Too Bad I Take Things Seriously

Some people even opened a betting pool.

Placing bets in secret.

The odds were basically one-sided, everyone was betting on him to win.

At this moment...

If he turned around and bet on himself being eliminated in the first round, he might actually make a huge profit.

But...

Compared to the system’s reward, that bit of money really wasn’t worth mentioning.

...

The next day.

Early in the morning.

Qin Mu went together with Zhang Wei to the conference center to attend the second day of the national lawyers’ exchange conference.

Unlike the first day.

This day’s exchange conference required a lawyer’s letter to get in, so there wouldn’t be the same kind of "lively" scene as yesterday.

As for Wang Dachui...

After being busy like a dog the first day, he had been snoring away in his room the whole time.

He didn’t have an invitation letter.

There was no way for him to enter the venue again.

So he just completely slacked off.

"Today is mainly the exchange session, and also to discuss some legal provisions and theories..."

On the way.

Having done his homework thoroughly, Zhang Wei introduced to Qin Mu, "We’re both in the field of criminal defense, so we’ll probably be assigned to the criminal law theory group."

The second day’s exchange...

Was essentially about widely collecting the experience and suggestions of top lawyers, and putting forward proposals to improve the current legal provisions and theoretical foundations.

Given that there were over a hundred invited lawyers.

They were usually divided into small groups according to their areas of expertise, to hold separate discussions.

As they talked.

Zhang Wei couldn’t help glancing at Qin Mu and suddenly asked, "By the way, have you prepared your speech?"

Qin Mu was stunned for a moment.

Then he gave a wry smile and said, "I’m not very good at theory."

This segment...

He really hadn’t prepared for it, and he didn’t plan to speak.

Zhang Wei: "..."

Looking at Qin Mu’s slightly awkward expression.

If he didn’t know Qin Mu inside out, he would almost have believed him.

Maybe Qin Mu really wasn’t good at theory.

But...

All those utterly insane things he’d done before—who could pull that off without a solid theoretical foundation?

"This is a good opportunity, you should make good use of it."

Zhang Wei looked at Qin Mu with a complicated expression and tactfully reminded him again.

If he could put forward constructive opinions...

He might win Mr. Huang’s recognition; resources, connections, and status would all be within reach.

Soon.

The two of them arrived at the venue and saw the other gold-medal lawyers.

Just as Zhang Wei had expected.

The other gold-medal lawyers were quite hostile toward Qin Mu; many of them were secretly sizing him up.

And after a round of grouping...

He and Qin Mu were both assigned to the criminal law theory group.

Besides the two of them, there were another eight gold-medal lawyers who specialized in criminal law.

Among them was...

Zhao Baiqin, who had previously taken the initiative to talk to Qin Mu.

"We meet again."

Zhao Baiqin was very naturally sociable and once again took the initiative to walk over to Qin Mu and Zhang Wei.

Qin Mu nodded.

Zhang Wei had introduced him to all the gold-medal lawyers invited this time, including Zhao Baiqin.

With the [Photographic Memory] skill.

He had every gold-medal lawyer’s information down pat.

Zhao Baiqin specialized in criminal cases involving not-guilty defenses, and had helped over a hundred people win acquittals, including in violent offenses, domestic violence cases, abandonment crimes, and so on.

The other lawyers assigned to the same group as him...

Were all also experts in criminal defense.

The most experienced lawyer had actually handled over a thousand criminal cases.

"Alright, let’s start the discussion."

As a regular gold-medal lawyer at the lawyers’ exchange conference, once Zhao Baiqin saw that everyone had arrived.

He took the initiative to rally them: "We’re all specialists in criminal law here, so there’s no need to hold back in this exchange; everyone can speak freely."

The group exchanged glances.

Then all took their seats.

They looked down at the drafts they had prepared.

Not long after.

The first lawyer stood up: "I’ve handled a lot of animal protection cases over the years, and I’ve always felt that domestic protections in this area are far too strict..."

He began giving examples and elaborating on his views.

In the Criminal Law.

There are more than a dozen charges involving animal protection.

Although in recent years, under the suggestions of many professionals, they’ve been continuously improved.

When it comes to handling some negligent offenses, or acts where the circumstances are not serious and the harm caused is minor, the approach is overly harsh.

It’s completely mechanical law enforcement.

"This year I’ve handled two special cases involving juvenile offenders. On certain issues related to juvenile crime, there should be more detailed classifications and case-by-case treatment; we can’t just be lenient across the board..."

Half an hour later.

