The second suspicious point: during this trial, I have provided five pieces of evidence. Four of them were sent to me by an anonymous account."

"We tracked down the clients and lawyers from several similar incidents, and discovered that they, too, received varying amounts of evidence from an external source."

"The third suspicious point: following each of these incidents, a small number of accounts used massive capital to buy the involved companies' stock at its lowest point, only to sell at the peak."

"Based on these three suspicious points, Your Honor, I now suspect that a third party was involved in this incident. Their true motive was simply to trade stocks and manipulate the market!"

Crocodile's words were deafening. Everyone was completely bewildered; never in their wildest dreams could they have imagined things taking this turn.

Pollution and murder, all fundamentally just to manipulate stocks?

What kind of outrageous claim was this?

But Zeng Ru was the first to react, speaking delightedly to the cameras. "Everyone, as for the true culprit, we at Nuochen Biotech will absolutely cooperate with the Law Enforcement Agency to root them out as soon as possible and punish them severely."

In the public gallery, some believed Crocodile, but others were losing control of their emotions.

"Has Lawyer Crocodile been... been bought off?"

"Exactly! This is obviously meant to absolve Nuochen Biotech of their crimes. Why stir up more trouble when they've already apologized!"

"..."

Facing the questioning gazes cast his way, Crocodile took a deep breath. Of course, he didn't want Nuochen Biotech to get off easy, but—facts were facts.

Not to mention, his old friend had done something unprecedented and sought him out last night.

"Crocodile, expose those matters—"

His old friend's expression had been incredibly gloomy.

He had been a little surprised at the time. He had wanted to expose these deductions before, but his old friend had told him to stay quiet for fear of drawing fire upon themselves.

Such uncharacteristic behavior had left him a bit slow to react.

But when Zeng Ru took the stage, he finally understood.

His old friend had already guessed this would happen, and thus wanted to do whatever possible to lessen the dirty water splashed onto his own chess piece.

Although seeing Zeng Ru's current appearance displeased him, well—winners are kings, losers are bandits; one had to accept their losses.

Being able to cut their losses at this stage was already the best possible outcome.

No matter how displeased or aggrieved they felt, sometimes they just had to swallow it.

Given his old friend's personality, Crocodile believed the man was definitely feeling much more aggrieved than he was right now.

At this time, the judge also raised the wooden gavel in his hand. "In that case, I hereby announce the results of this trial. Nuochen Biotech's Zeng Qing and all related personnel will require further investigation. Furthermore, regarding the true culprit of this case, we will need the cooperation of the Law Enforcement Agency to further—"

Before he could finish, the Information Component on Crocodile's wrist suddenly vibrated.

He glanced at it, and his gaze instantly sharpened.

Immediately, he spoke up again, interrupting the judge's declaration. "Wait! Your Honor! I have received new evidence!"

Then, under everyone's astonished gazes, Crocodile raised the Information Component on his wrist, and a holographic projection unfolded.

On the screen was a figure incredibly familiar to everyone. The figure stood beneath the towering wall of a factory, touching its surface while pacing back and forth.

Streaks of weird energy were released from the figure's cuffs. A few seconds later, a hidden door clicked open.

The figure quickly walked through the pitch-black doorway and disappeared from sight.

Inside the courtroom, the crowd was dead silent.

Because that figure was, shockingly, Yan Jing!

In her seat, Tianxuan gently rested her hand on Yan Jing's leg. The corners of her mouth curled up as she whispered, "Are you satisfied now, Mr. Yan?"