"Holy shit, is Old Tang really that badass?"
"Must be a rumor, I'm also a lawyer, and Tang Fangjing just passed the bar exam and got his license from the lawyers association a few days ago. Why would he report the lawyers association? Besides, how could the lawyers association possibly commit tax evasion?"
After all, it was just hearsay, so it didn't spread widely; more attention was on Tang Fangjing's own audience.
Even so, many fellow lawyers believed it to be a rumor and explained it away with utmost professionalism.
After all, there was no evidence online, just a single sentence.
Before netizens had the chance to ask Old Tang, he posted a photo directly.
It was a "Notice of Case Filing for Reporting Tax Violations" from the Jingzhou City Taxation Bureau. The gist was that Tang Fangjing, the tax evasion you reported to us about Jingzhou Lawyers Association, we have filed a case and are investigating.
It was accompanied by an explanation of the grounds on which he reported the tax evasion by the lawyers association.
Old Tang was now a moderately famous internet celebrity, and posting such evidence directly meant that the issue was no longer just a small stir.
"You Think It's a Serene Path": Is this actually true? The lawyers association and tax evasion have a connection? Have I gone mad or has the world gone mad? ʀᴇᴀᴅ ʟᴀᴛᴇsᴛ ᴄʜᴀᴘᴛᴇʀs ᴀᴛ N0velFire.ɴet
"Legal Beauty": The guy above, don't glamorize the profession; lawyers are human, and the lawyers association is just a self-regulatory organization of lawyers, so it's normal for such things to happen.
However, despite such explanations, the news really exploded like a bomb among onlookers, prompting them to exclaim, a scalpel to the eye—it was eye-opening!
The evidence Tang Fangjing spoke of was indeed well-founded, with corresponding legal provisions; even those who didn't understand law could tell there was definitely something wrong.
The intensity of the whole incident exploded with the appearance of another short video.
The video was a side-by-side comparison of images: on one side was a promotional photo for the Jingzhou City Lawyers Association's lecture on "Tax Policy and Financial Management" that took place a month ago, and on the other was the case filing notice from the tax authorities.
The tax authorities do not file cases for tax evasion lightly, but once they do, it's basically a signal that they're sure to find something upon investigation.
This stark contrast left people speechless, reminiscent of something that had just passed a safety inspection and then suddenly exploded...
Laid side by side, it really made you want to ask, where did all that tax study go?
How is it that you're giving lectures on taxation, yet you don't bother to wipe your own asses?
The one who put together these images was, of course, "I Like to Mix it Up"; when it came to matters related to the lawyers association, especially those concerning Tang Fangjing, she was particularly invested.
Accompanying the images was the caption: Just mentioning the law makes me want to laugh.jpg...
Then the affair took off like an untamed horse towards the trending searches, and frankly, the operations "Mix it Up" pulled off each time hit right on everyone's G-spot.
They were irresistible, really making you want to vent a few words.
Public opinion grew louder, with many netizens @-ing the Jingzhou City Lawyers Association, urging them to show themselves.
In the office of the lawyers association, Han Chengli was on the phone, constantly acknowledging the person on the other end.
"No, Director Wang, we really didn't know about this. This is how we've always done things for years, it was just mismanaged before..."
"Okay, okay, we will respond immediately. President Yin is still in hospital, okay, I understand."
After hanging up the phone, Han Chengli sighed. The voice of public opinion was growing louder, and any small incident made it difficult for their part of the lawyers association to function.
Because the focus of netizen criticism was now shifting towards Jingzhou City, mainly its judicial department.
"How'd it go, Old Han? What did they say?" asked a vice-president beside him.
"We're to respond publicly, regarding the tax evasion matter, we'll defer to the tax authority's investigation. It's not convenient to say more right now, and everyone else should be careful, especially if approached by reporters, just say they don't know anything."
This was the usual procedure when dealing with PR issues, nothing unexpected.
But what Han Chengli said next made the vice-president's heart sink.
"President Yin has volunteered to resign. We'll convene a meeting of the executive board to approve his resignation."
What? The vice-president's words got stuck in his throat—President Yin was still in the hospital, and now he'd offered to resign?
