Miss Hou’s temper had improved significantly after she got back together with Ye Tiancheng. Coupled with Ye Tiancheng’s good attitude, he didn’t stand in opposition to Hou Mingzhu or deliberately argue with her.
Therefore, Ye Tiancheng could easily appease Miss Hou with just a few words.
Once Hou Mingzhu’s anger subsided, she changed her attitude and began to inquire about the situation from Ye Tiancheng. She wasn’t an unreasonable person. Hou Mingzhu had already seen that Ye Tiancheng hadn't responded to her promptly because he had been talking to Fatty, and his expression had been quite serious.
That was why Hou Mingzhu hadn't immediately asked Little Fox to call Ye Tiancheng, but instead observed the situation. Seeing that both of their expressions had relaxed, as if the problem had been resolved, she then had Little Fox go call Ye Tiancheng.
Now that she had passed this hurdle, Hou Mingzhu naturally had to inquire about her husband’s affairs.
Hou Mingzhu asked, "I saw you talking to Fatty just now. Judging by your expression, you were discussing something rather important?"
Ye Tiancheng knew what Hou Mingzhu was referring to, but he guessed that Hou Mingzhu’s three friends were nearby, so he didn’t tell the whole truth. He simply said, "Fatty wasn't quite used to this environment, so I was accompanying him to adapt. He's fine now."
Upon hearing this, Hou Mingzhu’s expression turned a little regretful. "Oh dear, I didn't consider that. You men might not enjoy shopping that much."
Ye Tiancheng knew how to respond to this.
Ye Tiancheng said, "Men don't exactly love shopping, but I'm different. Although I don't love shopping, I love shopping with you, Mingzhu. As long as I'm with you, I can do anything."
"Oh?" Hou Mingzhu was suddenly stunned. She looked up at Ye Tiancheng’s face, and her cheeks instantly felt hot, her earlobes burning.
She suddenly flinched back like a startled little hamster, as if retreating into a hideout, lowering her head.
"We're on the street! What are you suddenly saying!"
Ye Tiancheng smiled and said, "I'm speaking my true feelings."
Hou Mingzhu’s three friends were watching from the side. When Hou Mingzhu realized and looked at her friends’ reactions, Tang Susu put on a dramatic act of being stuffed with dog food, making Hou Mingzhu even more embarrassed.
The onlookers who were fed dog food were not just Hou Mingzhu’s three friends; many people on the street who were paying attention to the attractive couple were also choked by the dog food.
Ye Tiancheng started talking to Hou Mingzhu, and then walked with her.
They had walked past another street when suddenly, a thin young man in a black shirt bumped into Hou Mingzhu. It looked like an accidental collision in the crowded street.
The thin young man in the black shirt repeatedly apologized to Hou Mingzhu, "I'm so sorry, I'm so sorry! I didn't mean to! It was really accidental..."
Hou Mingzhu was a little unhappy after being bumped, but since it was an unintentional mistake, she couldn't be too petty about it. So, she just said, "It's fine, be more careful next time."
The thin young man in the black shirt immediately thanked her, "Thank you! I'll remember!"
Hou Mingzhu let the person go. Just as the person was about to leave, Ye Tiancheng suddenly grabbed the thin young man’s arm. Hou Mingzhu was startled.
She immediately said to Ye Tiancheng, "Tiancheng, let it go. He just bumped into me accidentally, not on purpose. Let's not pursue it."
The thin young man in the black shirt looked flustered after being grabbed, his eyes darting around nervously. Hearing Hou Mingzhu speak up for him, he quickly chimed in, "That's right! I know I was wrong and I've apologized. I promise it won't happen again. Please, big brother, let me go!"
Ye Tiancheng let out a cold sneer, his grip unwavering.
He said, "Stop playing innocent in front of me. If you had really accidentally bumped into my wife, I wouldn't be bothered to argue with you! But you'd better leave what you took behind obediently!"
Hou Mingzhu was stunned. "What I took...?"
She quickly patted her pockets and rummaged through her bag, only to realize that the clasp of her handbag had been opened at some point. Upon opening it, she saw that several items were missing, scattered around. It was clear that someone had casually grabbed the things on top.
"You're a thief?!" Hou Mingzhu realized and became furious.
How dare someone dare to steal from her! Although Hou Mingzhu’s temper had improved considerably, it was mostly directed towards her family, friends, and Ye Tiancheng. When dealing with a thief who had stolen from her, Hou Mingzhu would not be polite.
Therefore, her eyebrows shot up in anger, her eyes filled with fury as she stared at the thin young man in the black shirt.
The thin young man in black, realizing his actions had been exposed, immediately struggled to escape. But how could he escape easily when Ye Tiancheng had him by the arm?
What's more, with the presence of Hou Mingzhu and her three friends, this group of four beautiful women shopping would undoubtedly attract the most attention on the entire street. Now that a thief had been discovered, Ye Tiancheng, who was at the center of the incident, and the thin young man who had stolen the items, were immediately surrounded.
