Pretending To Be Affectionate [Transmigration] - Chapter 22

Gu Qing’s demeanor as a trainee attorney assisting in court differed from how she usually behaved.

She sat quietly beside the defense attorney, Cai Dong.

Her long lashes were half-lowered as she surrendered the leading role entirely to the lawyer beside her.

Yet Gu Qing herself remained as steady as an anchor stabilizing the sea. With complete composure, she observed every minute emotion and change among the witnesses, presiding judge, and members of the judicial panel.

She held a pen in her right hand and rapidly wrote down various strategies for responding.

During the first half of the confrontation between the prosecution and defense, Ling Yu noticed that whenever the prosecution raised a particularly difficult question, Gu Qing would slide a document toward Cai Dong.

The two appeared to have worked together countless times. They cooperated seamlessly, matching each other’s rhythm.

Cai Dong controlled his speaking pace, keeping it calm and unhurried.

Jiang Wei’s guilt was practically indisputable, yet Cai Dong effortlessly twisted black into white with his eloquence.

The witness seated opposite him was Yan Shu’s father.

After enduring his repeated cross-examination, the man was already covered in sweat.

“Did you know the nature of your daughter’s work?”

…

“Considering the work she did, did she ever discuss any men she encountered with you?”

…

Cai Dong’s increasingly aggressive questioning gradually caused Yan Shu’s father to lose control of his emotions.

“My daughter was a respectable person! Although she worked at a club, she always conducted herself properly. Ever since she was young, she never maintained close relationships with men… She even strongly disliked allowing them to stand too close to her.”

Cai Dong accepted the page Gu Qing passed him.

When he raised his head, he summarized for the judge:

“In other words, Yan Shu maintained her distance from the opposite sex from childhood, and this continued until she was nineteen. Is that correct?”

…

The overwhelmingly one-sided questioning nearly forced Yan Shu’s father to reveal every piece of testimony disadvantageous to the prosecution.

After he finished testifying, the court summoned the case’s newest witness, Li Juan.

Li Juan wore a dark-red dress. Despite the heavy makeup covering her face, traces of an unresolved hangover remained visible.

She seemed never to have experienced a scene like this before and instinctively shrank her neck.

Her gaze first settled on Gu Qing.

Then she surveyed the courtroom and discovered Ling Yu.

Ling Yu smiled at her.

However, Li Juan swiftly looked away and lowered her head like a child ashamed of having done something wrong.

The prosecution asked her several questions.

Then it was Cai Dong’s turn again.

This time, he did not look toward Gu Qing. He seemed entirely confident, as though he had rehearsed everything countless times.

One question followed another.

Li Juan cooperated fully with her answers.

“You and Yan Shu lived together for quite some time, correct?”

Li Juan nodded.

“You frequently went out holding hands, shopping, eating, and singing karaoke together.”

Li Juan nodded again, though gray despair covered her face.

“Did the two of you ever sleep in the same bed?”

“Did you ever do anything together that only romantic partners would normally do?”

“Objection.”

The prosecution attorney stood.

“Your Honor, the defense is engaging in malicious speculation.”

After receiving a warning from the presiding judge, Cai Dong looked back toward Gu Qing.

However, she gave him no response.

Ling Yu sat in the front row of the public gallery and clearly observed every change in Gu Qing.

From the moment Li Juan appeared, Gu Qing’s calm, composed bearing had vanished completely.

Her fingers now tapped against the table. Her azure eyes were heavy as she glanced sideways at Cai Dong.

Then she leaned back against her chair, lowered her eyes, and appeared to rest.

This meant she had no intention of continuing to assist him.

For the first time during a hearing, Gu Qing had abandoned the matter halfway through.

She was clearly furious.

Cai Dong understood the reason.

The Jiang family had used its influence to locate Li Juan. Through threats and inducements, they forced her to testify in court.

Before this, however, Gu Qing had agreed to help the Jiang family only under the condition that they cease persecuting the witness.

Now that Li Juan had appeared in court, Cai Dong could imagine Gu Qing’s rage.

He had also participated in the arrangement.

When he imagined what would happen to him afterward, the flesh across his face trembled three times.

He rearranged his expression, hardened himself, and looked away before continuing his questioning.

However, without Gu Qing’s strategic direction, his questions became increasingly aggressive and began striking Li Juan’s most vulnerable moral boundary.

Toward the end of the questioning, Li Juan grew increasingly resistant.

The prosecution attorney repeatedly objected.

Cai Dong began struggling to respond.

He therefore requested permission from the judge to submit physical evidence.

Ling Yu raised an eyebrow and watched as the recording pen was played before everyone in the courtroom.

It contained the conversation from the night Li Juan first attempted to seduce Gu Qing at the bar.

