Infinite Ebullience
Chapter 1022 - 5 Wild Chase

Chapter 1022: Chapter 5 Wild Chase

As a dominant queen, Mu Nianqi simply ignored Tang Zheng’s response and took charge of the incident.

"Hui Lan, you take him to the hospital, and when the police arrive, tell them to call me." Mu Nianqi opened her wallet, took out her credit card, and handed it to her best friend with an overwhelming aura.

A security guard tried to interject but was completely intimidated by a glare from Queen Mu.

"What’s wrong? Do you have a problem, or do you want to escalate things to a level even your manager can’t handle? Does having a crowd here not affect the mall’s reputation and business?" With just a few words, Mu Nianqi left the security guards speechless, knowing it was best to extricate themselves from the situation.

"Regarding your dropout, both the academic advisor and the dean regret it. If you want to come back, I can help." Queen Mu didn’t observe Li Xinlan, not wanting to draw Tang Zheng’s attention, but she guessed her identity while methodically handling the situation. "What are you doing standing around? Is this how you treat your job? Even if there are no customers, you should be standing at the counters!"

The sales clerks exchanged glances, but seeing the icy Queen Mu, not a single one dared to talk back, especially as their general manager approached and flashed a smile upon seeing Mu Nianqi.

"All of these people need training; fire them if they’re not up to par. You think poor sales have nothing to do with this? I’ve said it countless times, customer first. This attitude has no limit; remember, you can never do well enough. Only by thinking this way will you satisfy your customers more." Mu Nianqi lectured the general manager, who nodded like a pecking hen. There was no choice—after all, Mu Nianqi was the niece of the mall’s female owner and was in full charge of the management here.

"Sorry for the trouble. Every customer present will receive a small gift and enjoy a 30% discount today as compensation from our mall. I hope you all have a pleasant shopping experience."

Hearing Mu Nianqi’s words, the customers erupted in cheers; Her Highness the Queen’s expression was so natural it certainly didn’t seem like a publicity stunt.

"Please follow me to collect your discount coupons!" The general manager had to admire Mu Nianqi to death. A 30% discount might seem like a loss, but customers have a mentality for bargains and compensation. That relatively inexpensive giveaway, plus the one-day limit, would completely unleash their shopping desires.

The general manager even saw some astute customers making phone calls to friends already. If they couldn’t buy it themselves, they could let friends do it instead, just offering their discount coupons. It wasn’t just earning goodwill and snagging a deal but also enjoying the pleasure of shopping.

"Let’s have dinner together!" Knowing that talking to Tang Zheng would surely be rejected, Mu Nianqi targeted Li Xinlan and, without waiting for her answer, took out her mobile phone to order food.

Li Xinlan glanced at Tang Zheng, finding it hard to turn down Queen Mu’s enthusiasm. Besides, she also wanted to treat her to thank her for the help.

"Hey? What do you mean by this?" Song Tong felt ignored and her face turned blue with anger.

"Do you have anything else to say? If not, please leave." Queen Mu’s brows furrowed; she had no interest in paying attention to such an unscrupulous woman. "Let’s go."

Although Queen Mu had a strong character and a cold tone, her social skills were not lacking either. In just one meal, it was as if she and Li Xinlan had become the best of friends, with no shortage of topics to discuss.

Without any further complications, Mu Nianqi paid the bill and left.

"Nianqi is a good girl," Li Xinlan remarked.

"Which man could stand her? Only a masochist. Being with her, it wouldn’t be long before his self-esteem was completely crushed." Tang Zheng curled his lip, feeling that Queen Mu was definitely the type of woman meticulous in life and work, cold enough to form ice.

"Should you talk about her like that?" Li Xinlan turned and left, hailing a taxi. "I’m going home now."

"Hey? What about me?" Tang Zheng didn’t get a reply at all, as the housewife simply told the driver to go. He didn’t realize that the word ’old’ from Yin Zhijian triggered severe insecurities and concerns for Xin Lan.

This was a busy urban area with a high footfall. It took Tang Zheng a full ten minutes to hail a car. When he reached Li Xinlan’s house, he was faced with a locked anti-theft door.

"Stop knocking, she’s not home," the housewife kindly came out to remind him, also seizing the opportunity to gather some gossip. "Did you have a fight?"

"No." Tang Zheng phoned Li Xinlan, but no one answered. Then he just sat at the doorstep, preparing to wait.

Even at ten o’clock in the evening, the housewife had not appeared. Worried that Tang Zheng was waiting at home, she simply found a hotel to stay in temporarily.

"Such devotion!" The housewife even got up in the middle of the night, peeked through the peephole, and saw Tang Zheng curled up at the door asleep. When she went back to bed, she still sighed, "Xin Lan is really lucky. Now I believe in their relationship."

"I’ve said long ago that Xin Lan isn’t that type of woman. Stop overthinking it and go to sleep."

"How can you be so unfeeling? How could I have married you?" The housewife began to grumble.

Knowing her temperament, her husband knew better than to respond—if he did, there would be no end to this ’war.’ So he covered his head and fell into a deep sleep.

