CH 21

Liu Qiang opened and closed his mouth, his gaze uncontrollably drifting back to the recording pen that was currently on.

It was clear that this pen was causing him some psychological pressure. Liu Qiang’s fingers clenched and then relaxed, his eyes darting rapidly from side to side.

Jiang Heng watched him quietly, carefully observing his expressions, eye movements, and breathing rate without rushing him.

However, Li Linghua’s patience was much less than Jiang Heng’s. She took a sip of water and discontentedly kicked Liu Qiang’s ankle.

“What’s wrong, too scared to speak?” Li Linghua coldly chuckled, “You dare lie to me, but in front of a lawyer, you can’t repeat your lies?”

“Nonsense,” Liu Qiang instinctively retorted, “I was just thinking… I had been drinking that day, and I’m afraid that what I say might be off, misleading everyone.”

“Take your time,” Jiang Heng gestured for calm, smiling as he advised, “We need to notarize the evidence later, so it’s indeed wise to be cautious about what you say.”

“I… I did say it at the time,” Liu Qiang said, “I told the young doctor.”

“The attending physician?” Jiang Heng said, “Are you sure you remember saying it?”

“I’m sure, I didn’t drink much.” As he spoke the first sentence, the rest flowed more smoothly. Liu Qiang seemed intentionally determined to show something in front of Li Linghua and firmly stated, “I said it right at the entrance of the emergency room to him, and I said it twice.”

“Were there others present at the time?” Jiang Heng asked, “Other medical staff or such.”

“No, but Zhou Fang was there.”

At the mention of this name, Liu Qiang’s shoulders tensed for a moment, and he subconsciously glanced at Li Linghua’s expression.

As expected, Li Linghua gave a cold smile, but since she was in the midst of questioning, she held back from attacking.

Liu Qiang mustered his courage and continued, “I don’t remember much about the others. There were quite a few people in the emergency room at the time. I don’t know how many heard us talking.”

Jiang Heng nodded and continued, “Who filled out the surgery informed consent form?”

“Zhou Fang,” Liu Qiang said.

“You were there at the time, so why wasn’t it you who filled it out?” Jiang Heng asked.

“I don’t know,” Liu Qiang hastily waved his hand and said, “I… I can’t remember well, it seems they didn’t give it to me.”

“They directly gave it to Ms. Zhou Fang?” Jiang Heng confirmed.

“Ah…” Liu Qiang vaguely nodded, “Seems so, I was too anxious at the time, couldn’t help wiping away my tears, I don’t remember looking at the form myself. Not long after I arrived, they asked me a few questions and then took Xiao Wen away, saying they needed to save him.”

“Attorney Jiang, that woman clearly had ill intentions.” Li Linghua couldn’t hold back and interjected, “She had been hoping for Xiao Wen to die early, she’s the one who harmed Xiao Wen.”

“Ms. Li, I understand your emotions, but you can’t make baseless accusations,” Jiang Heng said.

“I have evidence!” Li Linghua said, remembering something. She wiped away a tear, turned around and went upstairs, returning moments later holding a file folder.

“I hired a private detective to investigate that woman, she confessed in person, saying she wanted to get rid of Xiao Wen before the divorce!” Li Linghua handed the file folder to Jiang Heng, saying, “That doctor must be her accomplice!”

Jiang Heng was slightly taken aback, clearly surprised by this turn of events. He held the file folder in his hand, briefly glanced inside, and found that apart from documents and a stack of photos, there was also a small USB drive.

Jiang Heng furrowed his brow slightly, feeling that things had become a bit complicated.

Li Linghua gave Liu Qiang a harsh glare, her eyes reddening again.

“What kind of cunning woman did you get involved with!” Li Linghua couldn’t help but throw a cushion at him, saying fiercely, “You two must be in cahoots to harm us remaining, mother and daughter!”

“You can’t say that,” Liu Qiang weakly retorted, “…I didn’t expect her to be so ruthless.”

Li Linghua’s emotions seemed on the brink of collapsing, and Li Nan had to step forward to separate the two.

Jiang Heng observed coldly from the sidelines, realizing Li Nan was right—Li Linghua still held some trust in Liu Qiang. So, even if she said things like accusing him of being unfaithful and a murderer, deep down, she was still willing to listen to his explanations.

On the other hand, Li Linghua was the victim, she was Li Wen’s biological mother, but unfortunately, she wasn’t present when the incident happened. Thus, the crucial points of the case were focused on Liu Qiang.

Whether he had provided critical information, and whether he had refused to sign the surgery consent form, were important details needed to determine the nature of the case.

The question of whether Ji Yao was severely irresponsible, leading to the patient’s injury and death, or if it was an accident; whether it violated regulations or was an emergency response—all depended on Liu Qiang’s behavior at the time the incident happened.

Unfortunately, the CCTV at the emergency room entrance couldn’t capture the communication and what was said. To determine the truth, more evidence was needed.

Jiang Heng had asked what he wanted to know during this visit. He stopped the recording pen, then put it away along with the two sets of documents.

Both Li Linghua and Liu Qiang’s emotions were unstable at the moment. Jiang Heng had no intention to act as a mediator. He found a chance to leave during this temporary truce between Li Linghua and Liu Qiang.

Li Nan wanted to escort him to the courtyard gate, but Jiang Heng politely stopped, gesturing for her to stay.

“Attorney Jiang, regardless of the circumstances, Xiaowen is Li Linghua’s beloved son,” Li Nan said, “Please make sure to do your best to hold the one responsible accountable. Get justice for Xiaowen.”

“Of course,” Jiang Heng said, “It’s my duty.”

He said this, nodded slightly to Li Nan, and then politely took his leave.

…………….

At 11:30 in the evening, the lights in Guojin Center were still on.

The office on the 23rd floor facing south was brightly lit, and a thin beam of light sliced through the narrow gap in the door, dividing the tiles outside into two halves.

Gao Jingyi walked past the public office area, his peripheral vision casually sweeping the corridor beside him, feeling a bit surprised.

“Is Director Jiang working late tonight?” he casually asked the colleague beside him.

“He just arrived in the evening.” The young girl also craned her neck to look inside and said, “He’s been here for a little over two hours.”

Gao Jingyi took in a breath of cold air, unsure whether to praise his dedication or criticize his overzealousness.

Gao Jingyi said, “Every one of you here is a workaholic. Why do you need to burn the midnight oil for every major case?”

The intern hesitated, not daring to say that he had brought back the wrong documents and had to return to exchange them. Instead, he shifted the blame onto Jiang Heng.

“It’s about that previous case with Xiao Liu.” The intern said, “Mr. Jiang came over after he was discharged from the hospital to ask for some documents.”

Gao Jingyi furrowed his brows and said, “Isn’t that just a minor medical dispute case? Is it worth working overtime like this?”

“Not quite.” The intern shook his head and lowered his voice carefully, saying, “I have a feeling things have become complicated. When I brought in coffee just now, I saw the general principles of Criminal Law Codification on Mr. Jiang’s desk.”