Peerless Martial Expert in the City
Chapter 34 - 32 The Thief

Chapter 34: Chapter 32 The Thief

As he turned around, Xiao Yi immediately saw the pickpocket he had encountered on the bus earlier. The thief was sneakily peeking at him from the crowd from time to time. Seeing Xiao Yi suddenly looking back, the thief’s face showed a moment of panic, but he quickly pretended to be calm and glared back at him before walking forward slowly, still casting intimidating glances at Xiao Yi.

Once he had identified the stalker, Xiao Yi couldn’t help but breathe a sigh of relief. When he first realized he was being followed, his heart had skipped a beat, thinking that his behavior in Book City had attracted the attention of someone with ulterior motives who had someone track him.

However, his brows soon furrowed again. What was the thief doing? Sneaking behind him—did this dimwit actually plan to target him again?

Giving the thief, who had boldly revealed himself after being spotted, a cold, mocking smile, Xiao Yi thought it would be best if he weren’t so foolish. If the thief did indeed intend to make a move on him again, then he would be in big trouble this time. He definitely wouldn’t just hand him over to the police like the last time.

After boarding the bus, Xiao Yi quickly noticed the thief’s figure again.

Watching the thief, who intermittently glanced his way among the crowd on the bus, Xiao Yi’s lips curved into an almost imperceptible sneer. He closed his eyes and soon feigned a weary, drowsy demeanor, tilting his head to one side.

But to Xiao Yi’s surprise, the thief didn’t make a move at all. Not only did he not target him, but he also didn’t seem to have any intention of targeting any other passengers either, just occasionally glancing at him.

This behavior confused Xiao Yi about the thief’s intentions, but he couldn’t be bothered to pay him any mind.

He continued to rest with his eyes closed until the bus stopped at the university station, when he quickly turned and got off.

But as soon as he stepped off the bus, he saw the thief turn and get off as well.

"Hey, you’ve been following me all this time. What exactly do you want?"

Seeing the thief follow him off the bus, Xiao Yi couldn’t help but stop, feeling somewhat speechless. He turned his head and looked at the thief.

"Kid, you can eat whatever you want but watch your mouth. You go your way, I’ll go mine. What reason do you have to say I’m tracking you?"

The thief hadn’t expected Xiao Yi to stop and confront him directly, and his eyes darted around in panic before he retorted righteously.

"Oh, is that so? In that case, please, go your way."

Xiao Yi gestured for him to proceed.

"When I walk and how I walk is none of your business. Can’t I stand here and enjoy the scenery for a bit?"

The thief clearly didn’t expect Xiao Yi to respond that way. Choked up, he lifted his foot to walk away before stopping again, his face turning red with anger as he turned and glared fiercely at Xiao Yi.

"Then you take your time."

Watching the thief’s reddened, angry yet feebly disdainful expression, Xiao Yi didn’t bother to waste more words and went on his way toward Azure Waterfront. He could have taken a connecting bus from here, but it was only a few stops away, and he didn’t feel like waiting for another bus, as walking would be faster.

The moment he started moving, the thief followed suit.

After what had just happened, Xiao Yi couldn’t be bothered to pay him any more attention. Let him do whatever he wants.

To someone like this small-time thief, he wouldn’t even register on his radar. And this kind of riffraff wouldn’t be able to make much of a splash even if left to their own devices.

However, he wasn’t interested in playing this game with the thief indefinitely. As he felt the thief’s footsteps catch up, Xiao Yi quickly picked up his pace.

Upon reaching a busy T-junction with a heavy flow of pedestrians, he seized the moment when the thief was distracted and, with a quick move, blended into the crowd.

"Let that damn kid get away!"

The thief, momentarily captivated by a beauty’s miniskirt and taking a few extra looks, turned his attention back to where Xiao Yi had been, only to find that Xiao Yi had vanished without a trace. He looked around in all directions, stomping his foot in frustration and cursing angrily.

"Hmph, punk, you can run from the monk, but you can’t run from the temple. I know you live around here. Lai Shitou will sooner or later drag you out. I’ll make sure you learn your lesson for meddling in Shitou brother’s affairs—the consequences are severe!"

After fuming for a while, the thief soon revealed a sinister sneer filled with malice.

He then took out a mobile phone and dialed a number, "Hey, Fa, it’s me, your big cousin Shitou. That guy I told you about who slipped through my fingers on the train—I ran into him today. He lives around Z University, probably right here, near Deqing Road. You help me tell the boys to keep an eye out. If you spot him, let me know immediately. I’ll send you his photo in a bit."

"Heh heh, you wait and see how you’re going to die, punk!"

After hanging up the phone, Lai Shitou’s lips once again curled into a smug, cold smirk.

.........

Back at Villa Azure Waterfront, Xiao Yi originally planned to just grab something from the breakfast items Liu Yuan had brought over in the morning and make do, but as he opened the fridge, he was taken aback. It was packed full of various foods, prepared dishes, and raw ingredients alike, in addition to the previous breakfast stuff.

Without a doubt, Xiao Yi knew it was Liu Yuan’s doing, and he silently appreciated his thoughtfulness.

Since there were ingredients available, Xiao Yi naturally wouldn’t just scrounge up a meal to appease his hunger and shortchange his stomach. Although he preferred to handle things in a more straightforward manner most times, he was not a lazy person, particularly when it came to his stomach. Under the old man’s guidance, he had never been slovenly. Selecting some of the familiar ingredients, he began to mess around in the kitchen.

Before long, the entire villa was filled with tantalizing aromas.

Carrying his handiwork to the living room, Xiao Yi turned on the television, enjoying the sight of artificially enhanced, yet genuinely eye-pleasing beauties on the screen, while starting to indulge in the fruits of his labor.

Hmm, not having cooked in over a year, it seems my skills have really declined. Looks like I’ll need to cook more often.

After tasting a dish that looked and smelled delicious, Xiao Yi was somewhat dissatisfied and shook his head.

However, this dissatisfaction was relative. Although not as good as before, it was still many times better than what he had eaten in the cafeteria that morning. He quickly dove in and began devouring the meal.