Chapter 400: Where Did the Real Green Jade Token Go

Chapter 400: Chapter 400: Where Did the Real Green Jade Token Go

A hush fell over the room.

Estelle Lockwood curled her lips into a smile. "You’re asking me?"

Old Mrs. Yeats’s eyes darted around. "Of course we’re asking you! Claire was taking the blame for you in the first place. If you hadn’t used this excuse to sell the jade token, why would Claire have bought it back and mistakenly thought it was Mr. Lynch’s?"

Estelle raised an eyebrow, her tone meaningful. "Is that... what you think too, Miss Yeats?"

Claire Yeats shook her head, tears in her eyes. "Estelle, you... Never mind. I will plead for mercy on your behalf.

"Mr. White, although I’m in charge of many collaborative matters, Mr. Lynch didn’t give the jade token to me. He gave it to Estelle, and she subsequently sold it, which led to my misunderstanding...

"Therefore, the real jade token is still with Estelle, and this White Jade Token... I know it was very wrong of Estelle to use Mr. Lynch’s name to sell the jade token for her own profit, but I hope Mr. Lynch can take her father into consideration and let her off this once..."

Claire’s words were incredibly vicious.

First, she was telling Damian White that she was completely unaware of the jade token situation—that Estelle was entirely responsible, and that the true jade token’s disappearance was all Estelle’s fault.

Second, she claimed Estelle had sold a White Jade Token under Mr. Lynch’s name, deceiving the buyer and ruining Mr. Lynch’s reputation. She, Claire, simply couldn’t bear to see Mr. Lynch’s jade token fall into outsider hands, so she bought it back. Even if she was at fault, it was merely for "failing to clarify the truth." The one with the most blame was Estelle, who had been deceiving everyone from top to bottom.

Having finished, Claire bit her lip and stayed silent, waiting for Damian’s response.

Damian looked at Estelle, exchanging a glance with her.

Estelle laughed. "Miss Yeats claims I sold this White Jade Token? Then may I ask who the buyer is? When and where did you discover that I sold it? And who did you buy it back from?

"There needs to be proof for all this, doesn’t there? You can’t just convict me with a flap of your lips, right? For a massive transaction of several million, even if there’s no receipt, there has to be at least a bank transfer record."

Claire’s expression stiffened before she gently bit her lower lip. "I... I was too anxious at the time. I don’t really remember..."

"How can you say that, Miss Yeats?"

Estelle drawled slowly, "In other words, you have no proof. Despite it being a transaction of several million, you don’t remember the buyer, the time of the transaction, or the transfer method. Are you..."

She frowned and asked hesitantly, "...suffering from Alzheimer’s?"

"PFFT..." Someone in the audience burst into laughter.

Claire’s face flushed beet red.

Old Mrs. Yeats immediately jumped in to help. "Stop changing the subject! On what grounds are you saying Claire has no proof? Claire herself is the best proof!"

"Are you saying Claire can sling mud at me without any witnesses or physical evidence? Is that what you mean, Old Mrs. Yeats?" Estelle asked mildly.

The people in the audience frowned. "Isn’t Old Mrs. Yeats being... a bit too biased?"

"Yeah, this isn’t how you take someone’s side. Besides, Estelle’s request is perfectly normal. Claire just slung a bucket of mud at her, so there should be proof, right? But Old Mrs. Yeats doesn’t think proof is necessary at all. Honestly, if Claire claimed Estelle murdered someone, Old Mrs. Yeats would probably believe it unconditionally.

"Not only would she believe it unconditionally, but she would also force everyone else to do the same."

"But shouldn’t Old Mrs. Yeats be closer to Estelle? After all, Estelle’s mother was the niece of Old Mr. and Old Mrs. Yeats, and they practically raised her."

Old Mrs. Yeats trembled with anger. What did she say wrong?! Claire had grown up by her side, innocent and kind. How could she possibly lie? Only someone like Estelle, who had grown up in the countryside, would learn such wicked ways!

Claire bit her lip. "I... Estelle, I saw you sell the jade token a week ago. As for the buyer, I’m not sure who they were, because when I went to buy it back, they didn’t show their face or use their real name."

It was understandable—many wealthy people chose not to show their faces and hid their real names during transactions.

But Estelle only laughed. "A week ago? When exactly was it a week ago, Miss Yeats?"

Claire panicked a little inwardly, secretly cursing Estelle for being so relentless. Why couldn’t she just admit her mistake? Everything was obviously Estelle’s fault! Didn’t she know how to prioritize the bigger picture?!

However, with so many people watching her, and Damian standing right there, Claire gritted her teeth. She knew she had to produce "evidence."

Fortunately, she had hired someone to keep an eye on Estelle recently. Whenever Estelle appeared at Evernight or Star, someone would report back to her.

Thus, she picked a time when her spy hadn’t reported anything.

"Last Friday night at nine thirty."

Estelle smiled.

"Last Friday night at nine thirty... Are you sure?"

Claire thought Estelle was just bluffing. "I’m sure!"

"Mhm..." Estelle nodded, then looked toward Damian. "Mr. White, you should be well aware of where I was last Friday night at nine thirty, right?"

Damian replied expressionlessly, "Last Friday night at nine thirty, Miss Lockwood was with our boss, discussing... discussing our collaboration."

Wasn’t that stating the obvious? Who else would Estelle be with during her time off if not Nathaniel Sloan?

This answer made Claire’s eyes widen. "That’s impossible! Mr. Lynch clearly left Crestfall!"

Damian looked at her as if she were an idiot. "Can he not come back after leaving Crestfall? Can our boss not afford a plane ticket? Besides, why is it impossible? Does our boss need to report to you when he meets with the person in charge of our collaboration? Since he doesn’t need to report to you, what right do you have to say it’s impossible?"

Claire was rendered speechless.

Her face turned pale as a vague sense of foreboding washed over her.

The reporters and business partners in the audience now had a clear picture of the situation.

Damian had no reason to lie. In contrast, Claire’s expression was absolutely ghastly—the sheer embarrassment of having her lies exposed.

"Exactly. Why would the two collaborating parties need to inform Claire about a private meeting? Who does she think she is?"

"Didn’t Claire say that Estelle wasn’t involved in the collaboration and merely held an empty title? Yet she didn’t even know that Estelle was meeting Mr. Lynch. How does she have the nerve to claim she’s the one who contributed the most?"

"If you ask me, Miss Lockwood never sold the jade token at all. Claire was just too impatient to steal the credit, and now she’s hit a brick wall."

Claire shuddered and staggered two steps back, nearly falling to the ground.

Damian sneered. "Old Mrs. Yeats, Evan Yeats, Claire Yeats. The three of you have been deceiving everyone, using Mr. Lynch’s name for your private vendettas and sabotage. I will settle those accounts with you later.

"For now, I want to ask: on what grounds do you assume this White Jade Token is Mr. Lynch’s?

"Where is Mr. Lynch’s true Green Jade Token?! Where did you hide it!"