Enforcer Manual
Chapter 476: Judgment Day_1

Chapter 476: Chapter 476: Judgment Day_1

The situation in the Seventh District ultimately came to an end in a way that no one had anticipated.

Isabella, the future heir to the Iris Consortium, was brought to trial on a series of charges, sending shockwaves through the entire United Government. The day she was taken away by the Law Enforcers, various rumors spread across the entire network.

Lu Xiang once again witnessed the terrible power of rumors.

Online, there was a group firmly convinced that it was she who had brought Isabella to the stand, because she had done something similar in the Seventeenth District—exposed the true face of Angel Foster, leading to the Foster Family’s disgrace and their eventual retreat from the district under the bombardment of public opinion.

In response, Lu Xiang could only say that it wasn’t her, she didn’t do it.

These past days, she had even stayed in her hotel room without going out much.

Sitting at home, trouble comes from the sky, she finally understood Song Lan’s feelings all along, such as the discovery Song Lan made after meeting δ, finding that a bunch of trolls had been slandering him behind his back by fabricating facts.

She thought those who blindly praised her online were probably much more damaging than the actual trolls, firstly because they failed to understand the difference between the two incidents.

Firstly, Angel Foster was to the Foster Family what a distantly related relative from the outlying districts might be, whereas Isabella was the future heir to the Iris Consortium. If it had been Isabella who died in the Seventeenth District, the Iris Consortium might even have purged anyone potentially related to the incident.

And what really caused the Foster Family to be covered in shame was actually the work of the Innovator Faction.

All they did was provide the Innovator Faction with the opportunity to widely publicize the Foster Family’s dirty laundry, and it was with the Innovator Faction’s backstabbing that Hog Foster had to swallow his pride.

Otherwise, how could she, a minor supervisor of the Law Enforcers’ department, possibly...?

"Look at them!"

Lu Xiang, looking at those blindly conforming rumors, complained to Song Lan at her side.

Even she herself didn’t realize she had such capacity.

"You can’t blame them entirely."

Song Lan, with his vast experience in surfing the net, comforted, "They need someone to act out justice on their behalf."

Even those who ranted against the United Government every day hadn’t imagined that Isabella would really be brought to the dock one day.

But if one paid close attention, it wasn’t hard to realize that the Ragus Foundation was the force behind the scenes; they were the ones who had made the accusations against Isabella and had gathered the evidence.

"Why me?"

Lu Xiang, who always advocated rational thinking, found it hard to comprehend the logic behind these people’s actions, because in her view, any rationally thinking person would find it difficult to spread these rumors online.

"Because you’re beautiful."

Song Lan’s answer instantly silenced Lu Xiang; she opened her mouth, stared at Song Lan for a long while, and couldn’t utter a single word.

This was clearly not a conclusion that a rational person could arrive at, yet she had a slight desire to accept this explanation, especially since it came from Song Lan’s mouth.

Song Lan was a reserved person; he rarely complimented someone’s looks directly.

"The trial is about to start."

Catching Lu Xiang’s moment of silence, Song Lan turned on the TV. Whether due to the pressure of public opinion or some maneuver by the Ragus Foundation, the trial of Isabella had become a live broadcast for all citizens to watch. They could watch the entire broadcast on television.

He didn’t know about other cities, but at least currently, Morning Star Academy’s teachers and students all stayed in their dormitories, waiting for the broadcast to start.

This was Song Lan’s second time seeing Isabella officially.

Even when seated in the dock, the future heir to the Iris Consortium was still dressed in gorgeous clothing and delicate makeup, making it difficult to associate her with the identity of a prisoner.

However, her expression compared to the first time they met was frighteningly somber.

Those sapphire pupils looked as if they were about to shoot flames.

"For the Iris Consortium, this is truly a great humiliation,"

Lu Xiang, who had a slight understanding of the inside story, took on the role of commentator, "No matter the result of the trial, Isabella will become the laughingstock of the ’aristocrats’ circles."

