Chapter 768: No One Can Afford Her Life
Could the sum of Lin Family’s assets even match up to Yan Huan’s net worth? She was a successful actor and producer; she owned a large entertainment company, Lin Lang; she was a member of the Lu Family; she was a major shareholder of the Ye Family’s private airport.
The Lin Family could be considered one of the most powerful families in Xun River; which was what made Lin Shanshan bold enough to speed and knock down people. The Lin Family’s stature had a lot to do with the extended prolongation of her trial too.
But so what?
You have money and power, but she has even more money and power. She could thwart your plans of escaping the punishment of law with a simple ‘no’.
She had already stated that she was going to sue Lin Shanshan.
Lawyer Bai wiggled his mouth, trying to come up with something, but it seemed to him that nothing he said would matter anymore.
When he returned, Boss Lin immediately asked him how things went.
Lawyer Bai sighed and shook his head.
“What do you mean by that?” boomed Boss Lin, furious. He stabbed a finger at his nose. “Why should I pay you so much every month when you can’t even get something this simple done? Shanshan is my only daughter! Why do I need you if you can’t save her skin?”
Lawyer Bai looked at the finger hovering before his face and swallowed a retort.
The whole matter had come to be because of Lin Shanshan’s stupidity. What did it have to do with him? He doesn’t recall forcing Lin Shanshan to drink and drive at gunpoint.
And of all the people, why did she have to knock down Yan Huan?
“I want you to silence that Luo woman right now,” said Boss Lin. He wouldn’t let Lin Shanshan be sentenced to jail or execution, no matter what. He only had one daughter, and he wasn’t about to let that one daughter go to jail.
“I’m sorry, Mr. Lin, but I’m afraid I can’t do that,” said Lawyer Bai flatly, his head lowered and his hands crossed at his back.
That was the truth. Even with a tongue of gold and all the money in the world, he couldn’t hope to persuade the best actress in the world into backing down.
“Why not?” demanded Boss Lin, shooting up. “How much does she want?”
Lawyer Bai curled his lips so much that it hurt his eyes. It’s so hard to earn money these days. Not only did he have to beg the victims, but he also had to endure the withering scolding from his boss.
“Mr. Lin, the person whom Miss Lin had knocked down has a very high net-worth. She refused our compensations, and is intent on seeing Miss Lin jailed.”
“What?” Boss Lin narrowed his eyes. “Who is she and what’s her net worth? I don’t believe that I can’t shut her up.”
He, Lin Dashi, would never believe that a random victim would have a net worth he can’t afford. All of the victims had been pedestrians or cyclists; that woman had been riding a shabby shared bike when she got knocked down. What stature could such a wretched woman have?
Lawyer Bai did not know how to tell him. Even if he did, he wasn’t sure if he would believe him.
“Luo Lin was an alias, Mr. Lin.”
“I don’t give a shit,” said Boss Lin, impatient.
“Her name is Yan Huan,” said Lawyer Bai. “She’s an actor that won the international best actress award recently. She gets eighty million for one film, and millions and millions from endorsements. She doesn’t even take on offers from average companies. No one can afford her life.”
Boss Lin’s eyes widened as Lawyer Bai went on. Suddenly, he turned around and looked out of the window. Across the street, an advertisement was being played on a mega screen. It was no other than Yan Huan’s perfume advertisement.
Lawyer Bai didn’t feel lighter after letting the words out. Instead, he felt amused. Out all the people you could have knocked down, you had to knock down Yan Huan, didn’t you? She was only playing around with you because her injuries weren’t serious. Otherwise, she would have made your entire family famous through the media.
A blast of music blared between the two of them.
Lawyer Bai picked up his phone. When the call was over, his lips were wiggling even more miserably.
“Mr. Lin… A lawsuit has been filed against Miss Lin.”
“What?” Boss Lin turned around vehemently. “How could that be? Didn’t we have more time?”
“Well…” At this point, Lawyer Bai felt as though Lin Shanshan was courting for death. They couldn’t clean up after her mess all the time. Keep walking in the dark and you’ll eventually run into a ghost.
This time, there was no escape, not even if she somehow managed to grow a pair of wings or learned to burrow under the ground.
And why’s that?
“The chief prosecutor of Sea City is among the list of casualties.”
Boss Lin felt a buzz in his head as his blood flooded his brain. The only words he could squeeze out was: “It’s over…” Indeed, it was all over.
To Yan Huan’s surprise, the woman was taken to an unbiased court and sentenced without much defense. She was dealt with the maximum sentence of seven years, the most youthful and exciting years of a woman’s life. Due to the severity of the accident and it not being her first time, she was also stripped of her political rights. By the time she will be released, she would be nothing but a shadow of her former past.
Yan Huan pressed a milk tea cup against her face. Seven years was the maximum sentence for a traffic accident, and for her to not even get a chance to appeal… The hard-handedness of the execution reminded her of Lu Yi. He was always decisive and high-handed when it came to such things. He seldom gave defendants a chance to appeal, and even if he did, the results never changed.
The warmth from the cup thawed her cheeks. The cup was getting a little cool, but it felt comfortable against her face. She touched her fingers. They were hurting a little.
It was the frostbite again, she thought as she held her hand higher for inspection.
As expected, her fingers were swelling again. It wasn’t very obvious, but she knew by the time winter arrives she would have carrots for fingers again.
The old people were right after all. Get frostbite once and it will stay with you and revisit every year.
She put the cup down and walked to the bay window. Quietly, she sat down and peered at the nearby column of uneven buildings. Her eyes misted over at the mild prosperity of it all.