eurekapd Chapter 401 Falsely Accused of Theft
Chapter 401 Falsely Accused of Theft
These words carried weight and silenced the banquet hall instantly.
The group exchanged bewildered glances, realizing that things were about to escalate into a major conflict.
For a moment, no one dared to speak.
King Qi spoke up in the silence, his voice gentle: "Old Madam Li is anxious because she has lost her precious treasure. Please forgive her for my sake."
"Madam Li doesn't intend to suspect everyone present; she simply wants to find the real thief. I believe you all also hope to find this person as soon as possible to clear your names, don't you?"
King Qi's voice was gentle and unhurried, and every word was clearly heard by everyone.
He always presented himself as approachable, gentle, and polite to outsiders.
He stepped in as a peacemaker, and everyone, even if they still harbored resentment, at least outwardly restrained themselves and no longer showed it.
Madam Li glanced gratefully at Prince Qi, then sighed heavily, no longer as aggressive as before. "Gentlemen, this treasure is of extraordinary significance to me. It was the only memento my late husband left me, and now that it has vanished, I cannot rest easy."
"Please forgive me, everyone, for my advanced age."
The people at the table looked at each other again, exchanging glances, but none of them said anything more.
The steward of the Li family understood immediately and loudly ordered the maids in the mansion to step forward and check.
Female guests were inspected by maids, while male guests were inspected by servants.
Because the inspection was rather indecent, the steward of the Li family specially ordered several screens to be brought over, dividing the banquet hall into private spaces, so that the guests could go behind the screens one by one to be inspected.
There were fewer than a hundred guests at the banquet today, so the inspection wasn't too time-consuming.
Having come to this point, in order to prove their innocence, the ladies and young women, even if they felt offended, could only suppress their dissatisfaction and cooperate with the maids to carefully examine the place.
Soon it was Yu Wan's turn.
She stood behind the screen, letting the maid check her to see if she was hiding anything. Just then, a maid exclaimed in surprise from behind the screen opposite her.
"It's here!"
The exclamation was like a pebble thrown into a calm lake, instantly creating ripples.
The previously subdued breathing in the banquet hall became chaotic, and everyone's eyes turned to the screen from which the sound was coming from.
Yu Wan frowned slightly and subconsciously turned to look in that direction.
Behind the screen, a maid from the Li family bent down, picked something up from the ground, held it in her hand, and then quickly walked to Old Madam Li, respectfully presenting the item with both hands.
It is a jade pendant.
When Madam Li saw the jade pendant in the maid's hand, her eyes instantly reddened, and she was so excited that she could hardly contain herself.
With trembling hands, she took the jade pendant, held it in her palms, examined it carefully for a moment, and then choked out, "Yes, yes, this is it. This is the jade pendant I lost."
After confirming that the jade pendant in her hand was her lost treasure, Madam Li carefully placed it into her bosom.
Immediately, his gaze turned cold as he looked up at the screen behind them. "From which distinguished guest was this item found?!"
The maid glanced at the person standing behind the screen who seemed to be caught stealing and didn't know what to do, and replied angrily, "Reporting to the old lady, it is Miss Yun."
Miss Yun?
Madam Li and the many guests were stunned, their faces full of doubt and surprise, unable to recall for a moment who this 'Yun family girl' was referring to.
However, Wang Jin seemed to have anticipated this scene. A mocking smile appeared on his lips as he eagerly spoke up: "What did I tell you? This lowly person from a small place is not only dishonest, but also dares to steal from Old Madam Li. What audacity!"
Behind the screen, Yunxi finally recovered from her initial shock.
She hesitated for a moment, calmed herself down, and then walked around the screen to the front of the group.
Once everyone saw her face clearly, they began to whisper among themselves.
"It could be her. After all, she comes from such a humble background, it's hard to guarantee she won't be tempted by money."
"I heard that the Yun family used to be the lowest-class hunters. It took three generations to produce a successful person like Yun Shang. They were poor people who suddenly became rich. People like that are always eyeing other people's good things."
"What bad luck! She's dishonest and almost dragged us down with her. We can't let her off so easily."
"Madam Li, now that the thief has been found, you must send someone to report her to the authorities and teach her a lesson. She's so young and yet she's done such a thing, and she's dragged us down with her for no reason."
"Yes, yes, Madam Li, you must not show her any mercy, she must be punished severely."
Everyone chimed in with their own words, seemingly venting their resentment through these derogatory and abusive remarks.
Faced with the pointing fingers and whispers of the crowd, Yunxi unconsciously clenched her fists into her hands hidden in her sleeves. She took a deep breath, her expression calm, her gaze clear and open.
“Madam Li, I don’t know why your jade pendant ended up on me, but I definitely didn’t steal it.”
"You didn't steal it?" Wang Jin's eyes were contemptuous, his tone aggressive. "The jade pendant was found on you by the maid in front of everyone. This irrefutable evidence is right there in front of everyone, and you still dare to deny it! You are shameless!"
Yun Xi acted as if she hadn't heard Wang Jin's words, not even sparing her a glance. Instead, she looked directly at Old Madam Li, her expression calm and her tone sincere:
“Madam, I admit that the jade pendant was found in my possession, but that does not prove that I stole it. Since the start of the banquet, I have been in the banquet hall and have never left everyone's sight. How could I have had the opportunity to steal your jade pendant?”
"If you say I stole the jade pendant, may I ask who personally saw me leave the banquet hall to steal Madam Li's beloved possession?"
She glanced around, and a hint of hesitation appeared on everyone's faces.
Wang Jin glanced at him and scoffed, "With so many people at today's banquet, who are you to warrant our attention? Who cares whether you've left the banquet hall or not?"
Wang Jin had never hidden his malice towards the Yun family from the beginning, and some of the people knew the inside story, so it was not surprising that Wang Jin was targeting Yun Xi at this time.
On the contrary, I felt that what she said made a lot of sense.
"Yes, we were all enjoying the banquet and watching the play just now, we didn't have time to notice where she went."
"She stole things herself and then tried to use us to get away with it. This girl is quite cunning; we shouldn't be fooled by her."
As Madam Shen watched her daughter being criticized one after another by these aristocratic families, she trembled with anger.
She opened her mouth several times, wanting to defend her daughter, but remembering the look Yunxi had given her after walking out of the screen, she forced back the words that were on the tip of her tongue and could only worry inwardly.
Madam Li stared expressionlessly at the girl standing in the middle of the banquet hall, her face open and honest, without the slightest hint of guilt.
After staring at her for a moment, Madam Li said, "You say you didn't steal it, what proof do you have?"