“Do you like me?”

The moment Gu Qing’s voice emerged, Li Juan’s face turned deathly pale.

She abruptly stood, knocking over the chair behind her, and glared furiously at Jiang Wei.

“My best friend, Yan Shu, was strangled to death by him with a restraint rope! I saw it myself! Every statement I made just now was something Jiang Wei forced me to provide—”

Before she could finish, Cai Dong interrupted.

“The witness is emotionally agitated, speaking irrationally, and has lost her composure. Your Honor, I request that she be temporarily removed from the courtroom.”

The request was clearly unreasonable.

Ling Yu crossed her arms and waited for the spectacle to unfold.

Unexpectedly, after several minutes of discussion, the presiding judge and judicial panel granted Cai Dong’s request.

Ling Yu frowned sharply and instinctively looked across the aisle toward Gu Qing.

Half the woman’s face was concealed in shadow. No one could tell what she was thinking.

Her fair fingers rested against the table, tapping at irregular intervals as though concealing the coldness in her heart beneath the sound.

When Li Juan was escorted outside, triumph flashed through Cai Dong’s eyes.

“Your Honor, this recording pen proves that the witness, Li Juan, is a lesbian.”

Overcome by satisfaction, he delivered part of his prepared concluding statement ahead of time.

He regretted it as soon as he finished speaking.

Fortunately for him, someone pressed the button to continue playing the recording.

“Do you like me?”

“I don’t.”

“Are you a lesbian?”

“Of course not.”

…

The four lines played repeatedly.

The confident, effortless smile on Cai Dong’s face froze.

He instinctively looked toward Gu Qing for help.

She merely lowered her eyes, her cold expression carrying the mocking amusement of someone watching an idiot.

By this point, the hearing resembled a theatrical performance.

A commotion erupted in the courtroom.

Fortunately, Cai Dong stabilized himself after the initial shock.

Although the prosecution attorney subjected him to a barrage of eloquent attacks, new evidence had emerged during the proceedings, and the relationships within the case had become increasingly complicated.

After deliberating, the presiding judge and judicial panel postponed the case for three weeks.

Ling Yu raised her eyelids and glanced toward Gu Qing.

The woman leaned back against the table behind her, her face turned sideways and her expression cold.

Uneven fragments of light fell across every corner of her oval face, outlining an extraordinarily distant indifference.

As though sensing Ling Yu’s scrutiny, Gu Qing abruptly turned her head.

Across the aisle, Ling Yu clearly saw the all-knowing coldness within her beautiful phoenix eyes.

She knew Ling Yu had done it.

Ling Yu was certain.

She provocatively curved her lips toward Gu Qing and silently mouthed:

“Sister, I won’t allow you to hurt anyone ever again.”

Gu Qing stared at her incredulously.

Her previously emotionless eyes filled with contempt for a self-righteous fool.

As Ling Yu had expected, those clear eyes were no longer indifferent.

Instead, they resembled those of an enraged monster. Wickedness spread through them, and the sticky darkness of deep-sea algae nearly dripped from her gaze.

Ling Yu thought rebelliously that Gu Qing was extremely angry.

The undefeated Attorney Gu had suffered her first courtroom defeat.

She certainly had a reason to be furious.

Fearlessly courting death, Ling Yu curved her lips.

Just as the presiding judge announced the end of the hearing, she removed a piece of candy from her pocket and tossed it through the crowd toward Gu Qing’s wide coat pocket.

Unfortunately, her aim was inaccurate.

Gu Qing stood among the crowd, giving the criminal-law team instructions about their follow-up work.

The candy suddenly struck her back.

She seemed not to notice. Without even glancing at it, she calmly continued assigning tasks.

After the hearing, Sister Wang brought Ling Yu to the courthouse administrative office to complete several follow-up procedures related to the case.

By the time they finished, approximately half an hour had passed.

Ling Yu had assumed Gu Qing had already left. However, upon returning to the first-floor lobby, she happened to catch sight of the woman’s retreating figure.

Ling Yu excused herself to Sister Wang and followed Gu Qing toward the restroom.

Unexpectedly, Li Jun and Cai Dong intercepted Gu Qing along the way.

A fire passage was located near the restroom. The two men standing before Gu Qing were red-faced with anger.

Ling Yu could not approach too closely, so she heard only fragments.

Li Jun demanded, “You did it, didn’t you, Gu Qing?”

“You’re the only person who could have replaced the recording.”

“How could you be so foolish? Do you think the Jiang family will spare you once they discover the truth?”

“I never imagined you would go back on your word.”

Gu Qing’s pale lips pressed together.

Only after the two men finished questioning her did she slowly raise her head.

Her gaze drifted lightly across them.

