Chapter 198: Chapter 103: It feels like they came prepared! (Silver Alliance extra)
For the couple, the matter was truly like a bolt from the blue.
Of course, the idea of being involved in a crime and going to jail is a bolt from the blue for many law-abiding families; after all, it\'s safe to say no one wishes to be behind bars.
More importantly, the couple had no idea about their son\'s situation; they had always thought that their son and daughter-in-law were living a happy life together.
While they were caught up in their complex emotions, a young man appeared at the office entrance.
They had been informed that Lawyer Tang was a young man, so they were not surprised. They promptly tried to stand and say something.
Old Tang at the door hastened to say, "Hello, hello, just sit, and we can talk. There\'s no need to stand up. Miss Xiao Yan, pour some water."
Miss Xiao Yan obediently went to pour the water, while Old Tang sat in front of the office desk and soon began, "How may I address you both?"
"My name is Zhao Xiangmin, and this is my wife, Luo Caifeng," Zhao Xiangmin quickly replied. "Lawyer Tang, a relative of mine had previously purchased an unfinished apartment in the Victoria complex. He told me about you and said you are very responsible."
So it was another referral. That\'s why lawyers are willing to take on famous cases - it\'s for this reason.
Lawyer Tang looked at the couple and said, "Don\'t be nervous. Take your time explaining the situation; I\'m not in a hurry here."
Zhao Xiangmin and his wife exchanged a glance before speaking up. "Lawyer Tang, here\'s the situation. My son is thirty years old this year, a computer programmer. He used to work for a computer company in Jingzhou, where he earned a high income."
"We were too anxious and urged him to get married. Then, about two years ago, he met a girl through a blind date. They seemed to get along quite well, so we encouraged them to get married."
"They didn\'t live with us, and every time we visited, we didn\'t notice any issues between them. However, a couple of days ago, we got a sudden call from the police, saying my child was suspected of rape and has been criminally detained."
"Then, we found out that they had actually been considering divorce since last month, but because they couldn\'t agree on the division of assets, they were engaged in a legal dispute."
At this point, Luo Caifeng couldn\'t help but interject, "Lawyer Tang, I just can\'t understand. How can it be rape if they are married?"
Lawyer Tang waved his hand and explained, "Let\'s focus on the facts without getting emotional. Marital rape does exist. Currently, in our country, it is indeed possible to be convicted of rape if the couple has been living apart for more than two years or during a divorce lawsuit."
"Based on what your husband has just mentioned, it seems to meet the criteria for marital rape. So there seems to be no issue there. Do you have any more information about the case?"
Zhao Xiangmin continued, "My son has a high income, and that woman barely had a job. After getting married, she claimed to be preparing for pregnancy at home."
"We thought that our son\'s income was enough to support a family, so it wouldn\'t be a problem for her to be a full-time housewife. Who could have imagined that suddenly, they would be getting a divorce, and my son would be arrested!"
After thinking for a moment, Lawyer Tang asked, "So, the two of them have been married for nearly two years now, right? What was the bride price given initially?"
Luo Caifeng, with a pained expression, responded, "Initially, we gave a bride price of 180,000 silver, and the new apartment we bought for our son also had her name added to it."
"Additionally, we spent about 70,000 to 80,000 silver on wedding expenses."
The couple believed they had been quite generous to their daughter-in-law; they gave money and added names whenever she asked.
"Now, have you been in contact with the woman and her family? And another thing, who initiated the divorce?" Lawyer Tang asked again.
Zhao Xiangmin replied, "We tried contacting her, but she never answers the phone, and it\'s the same with her parents. As soon as we get through, they hang up, and now we don\'t even know where they live."
"It was the other side who filed for divorce. It seems they have already sued, probably because my son has earned quite a bit of money in the past two years."
Lawyer Tang fell into deep thought; he wasn\'t sure whether he should take the case.
Given the criminal detention, it at least proves that the public security organs have definitive evidence of a crime; otherwise, with the current policy of prudent detention, unless the evidence is solid, criminal detention is rarely executed directly.
The case had too many doubts. The woman had initiated the divorce suit, which suggested that there was either disagreement on the divorce from one party.
Or there were issues with asset division that could not be settled amicably.
What could be the man\'s purpose in meeting with the woman? If it was out of revenge, or if the man unilaterally believed that they weren\'t divorced yet, and thus forced a relationship...
Those circumstances would make it virtually impossible to see a turnaround.
After consideration, Lawyer Tang said, "Both of you have come to me, which shows your trust in me, and I am very grateful for that. But at the moment, even you don\'t understand the case very well."
"So my advice is that we sign a preliminary investigation contract. I need to meet the person involved first, and then we can discuss further. This way, you can also save some money."
The most important thing was that the system had not activated a task. While Lawyer Tang liked these kinds of cases, he was not ready to jump on it just yet.
The couple quickly agreed, "No problem at all, Lawyer Tang. Whatever you say goes."
The relative from the Victoria complex had specifically advised to trust Lawyer Tang implicitly when fighting a lawsuit!
This was a profound lesson. The last group of people who did not trust Lawyer Tang were still wrangling with the court over enforcement issues.