Chapter 7: The Delinquent and the Liar

It was a lazy morning for Win, she wasn't going to be out of her house until afternoon. Mr. Yang called her the night before and tasked her to meet up with Asher that day to talk him into pushing through with the court proceedings.

Mr. Yang told her that the situation with Asher was a bit complicated. He still didn't want to take on with the case, he still catered the thought of getting himself imprisoned as the fastest way to end the matter. This made Win irritated over her morning coffee, "Why are you being such a baby, Asher Yang? What's up with turning yourself in if you're innocent?" She flinched when the hot coffee spilled on her hand, "Look, six years after and you still bring me so much trouble."

She scolded loudly, talking to nothing but air, "Whatever happened to 'I will make it no matter what', huh? Look at you running from all this trouble you've created yourself. Just plead guilty? Huh! You must be crazy! Think about the company your family has built, you selfish person." She felt crazy, why was she talking to herself, saying things she should tell Asher? When in fact, she probably wouldn't even be able to say half of these when they meet face-to-face.

She sighed in defeat, "I asked you to live well."

She showered immediately after breakfast, not wanting to be late for her appointment today. She spent so much time deciding what to wear. Telling herself one moment that she doesn't have to get dressed up as she wasn't impressing anybody but contemplating the next that she was still meeting a legal client. In the end, she went for a simple ruffled white blouse and a black pencil skirt. She grabbed her working coat and left.

Waiting in the car, she was deeply thinking about what she should tell Asher to convince him to face the court trial. But at the same time, she was worried about what she should tell Nathan and Lia about being Asher's lawyer for the infamous rumor turned criminal case. Both of them will undoubtedly be upset over her decision. But she's accepted the offer, and the only way around it is to honestly tell her best friend and boyfriend what really happened.

While all this ran in her mind, she received a message from Mr. Yang's assistant telling her that Asher was already in the area they were supposed to meet in. She felt her heart race again. These days, she was often nervous and uneasy than she often would be.

She was undeniably anxious as she approached the VIP room in one of the Yangs' restaurants. She decided not to prepare anything to say, so, their conversation would flow naturally. But frankly, she was just suffering from a mental block. She thought everything was happening so fast. She never thought she would have to go through convincing Asher. She imagined it would be just some sort of usual investigation and lawyer duties she'd usually do.

She knocked on the door of the room before she entered, and immediately, she heard Asher's voice telling her to come in.

Once she got in, she plastered a smile on her face and greeted Asher, "Good afternoon, Mr. Yang." She could feel her heart thumping against her chest, as if about to explode, "I am the lawyer your father has found for you." She reached out her hand, offering a handshake, "I am Atty. Winona Chen of Zhao Legal Firm, at your service."

Surprise was painted all over Asher's face, he reached his hand out as a natural response but was dumbfounded at the sight of Win. He carefully scanned her. This was the first time he finally was able to look at her again after six years. The night of the reunion, the bar was too dark and noisy that he couldn't see her well. But, of course, she is beautiful as she always had been, he felt his chest grow heavy, remembering how he left her helpless on the street on that rainy night.

Realizing he had been spacing out too much, Asher regains his self, "What are you doing here?"

"I told you already, Mr. Yang, I will be your lawyer for the case."

"You're kidding me, has my father really sent for you to handle my case?"

"Yes. Is there something wrong about that?"

Asher scoffed, "So, he really went this far." He didn't know how to respond with all that's happening, so he just decides to sit down and asked Win to do the same, "So, tell me, what did he tell you to tell me to convince me?"

"He did not ask me to tell you anything. I came here on personal intention to try my best to convince you, so, I hope you listen."

Asher sighed, "Win, if he has done anything or threatened you to accept his offer, you can go now. I'll just tell him you tried your best. You don't have to do this."

"Please, Mr. Yang, allow me try to talk you into this. I am here not because anyone has forced me but because I want to be here. It is my decision to handle this case. So, I am humbly asking you to allow me to win this case for you."

"Look, I don't know how you turned out to be my lawyer. And I will say this nicely because you're someone I respect, but I am not going to fight for myself in court. No matter what anyone says, I want to turn myself in and have this all over as soon as possible."

Win can feel tears swelling up in the corners of her eyes so she remains her head down while she spoke, "How can you give up on yourself and your company so easily?" She didn't know why she was suddenly so emotional. Maybe it was because she saw how much Mr. Yang wanted his son out of trouble yet, Asher is simply giving up on himself.

Asher was taken aback by the remark, "What?"

"Yang Industries is a company built on the blood and sweat of your family. How could you give it up so easily? I know you know what happens to your company once you're imprisoned and yet you're here so stubborn about trying to put up a fight for them at least." Win can feel tears slowly tracing down her cheeks, anger boiling inside of her, "You have to understand how much this means to them."

Asher was silent, he could feel the rage and pain embedded in Win's every word.

"So, I am begging you to at least put up a fight for them. Please." She looked at him in the eyes, wiping the tears that fell down her cheeks.

Asher looked directly back at her, glances filled with pain, "And you, why are you even here? You hate me a lot, don't you?"

Win felt her heart ache. There was no question, of course she hated him. She swore that the next time she'll see him, everything she felt for him already turned into hate. And at this moment, she was looking at him with anger and pain, so it sure must have been hate boiling inside of her, she thought. "What does that even have to do with you and your family's dilemma?"

"If you hated me that much, why are you even getting yourself involved with me and my delinquency?"

"Your father came to me and asked me to do this." Her eyes darted somewhere else, unable to keep the contact between them.

Asher, however, still stared right into her, "So, why did you agree to it? Why would you try and save someone whom you have deep-seated hate for?"

Win couldn't think of how to answer his questions, her mind was clouding and all she wanted to do was storm out of that room and cry out of frustration. Asher never changed, she thought, he is still selfish, only doing what he wants to do, blurting out things without thinking, "Your father paid me a huge sum of money to get you out of this mess." This was all she could utter.

Asher was shocked, this was something he never expected to hear from Win, "So, you're doing this for the money?"

"Yes. I need whatever your father is giving me in exchange of your future." She stood up from the chair and grabbed her things, "So, do this for yourself and your family, and let me do my job properly." Before finally walking out the door, she leaves her card by the window, "Call me when you've made your mind up."

"Liar." Asher whispered to himself, "You're probably as rich as I am. What would you need the money for?"

But this was loud enough for Win to hear. Asher is right, why exactly was she there anyway, getting herself involved with the Yang family's mess?