Ch36 - Does it feel good, toying with me like this?

Sheng Min Ou’s line of interrogation continued, “Just then you mentioned that overloading is a very common practice in your line of work, can you tell us why?”

Li Jun Shan looked at the attendees present and sighed, “Because in our industry we get paid based on the weight of the cargo we carry. If we pack more in one trip, then we’d get more money out of it. If a truck could carry two hundred tonnes of cargo, and every tonne was worth ten dollars, then in a single trip I can only make two thousand renminbi. For a return trip, it would only be about four thousand renminbi. If we subtract from that the costs of vehicle maintenance, costs on the roads, petrol fees and so on, then we’re left with around one thousand renminbi. Even if I worked myself to the bone and made ten trips in a month, that would only be a ten thousand something renminbi. Each month I’d still have to repay my loans that I took out for the vehicle. Once I finish paying my dues for this truck, I’d pretty much need to buy a new vehicle by that point anyways. If I don’t overload, if I don’t do it, how am I able to make things work?” 

Sheng Min Ou held on to his cane, and for a long time he didn’t make a sound. The judge addressed him in confusion, “To the plaintiff’s attorney, do you still have any questions you’d like to ask? If not, then we will proceed to have the defendant’s lawyer begin his cross examination of the witness.”

Sheng Min Ou fixed his eyes on the witness, and it didn’t look as if he was lost in his thoughts, but it appeared more like he was contemplating some important question. His gaze was too focused, even a little sinister and foreboding, to the point where Li Jun Shan couldn’t help but shrink his frame in response.

 

 

Sheng Min Ou was oblivious to it all, as his sights remained fixated on the witness, the following words leaving his mouth slowly, “Yes, I still have one more question. So is it true then that in your industry, there are few drivers who don’t overload?”

Li Jun Shan was stunned for a second before he came to and realised that this question was directed at himself. He waved a hand and responded assuredly, “I can’t speak in definitives, but ninety nine percent of drivers would overload, otherwise there’s no way for them to make a living.” 

Sheng Min Ou nodded his head, “I don’t have any further questions.”

 

He sat back to his spot with the plaintiff, and in the following moments no matter what the opposing lawyer asked the witness, he would vehemently object to it. Even if it was a line that seemed casual and easy to respond, which would eventually lead to a deeper topic, he would cite the reasoning where “the question is irrelevant to the case” to object. As a result, the opposing lawyer was agitated by Sheng Min Ou’s schemes and had his tempo completely disrupted. Consequently, due to the frequent interruptions the jury were also unable to settle down and listen properly to what the witness had to say.

“You mentioned that you had briefly read through the contract earlier, which means that you have looked at the contract, correct?”

Li Jun Shan hesitated for a second, then nodded his head, “Yes.”

 

“You also know that overloading is an offense that breaks the law.”

“Yes.”

Sheng Min Ou raised his cane whilst remaining seated as he interjected, “Objection, whether the witness overloads in his practice has no direct correlation to the case at hand.”

 

The opposing lawyer was enraged to the extent where his features even started to look a shade of green, as he directly complained to the judge, “The opposing counsel’s actions have severely interfered with my rights to question the witness.” 

The judge directed a long gaze full of warning at Sheng Min Ou, “To the plaintiff’s attorney, please use your ‘Objections’ in a fair manner.”

Sheng Min Ou straightened his back with his cane leaning against his lower body as he politely nodded to the judge, “Yes, of course.”

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“Everything he’s saying is the truth, I don’t really got much else to add.” 

After saying these words, the features of the lawyer representing the insurance company immediately darkened, and when he rolled his eyes it looked as if his eyes were almost going to roll back into his skull. The judge opened his mouth, wanting to say something to Wang You Quan, but looked as if he was at a loss on how to broach the topic. In the end, the effort was turned to a sigh, as he announced that the court would continue examining evidence.

I could fully understand the feelings of the judge. This Wang You Quan, he really was like a mole that Sheng Min Ou had planted to get in the way of the insurance company. One careless phrase from him had the same weight as ten phrases from a witness, so who knew what he was thinking when he spoke.

