Lady of Law Episode 20 Recap
> Lady of Law Recap
Xu Jie updated Li Gongming on the investigation into Li Yi, explaining that while they had found an overseas shell company named YAF in the Cayman Islands, the untraceable 20 million RMB could not definitively prove Chen Wenguang's innocence. Xu Jie then informed Li Gongming that Chen Ke, Chen Wenguang's son from Switzerland and an intern at Cheng Tai, had been providing crucial leads, a fact Chen Ran had been aware of for some time.
Chen Ran brought Chen Ke to Xu Jie's home to examine overseas receipts Chen Ke had discovered at Cheng Tai. Their analysis revealed a complex money trail: Li Yi transferred $3. 15 million, equivalent to 20 million RMB, in five transactions from Haomen Holdings to Top Timber Holdings, then in three more transactions to YAF Trading Company, before finally distributing it in thirteen installments to Chen Wenguang's bank account opened in 1995.
Since Top Timber and YAF were now defunct, Chen Ran theorized that Li Yi might merely be a front and suggested a personal overseas investigation was necessary to find a connection between Lianchuang and these shell companies. Xu Jie argued against this, stating that even if Li Yi was a front, the 20 million in Chen Wenguang's account remained a fact.
She cautioned Chen Ran against letting hope cloud her judgment, leading Chen Ran to accuse Xu Jie of believing their father was guilty. Xu Jie responded that, as lawyers, their commitment was solely to truth and justice. Chen Ke later encouraged them both to calm down.
He confided in Xu Jie that family involvement can hinder objective judgment and admitted that while he hoped for his father’s innocence, Chen Ran was already mentally preparing for a plea bargain to reduce the sentence. Meanwhile, Song Xiu visited Xu Jie at work, bringing handmade rice balls for lunch and expressing how much he missed her during her suspension.
Their affectionate moment in the stairwell was interrupted by curious colleagues, prompting Xu Jie to take her food and return to her office. They made plans for dinner and a movie later that evening. Bai Ning informed Tang Ying that she had assigned the Ling Longfei case to Chen Ran and Xu Jie, citing their presumed familiarity due to Chen Wenguang's prior involvement.
Tang Ying, however, saw through Bai Ning's ulterior motive, reminding her that Ling Longfei had previously suffered significant losses at the hands of Chen Wenguang and would likely be uncooperative. She warned that such a move would put Chen Ran in a no-win situation. Bai Ning then voiced her ambition to become a senior partner, but Tang Ying dismissed the idea, stating that Bai Ning's current mindset of constantly competing with Chen Ran made her unsuitable for the position.
Chen Ran and Xu Jie delved into the Ling Longfei case. They discovered that Ling Longfei, the owner of Longfei Motors, had previously run Qilin Energy, which Chen Wenguang had sued eight years prior for defrauding government subsidies, leading to the company's bankruptcy. Afterward, Ling Longfei founded Longfei Motors, producing electric vehicles using acquired patents and pirated software. Xu Jie denounced Longfei Motors as a complete scam.
The current case involved a car owner who had died while using Longfei’s autonomous driving feature, and they decided to start by investigating the victim's family. Sun Zhewei met with Wu You, expressing profound regret for his past actions and revealing he had broken off his engagement to return to Jinghai and win Xu Jie back.
He earnestly declared his desire to provide Xu Jie with a stable life and showed Wu You an engagement ring he had bought for her. Swayed by his sincerity, Wu You agreed to help, though she cautioned him about Xu Jie's stubbornness. Wu You then confronted Xu Jie, urging her to at least grant Sun Zhewei a chance to apologize and reconcile with her past.
Xu Jie reacted angrily, refusing to discuss Sun Zhewei and prohibiting any comparison between him and her current boyfriend. Later, Wu You introduced Sun Zhewei to Ye Fei. It's revealed that Ye Fei and Wu You are now a couple. Sun Zhewei offered to use his connections in Qing'an to help Ye Fei expand his family's chain hospital business, leading a grateful Ye Fei to jokingly call him "brother-in-law."
Based on the receipts, Chen Ran visited Li Gongming and requested to pursue the overseas investigation alone, without Xu Jie's direct involvement. Li Gongming agreed. Chen Ran traveled to Switzerland, but a local court's temporary injunction prevented her from accessing Li Yi's full bank records. However, she managed to obtain some company documents related to Li Yi's management role. Upon her return, Chen Ran met Tian Mao, admitting her failure to secure bank records.
She presented her new findings, arguing that since Li Yi's money transfers did not go directly to her father's account as stated in his confession, they could use this discrepancy as a point of false testimony. Tian Mao, having recently discussed the case with Chen Wenguang, felt that their "presumption of innocence" mindset might be hindering progress and suggested pivoting to a strategy focused on sentence reduction. Chen Ran, however, was resolute in her determination to prove her father’s innocence.
Chen Ran then met with Chen Ke. She maintained that the flaws in Li Yi's testimony meant the situation might not be as dire as it seemed. Chen Ke, however, asked her to consider the possibility of their father's guilt. He confessed his own complicated relationship with Chen Wenguang, feeling like an "illegitimate child" despite their legal ties, and stated that he would accept a guilty verdict more readily than Chen Ran.
He vowed that if their father were found guilty, he would use all his legal expertise to secure a reduced sentence. In a more amicable exchange, Xu Jie brought Chen Ran a coffee, acknowledging that the documents Chen Ran obtained were useful in linking Li Yi and Lianchuang to illicit activities. Chen Ran apologized for her earlier emotional outbursts. They acknowledged their differing perspectives but agreed to move forward as a united and rational team on their cases.
Finally, Chen Ran and Xu Jie met with Mrs. Liu, the widow in the Longfei Motors case. They learned that the accident report attributed her husband's death to mobile phone use, even though he was relying on the advertised autonomous driving feature. Longfei Motors had denied any system malfunction and had not contacted Mrs. Liu. She explained that she had rejected numerous offers of monetary compensation and formal apologies. Her sole demand was for Ling Longfei, the CEO of Longfei Motors, to personally kneel and offer incense before her late husband's memorial tablet.
