Chapter 333 The Deadline Approaches
At 10 am, the court session was ready to begin. Outside the courtroom, reporters gathered as this trial involved the Ordelia Group's medical factory in Lymington. Many people were paying attention, and the trial would be broadcast live.
At the entrance to the elevator, two groups collided. On one side stood the grand procession of the Ordelia Group, led by a team of professional lawyers, accompanied by important witnesses and a thick file of physical evidence. In stark contrast, Winnie found herself accompanied solely by Mr. Wilson, standing alone without even a single piece of evidence to present.
When Darcy saw this, she couldn't help but smile. Mr. Ordelia also wore a faint smile and glanced at Winnie while addressing the reporters, "I'm also at a loss as to why Winnie has taken the Ordelia Group to court with a mere lawsuit. I don't even know this Elliott person. I can understand the impulsive nature of this young lady but I hope that she will be able to provide substantial evidence; otherwise, the Ordelia Group will legally pursue Winnie for defamation and false accusations."
Mr. Wilson tightened his grip on the thin court documents in his hand and wiped the sweat off his forehead. Darcy noticed his actions and felt even more confident, firmly believing that Winnie was just bluffing until the court session.
Out of the corner of her eye, she noticed Lawrence approaching and immediately put on a gentle and helpless expression. She then turned to Winnie and said, "Winnie, I know you don't like me, but you can't falsely implicate my father in this case. The Ordelia Group has a large pharmaceutical factory in Lymington. What attention are you seeking to divert? Regardless, the law is fair. If your uncle is guilty of murder, he must pay the price. Your intention to defame the Ordelia family in order to exonerate him and to target me is too deep."
Winnie glanced past Lawrence as he entered and ignored him, wearing a cold smile. "Enough with the charade, Darcy. The Ordelia family will face the consequences of their crimes. Today, the truth will emerge, and I will uncover the perpetrators, ensuring they are held accountable and imprisoned one by one."
Darcy was slightly stunned, sensing an inexplicable threat. Mrs. Ordelia held her daughter back and stepped forward, lowering her voice with a sneer. "Just with the legal aid lawyer you've hired? Winnie, small fries can't compete with the big fish. Let's see how you win this lawsuit with baseless accusations against the Ordelia Group. Don't embarrass yourself, we'll be watching!" Mr. Ordelia and Mrs. Ordelia then promptly entered the courtroom, displaying their arrogance.
Darcy walked over and held Lawrence's arm, looking worriedly at Winnie. "Mr. L, Winnie is really stubborn. Look at her, not a single witness, yet she insists on accusing the Ordelia Group. In the past, she went to great lengths to overthrow Jeffrey's hit-and-run case; however, had she not done so, Jeffrey would still be fine today and wouldn't have committed suicide." She discreetly blamed Winnie for Jeffery's suicide.
Lawrence furrowed his brows and glanced at Winnie whose eyes were slightly swollen—a clear sign that she hadn't slept well. Last night, Jeremy did mention that Winnie was looking for Jeffery's daughter. It made him wonder why she came to court empty-handed. He was briefly lost in thought before he quickly regained his focus and shifted his gaze indifferently to Darcy.
Today, it was Darcy who insisted on him attending the trial. He didn't know more about Elliott's case than an outsider would, so he decided to listen to the trial first. "Let's go," Lawrence said calmly. Darcy smirked and proudly walked past Winnie, leaning on Lawrence's arm.
Once everyone had entered, Winnie's shoulders suddenly slumped and her face turned pale. She cursed inwardly as she recalled her efforts, going as far as hurling insults at Jeffery, but he hadn't taken the bait. At this moment, she really didn't have any witnesses.
Olivia's hands trembled in anxiety. "Winnie, what should we do? Jeffery seems to be giving up on his daughter. Should we enter or not? It will definitely be a joke if we enter."
Winnie clenched her fists and closed her eyes tightly. Last night, after finding Jeffery's illegitimate daughter, she had kidnapped her and sent photos to the anonymous number. However, until then, Jeffery hadn't responded. Faced with two possibilities, either Jeffery had abandoned his daughter or Jeremy had found the wrong person, they were at a dead end. Gritting her teeth, she declared, "Let's just go in. Uncle is sitting in there waiting for me to save him. Olivia, I want to take a final gamble. Listen to me, do it immediately..."
She whispered the plan to Olivia, who widened her eyes in disbelief. "Can this really force him out?"
"We shall see." With a determined mindset, Winnie walked into the courtroom. Elliott was seated while handcuffed. When he saw Winnie, his eyes welled up with hope. "Winnie..." His eyes were filled with longing but Winnie couldn't bear to look at him anymore.