After which, Sheng Min Ou presented a few pictures as evidence. Specific sections of the photograph were magnified and presented on a huge screen in court. Seeing the pictures, everyone attending was shocked. A few young, timid women in the jury also let out horrified gasps.

Beneath a cargo truck that was piled with mountains of goods lay a man whose body was unrecognisable, being a pile of flesh and blood. Half his torso had been swept up and tangled in the wheel of a truck, as the grey cement under his body was dyed with a growing puddle of his blood. The deep, vibrant red in the photo triggered the neurons of everyone who was present. 

Mrs Yang quickly turned away from the sight, both her eyes tightly shut as they continued trembling as two lines of tears silently cascaded down her cheeks.

This was also the first time I had seen these pictures. Despite being equally as shocked and alarmed, because of how horrifying the scene of death was, I couldn’t help but think back to how my father had passed in the same way.

 

I made the same move as Mrs Yang, as I turned away and chose not to look at those gruesome pictures anymore, closing my eyes in an attempt to regather and control my emotions.

“Life at times can be extraordinarily resilient, and at other times it may be exceptionally fragile. A woman has lost her husband, a child has lost her father, this tragedy had occurred solely due to the defendant, Wang You Quan. Based on the record following the traffic incident, he had turned at too great a speed, and didn’t have enough preparation beforehand, which led to the instant death of Xu Yong, who was rightfully making his way across a pedestrian crossing. Without a question, this was all his fault.” 

Sheng Min Ou’s calm and steady voice ringed out to everyone’s ears, and the impact behind his words were profoundly forceful.

“A young father who had just bought a birthday present for his six year old daughter, and was jubilantly rushing back home has now become a bunch of dust in a grave. Wang You Quan’s many actions and choices have led to this tragedy, but ‘overloading’ is not one of these faults. An Qi insurance used a contract which does not highlight or bring to attention a key clause in their terms to avoid the issue of compensation. In my eyes, this is extremely immoral behaviour. In an industry where overloading is common, to the extent where it is seen as the norm, they hope to have drivers purchasing their insurance, but they also wish for them to remain ignorant to the fact that if there ever was an accident, they’d never be liable for any compensation payouts.”

The hearing continued for a whole afternoon, and when it was finished, we said our goodbyes with Mrs Yang at the entrance outside the law courts. I sat with Sheng Min Ou in the same car, as I intended to follow him back to the law firm to listen to everyone’s thoughts and a summary on the first hearing.

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While the car was on the road, Sheng Min Ou’s assistant, the female lawyer suddenly became curious as she asked, “Boss, how come I wasn’t aware that Xu Yong had purchased a birthday present for his daughter before the accident in the testimonies? Was this something that Mrs Yang told you in confidence?” 

I sat in the front passenger seat of the vehicle, and after hearing this question I quietly turned my head back to take a glance at Sheng Min Ou.

His eyes were closed as he leant back against his seat, this thumb continuously running circles against the antler head of his cane as he replied, “I made that up on the spot.”

After leaving the courthouse, his terrifying incessant attacks were withdrawn completely, as it hid once more in the folds of his suit, under the extravagant exterior of his cane design. There, it would rest and prepare itself for the next assault, as it lay in ambush, waiting for the next court hearing where it would leap out and land a forceful blow to the opposition’s head.

Perhaps Sheng Min Ou could sense my gaze on him, as he opened his eyes and stared coldly at me. 

I felt a shiver rise in my chest as it felt like my insides were frozen. Suppressing the need to shudder all throughout my body, I hurriedly turned so I was facing the front as I looked out.

Perhaps Sheng Min Ou had exerted too much energy in the afternoon in court as he often zoned out during the meeting later. In the end, when it was eight o’clock at night, he proactively called to conclude the meeting today and to resume it at another time, as he had the rest of the lawyers pack up and start heading home.

I also planned to go home, it wasn’t like he needed me to drive him home anymore.

As I had listened carefully to what was occurring around me the whole afternoon, and I had drank quite a lot of soup and tea in the evening, I felt my bladder was quite full so I planned to make a quick visit to the bathroom before leaving. 

The law firm had its own female and male bathrooms, however as there weren’t many employees, the bathrooms weren’t too big.

