Chapter 1164: So It Was a Misunderstanding
Lin Chen stopped and turned around, "Are you calling me?"
"Of course I'm calling you," the young man said coldly.
"What's up?" Lin Chen asked calmly.
"Of course there's something up, punk, dressed up in a suit, yet you're a thief," the young man said coldly.
"Watch your mouth, who are you calling a thief?" Lin Chen's gaze turned cold.
Due to the altercation, a crowd quickly gathered around, including Yu Feifei and Yao Hui, who emerged from a private room.
Yu Feifei frowned and asked, "What's going on, Lin Chen?"
Lin Chen glanced at Yao Hui and sneered, "These two accused me of stealing their ring."
"Who said it was an accusation? You clearly stole it. I just put it in my pocket while washing my hands to avoid it getting wet. It was there a moment ago, but after brushing past you, it was gone," the flamboyant girl said, pointing at Lin Chen.
"Are you sure you didn't forget where you put it? My friend would never steal your ring," Yao Hui said with a chuckle.
As he spoke, Yao Hui deliberately patted Lin Chen on the shoulder: "Even though my buddy here isn't wealthy, I don't think he'd stoop to something so disgraceful."
Watching Yao Hui's false concern, Lin Chen's lips curled into a cold smile.
"Yeah, Miss, what does your ring look like?" Lin Chen asked.
"My ring is a carat diamond ring with my initials, SY, engraved on it," the girl said.
At this moment, the manager approached with two security guards. Seeing the young man, the manager's expression shifted slightly: "Oh, it's you, Young Master Ma, what's going on?"
Ma Chao's father, Ma Kai, is a famous real estate mogul in Liaoshi, and Ma Chao is well-known in Liaoshi as a rich second generation, frequenting this restaurant.
Upon seeing the manager, Ma Chao snorted, "Manager Sun, there's actually a thief in your hotel. My girlfriend's ring was just stolen."
Hearing this, Manager Sun's face changed instantly: "Young Master Ma, do you know who stole it? If we find the thief, our hotel will certainly punish them severely."
Ma Chao snorted and pointed at Lin Chen: "He's the one who stole it. If he didn't, I'll be his grandson."
Yu Feifei, infuriated by their firm accusation against Lin Chen, retorted, "Hey, without evidence, don't slander people! Believe me, I'll sue you for defamation."
The girl next to Ma Chao, Sun Yan, huffed coldly, "If you didn't steal it, would you dare let security search you?"
"Exactly. If you have nothing to hide, let them search you," Ma Chao echoed coldly.
Lin Chen sneered and said indifferently, "Fine, you can search me."
With that, Lin Chen opened his arms.
The two security guards stepped forward and searched Lin Chen thoroughly but found nothing.
"Manager, we've searched him. This gentleman doesn't have the ring," one of the security guards reported.
"What? No way," Sun Yan exclaimed, her face changing.
She had personally slipped the ring into Lin Chen's pocket just now. How could it be gone?
"Not acceptable, I don't trust you; I want to search him myself," Sun Yan said angrily.
Lin Chen sneered, "Alright, you can search, but if you don't find anything, you owe me an apology."
Sun Yan angrily rushed over and reached into Lin Chen's pocket, yet it was empty.
"How is this possible?" Sun Yan was dumbfounded.
Lin Chen smiled gently, "Manager, seeing how anxious this young lady is, the ring must indeed be lost. How about we ask everyone to turn out their pockets and see if we can find the thief?"
Manager Sun nodded, "Alright, let's do that. Everyone, please cooperate."
Though many around were reluctant, they had to turn out their pockets to prove their innocence.
"Yao Hui, why don't you turn out your pockets? It wouldn't look good if someone suspects you later," Lin Chen said, grinning at Yao Hui, who hadn't moved.
Yao Hui snorted, "Why would I steal a ring?"
However, seeing everyone's eyes on him, he reluctantly turned his pockets inside out.
This instant, a glint caught the eye, and a diamond ring fell to the ground.
Witnessing this, the manager's eyes lit up, and he hurriedly picked up the ring.
Upon closer inspection, the initials SY were indeed engraved on it.
"Miss, is this your ring?" the manager quickly asked.
Sun Yan was stunned, "The ring is mine, but..."
She had wanted to frame Lin Chen, but for some reason, the ring ended up with Yao Hui, leaving her at a loss.
Seeing the ring found on Yao Hui, the crowd erupted in gasps.
"So, he's the one who stole the ring. Looks can be deceiving, dressed so nicely yet a thief," someone said.
"Exactly, he was just pretending to defend someone, turns out he was the thief, calling the thief to catch the thief," another remarked.
Listening to the murmurings around him, Yao Hui's face turned livid. He was just as baffled; how did the ring end up on him?
Yu Feifei was equally surprised by this scene; Yao Hui wasn't a man in need, so how could he steal someone else's ring?
Jia Kun, flustered, squeezed through the crowd just then and said, "It's a misunderstanding, all a misunderstanding. Sun Yan, you forgot you told me to hold onto the ring for a moment, and I just put it in Young Master Yao's pocket."
Upon hearing Jia Kun's words, Ma Chao quickly caught on, "Yes, yes, what's with your memory?"
Sun Yan, now embarrassed, hurriedly smacked her forehead, "What my memory is like, sorry Young Master Yao, I totally forgot about that."
Watching their clumsy performance, Lin Chen snorted.
Lin Chen looked teasingly at Ma Chao, "Grandson, shouldn't you be calling me grandpa now?"
At Lin Chen's words, a flash of anger crossed Ma Chao's eyes, "What did you say?"
"You declared it in front of everyone; if I didn't steal the ring, you'd be my grandson," Lin Chen said with a faint smile.
"You!" Ma Chao was livid, his face turning ghastly gray.
Suddenly, his eyes narrowed slightly, "Manager Sun, this person just insulted me, eating in the same hotel affects my mood, so I wish you would throw him out."
Hearing Ma Chao's words, an embarrassed expression appeared on Manager Sun's face.
People around started murmuring, "This guy is unreasonable, after wronging someone, he doesn't apologize but wants to kick them out."
Meanwhile, Jia Kun, as the host, played dumb, and Yao Hui watched Lin Chen with schadenfreude.
Finally, Yu Feifei lost it, "Sir, you're really unreasonable, falsely accusing my friend first and now trying to kick him out, you're too much!"
"Too much? Who doesn't know me, Young Master Ma, in Liaoshi? Even if I'm too much, what can you do about it?" Ma Chao said arrogantly.
Manager Sun thought for a moment and finally made up his mind. After all, Ma Chao was influential among the second-generation rich in Liaoshi, offending him would certainly affect future business.
"Sir, please leave the hotel," Manager Sun said to Lin Chen, bracing himself.