On the night of her death, Zhang, 26, the mother of a 2-year-old boy, was returning home from her temporary job as a canteen assistant at Northwest University's Chang'an Branch.

Police said she suffered only slight injuries from the traffic accident, including a fracture to her left leg.

Sources close to the victim's family said Zhang's father had turned down 30,000 yuan in compensation from Yao's parents.

Zhang's husband Wang Hui also refused to accept an apology from Yao's family, saying he would do all he could to ensure the killer was brought to justice.

The case has aroused widespread public fury and suspicion over whether Yao's parents might use their connections to bribe authorities into letting him off with a lighter offence.

Wednesday's court hearing was listened to by journalists from more than 60 Chinese media organizations and at least 400 students from two Xi'an based universities, including Xi'an Conservatory of Music and Northwest University of Politics and Law.

Sources close to Yao described him as talented and taciturn.

A neighbor living next to his parents' apartment in downtown Xi'an said Yao played the piano well and tutored young learners in his spare time -- which was why his parents spent more than 100,000 yuan to buy him a car last year.

Yao's teacher and classmates said he was a good student, but never talked much. "He never stayed at the school dorm, so I know very little about him," said one classmate.