Having decided to take on Wu Jianqiang's case, Qi Xi and Gu Yan wasted no time. After informing Gu Xuehan and obtaining her approval, they began gathering any potentially overlooked evidence the next day.
However, the outlook wasn't optimistic. Since the workplace injury occurred over six months ago, much of the evidence had been lost or destroyed. Furthermore, Wu Jianqiang worked in a small workshop that lacked proper personnel management and timekeeping systems. There were no pay stubs, signed receipts, or even bank transfer records since the workshop paid wages in cash to avoid employment taxes and insurance costs. Employee emails and handbooks were, of course, non-existent.
Gu Yan attempted to contact Wu Jianqiang's former colleagues, hoping they would provide witness testimony, but this effort proved futile. First, the high turnover rate at the small workshop meant many current employees didn't even know Wu Jianqiang. Second, even those few remaining colleagues who were aware of the incident were unwilling to testify.