A moment later, she said faintly, “You were the ones who went back on your word behind my back.”

She looked at them like two idiots dancing across her bottom line.

Her gaze seemed almost tangible as it settled on their bodies.

Then she swept her waterfall-like curls behind her and turned away expressionlessly.

Ling Yu made a questioning sound, her expression somewhat dazed.

Gu Qing clearly knew Ling Yu had tampered with the recording pen.

Yet Gu Qing, who had always been harsh and self-serving, had not exposed her before Li Jun and Cai Dong.

Why?

Even after boarding the bus returning to the law firm, Ling Yu continued pondering the question.

The bus was far quieter than it had been during the morning journey.

Aside from the occasional sound of the driver turning the steering wheel, the interior remained almost completely silent.

The hearing had gone poorly, so the members of the criminal-law team, led by Cai Dong, were all in foul moods.

Even Sister Wang had stopped gossiping with the younger women behind them.

Ling Yu propped her chin on both hands and stared absently at the scenery outside.

The bus driver abruptly braked and stopped at the final pedestrian crossing before the law firm.

“Ah, Attorney Gu has only just returned too.”

Sister Wang glanced outside and sighed.

“She must be in a terrible mood after today’s hearing…”

She looked toward Cai Dong in the front row, and her voice abruptly stopped.

Ling Yu tactfully changed the subject.

“Sister Wang, you’re incredible. How did you know Attorney Gu had only just returned? She didn’t travel with us.”

Amused by the question, Sister Wang raised a hand and pointed toward the silver-gray Porsche stopped in the lane to the right of the bus.

“Look. That’s the car the firm provided for Attorney Gu.”

Ling Yu followed her finger.

When she saw the distinctive globally limited-edition silver-gray Porsche, with three zeros at the end of its license plate, the laziness in her eyes froze.

A moment later, she suppressed her emotions and turned toward Sister Wang.

“Does Attorney Gu ordinarily drive it herself?”

“Of course.”

Sister Wang began explaining the company’s policies.

As one of the firm’s core figures over the past two years, Gu Qing received basic benefits such as a car and residence. A portion was deducted from her dividends, and the assets were registered under her name as rewards.

Ling Yu’s expression became dazed.

She thought of the possibility that the person standing outside the old residence the previous night had been Gu Qing.

For a moment, she could not concentrate.

She responded distractedly to Sister Wang.

“That makes sense. I’ve certainly never seen another company reward an employee with a limited-edition silver Porsche. Director Li treats Attorney Gu extremely well.”

“Exactly.”

Receiving a response only increased Sister Wang’s enthusiasm.

She had always enjoyed researching luxury cars, expensive watches, and related gossip. When she mentioned Gu Qing’s Porsche, her eyes seemed filled with stars.

“This Porsche is a globally limited edition. Director Li originally prepared a red Maserati as Attorney Gu’s year-end bonus. Later, he learned that Attorney Gu likes everything white.”

“Except for her clothes, almost all her personal belongings are white. Her keychain, lunch box, glittering transparent umbrella…”

“Wait.”

Sister Wang made a questioning sound and looked at Ling Yu in surprise.

Ling Yu’s pitch-black eyes abruptly met hers, their darkness startlingly intense.

“What kind of umbrella does Gu Qing like?”

Sister Wang hesitantly repeated, “A transparent umbrella with white glitter. Is something wrong?”

“One like this?”

Ling Yu had brought a backpack that day.

She placed it on her lap, opened the zipper, and removed the folding umbrella from the previous night.

Sister Wang exclaimed in surprise.

“Xiao Ling, why do you have Attorney Gu’s umbrella? She absolutely hates other people touching her belongings…”

Ling Yu lifted her eyelids and suddenly felt her throat grow dry.

Everything that happened the previous night connected inside her mind, each event becoming vividly clear.

She remained silent for a long time.

Then she abruptly took out her phone and sent a WeChat message to “Kaihe Law Firm Gu.”

[We need to talk.]

Five minutes later, Gu Qing refused:

[There’s no need.]

Ling Yu chuckled softly.

[Wouldn’t it be better to be more honest with yourself? I merely want to return your umbrella and thank you in person.]

[Oh, right—the umbrella! The transparent one with glitter from yesterday!]

[If meeting me is inconvenient, I happen to be visiting the hospital in a few days. Would you like me to leave it with your brother?]

This time, Gu Qing’s reply arrived almost immediately.

[Ling Yu, don’t attempt to provoke me.]

Ling Yu stared at her phone without moving.

Ten minutes later, “Kaihe Law Firm Gu” sent another message:

[Address.]

Seated aboard the bus, Ling Yu suddenly curved her lips.

Specks of starlight filled her foxlike eyes.