491 Unyielding Spiri (1/2)
Dai Li looked a little confused. He didn't know what to choose.
If he didn't plead guilty, the trial would continue. However, even Wilfrid, who specialized in criminal cases, couldn't guarantee he would win the case. Dai Li didn't want to be imprisoned, let alone be imprisoned for more than a decade. Just as Reiss said,even if there was only a 10% chance of a guilty verdict, Dai Li would not be willing to take that risk.
Compared with ten years in prison, the sentence that came with pleading guilty was much lighter. A few years of probation was quite acceptable and the community service also could be regarded as physical exercise.
If I was on probation, I would need to report to the probation officer twice a week and there may be 1000 hours of community service. If I could do four hours a day, I would need 250 days in all. That means that if I do community service five times a month, I would need 50 months. That's over four years; however, it's better than ten years in prison.
Why should I plead guilty when I'm actually innocent? The nonsense of the American justice system! Dai became irritated.
Reiss seemed like he was being nice in advising me to plead guilty. He would drop the first-degree murder charge if I did. However, I didn't intend to murder that guy! He wanted to make a bargain with me regarding something that I didn't do. He just let me think I could benefit from it. Why should I accept his condition?
I shouldn't compromise! Dai Li had already decided in his mind. He knew it might be irrational, but he decided to follow his beliefs this time.
Taking a deep breath, he stood up and walked to Wilfrid.
...
Wilfrid sat quietly in the corner of the lounge, thinking about what to do next.
He knew that he had lost to Reiss just now. Wilfrid had to admit that Nick Reiss was indeed a good negotiator. Reiss set high conditions deliberately at the beginning and, when he lowered them, it was easier for his opponent to accept.
What's more, Nick Reiss clearly knew his opponent's thought processes. He knew that a rich man would never bet on freedom. When someone is completely unwilling to lose what he has, he is forced to compromise.
This was what Nick Reiss usually did. As a prosecutor with a 100% conviction rate, Reiss knew how to get the defendant to plead guilty as soon as possible.
In the face of the terms offered by Reiss, if Dai Li didn't plead guilty, Wilfrid had to win Dai Li's case. If Dai Li agreed to plead guilty, Wilfrid would still need to negotiate with the prosecutor for better conditions, such as shorter term of penalty or probation and shorter community service.
Wilfrid therefore had to make two plans, one for each of Dai Li's potential decisions.
What are you thinking? Wilfrid glanced at Dai Li, who stood up and walked over to him.
It seems that Mr. Li has decided.
...
”Mr. Li, you should make your decision. Shall we accept the prosecutor's proposal?” asked Wilfrid.
”I don't intend to accept prosecutor's 'kind proposal'. I'll keep the trial going,” said Dai Li.
”You sure? I mean, do you really know the risks of continuing this case?” said Wilfrid.
Dai Li didn't answer him immediately. He asked Wilfrid another question. ”Wilfrid, do you know about the flood?”
”The flood? Has there been a flood recently?” Wilfrid was confused and asked.
”I'm talking about the prehistoric flood, the legendary one,” said Dai Li.
”Sure,” Wilfrid nodded, ”it is said the great flood inundated Atlantis. What does it have to do with our case?”
”Many ancient civilizations recorded that flood, like Mesopotamia, Greece, India, China, and the Mayan Empire. The all had different reasons for why this flood occurred though. For example, in Sumerian myth, Eniel, the king of gods, felt humans were too noisy and he sent a flood to destroy them. According to Mayan civilization, humans forgot their creator, so the creator decided to send a flood to destroy them. In the Bible, God saw the earth filled with corruption, violence and evil, and he intended to use the flood to destroy all evil people.”
Wilfrid didn't say anything, but listened to Dai Li carefully.
”In Sumerian myth, there is a kind-hearted water god named Enki. He arranged for a man called Utnapishtim to board a ship and escape the flood. It is very much like the story of Noah's Ark in the Bible, right?” asked Dai Li.
”Yes, God found a good man named Noah, so he instructed Noah to build an ark. He took his wife, son, daughter-in-law, and two of every animal. Then came the flood. All the fountains of the great deep were awoken and the windows of heaven were opened. It rained heavily on the earth day and night and the waters flooded the highest mountains. All the creatures on the land died. Only Noah and his family survived in the ark. After 220 days of flooding, Noah's ark stopped near Mount Ararat. Forty days later, the flood retreated and Noah sent a crow out for information. The crow never returned. Seven days later, Noah sent a dove. This time, the dove returned with a branch from an olive tree, indicating that the flood had finally gone,” Wilfrid explained. As someone who had grown up in Western civilization, he obviously knew the story of Noah's Ark better than Dai Li.
”Do you know how the story of the flood was recorded in the east, or in China?” asked Dai Li with a smile.
”I'd love to hear about it,” said Wilfrid.
”It is also a story about fathers and sons. According to ancient Chinese books, the boundless flood inundated crops, mountains, and houses. People were displaced and had to leave their homes. The flood brought untold disaster to everybody. Yao, the ruler of that time, decided to control the flood. He found a person named Gun to tame the flood. However, he failed after nine years of work.