He had waited for two days and still hadn’t seen Li Xinlan, knowing that he couldn’t go on like this anymore. If he couldn’t rest well in the real world, entering the Trojan Horse Game would definitely cause problems, so he had no choice but to leave.

In the evening, Li Xinlan returned home and encountered the housewife from next door.

"Oh, you’re finally back. That kid waited for you for two days, barely eating anything during that time."

Li Xinlan’s eyes reddened immediately. She took out her mobile phone but still held back.

After sleeping soundly at the hotel until 2 p.m. the next day, he was awakened by his mobile phone, it was a greeting from Lu Fan. After he finished taking a shower, an unfamiliar phone call came in.

"Hello!" Tang Zheng, drying his wet hair, guessed it might be about Yin Zhijian, but the voice on the other end was Teng Yuangxiang’s.

"Are you free tonight? Let’s have dinner together." Teng Yuangxiang had gotten Tang Zheng’s number from Yu Manli and couldn’t wait to call him.

As for Teng Yuangxiang’s intentions, Tang Zheng guessed them right away. To be honest, he had slept with her the day before yesterday, and then disappeared for two days. It was impossible for him not to feel some resentment towards the young widow, especially since he didn’t even know what he had done wrong. There was a moment when he thought about simply rolling in the sheets with Teng Yuangxiang, since at least that woman would certainly take care of him to the best of her abilities.

"Sorry, I’m not free." Tang Zheng still turned her down, hung up the phone, and went out to eat.

The spring sunshine was warm on his skin, and Tang Zheng started to cherish this feeling. Watching the busy passersby on the street, he felt this was what life was about. Unfortunately, his reflection was interrupted by a sharp, panicked cry that echoed through the entire street.

"Robbery!"

Accompanied by the middle-aged woman’s wailing, there was the thunderous roar of a motorcycle engine.

The passersby turned around and saw a middle-aged woman who had just walked out of the bank falling to the ground, her handbag and the gold necklace around her neck both yanked away. Accompanying her wails was a motorcycle speeding past her.

The robber in front revved the throttle and burst out, while the one at the back, holding the stolen goods in one hand and brandishing a dagger with the other to scatter the pedestrians, both wore helmets and leather jackets, looking incredibly burly, the very image of fierce gangsters.

This action was actually redundant. Seeing the motorcycle speeding by nearly eighty miles per hour, the pedestrians all ducked to the side. It was a pure instinctual reaction rooted in self-preservation.

Tang Zheng hadn’t even turned around when he saw the motorcycle whizzing by like the wind from the corner of his eye. He reached out to grab it but missed.

"Fuck!" Already irritated, Tang Zheng cursed and started to run with long strides, quickly closing the distance between himself and the motorcycle.

"Speed up!" The gangster on the back shouted in alarm. Because of their habitual cooperation, his accomplice sensed the urgency in his voice and twisted the throttle even tighter, and the motorcycle zoomed away with a sizzle.

The bystanders were stunned by this series of events, transfixed and speechless, especially when Tang Zheng’s hand almost touched the gangster’s shoulder, only to have the latter speed away. They all sighed in disappointment, though deep down they longed for a hero to appear.

"Ah, just missed it." These were the despondent good folks.

"Give up, how can a man catch up with a motorcycle." These were the pessimists.

"Come on, big brother!" This came from a little boy licking his ice cream. Seeing Tang Zheng’s actions, he threw away his ice cream and started running as well, startling his mother, who quickly caught up and grabbed him.

A speed nearing a hundred miles per hour is very fast, and the onlookers didn’t think the brave young man would be foolish enough to continue the chase. But what happened next shocked them.

The towering young man grabbed his collar and tore off the cumbersome sportswear, revealing just his tank top, and sprinted with all his might. With each forceful stride, his muscles tensed, his smooth, perfect lines resembling the most magnificent of sculptures. Even the sweat dripping off him into mid-air seemed to carry the warm vitality of the spring day.

With every exhale and inhale, each expansion of his chest was like a great whale sucking in water, drawing in all the surrounding air. The aesthetic of muscle and strength in motion was on full display in that moment.

For an instant, the bystanders felt as if the world came alive, revolving around the young man. Some young men and women quickly took out their phones and snapped pictures, capturing this intensely passionate moment, while many more were filled with anticipation.

Tang Zheng knew the longer he delayed, the more people would doubt his burst of speed, so it had to be quick. He ran with all his might, each large swing of his arms fueling the expansion of his lungs, and after twenty meters, he caught up with the motorcycle.

The gangster in the back didn’t expect the kid to catch up and nearly pissed himself in terror. He lashed out with the dagger in his hand, aiming for Tang Zheng’s cheek, trying to fend him off.

The pedestrians gasped, with the women mostly covering their mouths in horror, worried that Tang Zheng would be hurt. Some of the more timid even turned their heads away, unable to watch, and then they heard a scream. (To be continued. If you like this work, please come to Qidian (qidian.com) to vote for it and give monthly tickets. Your support is my greatest motivation.)