After finishing all of this, Cheng Xin finally took out his phone.
Since the groundwork was already laid, the next step relied on new media dissemination methods.
Without even checking the time—which was already three in the morning—Cheng Xin directly dialed Su Mu's number.
The phone ringtone sounded exceptionally harsh in the quiet, dead of night.
After ringing three times, a thick with sleep, slightly impatient female voice came through the receiver.
"Hello? Who is this? Not sleeping in the middle of the night, are you out of your mind..."
Hearing this familiar voice, Cheng Xin felt a jolt in his heart, and his eyes even grew somewhat moist.
In his previous life, when he was framed and imprisoned, driven to a dead end,
only Su Mu had run around everywhere, trying to find a way out for him.
Although it ultimately failed, he had always kept this deep friendship etched in his heart.
Now, living a life anew, hearing her voice once again gave him an uncanny sense of a lifetime having passed.
Taking a deep breath to push down his surging emotions, Cheng Xin tried his best to make his tone sound calm and natural.
"Su Mu, it's me, Cheng Xin."
As his words fell, the increasingly harsh words on the other end of the line abruptly paused for a split second.
After two or three seconds, Su Mu's voice became somewhat more sober, carrying obvious doubt.
"Cheng Xin, is your matter completely resolved?"
"Calling so late, is something the matter?"
"Do you need my help or something, you..."
"Never mind, just send me your location, I'll come find you right now."
Hearing this, Cheng Xin had a kaleidoscope of emotions in his heart.
This woman, before he had even said anything with a single phone call, was already preparing to come over and help him of her own accord.
Could it be that in her heart, she feels something for... me?
Before Cheng Xin could ponder further, the rustling of clothes came from the other end of the line—clearly the sound of Su Mu getting dressed and out of bed.
"Hey, hey, hey, Miss Su, no need, don't go running around in the middle of the night."
"My own problems are actually completely resolved."
"It's just that there's a case right now, and I want to ask for your help."
Hearing the movement on the other end, Cheng Xin was left half-smiling and half-crying.
This girl's personality was still as rash and hot-headed as ever.
After stopping Su Mu, he cut straight to the point with concise words.
He told Su Mu the truth about Zhang Qiang's situation, Li Wei's vicious acts,
and his own current predicament, holding nothing back.
After listening, all of Su Mu's sleepiness vanished.
She was naturally extremely sensitive to injustices in society, and combined with Cheng Xin's description, it filled her with righteous indignation.
"This Li Wei is simply scum!"
"Just because he has a little power and influence, he acts however he pleases. Does he really think the law can't touch him?!"
"So, I'd like to ask for your help."
Exhaling softly, Cheng Xin spoke in a sincere tone.
"I know you hate evil like an enemy, and your current identity also makes it easier for you to access the truth."
"Coupled with your uncle's connections, our channel for making our voices heard won't easily disappear."
"I think only you can help Zhang Qiang get justice."
"No problem! I love this kind of thing the most!"
Without any hesitation, Su Mu directly agreed, her tone filled with drive.
"Send me the information, and I'll start investigating tomorrow."
"Right, let's meet tomorrow to discuss the details. You pick the place."
"Great, let's make it two o'clock tomorrow afternoon. The usual place."
Hanging up the phone, Cheng Xin let out a long breath, his tense nerves finally relaxing.
He knew that Su Mu's joining would become the key to turning the situation around.
After hanging up, Cheng Xin relaxed entirely, as if a thousand-pound burden had been lifted from him.
Pushing aside some strange thoughts in his mind, he simply washed up and fell headfirst into sleep.
This sleep was far from peaceful; the dream was filled with bizarre and kaleidoscopic scenes.
The humiliation and resentment of his previous life surged like a tide, submerging him.
At seven in the morning, the alarm went off.
The moment the alarm rang, Cheng Xin struggled to crawl out of bed.
Having slept for less than four hours, his head was still throbbing.
Boiling a random pack of instant noodles and devouring it hastily, he began contacting Zhang Qiang.
"Hello, Zhang Qiang, it's me, Cheng Xin."
"Can you come to my office today?"
"Bring the court judgment and the official ruling results."
"After all, this matter can't be dragged out; we must get a result as soon as possible."
Cheng Xin tried to make his tone sound as peaceful as possible, knowing that Zhang Qiang's current psychological state must be very fragile.
The other end of the line fell silent for a few seconds, and then Zhang Qiang's trembling voice came through.
"O-okay, Lawyer Cheng, I-I'm coming right over."
Not yet eight-thirty, a series of urgent knocks broke the peace of the office.
Cheng Xin opened the door and, seeing Zhang Qiang standing at the threshold, felt his heart sink heavily.
The real-life Zhang Qiang was even more haggard than he looked in the video.
His eye sockets were deeply sunken, bloodshot, covered in stubble, and he looked as if he had aged ten years.
Unlike the fierce, do-or-die attitude from yesterday,
now his back was hunched, his hands nervously rubbing the corner of his clothes—the spitting image of a man crushed by life.
"L-Lawyer Cheng, hello."
"I've come to cause you trouble."
Zhang Qiang's voice was hoarse and carried a trace of trembling.
Hearing him speak, Cheng Xin snapped back to reality, hurriedly welcoming him inside and pouring him a glass of water.
"Zhang Qiang, don't overthink it. You haven't caused me any trouble at all."
"Let's talk slowly."
Zhang Qiang held the cup of water with both hands, but didn't drink a single sip.
He just stared blankly at the water in the cup.
After a long while, he finally raised his head and said in a hoarse voice,
"Lawyer Cheng, I don't know what to say."
"I really don't know what to do anymore."
"I know, I know."
Cheng Xin gently patted his shoulder and sighed softly once more.
With his current insight, he could naturally tell that Zhang Qiang's mental state was already somewhat abnormal.
This was a psychological problem stemming from extreme fatigue and stress.
"How about this, show me the judgment and the ruling results first."
Zhang Qiang tremblingly pulled a stack of documents from his bosom and handed them to Cheng Xin.
Cheng Xin took the documents and carefully perused them.
After reading them, Cheng Xin's brow furrowed tightly.
This judgment and ruling were simply a desecration of the law!
According to what Zhang Qiang had described, it was clearly Li Wei who attempted to sexually assault Zhang Qiang's wife on a high floor.
As a result of the struggle, Zhang Qiang's wife fell from the building and died.
Yet, because of Li Wei's power and connections, the final ruling turned out to be that Zhang Qiang's wife had jumped to her death!
"This—this is simply absurd!"
Unable to suppress his burning anger, Cheng Xin slammed his hand hard onto the table.
Zhang Qiang jumped in fright, and the water glass in his hand fell to the ground, shattering into pieces.
"Lawyer Cheng, please don't be angry. Actually, I knew there was no hope."
Calming his breathing, Zhang Qiang's tone was once again filled with despair.
"Coming to see you today was actually a decision I made last night."
"After all, I promised you and couldn't break my word, but I actually knew nothing could be changed."
"I just can't understand why—why the law can't protect us honest people."