Darkstone Code-Chapter 973 - 971: Mr. Lynch Is Truly a Moral Model

Chapter 973: Chapter 971: Mr. Lynch Is Truly a Moral Model

Watching as the situation returned to control, Momo asked a very critical question, "So this time, how do you plan to deal with those who can’t afford the compensation?"

"Not everyone can come up with that much money at once. If the court enforces it, they will lose their cars and houses."

Lynch nodded as a matter of course, "Discipline is not meant to hurt people, but to make them understand why they have gone wrong, what their mistakes are, and to give them a chance to make up for their mistakes."

"That’s also why I chose not to withdraw the lawsuit. After all, they were at fault."

"I can be lenient with them, but the premise is that I’m not lenient with their crimes!"

"If someone can’t afford the payment, we will have someone specifically to negotiate with them."

Momo promptly asked, "How will you negotiate?"

"Within a range acceptable to everyone, let them be educated while easily paying off the money..."

Meanwhile, in an ordinary house in a regular community of Bupen, the homeowner sat nervously at the table. His wife stood behind him, and their child was peeking downstairs through the door from the bedroom on the second floor.

Sitting across from the homeowner was a lawyer, "Sir, I am the legal officer from Every Moment Company, here’s my business card, and the company’s authorization letter..."

Some legal documents were laid on the table, appearing much more professional than the last salesperson who came to the store to promote "litigation".

Perhaps because he had been fooled once before, the store owner examined them very carefully and seriously, raising a few small questions, all of which were answered.

Finally, he pushed all the documents back, looking nervously at the legal officer across from him.

After organizing the materials, the young legal officer continued, "I assume you have consulted with a lawyer since the trial ended?"

The store owner nodded. After losing the lawsuit, they immediately went to consult a well-known law firm in Bupen with other store owners about the case.

At 300 dollars an hour, the fees were certainly not cheap, but it indicated a certain level of professionalism. The lawyer who received them directly informed them that there was no chance of winning this case.

Unless they could directly find evidence that those who cheated them at the counter were doing so under the knowledge of Every Moment Company, such as finding those fraudsters or some documents.

Otherwise, they couldn’t possibly connect the two things. As long as they couldn’t connect them, it could be considered as two isolated events with no necessary connection.

They had breached the contract, regardless of the reason.

They could sue the fraudsters again. If they could find them, they could shift their losses onto those fraudsters and have them compensate for the losses.

Someone asked if there was any possibility of continuing to appeal without evidence to link the two cases.

After all, everyone could see that there was some kind of relationship more or less involved.

Even a blind person could see it.

The lawyer’s response still left them in despair. In the Federation, the courts emphasize factual evidence, requiring a complete chain of evidence.

It’s like when Lynch was laundering money at the beginning; everyone knew the money was laundered through his hands, but why couldn’t the police and the investigation bureau catch him?

Because there was no evidence; if "everyone knows" could serve as a factual basis and become legally effective "evidence", the Federation would have been in chaos long ago.

You say it’s him, so where’s the evidence?

At the time, they used the marked money as the most important link in the chain of evidence. As long as they could prove that the money leaving the investigation bureau went through Lynch’s hands to reach Old Fox’s laundry, the chain would be complete.

It proved that the flow of funds matched people’s suspicions and had a solid factual basis to support the investigation bureau’s judgment, completing the chain of evidence.

But without it, nothing stands!

This is a country that emphasizes evidence; you must present the evidence.

It sounds like hinderance to some or protection for others, but in fact, this protects the lower strata of society from being wantonly plundered by those in power. However, for the lower-class people in society, this instead becomes a weapon for those in power to evade legal sanctions.

Sometimes you don’t know whether to feel sad or happy for people’s foolishness.

The lawyer also told them that should they fail in their appeal, it might cause more unnecessary troubles, such as punitive fines.

This punitive fine is proposed by the lawyer, and if supported by the judge, it will be implemented.

It is often used against the appealing side, such as when a criminal refuses to plead guilty despite overwhelming evidence, doesn’t accept the judgment, continuously appeals; this can be viewed as contempt of the law, an extremely vile act.

The plaintiff’s lawyer can propose punitive fines, serving as a warning and more severe punishment to warn the defendant and the public that the courtroom is not a place for nonsense.

So far, the Federation has had about a dozen cases where punitive claims were supported, involving small amounts of money, perhaps just a few hundred or thousand dollars, but punitive fines are often over ten thousand, even hundreds of thousands!

