Chapter 68:
During the days Lin Qi started renovating his new house, there were changes in Michael's case.
The first person who stepped forward wasn't Lin Qi or Michael; it was his good partner, the deputy of the tax investigation team in Sabin City. They had been working together for twelve or thirteen years. Many saw him as Michael's close brother, and they shared almost everything.
Unexpectedly, this partner came forward and confessed some "details" not known to the media before. According to him, the conflict between Michael and Lin Qi stemmed from an accidental "encounter."
"We were walking down the street when Lin Qi was pushing a cart filled with dirty clothes on the sidewalk. Michael pointed at Lin Qi and said to me, 'Hey, look at that guy, let's mess with him.'"
In front of the camera, the partner revealed a pained, regretful expression. "I thought he was joking, but he was clearly serious. He took me along, without any reason, search warrant, arrest warrant, or any legal documents, and attacked Mr. Lin Qi."
"He told me to search the cart to find something to incriminate Mr. Lin Qi, while he took Mr. Lin Qi into a corner of the alley and assaulted him..."
Reporters gasped, finding it hard to fathom the level of hatred that could lead an adult to be so brutal towards a young man.
One reporter couldn't resist standing up, "Sir, did Michael and Lin Qi know each other before this? Was there any animosity between them?"
The partner shook his head, "They didn't know each other. Whether there was animosity, I don't know. Maybe Michael himself knows the reason." He then continued detailing Michael's "violence," including threatening and beating a News Head until he spat blood.
Such revelations highlighted Michael's brutality and cruelty, leaning media and public opinion towards seeing him as a problematic investigator accustomed to using violence even against innocent civilians.
Later, Director Johnson personally appeared, expressing regrets for his poor judgment. He had hoped Michael would change, inadvertently indulging Michael's actions, and he acknowledged his responsibility for the situation.
For a while, whether it was Michael's friends, his partner, his subordinates, or those who knew him, all were subjected to media interviews. The results of these interviews were mostly consistent Michael was found to have serious violent tendencies, and his temper was extremely quick and volatile.
Even when interviewing Michael's father, the reporters were chased away with a double-barreled shotgun, turning Michael's family into a new focus "How Violent Can an Individual Be?"
The issue of whether law enforcement powers were excessive shifted away from Michael's case to scrutinizing Michael himself. Many questioned why his friends and colleagues didn't warn him about his temper earlier, with some admitting they were afraid he'd beat them.
The swift turn of public opinion pleased the Federal Tax Bureau; there were no more annoying calls from politicians shouting about putting power in cages. People were now condemning Michael, which was good.
Less than a week after Lin Qi bought the house, Michael's case went to trial.
Lin Qi, as a primary and known victim, needed to be present as a witness; perhaps he could contribute.
The trial didn't follow an open hearing format due to the potential interference of numerous media outlets. Officially, it was to ensure the correctness of the trial's outcome.
The combined force of the Federal Bureau Of Investigation and the Federal Tax Bureau was enough to alert the Department of Justice. A day before, the Department of Justice issued a request for a closed trial to the Sabin City's City Court.
As it wasn't a major criminal case, categorized as a common assault, there was no need for a juryonly the defendant, the defense lawyer, and the judge.
The courtroom was spacious, and Lin Qi, sitting in the gallery, observed Michael, who seemed to have hastily groomed himself, with a pale face and disheveled hair, looking worn out.
The judge asked more than a dozen questions. Except for a few Michael refused to answer, he admitted to most and pleaded guilty.
The court pronounced the verdict immediately, sentencing him to eighty-seven months, equivalent to seven years and three months.
Considering Michael's past as a law enforcement officer in Sabin City, where he had sent some people to prison himself, for his safety, he would serve his sentence in a more tightly regulated state prison.
Though Michael was somewhat surprised by the sentence, he didn't appeal. The judge didn't restrict his parole terms during the pronouncement, meaning his actual time behind bars might be less than seven years.
According to federal laws, he could reduce his sentence through various means to below three years. Then, citing the "Special Talent Recruitment Act," the Federal Tax Bureau could "recruit" Michael, find a suitable place for him, and he would regain his freedom.
In reality, he might spend less than three years in prison, a result personally assured by Director Johnson, so Michael saw no need to appeal.
Appealing could lead to a state court trial, potentially worsening the situation. Federal judges in sentencing were quite subjective. If they deemed Michael's appeal as uncontrollable aggression against the court and the law, it could increase the sentence and limit parole.
With the trial concluded, the media quickly got the verdict, and within a day, the entire federal jurisdiction knew the result. People, after a brief period of collective justice, moved on to new topics.
The storm subsided from public view, and it seemed like a happy ending for everyone.
Director Johnson received praise from the state office, Michael's partner was promoted to the head of the investigation team, and there were changes among the team members. Those behind the scenes were content to lay low, and the public, having witnessed the drama, left satisfied.
Everyone left contentedly, a rather ironic outcome.
"Mr. Lin Qi!"
Just as Lin Qi escaped the persistent reporters, walking about a hundred meters, two kids with dirty baseball caps blocked his path. He recognized one, the boy who once exchanged ninety-seven cents for a buck, a newsboy.
Lin Qi casually put his hands in his pockets, feeling a pen inside. With a slight push of his fingers, he removed the cap. There was a story of someone saying, "The pen is mightier than the sword," while killing a guy. He wasn't sure if he was that fierce, but it gave him a bit of confidence.
He had watched these kids stab the News Head to death that night. The hidden fangs these kids possessed were more unsettling than their pitiful appearance.
"How can I help you?" Lin Qi wore a smile; he always did, as if the weather was always good, and the sun was always shining brightly.
The two boys exchanged glances, and one tapped his backpack. "Sir, I have a lot of change here. Do you need it?"
After the death of the News Head, these kids had temporary liberty, but only temporarily because things quickly changed.
They needed to send the money earned by the kids to their families or the orphanage for employing them on time and manage some connections in society.
While they could take the wages meant for the orphanage and their families themselves, they were powerless regarding social connections. This left them without newspapers as the news agency refused to wholesale newspapers to underage individuals.
Simultaneously, the scrap collection station presented problems. They constantly lowered prices. Initially, they could earn twenty or thirty bucks or even more daily from selling scrap; now, they barely got a few bucks, and if they argued, the station would refuse to buy from them. This caused panic among the kids, and if they couldn't resolve their current predicament, their guardians would soon send them elsewhere. Please vote for this novel at /series/blackstone-code/
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This 𝓬ontent is taken from fre𝒆webnove(l).𝐜𝐨𝗺