At 1: 30 pm, the court resumed. The reporters in the court were still the same as in the morning. Since they were following a piece of news, they naturally had to follow it to the end. They were still waiting to make use of this hot topic to create a huge news. Now that the popular Chen Guang was involved, it was even more explosive news.
Some well-informed reporters had already found out that Pizarro was not hired by the Chinese Embassy. Instead, he was hired by Chen Guang with a large sum of money.
As early as noon, they had already sent out the press release, successfully occupying the hot spot, which made their peers envious and gnash their teeth in anger.
However, there were many smart people in the world. It was fine to use Pizarro as a hot topic, but the Chinese were simply walking news machines. As long as they continued to dig deeper, they would eventually find other hot topics.
Therefore, at about 1 pm, another piece of news was unearthed.
Some Princeton reporters used other people's sightings of Chen Guang and Fang Tianyu driving into the courthouse's parking lot as a clue. They found out that the two came from the Eaton Manor.
He then inquired about the people who lived in the building, and this was going to be fun.
Many senior Oscar judges who lived in Los Angeles had secretly moved from the West Coast to the East Coast like thieves. Even many senior Oscar members from other cities in the United States had come to Princeton and lived in the Eaton Manor.
Coupled with Donald Joshtein's streaking a few days ago, it was not difficult to guess the motives of these big names in the film industry. They were afraid!
This made the reporters unable to help but laugh. They raised their hands and wrote the most malicious article.
[The 'evil forces from the East' in the film industry pursue the Oscar judges fiercely. Celebrities flee in panic.]
When this article was released, it was even more popular than the previous article about the lawsuit. After all, Chen Guang's movie was still the one that everyone was paying attention to recently.
People from all walks of life in the film industry had different opinions on this, but generally speaking, they felt that Chen Guang's behavior was too much.
In the past, people who wanted to win an Oscar also knew how to use public relations, but Chen Guang was the first one who did it so crudely.
However, people who didn't particularly care about the film industry discussed this matter with great interest. They felt that the big names in the Motion Picture Association were too embarrassing.
Do you have to be so scared?
Although Chen Guang is quite eccentric, the United States is a country ruled by law. No matter how crazy he is, he can't put a knife to your neck just for an award, right?
Isn't your behavior a disgrace to the upper class?
Besides, 'Women' is really good. Don't you think you're being too harsh on the Chinese people?
Before the word-of-mouth explosion of "Women", the North American audience and ordinary people still felt that the Film Association's boycott of Chen Guang was upholding justice.
But now, with the change of public opinion, especially with the double word-of-mouth explosion of "Women" and "World's Pie", many ordinary people really felt that Chen Guang deserved to win the Oscar. The Motion Picture Association's current actions were a little unreasonable, even losing the demeanor of a big country.
Therefore, this draft, which was obviously intended to discredit Chen Guang, did not achieve the desired effect. Instead, many people openly criticized the Motion Picture Association for treating the fair and serious Oscar selection as a joke.
At this time, Chen Guang, who was in the courtroom, was thinking about Zhuo Jingsi and Prince's laboratory. He didn't know that the public opinion had become like this.
If he had found out about this, he might have found a way to find the reporter and thank him properly.
There was no other reason. It was precisely because this draft had exposed the truth that the people from the Motion Picture Association were suddenly pushed to the teeth of the storm. The big names in the association, who had planned to run to Europe immediately, found out very awkwardly that they couldn't leave!
It wasn't that someone had stopped them, but now that the matter had been exposed, if they really ran away, wouldn't it be true that they were scared to the point of peeing their pants?
If they left quietly, they could barely find an excuse, but they couldn't do that now!
Even if that was really the case, people live with a face, trees live with a layer of bark. Everyone here was a person of status and prestige. In the future, they would have to go out and meet people.
Therefore, these people quietly returned their plane tickets and took a bus back to Eaton Manor. They announced to the public that they had nothing to do with Chen Guang at all, and that they were just here for a vacation.
It didn't matter if they believed it or not, they believed it.
If Chen Guang knew that he had unintentionally appeared in the Princeton District Court to deal with Zhuo Jingsi's matter, and instead, he had taken a big detour to put invisible shackles on the legs of the people from the Motion Picture Association and tied them to Eaton Manor, he would probably laugh his head off.
In the courtroom, after another half an hour of confrontation, under Pizarro's deliberate guidance, although he gradually fell into a disadvantageous position, the thinking of the prosecution's team was slowly pulled into his train of thought.
Pizarro, who was originally arguing with the other side about Zhuo Jingsi's motive, suddenly changed the topic and mentioned something else.
