At the beginning, Qin Mu would still express opinions on behalf of others. But later on, Qin Mu himself grew exhausted. He simply threw in the towel, and everyone took turns to express their opinions. In a nutshell, having participated in this litigation process, they all felt completely drained.
"It’s okay! Just thinking about getting them all locked up gives all the motivation I need!" Qin Mu took a deep breath, his spirits lifted.
Liang Chengbin: "..."
Bai Xuelan: "..."
Hua Li: "..."
The three of them looked deeply at Qin Mu, admiration showing in their eyes. It was one thing for these trolls to curse them, but they even provoked Qin Mu! Given his dedication, it wouldn’t be unjust if these trolls were sent to prison.
「The next day.」
At 10 a.m., the trial proceeded as normal.
With six courtrooms holding trials simultaneously, the efficiency of processing the 3,200 defendants was greatly improved. In just one day, over six hundred people had been tried.
Qin Mu and his team were constantly rushing between courtrooms, becoming the busiest people in the entire courthouse. In every courtroom, one could see the figures of Qin Mu and his team shuttling back and forth.
One troll after another waited to face their prosecution. Most of these defendants chose to apologize, seeking a chance to reduce their sentences. Only by apologizing could they demonstrate genuine remorse and a good attitude in admitting their guilt. These were all mitigating factors that could be considered for sentence reduction.
Of course, there was also a considerable number who, against their lawyers’ advice, stubbornly maintained their innocence. Their numbers were not insignificant; each lawyer had encountered several such cases.
Ti slowly ticked by. This high-intensity trial activity went on for five whole days. The 3,200 defendants had all been tried in succession.
The six courtrooms made a joint announcent: "Given the complexity of this case and the large number of people involved, the trial results for all cases will be publicly pronounced in three days!"
Afterward, Zhang Wei, Qi ZhaoYu, Ling He, and other lawyers, along with their respective defendants, left the courthouse.
Every defendant felt extrely anxious. This trial had lasted for five full days. It was torture for every individual involved. All sorts of complex emotions abounded, too nurous to list. There was regret, fear, resentnt, and even a desperate hope for a lucky break...
"Lawyer, will I be sentenced this ti?"
"I’ve already apologized as you told , but the other party doesn’t accept it. What will the court decide?"
"I really know I was wrong. Can’t you give another chance?"
"I will definitely not post recklessly online anymore. Can I avoid prison?"
Upon leaving the courthouse, the defendants all eagerly looked to their lawyers. They wanted to know the outcos of their verdicts, but their lawyers could not provide a definitive answer. They could only say they had done all they could and now must leave the rest to fate.
During these three days, many people felt they might really be going to prison. Therefore, most chose to indulge extravagantly, enjoying the companionship of family mbers while traveling and spending wildly across Jin City. Suddenly, consur spending throughout Jin City was quietly boosted.
「Three days later.」
Jin City Court once again buzzed with activity.
More than 2,900 defendants involved in the lawsuit, accompanied by their family mbers, had gathered outside the court early in the morning. In total, more than ten thousand people assembled. This spectacle attracted quite a few local onlookers from Jin City.
After the doors opened at nine o’clock, everyone headed to their respective courtrooms as directed. Six courtrooms were conducting sentencing simultaneously.
In the Second Criminal Court, Qin Mu and his three associates had also arrived punctually at the plaintiff’s bench, waiting for the sentencing.
BANG—
Zhou Quanmin struck the gavel. Everyone rose to their feet.
He declared solemnly, "The Second Criminal Court has conducted a five-day public trial of the cyberbullying incident on various online platforms initiated by Qin Mu. The verdict is as follows:
The court holds that the cyberbullying incidents on various platforms initiated by the plaintiff are of a serious nature, have significant social impact, and have caused widespread harm. After careful consideration of each defendant’s criminal conduct, and taking into account factors such as being a first-ti offender, demonstrating genuine remorse, and the cri being less severe, so received appropriately lighter punishnt.
Zhu Qingyun, for posting inappropriate comnts and invectives, inflicting verbal violence on the plaintiff Qin Mu, with wide dissemination garnering up to 78,000 likes, violated Article 246 of the Criminal Law and is found guilty of defamation. She is sentenced to three years in prison and ordered to compensate Qin Mu, Liang Chengbin, Bai Xuelan, and Hua Li with 5,000, 5,000, 3,000, and 2,000 RMB respectively."
"Zhao YueMin, for posting inappropriate comnts and invectives, inflicting verbal violence on the plaintiff Qin Mu, with wide dissemination garnering up to 21,000 likes, violated Article 246 of the Criminal Law and is found guilty of defamation. He is sentenced to two years and six months in prison and ordered to compensate Qin Mu, Liang Chengbin, Bai Xuelan, and Hua Li with 5,000, 5,000, 2,000, and 2,000 RMB respectively."
"..."
"Lu Lan, for posting inappropriate comnts and invectives, inflicting verbal violence on the plaintiff Qin Mu, with wide dissemination garnering up to 11,000 likes, violated Article 246 of the Criminal Law and is found guilty of defamation. She is sentenced to two years in prison, with a probation of two years, and ordered to compensate Qin Mu, Liang Chengbin, Bai Xuelan, and Hua Li with 3,000, 3,000, 2,000, and 2,000 RMB respectively."
"Pan Huahua, for posting inappropriate comnts and invectives... is sentenced to two years in prison, with a probation of one year..."
One after another, the sentences of the defendants were announced. Except for those with particularly heinous offenses, most defendants received a suspended sentence. As for those who were unrepentant and showed no remorse, they all received the maximum three-year sentence with no possibility of probation.
Regarding compensation, all defendants were required to pay civil damages. Higher amounts were awarded to Qin Mu and Liang Chengbin, who were the primary targets of the verbal abuse, while Bai Xuelan and Hua Li received less.
In the Second Criminal Court alone, the announcent of sentences lasted a full four hours, with a total of 471 people receiving their verdicts!
Upon hearing the verdict, many defendants couldn’t help but tremble and shed tears of joy. Probation! Those two words finally lifted the weight from their hearts.
Ever since they were served subpoenas and beca defendants, every one of them had been filled with trepidation and anxiety, fearing being sent straight to prison after conviction. Fortunately, now, due to their repentant attitudes and apologies, they had all received suspended sentences.
During these days, everyone had been consulting their lawyers and had learned a great deal about the law. Most were aware of the concept of probation, which applies to those sentenced to less than three years in prison. The person being sentenced is first declared convicted, but the execution of the sentence is suspended. Probation would last for one or two years, during which a designated supervisory agency would assess their conduct and then comprehensively evaluate whether to proceed with the execution of the original sentence. If, during this probationary period, they committed a new cri or repeated the cri of defamation, their probation would end prematurely, and both the additional penalty and the original sentence would be more severe.
On the plaintiff’s bench, Qin Mu also heard the verdict. Out of 471 people, 338 received probation. He wasn’t actually surprised by this outco.
This case involved a vast number of defendants. If all were imprisoned, the prisons wouldn’t have enough capacity for all of them. Probation was the most rational punishnt, serving as a warning while demonstrating the deterrent power of criminal law. At the sa ti, probation didn’t an an absence of punishnt; this criminal record would follow them for life, affecting not only them but their families for three generations!
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