After he finished speaking, he returned to his seat and said to Zhou Quanmin, "Alright, I've said what I needed to say. You must know the saying 'a life for a life.' I hope you won't be fooled by this lawyer's glib talk. Make the right judgment."

His actions once again rendered the entire courtroom utterly silent.

At the public prosecutor's seats, the two public prosecutors looked at each other, at a loss for words. They had prosecuted many cases, but this was the first time they had seen a victim act so arrogantly, daring to direct and order the Judgment Chief and others. The debate just now seemed to make three points, but in fact, it did not touch upon a single legal statute, legal principle, or legislative thought. It was entirely like a squabble between village women. Strictly speaking, his words were as good as wasted; they neither attacked the opponent's view nor defended his own. Yet Chen Daoguang was still smug, believing his "debate" to be brilliant.

At the lawyers' seats, Zhang Wei also widened his eyes, looking at his "opponent." Beyond shock, he couldn't help but sink into deep contemplation. Chen Daoguang had started the trial by angrily rebuking the prosecutors. Then he turned his anger on him. Just now, he had even pointed fingers at the collegiate bench represented by Zhou Quanmin and others. One could say that Chen Daoguang had become the biggest variable in the trial.

Zhang Wei thought he had seen it all after representing so many defendants, but he never expected there were always higher mountains. Chen Daoguang's behavior of not cooperating with the prosecutors completely lowered his status as a victim and reduced the collegiate bench's sympathy for him. It had no positive effect whatsoever.

The scene before him felt familiar. If his memory served him correctly, a former teammate of his had been very similar to Chen Daoguang, always backstabbing him.

Could it be... my luck is turning? Zhang Wei swallowed hard, his expression somewhat strange.

In the spectator seats, Chen Daoguang's "brilliant debate" instantly won unanimous praise.

"Brother Two is Brother Two! He may not have much schooling, but his logic is impeccable!"

"Did everyone notice? After Brother Two spoke, everyone's expression changed. No one dared to argue with him anymore."

"We're on the side of justice, so what do we have to fear? They, on the other hand, are trying to help a murderer escape punishment. In our village, they'd be scorned for that!"

"Brother Two speaks plainly and understandably, unlike that lawyer and those prosecutors spouting gibberish, just trying to confuse us!"

Similar sentiments were whispered among Liu Mei and a group of other women in the spectator seats. They were very satisfied with Chen Daoguang's recent performance. Especially seeing the silent courtroom, they each felt that losing the case was nearly impossible.

Truly fearless in their ignorance, Qin Mu, sitting in a corner of the spectators' area, couldn't help but shake his head. Chen Daoguang's flawed speech had actually received unanimous applause. One might say Chen Daoguang was trying, all by himself, to drag the level of courtroom debate down to that of a rural squabble.

"BANG—"

From the bench, Zhou Quanmin, his face ashen, once again struck the gavel. Staring at the smug Chen Daoguang, he was trembling with anger, yet he still patiently said in a deep voice, "Please, victim, do not discuss topics irrelevant to the dispute. The focus of this phase must revolve around the right to unlimited defense and excessive defense!"

Chen Daoguang's recent argumentative speech had been entirely nonsensical and had not touched upon any relevant legal theories or statutes. It could not be considered a debate. Even though this was the free debate phase of the trial, where all parties involved could speak, irrelevant topics were not allowed. Otherwise, the solemn courtroom would quickly devolve into scenes reminiscent of fishwives' quarrels or rural disputes.

"What do you mean by that?"

After hearing this, Chen Daoguang retorted again, dissatisfied, "I just made three points. How did I not focus on the case's discussion points? A life for a life, a debt repaid—these are natural laws!

"Every word we said was reasonable! You can't out-argue us, and now you're saying we didn't focus on the issue?

"What's left to discuss in this case? The evidence was presented, and the video proved she killed someone. Just sentence her and be done with it.

"Are you bullying us because we're from the countryside, deliberately making a simple case so complicated? I think you just want to help her get off, to let her escape the law's punishment!"

As he spoke, he stood tall and proud, surveying the entire courtroom with the air of a conquering hero. He believed he had just proven with facts that his debating skills were far superior to both his own side's public prosecutors and the opposing lawyer. The moment he opened his mouth, everyone else had fallen silent, clearly unable to refute him. Yet now, they were turning it around, claiming he hadn't focused on the case's key issues! In this debate segment, it was already crystal clear who was strong and who was weak.

"What now?" Chen Daoguang glanced at Zhou Quanmin on the bench and then sneered, "Did I hit a nerve? No response? I'm telling you, don't think we're easy to bully just because we're from the countryside! Just sentence her for this case and be done with it. Don't give us all this nonsense!"

Seeing this, the other three "victims'" fathers beside him also became agitated. Following Chen Daoguang's lead, they began to "pressure" the collegiate bench.

"Brother Two is right! You may be judges, but we're not to be trifled with!"

"They killed someone! If you dare bend the law for selfish ends, we'll report you to your superiors!"

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