CHAPTER 507: CHAPTER 208: THE LIFE-AND-DEATH BATTLE OF FAMILY AND LOVE (PART 3)

"This..." The prosecutor’s lawyer looked awkwardly at the document in his hand, temporarily unsure of how to phrase his questions. The CA qualification is indeed superior to CPA, and he couldn’t believe that Mr. Perro, at his age, had obtained such a high-value certification.

"Mr. Perro," the prosecutor’s lawyer sounded somewhat flustered as he called out Mr. Perro’s name again, "let’s skip the previous topic. During your tenure as the Su Family’s financial manager, were you completely aware of the whereabouts of every single fund?"

Mr. Perro didn’t rush to answer the new question raised by the prosecutor’s lawyer; after pondering briefly, he responded, "I cannot answer you affirmatively."

The prosecutor’s lawyer saw an opening and pressed on relentlessly: "As the financial manager, how can you be unaware of the whereabouts of the funds? Does this imply that you are inherently irresponsible..."

Mr. Perro, getting increasingly agitated by the continuous accusations of being irresponsible, retorted, "I would like to ask the prosecutor’s lawyer, have you done a thorough study of the Su Family’s documents beforehand? As a responsible and qualified lawyer, you should at least understand that the Su Family is among the nation’s top privately-owned enterprises, dealing with billions in funds daily. Should I be responsible for overseeing every expenditure, including even the purchase of toilet paper for the Su Family, then indeed, that is a responsibility I truly cannot bear."

In the courtroom, many people, including the jury and the judge, and even some miners’ families, burst out laughing.

The prosecutor’s lawyer, embarrassed by this interrogation, stuttered for a while before continuing, "I am not asking about the toilet paper... What I mean is, about purchasing high-pressure pumps, or reallocating funds for emergency disaster relief, would you handle those too?"

"Yes, emergency funds and transactions over a million, I would handle those," Mr. Perro responded without sarcasm this time.

"Then do you remember if the Su Family had allocated funds for purchasing high-pressure pumps from the end of last year to the first half of this year?" The prosecutor’s lawyer, overwhelmed, just wanted to get through this line of questioning as quickly as possible.

"I remember, the funds went through the normal procedures," Mr. Perro answered.

"Then do you also remember the amount of that batch of funds?" the prosecutor’s lawyer pressed further, though lacking the aggressive tone from before—this mild-looking young man was proving to be troublesome.

"It’s not a large sum, but indeed, I remember it was exactly two hundred fifty-three thousand yuan," the number seemed to float before Mr. Perro as he smoothly recited it.

"Two hundred fifty-three thousand yuan, perfectly exact, the judge and everyone present heard it. The Su-affiliated mines are spread across the country, yet the amount spent annually on high-pressure pumps, which are critical for mining safety, is only two hundred fifty-three thousand yuan. Let us see what they bought with this money?" The prosecutor’s lawyer seemed to regain the upper hand and excitedly pulled out a series of photographs from his folder.

The photographs, taken from the Jinxi Mine site, depicted collapsed mine tunnels, decrepit machinery, and grimy miners; every image suffocated everyone present.

"This is the equipment purchased by the Su, outdated water pumps from the sixties and seventies, high-pressure pumps? Lifesaving pumps? All of them are fake, just a pile of broken junk that cost several of our miner brothers their lives, and brought tremendous disaster to their families." The prosecutor’s lawyer passionately argued, waving the photos like a victorious general.

Mr. Perro looked at the photos and remained silent.

In the courtroom, the miners’ families began sobbing quietly, and even the judge and court officers looked angrily at Su Ziceng and Chang Mei at the defendant’s bench.

"Mr. Perro, I believe you are a well-educated person. Working at the Su, facing such data, you must have also suffered from the pangs of conscience. Please, from a public standpoint, tell everyone present, who signed this document?" The prosecutor’s lawyer’s voice trembled with excitement, pressing Mr. Perro to personally reveal who approved the document.

Su Ziceng almost couldn’t stay seated, and Chen Jiachun also looked increasingly anxious. The name that would soon come out of Mr. Perro’s mouth would directly impact the direction of this case; apart from Su Qingzhang, who else could have the authority to approve financial matters?

Mr. Perro turned his head; he saw Su Ziceng’s eyes, those clear eyes now filled with urgency. Was she worried he would mention Su Qingzhang’s name? At this moment, Su Qingzhang was probably nearing his demise. Perhaps it was time, in front of the public, to obliterate him once more. (To be continued. If you enjoyed this piece, feel free to visit Qidian (qidian.com) to cast your recommendation ticket or monthly ticket. Your support is my greatest motivation.)