As soon as I walked in the male bathroom I saw Sheng Min Ou, and it looked like he had just washed his face. He had both hands propped on the basin, as droplets fell from his face, his fringe and the collar of his shirt wet.

His condition didn’t look good, as if he was… holding back and resisting something.

“Are you okay?” I was afraid that his emotions were impacted by the hearing we attended in the afternoon, so I asked despite knowing he might find it unnecessary. 

He raised his eyes and stared at me through the reflection in the mirror without speaking, his expression the usual as it created distance, leaving people stranded thousands of miles away.

I raised my hands hurriedly in a show of surrender, “Okay okay okay, one two three, I know, I won’t ask, I’ll shut up.”

 

In the male bathroom there were urinals as well as cubicles. The urinals were right behind the basin, so Sheng Min Ou was in a position to effortlessly see the whole process of me taking my pants off and taking a piss through the mirror. I thought it was a bit indecent, so I moved towards the cubicle at a side.

I just needed to take a piss, so I wasn’t bothered to lock the door behind me. I pulled down my zipper as I proceeded to aim at the toilet and start to relieve myself. 

Just when I was about to finish, an icy cold palm suddenly reached out from behind and covered my nose and my mouth. In my moment of shock, I lost the accuracy in my aim and the last bit of my piss landed in my hand.

Well, fuck!

I wasn’t sure whether it was because I had just pissed on myself, or if it was because of the hand that currently covered my face. However, regardless of whether it was the familiar scent of tobacco that I knew all too well, or the subtle smell of cologne that I could faintly pick up, all of this made me stop resisting in an instant.

Sheng Min Ou’s wet strands of hair brushed against my ear lobes, and the numbing itch following the contact made instinctively avoid him. The hand around me instantly held me tighter, not allowing me to make any movements. 

“Life at times can be extraordinarily resilient, and at other times it may be exceptionally fragile….” His breathing was meticulously controlled, spreading a burning warmth across the nape of my neck, “Most of the time, it’s mesmerizing and beautiful. If I was to slit your neck right now, I would be able to see a convoluted system of blood vessels, firm and sturdy muscles, bones white as snow. They are way more lovely than the you that lives right now, and they please people more too.”

I was too afraid to make a move, and even more afraid to touch him using my hand that had my own piss on it, so I could only extend the tip of my tongue out, as I licked the palm of his hand in an attempt to curry favour with my tongue.

From right next to my ear came Sheng Min Ou’s soft and husky laugh, a laugh that triggered all the alarms in my body. It was as if all of a sudden I had been seized by a gripping terror that was experienced by herbivores when an overwhelming predator had descended upon them.

In the next moment, Sheng Min Ou gripped forcefully at the sides of my cheeks, without holding back at all. I almost thought that my cheekbones were going to be crushed and broken by him, as I let out a painful yelp in response. 

The hand on my face trailed slowly downwards, until it had closed in on my throat, “But I know that I cannot do that, because an ordinary person wouldn’t be like so.”

I leaned back in discomfort, exposing even more of my neck, vulnerable as it was already.

“Ge….” I couldn’t help but plead for mercy, even if I didn’t know what it was exactly that I had done wrong.

“Lu Feng, you have information that can be used against me, does it feel good, toying with me like this?” 

The hand on my neck continued to tighten, until I couldn’t breathe and until I was unable to open my mouth to utter another word out.

He didn’t want to hear any defences I came up for myself.

“Since you always pretend and assume an altruistic persona of ‘only I know of your unmentionable illness’, and ‘only I can help you to get out of this pit’, do you get a burst of satisfaction from it?” His voice was laced with a cold, merciless killing intent, as if all he needed was to just apply a fraction more strength to completely snap my neck in two. “You went to jail and now you’ve become so selfless, this wasn’t your train of thought previously.”

“Don’t you remember, you were also one of the people that dragged me into this abyss?” 

My eyes instantly widened, my heart thudding in pure, unadulterated pain as it was like a heavy weight had just collided with it. In addition to the sense of suffocation I felt that only worsened as time stretched on, I couldn’t help it when out of physiological reflex, a single tear rolled down the corner of my eye.

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