Chapter 327: Acting Like The Victim!

Luca’s expression changed the moment he heard the commotion. A flicker of panic crossed his face, and he immediately hurried toward the crowd.

"Luca, don’t worry. We’re fine. Go check on Trish."

Just as he was about to push his way through the onlookers, Vivienne’s clear, melodious voice reached him from nearby.

Her calm tone alone was enough to ease the tension in his chest.

He turned toward the sound and spotted her sitting comfortably inside a milk tea shop, one elbow resting on the table as she propped her chin on her hand. She looked almost like someone who had stepped straight out of a painting, completely unbothered by the commotion outside.

Beside her, Daisy sat neatly on a stool with a cup of milk tea in front of her. Her bright eyes remained fixed on the drink, and every now and then, she took a small sip, a satisfied smile spreading across her face.

Seeing that both of them were safe, Luca finally released the breath he’d been holding.

He had only just recovered from the scare involving Amelia.

If anything had happened to Vivienne or Daisy, he didn’t know how he would have forgiven himself for leaving them alone.

Vivienne was pregnant with their child. If she or the baby had been hurt...

A chill ran down his spine at the thought. After what had happened to Amelia, he couldn’t bear the idea of going through something like that again.

"I’ll go check on Trish first."

After exchanging a few words with Vivienne, he turned and headed toward his younger sister.

Pushing through the crowd, he soon spotted Trish squatting beside a middle-aged woman. Her face was flushed with anger as she helped the woman, who had her head lowered and one hand pressed against her ankle.

Standing in front of them was a well-dressed young man.

He wore designer clothing from head to toe, and the Vacheron Constantin watch on his wrist was worth at least $80,000.

His expression was impatient as he addressed Trish.

"Young lady, it’s not that I refuse to apologize. The problem is that this woman is obviously trying to scam me. She saw that I have money, deliberately bumped into me, and now wants to squeeze some cash out of me."

As soon as he said that, several onlookers began looking at the middle-aged woman with suspicion.

Cases of people staging accidents to extort money had become increasingly common in recent years. It was only natural for ordinary people to be wary of such schemes.

Some even began advising Trish not to be fooled, claiming they couldn’t stand by and watch a young woman with such a sweet face get dragged into a scam.

Of course, not everyone was convinced.

Until the truth came out, there was no way to know for certain who was telling the truth. A few people in the crowd had witnessed what happened, but none of them wanted to get involved. They simply watched from the sidelines, unwilling to stick their necks out and invite trouble.

The longer the man continued making excuses, the angrier Trish became. She was practically ready to bite him.

What made matters worse was watching people accept his twisted version of events without question.

Anyone who knew Trish only through her interactions with Luca might have mistaken her for a somewhat clueless girl.

That couldn’t have been further from the truth. Trish was sharp, and she had a good eye for people.

The middle-aged woman beside her had barely moved from where she’d been standing when the incident occurred.

The young man had accidentally bumped into her while trying to avoid a staff member pushing a cart. Before the woman could even open her mouth, he’d reacted as though someone had stepped on his tail.

Rather than apologize, he’d immediately blamed her for not watching where she was going.

Now, he was going a step further by turning the crowd against her and painting her as a fraud.

What should have been settled with a simple apology had turned into a public spectacle, all because this man couldn’t bring himself to admit he’d made a mistake.

Trish found his behavior utterly disgraceful. She stared at him with undisguised contempt.

"You were the one who bumped into her, and she hasn’t even blamed you for it! Instead of apologizing, you’re acting like the victim and accusing her of trying to scam you. You’re the one making a scene here!"

The young man gave her a mocking smile.

"Heh. Young lady, you’re not working with her, are you? How much did she pay you to put on this little act?"

He then pulled out his phone and waved it casually, putting on an exaggeratedly generous expression.

"How about this? I’m busy, and I don’t have time to argue all day. Just take out your phone, and I’ll transfer $200 to you. Then we can all go our separate ways."

To anyone who hadn’t witnessed the incident, his words made it seem as though he was simply trying to settle the matter peacefully.

He appeared willing to pay to avoid further trouble, even though he supposedly hadn’t done anything wrong.

That performance quickly earned him sympathy from the surrounding crowd.

Several people began criticizing Trish, trying to convince her to stop picking on an innocent man and dragging herself into what they believed was an obvious scam.

Watching the smug expression on his face, Trish felt her anger rise until her cheeks turned red.

"You..."

She pointed at him, ready to give him a piece of her mind.

Before she could continue, someone gently patted her on the shoulder.

Trish hadn’t even turned around when she heard Luca’s voice above her.

"So you’re saying my sister is trying to extort you for a measly $200?" he asked calmly. "Do you think she is so poor that she’d resort to scamming people for that amount, or are you just trying to show everyone how rich you are?"

"Luca!"

Trish hadn’t shed a tear despite being surrounded by people who believed the man’s lies. But the moment Luca appeared and took her side, her eyes immediately reddened.

She had always been stubborn enough to stand her ground in front of strangers. When it came to Luca, however, it was a different story. No matter how fiercely she tried to defend herself, she could never quite hide her hurt when she felt she’d been treated unfairly.

Luca had doted on his younger sister since childhood. He cherished her and couldn’t stand the thought of anyone making her suffer, even over something as seemingly insignificant as this.

Amid the commotion, nobody noticed the brief flash of surprise in the middle-aged woman’s eyes when she heard his name.

She raised her head slightly and studied Luca’s profile, her lips parting in astonishment.

Yet she said nothing.

If she called out to him now, wouldn’t that reveal that she knew him? And if the young man tried to use that connection against her, things could become even more troublesome.

Meanwhile, Josh Green raised an eyebrow as he took a closer look at the man who had just stepped forward to defend the two women.

Luca was dressed casually, but the clothes he wore were designer pieces from head to toe.

What caught Josh’s attention most, however, was the watch on Luca’s wrist.

Another Vacheron Constantin.

And not just any model. It was the latest release, one that was practically impossible to buy in San Fierro at the moment.

Its estimated value was around $500,000.

Luca himself had no idea how much it cost. Vivienne had bought it for him, and he’d simply put it on that morning because its color and design matched his outfit.

She had bought the clothes, too.

Taken together, his seemingly casual ensemble was worth at least as much as a small villa in San Fierro.

Josh’s confidence began to crumble.

His family was reasonably wealthy, but not wealthy enough for him to casually wear clothes worth seven or eight hundred thousand dollars in public.

Even the watch on his own wrist, worth more than $80,000, had taken weeks of begging before his father finally agreed to buy it for him.

A $500,000 watch was something he wouldn’t have dared ask for.

And one glance was enough to tell him that Luca’s watch was genuine. There was no mistaking its craftsmanship, and Josh had absolutely no reason to doubt its authenticity.

His attitude changed almost instantly.

At that moment, he understood that the smartest thing he could do was apologize.

If he managed to offend someone like Luca, he might not even need to lift a finger to make trouble for Josh. His father could easily end up dealing with the consequences on his behalf.

"Hehe, this was just a misunderstanding. I’m sorry. I was in the wrong."

Josh forced a smile that looked more like a grimace.

The arrogance he’d displayed moments earlier had vanished. His voice had softened considerably, and anyone paying attention could even detect a hint of respect in it.

Luca had expected the young man to come up with another excuse or perhaps try to save face with a few more insults.

Instead, Josh had changed his tune so quickly that Luca couldn’t help feeling bewildered.

’Are rich second-generation kids really this practical nowadays?’

Following Josh’s gaze, Luca lowered his eyes to the gleaming Vacheron Constantin on his wrist.

Then he understood.

’So that’s what this is about.’