The second lawyer voluntarily stood up to speak, and also gave suggestions for improving this kind of issue.

His focus was juvenile delinquency.

This point of view...

instantly won the approval of quite a few lawyers.

Even Zhao Baiqin couldn’t help praising it again and again, nodding repeatedly.

They were all criminal defense lawyers.

The type of cases they dealt with most...

were actually juvenile crimes.

Exactly.

This kind of case made up the largest share of everything they handled.

Next came drunk driving, DUI and the like.

A lot of juvenile offenses...

The prosecution basically turned a blind eye, let it slide, and chose not to indict.

"These past few years I’ve been focusing on financial crimes, I think..."

Then.

The third lawyer started speaking.

Zhang Wei spoke fourth, also sharing the experience he’d gained over many years in criminal defense, along with some suggestions.

Four hours later.

Everyone had finished speaking one by one.

The one who spoke the most was none other than Zhao Baiqin, who put forward three long-winded proposals to improve the Criminal Law.

Except...

Qin Mu.

From beginning to end.

Qin Mu just sat in his seat, ears perked, listening intently, but never saying a word.

He didn’t take part in the discussion at all.

Zhao Baiqin frowned and couldn’t help asking, "Lawyer Qin, you were specially invited in by Mr. Huang, and you’ve fought quite a few cases. I wonder, regarding the current Criminal Law... do you have any suggestions?"

After what happened yesterday.

He’d been secretly keeping an eye on Qin Mu, thinking of him as a strong rival.

Yet...

In this discussion session, Qin Mu didn’t say a single word.

He couldn’t help suspecting whether Qin Mu was just an overhyped name.

"Well... I actually don’t have much to suggest."

Qin Mu shrugged, speaking very straightforwardly.

He honestly hadn’t known there would be this segment, so he hadn’t prepared anything at all.

"You’re being modest, Lawyer Qin. You’ve handled so many cases, and you’re so famous online. You must have a more unique take on the Criminal Law than we do."

Zhao Baiqin stared at Qin Mu and continued to "seek advice" from him in front of everyone.

Qin Mu gave Zhao Baiqin a glance.

He instantly understood what the man was up to.

This was meant to embarrass him in public.

However...

He’d never had much interest in this kind of empty reputation.

So he simply ignored him.

He stood up.

And walked out of the conference room.

Leaving behind Zhao Baiqin and a group of...

gold-medal lawyers all looking at each other in dismay.

"What the hell is with this guy? Isn’t his specialty also criminal law? How could he come with nothing prepared?"

"If you ask me, he probably thinks we’re beneath him and can’t be bothered to talk to us."

"His reputation is definitely blown out of proportion. At most those two ’suing-the-whole-internet’ cases are real, and for those all you need is enough money, not much skill!"

"Did Mr. Huang misjudge him? Whatever, he’ll show his true colors in the mock trial tomorrow! An intern is still just an intern!"

"..."

Led by Zhao Baiqin, the gold-medal lawyers were extremely displeased when they saw Qin Mu’s "eyes-only-for-himself" attitude.

They’d already been unhappy about having to exchange ideas with someone who was still just an intern lawyer.

Now Qin Mu hadn’t said a single word during the exchange session and hadn’t even prepared a script.

Clearly, he didn’t take them seriously at all.

Sure, no one was forced to speak on the second day of the exchange, but not saying even one word was a bit much.

"We’ll see what you, an intern lawyer, can really do in the mock trial tomorrow!"

With a dark expression, Zhao Baiqin muttered to himself.

The mock trial would be run as a team competition, with lots drawn according to region.

And their side, Rong City...

Besides him, three others had also received invitations.

Each specialized in a different field.

An extremely well-rounded lineup.

No matter what case they drew, they could handle it with ease.

While Qin Mu and Zhang Wei were both from Jin City.

The two of them only specialized in criminal defense.

And Qin Mu was just a flashy shell with no substance; he’d never survive the first round and would be eliminated right away!

...

Outside the venue.

Qin Mu had just stepped out when Zhang Wei hurried out after him.

He repeated what Zhao Baiqin and the others had said after Qin Mu left.

Sighing, he said, "Qin Mu, you’ve pretty much managed to offend everyone this time."

He’d stayed in the conference room the whole time.

He’d heard everything loud and clear.

What Qin Mu did had directly offended a whole bunch of people.

"All I did was not speak. It’s not like there was a rule that I had to, right? Is keeping quiet against the law now?"

Qin Mu blinked, looking completely innocent as he spoke.

When he received the invitation, nobody told him there would be this segment, let alone that he was required to speak.