The Invincible Strongest Student

Chapter 1244: Chapter 1244: Catching a Cheat (Part 1)

An adept card cheat, when switching cards, must switch the cards back before shuffling to leave no trace or flaw, leaving no evidence to be caught.

Mrs. Liu demanded to check the cards, Lin Tian leaned back in his chair, seeming unafraid, as the cards had been switched back, naturally he had nothing to fear.

Lin Tian looked playfully at the DS across from him; if he remembered correctly, there was still one card he hadn’t had time to switch back. So, currently, there was something fishy on the table.

Midway card checks like this were common in gambling arenas, so no one stopped it. However, directly pointing at Lin Tian’s nose and accusing him of cheating was rare, as one shouldn’t casually accuse someone of cheating without solid evidence.

All the cards were placed on the table, and neither Lin Tian nor Zhang Ya’Er and the others could touch them anymore. Only the beautiful croupier could verify them; no one else could touch them. Even if she was slow, they’d have to wait.

The beautiful croupier wasn’t as nervous as she was at the start, but still cautiously arranged the playing cards in sequence, slowly but carefully, for fear of making a mistake.

Finally, the cards were sorted, and the beautiful croupier truthfully said, ”There’s one less Club 4 and one extra Diamond Jack.”

The surrounding spectators were once again in an uproar; indeed, someone was cheating!

Almost instantly, Lin Tian felt countless eyes fixed on him, all carrying unfriendly looks.

”What do you have to say for yourself?” Mrs. Liu glared at Lin Tian, her eyes fierce, with a hint of smugness.

This evening, he initially won quite a bit, but ran into Lin Tian’s group, turning losses into nothing; anyone would be furious. Now that he finally has the chance, naturally, he wants to pin him down, not only making him return what he won before but even breaking a finger to vent his anger.

In contrast, Zhang Ya’Er, DS, and Shan looked relieved, with a slight smile on their faces. Finally, this guy’s flaw was caught! The trouble tonight has been overcome!

Of course, they had already known Lin Tian was cheating too; otherwise, it wouldn’t have been possible to win so much just by luck. But as the managers of the gambling arena, a show had to be made.

Shan suddenly stood up, placing both hands on the gambling table, leaning forward to stare at Lin Tian, his gaze increasingly ferocious, questioning, ”Mr. Lin, care to explain?”

Lin Tian shrugged, spread his hands, and said, ”There’s nothing to explain; it’s got nothing to do with me.”

His arrogant demeanor made those around even more upset, with all kinds of words being said, dirty curses endlessly filling the air.

This is human nature; most gamblers present wouldn’t cheat because it’s a skill, one that can’t be learned by just anyone. So they’re ignorant, and this ignorance breeds fear, and that fear turns into hatred!

”Mr. Lin, I’m afraid this explanation won’t satisfy anyone!” Zhang Ya’Er smiled.

”Right! Who the hell would believe that!”

”Exactly, you won the most tonight; who’d believe you’re not cheating?” said a middle-aged man with slicked-back hair, perhaps red-faced from some drinks, pointing at Lin Tian and swearing.

Suddenly, Lin Tian turned his head, glaring angrily at him.

The middle-aged man continued speaking, but after being glared at, he hesitated and didn’t dare to continue, feeling a chill in his heart.

”What... what are you looking at me for? You cheated, and you think you’re justified? Want to hit me?!” The middle-aged man, feeling somewhat self-righteous, mustered up the courage to shout. Surely, many people around supported him.

Lin Tian began laughing, looked at the middle-aged man, and retorted, ”According to your logic, in this gambling arena, is it that whoever wins the most every night is cheating?”

”I didn’t say that!”

”Right, you didn’t say it, but that’s essentially what your logic implies.”

”You...” The middle-aged man wanted to rebut, but kept his mouth open for a long time without finding a flaw in Lin Tian’s words to counter with, so he stood there, red-faced, muttering curses under his breath.

Suddenly, Lin Tian stood up, waved his hands around, and said loudly, ”There’s something strange about the cards on the table, and you’re accusing me of cheating. But now, let me ask everyone a question. From the time these fresh cards were swapped in, since the dealing started, did anyone see a Club 4 or a Diamond Jack in my hand?”

This question immediately led to greatly reduced cursing around, as everyone started pondering the question. In their minds... it seemed like... they couldn’t remember. Besides, who would notice such a thing?

”Did anyone notice?” Lin Tian asked, looking around, but no one answered.

”It seems not, but I remember,” Lin Tian continued, ”In the first hand, I had a Diamond Ace, Club Nine, the second hand was... Miss Ya’Er’s hand was... Shan’s was...”

Lin Tian reported every hand everyone held. From the start of these cards to now, only four hands had been played, so it wasn’t hard to recall.

Everyone around listened in amazement, looking at Lin Tian like he was some kind of monster; was this guy really remembering, or was he just making it up?

Finally, Lin Tian pointed to a surveillance camera not far away, saying, ”If you don’t believe me, you can pull up the footage, and you’ll know. As for the extra Diamond Jack, it was once in the hand of this foreign friend, Mr. DS, so is your suspicion target wrong?”

The crowd was rendered speechless, looking between Lin Tian and DS, suddenly unsure of their judgment.

DS’s complexion turned sour; he’d thought he could deceive everyone and let Lin Tian take the fall, but hadn’t expected this guy’s memory to be so monstrous, even remembering the suits precisely.

”Is that so?” Zhang Ya’Er turned her gaze to DS, her eyes sharp.

She naturally knew DS was cheating, having swapped cards with him! But in front of so many people, a teammate must be sacrificed as needed!

”No! I didn’t switch any cards!” DS loudly denied, ”My hands have always been on the table; how could I have a chance to cheat? If you don’t believe me, you can pull up the surveillance footage!”

DS’s voice was loud, his gaze steadfast, displaying supreme confidence. What he really believed in was his technique; he’d already checked the surveillance angles, confident the cameras wouldn’t catch anything. Besides, surveillance cameras were still not as keen as human eyes in certain areas. With so many people present, if there was a glaring flaw, it would’ve been found long ago; how could it possibly wait until now?