A "noble" brought to trial by the "common people" could even impact her future legitimate inheritance status.

Isabella’s father was furious to the point of explosion.

Even Classmate Hanna, who had nothing to do with the incident, was lectured; her mother accused her of not managing the aftermath in the Seventh District properly.

For a patient confined to bed, unable to move autonomously without assistance, these accusations were absurd, and if it had been anyone else, they might have been driven to depression by such irrational blame.

But the current Hannah had undergone a complete transformation.

Her view on the sensational case that shook the United Government could be summed up in four characters—Hahaha.

Facing her mother, who was furious to the extreme, Hannah really tried her best not to laugh out loud during the call.

Presumably, Classmate Hannah is now laying in her hospital bed, watching this trial.

"This morning, the academy has already completed the last procedures, and the academy’s senior management unanimously passed the expulsion of Isabella and her entourage."

"You even know about the internal decisions of the academy’s senior management?"

"A teacher called me this morning and told me."

As soon as she mentioned this, Lu Xiang couldn’t help but feel a surge of anger.

Obviously, this teacher believed the online rumors, thinking it was she who had conspired with the Ragus Foundation behind the scenes to push for Isabella’s trial, and it just so happened that she had gone to the exhibition before the incident and "conspired" with Qi He for a full half hour after it ended.

Really, jumping into an artificial lake couldn’t wash this clean.

"I have a headache right now."

So, Lu Xiang simply gave up on explaining and lay down on the bed.

Song Lan got the hint right away and offered fatigue-stricken Lu Xiang a free massage service, "Calm down, let me rub it for you."

"Where are you rubbing, stop it!"

Lu Xiang shot Song Lan a glare, her eyes unexpectedly flirtatious.

And this grand trial, in the end, did not deviate from people’s imagination. Faced with a series of accusations, some people who emerged from who knows where took on the majority of Isabella’s misdeeds, as if to quell the matter quickly. Isabella, however, admitted to some lesser offenses such as insults and assaults on classmates.

The only interesting part was the tone in which she confessed her misdeeds.

Isabella’s eyes bulged, veins on her forehead standing out, and she spoke each word distinctly; phrases meant for an apology came out with a near-rage tone.

But perhaps, for insincere apologies, this spectacle of seeing the usually pampered young lady seething with anger was more satisfying for people.

In the end, considering Isabella’s offenses, her "good" attitude in admitting guilt, and the fact that there had been no too serious consequences, the tribunal lightly punished her, symbolically sentencing her to several months of confinement to be educated on her thoughts, while those who had taken on the corresponding guilt were severely judged by the United Government’s law.

"It seems we still have a long way to go."

The trial over, Lu Xiang felt reflective despite the unsatisfactory outcome, but at least the trial progressed from nothing to completion.

She had not expected that a long-awaited reunion with classmates would end in such a dramatic way, virtually none of the classmates except Hannah got to enjoy this rare holiday. As people working for their companies or families, their lives would be much tougher for some time.

Lu Xiang planned to leave the Seventh District as soon as Hannah’s time was over.

"What are you planning to do?"

Once the room returned to quiet, she turned to the side and asked Song Lan, who had just used the pretext of a massage to get his hands on her.

The meeting with δ not only led him to find out that someone was setting him up from behind but also made some substantial progress.

δ mentioned that there might be a "person" in the Fourteenth District who knew more about the ins and outs.

"I plan to go home and rest."

"Go home and rest?"

Lu Xiang repeated in surprise, as she had thought Song Lan would pay a visit to the Fourteenth District to thoroughly investigate his past.

"Excessive curiosity only brings risks and enemies, and I think I’ve learned almost everything I wanted to know."

The most important thing he learned was that δ mentioned their enemies were the United Government, not them, and their actions would not conflict with his identity as an ordinary spectator.

And before parting, he asked δ to pass a message for him.

—Don’t come to the Seventeenth District.