The intention is to punish to the point of heartache, so no one dares to do something foolish in similar cases in the future!

The lawyer did not advise them to continue appealing or protesting; the best solution would be to pay now while Every Moment hasn’t squeezed them dry, and end the matter.

Under ten thousand, it’s not worth ruining your life.

Moreover, such a doomed lawsuit will not have any lawyer willing to take it on, and without the lawyers’ support, it means they will surely lose again. This time, the payment might exceed ten thousand.

Returning home with a heavy heart, thinking about how to scrape together the money—not that they didn’t want to resist, but simply couldn’t, as everyone in the Federation sides with the capitalists.

The courts, banks, police stations, investigation bureau, they speak for the capitalists in normal times, and now that the capitalists have the justification, they certainly won’t speak for a common person.

Eighty thousand is not a minor amount. The store owner roughly has over ten thousand in cash, reserved for urgent use and stocking.

The rest comprises the goods in the store, roughly worth about twenty thousand. Perhaps a little less.

He went to the bank in the afternoon for inquiries; his car isn’t worth much, and the bank can offer a maximum of six hundred as a collateral loan.

However, his house is worth some money; the bank is willing to provide thirty-five thousand. Yet, if he mortgages his house, things will become very dangerous.

While considering borrowing some money from others, someone from Every Moment arrived.

The legal officer looked at the couple, "Please don’t be so nervous; we’re just here for a chat. If we can resolve some issues along the way, all the better."

"First, let’s talk about whether you have the ability to pay the compensation?"

The wife’s hand, placed on her husband’s shoulder, clenched and then released, her tightly closed lips lost color, making her look unhealthy.

The store owner shook his head, "I can’t gather it all at once. If I could rotate my funds for a while, sell off some goods in the store, and borrow a bit..."

"Let me interrupt," the legal officer tapped the table twice with his finger, "No need to be overly anxious. We won’t push you into any decisions against your interest, that’s what capitalists do."

"Mr. Lynch wouldn’t allow us to do such a thing, and that’s why I am here."

"If you went about it the way you described, your store wouldn’t be able to operate, right?"

The store owner nodded with some bitterness; if he sold everything in hand to clear the debt, he wouldn’t have money left for restocking, and shop rent would be a problem, forcing him to find a job just to support his family. It wasn’t an easy decision.

"Well, that’s why I’m here," the legal officer’s words somewhat surprised the store owner.

"I don’t quite understand what you mean, sir," he said.

"Mr. Lynch is both kind and generous. If you’re having serious financial difficulties, we will lend you the money to cover the lawsuit’s fine."

"Roughly... eighty-one thousand three hundred and fifty-four dollars and twenty-two cents, we will lend you this amount, so you have the funds to pay the compensation."

The store owner looked a bit bewildered, "This... I don’t quite understand."

"This is Mr. Lynch’s leniency and assistance!"

"Your current job and life, including your living situation, won’t change at all, and this debt will be repaid in long-term installments, longer than the bank’s term!"

The legal officer took out another document and placed it on the table, "We’ve structured it into multiple installment plans, and most importantly, there’s no interest..."

The store owner’s eyes slightly brightened, "No interest, are you sure, sir?"

"I’m sure!" the legal officer replied with affirmation, "but there are some minor handling fees; you know, all the running around for you, and you tying up the company’s liquidity requires some compensation."

The store owner’s expression wasn’t as good as earlier, "What’s the difference with interest, then?"

"Of course there is, if you can repay it all next month, we wouldn’t need any handling fee, but interest isn’t like that; it starts accruing from the first second you receive the money."

"The sooner you settle, the lower the fee. If you prolong it for a lifetime, it definitely won’t be that cheap."

"In other words, if you believe you can repay quickly, the advantage of handling fees is evident. If you prefer using interest loans, we can do that too..."

"The most crucial point..." the legal officer smiled kindly, "we won’t, unlike the banks, give you a deadline you cannot bear, then evict you from your home!"

The store owner fell silent for a moment; he could opt-out, but before deciding, he wanted to understand a bit.

"If, and I’m saying if, I decide to sign this contract with you, how would it be executed?"

"What responsibilities do I have, what obligations are there, how much do I have to pay you every month?" 𝙧𝙚𝙚𝔀𝒆𝓫𝓷𝙤𝓿𝒆𝙡.𝒄𝙤𝓶

He swore, he was only asking, not necessarily choosing this!