"Let me ask the plaintiff. In our opinion, even if the defendant really did take away the bottle containing the sample from the laboratory due to personal negligence. However, it was also debatable how valuable the things she had taken away were. For example, if the defendant took away a bottle containing distilled water, then can we think that the plaintiff is making a mountain out of a molehill? "
The prosecution lawyer was about to speak, but the head of Prince's legal department spoke first. "Lawyer Pizarro, I think your question is ridiculous. If Dr. Zhuo had just taken a broom from the laboratory, of course we wouldn't have any objections. However, what she took away was the latest photocatalyst research results from our laboratory. There is no doubt about that! "
Pizarro smiled and teased, "Yes, you are all great scientists. You can completely say that a bottle of silver paint is the latest research result, and that it is worth hundreds of millions of dollars."
The judge slammed the table and said, "Defense lawyer, please watch your attitude and words."
Pizarro nodded. "Your Honor, I have reason to believe that the plaintiff is deliberately exaggerating the value of the bottle that Dr. Zhuo took away. If you want to prove its value, I think the plaintiff must come up with more evidence. Otherwise, I can assume that my client just took away some insignificant raw materials! "
The head of Prince's legal department was so angry that he was about to fly into a rage.
The prosecution lawyer winked at him, then turned to Pizarro and said, "Then, Lawyer Pizarro, may I interpret what you said to mean that if we can prove the value of the evidence, then we can conclude that Dr. Zhuo took away a valuable sample from Prince's laboratory?"
Pizarro nodded. "Yes, but whether it was intentional or unintentional will still need to be judged by the judge."
The prosecution lawyer grinned, then turned to the head of the legal department and nodded, feeling that he had finally led the famous lawyer Pizarro into his trap.
Since they were going to sue Zhuo Jingsi, how could they not have done the basic work?
It seemed that all they needed to do now was produce the detailed accounts of when Prince's laboratory had funded Zhuo Jingsi's experimental group, as well as the verification and appraisal of the results, and they would almost be able to convict the defendant.
The head of the legal department and the prosecution lawyer looked at each other and understood each other's intentions.
They had thought that Pizarro would turn this case into a protracted battle, and that it would take at least a few months of evidence collection and other wrangling before they could convict the defendant. They hadn't expected that Pizarro, the famous lawyer, would fail to live up to his reputation and reveal such an obvious loophole in the defense process, putting the defendant in a very disadvantageous position.
Pizarro was so experienced that as soon as he saw the eyes of the prosecution lawyer and the plaintiff's representative meet, he could guess what they were thinking.
He felt proud and disappointed at the same time.
He was proud that his ability was much better than that of his peers, and that he could achieve whatever effect he wanted in court.
He was also disappointed that after today's events, if his client, Chen Guang, couldn't come up with anything amazing other than compensation, his reputation in the industry would be affected.
Reputation was almost equivalent to half a lawyer's rice bowl, and he had suffered a huge loss in order to get his client, Chen Guang, the 1.6 million USD.
Not only did these people realize the change in the defense situation, but the slightly sleepy judge also felt refreshed. He had thought that this case would drag on for a long time, but he hadn't expected the dust to settle so quickly.
The eyes of the reporters and spectators also lit up.
The news reporters began to crazily type on the keyboard on their phones, wanting to publish the article as fast as possible before anyone else.
The photo reporters began to take photos of the scene and manually mosaic them, ready to publish the news with pictures.
The person in charge of Prince's legal department slowly stood up under the anticipation of the crowd. The book in his hand was the accounting records for the past half a year. Of course, there was something fishy about it. The total capital investment had been increased by about 60%.
What was written in the book was the market price, but for a company as large as Prince, whether it was buying raw materials or experimental equipment, it was a proper big client, so the price was naturally lower than the market price.
"Since last June, Prince's laboratory's investment in Dr. Zhuo's experimental group is detailed below! June 11th, purchased … "
About ten minutes later, the head of the legal department finally finished reading the long bill. "The total investment of Prince's laboratory in Dr. Zhuo's group is as high as 16.73 million USD!"
The huge courtroom suddenly burst into an uproar. Many people hadn't expected that scientific research would burn so much money.
The group led by Zhuo Jingsi could only be described as average within Prince, and there were at least a hundred similar groups within Prince!
In just six months, they had burned through more than 16 million USD!
The head of the legal department was particularly satisfied with the sensation his speech had caused. He even glanced in Zhuo Jingsi and Chen Guang's direction with a slightly provocative expression, as if to say, "So what if you have a celebrity to protect you?"