The presiding judge announced the start of the trial. "Regarding the case of Elliott's murder of Jacob in prison, the plaintiff has entrusted their lawyer to file a lawsuit against the Ordelia Group Medical for manufacturing hallucinogenic drugs, bribing Jacob to frame Elliott, and fabricating his crime. The plaintiff claims that Elliott is innocent, and that the Ordelia Group Medical had planned the murder, bribed the prison, and set him up as a scapegoat. Now, the plaintiff is requested to submit evidence and call witnesses to the stand against the Ordelia Group."
As the gavel struck, Mr. Wilson became flustered, continually organizing the scant documents in his hands. Meanwhile, Mr. Ordelia sat there with a smirk playing on his lips, and Darcy even chuckled softly, a sly smirk barely visible on her lips.
The presiding judge urged, "Plaintiff's lawyer?"
Mr. Wilson glanced at Winnie, wiped his sweat, and stood up. "We have submitted a partial list of prohibited drugs produced by the Ordelia Group, as well as three prison guards and three inmates who were bribed by Jeffery and provided false testimony."
"Your Honor, can the opposing party provide any evidence related to this case?" The Ordelia Group's lawyer retorted with a sneer. "What does a list of prohibited drugs have to do with this case? There is no evidence proving that the hallucinogenic drugs detected in Elliott's body were produced by the Ordelia Group. The prison guards and inmates were bribed by Jeffery, who is now deceased, and their actions have nothing to do with the Ordelia Group."
Mr. Wilson became anxious and argued, "Your Honor, considering Jeffery's role as the assistant to the heiress of the Ordelia Group, it seems implausible that he would bribe the prison guards without a motive. It strongly suggests that the Ordelia Group might be orchestrating his actions."
"Does Mr. Wilson have any evidence to corroborate the claim, or should we summon Jeffery's spirit to speak for you?" mocked the Ordelia Group's lawyer at Winnie. "I've come across false accusations before but I've never seen someone like Winnie making baseless claims like this."
Mr. Wilson's face turned red with anger and frustration as he looked helplessly at Winnie.
Mr. and Mrs. Ordelia coldly smiled, wondering if Winnie could only produce irrelevant evidence. It was even more embarrassing than they had anticipated.
The trial's audience began to engage in discussions among themselves.
"Yeah, the appellant doesn't even have a strong piece of evidence!"
"Is Winnie resorting to slander?"
"She's been getting arrogant since her Triton became popular. Her uncle committed murder, and she has no evidence to overturn the case. Is she trying to frame the Ordelia Group just because they're wealthy and influential?"
"Can the law allow her to make a fuss? Someone like her who spreads false accusations should be heavily punished!"
Furrowing his brows, the judge asked, "Please present the evidence related to this case, Plaintiff. Do you have any witnesses?"
"The witnesses… haven't arrived yet, Your Honor." Mr. Wilson almost lost his balance as he hesitantly answered and kept looking at Winnie while Winnie's gaze shifted toward the entrance.
The discussions continued among the audience.
"What do you mean they haven't arrived? They simply don't exist!"
"This retrial is a joke. Winnie's attempt to frame the Ordelia Group seems to have backfired on her."
Mr. Ordelia smirked and signaled his lawyer. The lawyer swiftly handed over the appeal documents, saying, "Your Honor, considering that the plaintiff has no evidence for the retrial, we request the original verdict for the Elliott case and ask for Winnie to publicly apologize. We have concrete evidence of her intentional defamation, commercial crimes, and illegal intrusion into the Ordelia Group's pharmaceutical factory. We now officially file a lawsuit against her and request her immediate arrest and imprisonment."
The courtroom was engulfed in a deafening silence before a loud noise erupted. However, the majority of the reactions were sarcastic, with many feeling that Winnie deserved the outcome.
The presiding officer received the lawsuit documents from the Ordelia Group's lawyers and handed them to the judge.
Darcy curled her lip disdainfully and glanced at Lawrence, who was silent with a furrowed brow, unable to read his thoughts. But deep inside, she trembled with excitement. Finally, Winnie's time had come. This trial was going even better than she had imagined.
Feeling a chill from the man beside her, she pretended to sigh. "Mr. L, my father is a kind-hearted person. How could the mighty Ordelia Group go after a mere Elliott? If it were not for Winnie's stubbornness, my father wouldn't have countersued her. Don't tell me you still care about Winnie?"
Lawrence glanced at Darcy, sensing the peculiar nature of the trial. It struck him as odd that Winnie, usually not one to launch continuous attacks, had not presented any evidence. With a furrowed brow, he stood up, intending to walk away and make a call to Jeremy to inquire about the situation from the previous night.
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