"Up, you’re truly something else! All these old folks and the ones selling melons got locked up! Almost two hundred people!"

A few minutes later, Qing Lan sent another piece of uplifting news. Her joy was evident from her words.

"Don’t celebrate too early," Qin Mu thought for a moment and texted back. "After the medical evaluations, those unfit for detention will still await trial out of custody. Moreover, even if they are prosecuted, because there are so many elderly individuals, they are likely to receive suspended sentences."

Before a trial, suspects are usually held in detention centers. However, these centers don’t have special sections for the elderly and infirm. To avoid unnecessary complications, some elderly individuals with health problems are not detained. As for sentencing, the court will consider the overall situation and public opinion, making it unlikely for them to impose overly harsh punishments on a group of seventy-to-eighty-year-olds.

"Dealing with these elders is tough, but it’s a good thing we have Up, our behind-the-scenes mastermind!" Qing Lan sent a voice message a few seconds later, full of enthusiasm. "I’m going to prepare for the next step!"

Seeing this, Qin Mu couldn’t help but smile.

The complete method for dealing with these shameless old folks... he had already told Qing Lan in advance. Actually, what the elderly cared more about... was their reputation, or perhaps, their ’face.’

「The next day.」

In Jin City, at the nursing home, Qin Mu went to work as usual. Since Wang Dachui had resigned, he not only joined the elderly in various recreational activities and provided care but also had an additional task. Fortunately, he hadn’t encountered a single case for several days and was just slacking off every day.

"Dachui’s job... it’s so comforting to do," Qin Mu sincerely remarked. It was even more relaxing than his own job. He just sat in the office every day, occasionally handling some contract paperwork, without encountering a single case.

"By the way, Xiao Qin, I haven’t seen Xiao Wang for quite a few days. How is he doing at Zhang Wei’s law firm?"

In the afternoon, while chatting leisurely with Zhang Qingyuan, Li Weiguo, Song Tiancheng, and other seniors, they all remembered Wang Dachui almost simultaneously. Besides Qin Mu, the seniors were closest to Wang Dachui. Usually, when they watched court trials in the yard, it was Wang Dachui who helped set up the screen and adjust the broadcast.

"It seems he has started to get the hang of the job. Zhang Wei values him highly," Qin Mu shrugged and then said. Zhang Wei had been very earnest when recruiting Wang Dachui, clearly valued him highly, and offered a substantial salary. A few days had passed, so he should have settled into the work by now. In fact, with Wang Dachui’s current abilities, he could handle most cases on his own, unless he encountered a particularly tricky one. All in all, although it was a bit more tiring than the nursing home, he definitely earned much more.

However, at five o’clock that afternoon, he suddenly received an urgent message from Wang Dachui asking for help. 𝙛𝒓𝒆𝙚𝒘𝒆𝓫𝙣𝓸𝙫𝓮𝒍.𝒄𝒐𝓶

"Qin Mu, Qin Mu, urgent situation! Zhang Wei just threw a case at me, it’s absolutely ridiculous! I really don’t know how to defend it." The message was very urgent.

Qin Mu, seeing this, couldn’t help but ask, "What kind of case?"

"It’s about a minor, fifteen years old, who stole a neighbor’s car a few days ago, drove it drunk, accidentally hit someone, and then fled the scene. In the end, the person who was hit sustained critical injuries and died after unsuccessful medical treatment..." Wang Dachui quickly sent a brief description of the case. "With so many people in the law firm, Zhang Wei specifically gave this case to me, and I really don’t know from what angle to defend it."

After Qin Mu finished reading, a few frown lines appeared on his forehead. Good grief. This case... it really is outrageous.

Theft of another’s car, unlicensed drunk driving, and a hit-and-run... ultimately resulting in a death. Crucially, the perpetrator is still a minor! A single case involving several criminal acts: theft, unlicensed driving, drunk driving, causing a fatal traffic accident... and all this while being a fifteen-year-old minor.

Hmm, this case... it looks complex, but it’s actually quite simple, Qin Mu mused. He then sent a voice message back to Wang Dachui: "Firstly, individuals under fourteen years of age who commit a crime do not bear criminal responsibility. Those aged fourteen but under sixteen also do not bear criminal responsibility, except for eight specific types of offenses: intentional murder, causing serious injury or death through intentional harm, robbery, drug trafficking, arson, explosion, and releasing dangerous substances.

"Among his series of actions are the crimes of theft, dangerous driving, causing a traffic accident, and causing death. However, because he is a minor, he is not required to bear criminal responsibility for theft, dangerous driving, or causing a traffic accident. Nevertheless, it is necessary to additionally consider whether he intentionally drove into someone. If there was an intention to cause serious injury or death, then he must bear criminal responsibility for that offense. If there was no intentional motive, then he does not need to bear that criminal responsibility."

He analyzed the case in detail.

Under criminal law, both the elderly and minors receive a certain degree of clemency, especially minors. For an adult, these four offenses, if committed consecutively, would be subject to the principle of cumulative punishment, likely resulting in a prison sentence of over ten years. But for a minor... he might not bear any criminal responsibility at all.

Of course, even if the court’s judgment means no prison time, the minor must be sent to the Juvenile Detention Center for education and rehabilitation.