"Everyone, it's not over yet. Here's the verification process of our results. The following papers have been published in major journals by Dr. Zhuo herself and her experimental group, as well as the project leader, Dr. Wortzman. The titles of the papers are …"
Another ten minutes passed.
"So! We believe that Zhuo Jingsi's behavior has caused us major economic losses, and we ask the judge to make a fair ruling! "
After saying that, the person in charge of the legal department finally felt proud and elated, as if he had reached the top and looked down on all the heroes.
Pizarro's face was full of despair.
Seeing this, the prosecution lawyer was proud. It took me less than a day to defeat Pizarro in court. This is my chance to make a name for myself!
"Lawyer for the defendant, what else do you have to say?"
With such a mood, the prosecution lawyer decisively hit Pizarro when he was down.
Pizarro looked like he was struggling again. After a short moment of hesitation, he asked in a seemingly desperate manner, "May I ask the plaintiff and the prosecution's lawyer if the only reason you filed a lawsuit against my client is because the defendant's actions have caused you a total economic loss of 16.73 million USD?"
The head of the legal department said firmly, "Of course!"
The prosecution lawyer also nodded. "That's right!"
Pizarro's expression suddenly changed again. He stopped talking and turned to look in Chen Guang's direction.
The figure was higher than expected, but to Chen Guang, who had recently caused a sensation in the North American box office, it did not seem to make any difference.
Under Pizarro's gaze, Chen Guang, who was sitting in the audience, slowly stood up.
The judge banged his hammer again. "Those who have nothing to do with the trial, please sit down. This is a warning!"
Although he knew Chen Guang, he did not care who he was. The dignity of the court could not be tarnished.
Chen Guang smiled. "Your Honor, I have something to do with the trial."
Without waiting for the judge and the plaintiff to speak, Chen Guang suddenly said in a powerful voice, "On behalf of the defendant, Zhuo Jingsi, I am willing to promise in public that I will unconditionally compensate Prince Laboratory's economic loss of 16.73 million USD! I will also bear all the costs of this lawsuit! Then the plaintiff has not suffered any losses at all, so the case is completely invalid! "
He raised his right hand high, and in it was a check that he had just written!
Next to the check, he was holding his UBS black card between his fingers!
Without a doubt, the number on this check was US $16.73 million!
The moment Chen Guang said this, the courtroom was in an uproar.
Crazy!
This Chinese man is crazy!
No, he was a crazy man before!
I've seen people spend a lot of money to pick up girls, but I've never heard of anyone spending more than 16 million US dollars in public like him in court, not to mention seeing it!
You're even better than Murdoch, who gave hundreds of millions to Deng Wendi!
Murdoch unwillingly lost the lawsuit and had no choice but to fork out money, but you took the initiative to spend the check without batting an eyelid. You're truly an invincible tycoon!
The female reporter and the female audience held their hands in their hands. Their eyes were as bright as the sun. Please give me a dozen tycoons like this. I'm wet, I'm completely wet!
In an instant, the huge courtroom was filled with flashes and the sound of cameras snapping could be heard nonstop.
The judges in the courtroom were stunned. The Prince legal department and the legal team were also stunned. The other local officials and agents in Princeton were also stunned. The officials from the Ministry of Science and Technology and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs who rushed over from Washington had their mouths wide open. Even the staff from the Chinese Embassy were dizzy.
Damn, I counted with my fingers. Isn't that 100 million RMB?
Regardless of the relationship between Zhuo Jingsi and Chen Guang, what more could a woman ask for when she had such a husband?
In order to clear your name, 100 million RMB was thrown away just like that!
Zhuo Jingsi also did not expect Chen Guang to use such a simple and crude method to clear his name. Without hesitation, 100 million RMB!
His sacrifice was indeed too big. He loved money so much and would even skid to save fuel, but for me …
Sigh, I wanted to repay the debt, but how am I going to repay him in this lifetime!
The reporters who had already released the trial results in advance were embarrassed.
Damn, I thought this guy was just here to watch the show in court. Why didn't you tell us earlier that you would use such a ruthless method!
What do we do now?
We'll definitely be scolded by the editor-in-chief or the readers.
But what can we do?
We're also desperate!
"No! I object! We refuse to compensate! We demand severe punishment for the criminal! "
After a brief moment of confusion and shock, the head of Prince's legal department immediately reacted. Although 16 million USD wasn't a small amount of money, Prince didn't really care about it.
What they really wanted was to make an example out of this case. On the one hand, it would deter the Chinese researchers all over America, and on the other hand, it would elevate the status of Prince's laboratory in the North American scientific community.