But there was no choice, with continuous waves of public opinion, someone had to take responsibility, and the president of the lawyers association was a suitable candidate.
"What should we do now?"
"Let's hold the lawyers' representative assembly early this year and have an early election,"
Upon hearing this, some ideas surfaced on the face of the former vice president. Yin Deyuan had resigned, leaving the presidency of the Lawyers Association vacant—a seat many certainly wished to fill...
Despite explicit regulations stating that the president of the Lawyers Association must not use his or her position to profit the law firm they are part of, well, everyone knows that rules are just rules.
Previously, some vice presidents of the Association were considering how to deal with Tang Fangjing. Now, there was no need to think about it anymore. A mere lawyer, how could he be more important than the president of the Lawyers Association!
Who would ascend to the position would depend on their individual capabilities.
A day quickly passed, and the tax evasion issue with the Jingzhou City Lawyers Association remained a hot topic online.
By evening, netizens got their answer. Although the Jingzhou City Lawyers Association was vague about the tax evasion, they did not outright deny it!
Most importantly, the president of the Jingzhou City Lawyers Association took the initiative to resign!
A novice lawyer who had just passed the assessment had forced the president of the Lawyers Association to resign, a scenario unimaginable among fellow lawyers.
The Association was like a father to lawyers, and while it was one thing for someone to dare to stand up against it, now someone had actually toppled this 'father'!
Although some lawyers were making sarcastic comments, their remarks wouldn't last long before being drowned out by netizens.
What everyone liked to see the most was this kind of drama, and as long as they kept an eye on Old Tang, there would never be a lack of entertainment.
In the midst of the online commotion, at Jingzhou City First Hospital, Yin Deyuan stared blankly at the messages on his phone, having learned about his own resignation from the internet.
Moreover, the vice presidents who used to visit him daily had stopped coming.
Without the aura of the president of the Lawyers Association, everyone was more or less the same—directors of the Association or senior partners, and professors at the Politics and Law University with numerous publications to their names.
Shaking his head, Yin Deyuan looked at his hands and suddenly felt old. Of course, he knew about the tax evasion of the Lawyers Association; after so many years, who didn't?
He thought of Tang Fangjing. The young man's capability was unquestionable, and Yin Deyuan felt that he was even more shrewd than some vice presidents.
And crucially, it seemed that when he practiced law, he genuinely wanted to reason things out.
Thinking more deeply, he remembered that when he started as a lawyer, he too harbored that notion...
At Shengda Law Firm, Director Wu stared at the news online with a blank expression. The conflict between Tang Fangjing and the Lawyers Association seemed to have started because of his own phone call...
He felt like he could no longer stay in Jingzhou.
At Tengda Law Firm, Old Song had just finished his work and was stretching when Tang Fangjing appeared at the door: "Old Song, do you want to be the vice president?"
"If you want it, we can start preparing now."
Hmm... huh? Old Song lifted his head, looking stunned, and it took a long time for him to grasp the situation.
"So what you're saying is, Yin Deyuan has resigned, the Lawyers Association is going to hold a lawyers' representative assembly, and they'll elect new members. Do you think I'm up for it?"
"We have to at least try."
After chatting for a long time, Tang Fangjing left the office. He was well aware of the intricacies within the Association, but he also knew that the leadership of the Association definitely needed support from the judicial department.
Compared to the former, the latter was more important.
Therefore, the bigger the wage claim case was, the better. Old Song didn't need to be involved, but it could give him a chance to bolster his experience and serve as a form of repayment from Tang Fangjing.
Time swiftly moved on to the next day. The workers' entrustment contract was signed, and Tang Fangjing took full charge, sparing them any worries.
Five persons, not a single penny paid for six months' worth of wages. In Luo Duancheng's words, every time they inquired, they were told they'd settle next month, only for it to be postponed again and again.
Waiting and waiting, Yi Ruian had become unreachable.
So now, the question was to figure out at which stage of the building contract Xiangkun Company was. Was it that the client had not paid, or was there some other reason?
And what exactly was going on with Yi Ruian, because according to the workers, he was the one directly hiring them, and they had no idea where the company was.