They would rather not have the money.
The plaintiff's legal team next to the head of Prince's team remained silent and did not continue with his words.
Up until now, the plaintiff's legal team had finally guessed the plan of Chen Guang and the defense lawyer.
That's right, they had planned to lose money from the very beginning.
Especially since the beginning of the court session in the afternoon, Pizarro seemed to be constantly losing ground, but in fact, it was all a trap!
All of Prince's accounting books had been laid out, and the exact number of losses had also been exposed. If the defendant was willing to pay the full amount of compensation, of course, the lawsuit would be over.
In addition, the head of Prince's legal department and the defendant had publicly admitted that the only reason they had accused Zhuo Jingsi was because of the financial losses they had suffered.
The so-called leaking of confidential technology and infringement of intellectual property could also be measured in terms of value, and that value was 16.73 million USD!
This was a court, and anything said outside could be used as evidence. Words said in court could not be treated as child's play.
There was no turning back. What was done was done!
As expected, Pizarro immediately regained the initiative in the court. "Your Honor, I think the plaintiff's objection is invalid. We have clearly stated the amount of compensation based on the financial losses suffered by the plaintiff, so the plaintiff has not suffered any damage. Furthermore, my client's mistake was purely due to his negligence. Now that we are willing to compensate, he is no longer a criminal. I think the plaintiff is suspected of infringing on my client's reputation! I reserve the right to file a lawsuit! "
The judge nodded. He couldn't wait for the matter to end like this. "Yes, the plaintiff, please watch your words!"
The head of Prince's legal department looked at his client's team of lawyers. "Say something!"
The plaintiff's lawyer stood up helplessly and said in a low voice, "Sir, if the defendant is willing to pay the full amount of compensation, then our claim is no longer valid. This case has been closed. "
As the prosecution's lawyer, he was actually happy to see this result. The reason was simple. As the client's lawyer, if Prince successfully obtained more than 16 million USD in compensation, his law firm would, of course, get a commission according to the contract.
No matter what, he had helped Prince "win" the lawsuit and received a sizable amount of compensation. Not only would his law firm's reputation in the industry not suffer any damage, but it would also rise by a notch.
About 15 minutes later, this lawsuit, which people thought would last at least a few months, came to a dramatic end when Chen Guang completed the cheque transfer procedure in court.
The face of the Prince's legal department was ashen. It was worse than eating a fly.
The mission he had received was to send Zhuo Jingsi to prison, but now she was acquitted.
Who would want more than 10 million USD?
Prince spent as much as one billion USD on research and development every year!
A group of people walked out of the gate of the district court under the flashing lights of countless reporters and onlookers. The head of Prince's legal department glared fiercely in Zhuo Jingsi's direction. "Dr. Zhuo, don't think that this matter is over. Even if you can escape the punishment of the law, you still can't escape the boycott of the global scientific community. Your unethical behavior will make you despised by the entire scientific community! You know how shameful your behavior is! "
Zhuo Jingsi felt a little guilty. When she took the things from the laboratory, she only thought of Chen Guang, and she had no intention of returning to the United States. Now that she was being criticized in public, she felt humiliated, but she couldn't refute it.
Chen Guang looked back at him. "Watch your words. I don't mind beating you up, and then we go back to court. I can compensate you for your medical expenses."
The face of the head of Prince's legal department changed drastically. Even Pizarro, who was originally next to Chen Guang, quietly moved to the side.
Recently, Chen Guang's reputation in North America had been too resounding. Apart from being a movie actor, his other identities were already known to everyone.
Who would want to take a punch from the world's arm-wrestling champion?
Not caring about his reputation, the big boss of the legal department turned around and walked away quickly, cursing in a low voice, "A barbarian who only knows how to solve problems with violence!"
Chen Guang looked at his back and shouted, "Sir, as you said just now, of course this matter is not over. We will meet again this afternoon at the latest."
The head of the legal department turned around and looked at Chen Guang. "Dream on! I don't want to see you guys again! "
Chen Guang smiled and ignored him.
On the other side, Pizarro spoke again. "Mr. Chen, if there's nothing else, I'll be leaving first. We had a good time working together this time, but since we lost the lawsuit, you don't have to pay the remaining 800,000 yuan. "
However, Chen Guang shook his head. "Mr. Pizarro, wait a minute. We still have a large intellectual property contract with Prince. I think I still need your legal assistance. Of course, I will pay you the remaining 800,000 yuan. Just treat it as a follow-up legal consultation fee."
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