Some people were even holding up their phones, reminding Ye Tiancheng that they had already called the police and that someone would be here to catch the thief soon.
Seeing that escape was impossible, the thief immediately wanted to fight. However, facing someone as imposing as Ye Tiancheng, he couldn't even break free from Ye Tiancheng's grip, let alone win a fight. Fortunately, only one of his hands was restrained.
The thin young man in black’s eyes flashed. He suddenly reached into his pocket, his gaze subtly falling on Hou Mingzhu beside Ye Tiancheng, and then there was a flash of silver.
Someone in the crowd cried out in alarm, and the scene immediately became chaotic.
"That thief has a knife! He's using a knife!"
"Oh my god, is she going to be alright? He went for that beauty! If he accidentally disfigures her..."
How could Ye Tiancheng let such a thing happen? His reaction speed was much faster than ordinary people. He was a cultivator, while this thief was just a regular person. The moment he sensed the intention to stab Hou Mingzhu, Ye Tiancheng immediately twisted his arm.
The thin young man in black felt a sharp pain in his waist and wrist. Both of his hands were then restrained by Ye Tiancheng, and the knife was successfully confiscated by Ye Tiancheng.
Ye Tiancheng sneered, "You dare to pull a knife on me? You've got some nerve!"
Fortunately, Ye Tiancheng reacted extremely quickly and had excellent combat skills. The thief was subdued very quickly without causing any significant harm.
The surrounding crowd witnessed everything. Those who were envious and jealous of Ye Tiancheng were even fewer in number. When the gap between people becomes too large, it's hard to feel jealous; only admiration remains.
Some people in the crowd even cheered and applauded, clearly happy that the thin young man in black had been subdued.
For someone who not only stole but also carried a knife and could potentially harm someone at any moment, his capture was met with applause and relief that he had been caught. Otherwise, who knew when they themselves might become a victim.
However, after such an incident, shopping could no longer continue.
Ye Tiancheng’s original intention was to have Little Fox and Fatty accompany Hou Mingzhu and the others to continue shopping while he stayed to hold the thief until the police arrived to take him away. He would then cooperate with the statement, so as not to affect Hou Mingzhu and the others' mood for their outing.
However, Hou Mingzhu disagreed. Since such a thing had happened, she had no mood for shopping.
So, Hou Mingzhu repeatedly shook her head and said to Ye Tiancheng, "How can I still be in the mood to shop? Everything happened too quickly just now. How are you? He just pulled out a knife, are you hurt?"
Ye Tiancheng, holding the thin young man in black, merely glanced at him indifferently and then replied to Hou Mingzhu, "Don't worry, what could happen to me?"
"You know my abilities. He's just an ordinary person, how could he possibly hurt me? I'm perfectly fine, so don't worry."
"What about you? Were you scared by that just now?"
Hou Mingzhu was indeed a little scared at that moment. After all, the thin young man in black was so close to her and had a knife pointed at her. Hou Mingzhu couldn't help but be startled.
But Ye Tiancheng's reaction was indeed very fast. He successfully subdued the thin young man in black quickly. Hou Mingzhu no longer felt scared; instead, she was more concerned about whether Ye Tiancheng had been cut by the knife. With Ye Tiancheng around, she really had nothing to fear.
Therefore, Hou Mingzhu shook her head and said, "I was indeed a little scared when I saw him with the knife, but with you here, I knew he couldn't do anything, so I wasn't afraid at all."
Seeing that Hou Mingzhu didn't seem scared, Ye Tiancheng was relieved.
"That's good. You chat with your friends for a while, and I'll hold the person here. When someone comes to take him away, we'll see if we want to continue shopping."
Hou Mingzhu was also afraid of affecting Ye Tiancheng, for example, by distracting him and causing him to accidentally let the thief go or harm someone else. Moreover, it wouldn't be good to leave her friends alone. Thus, she agreed.
"Okay, then I'll chat with my friends on the side and wait for you."
Ye Tiancheng nodded, and so their group sat in sections on the benches provided on the street for pedestrians to rest. Hou Mingzhu and her friends sat on one side, while Ye Tiancheng, holding the thief, sat with Little Fox and Fatty on the other side.
Because someone had promptly called the police, and it was on such a lively street with ample police presence, they came and took the thief away.
Not only did Hou Mingzhu get her stolen items back, but the thief also returned some items to other victims who were present. As for those whose owners could not be found immediately, they were temporarily stored until the owners were located.
However, it was likely due to the misfortune of being stolen, which was seen by many people on the street. Without any dispute, and Ye Tiancheng's actions in catching the thief not being inappropriate, everything was within the reasonable scope of self-defense.
Therefore, the people who came to catch the thief, after understanding the situation from Ye Tiancheng and those around him, did not take Ye Tiancheng away for questioning. Instead, Ye Tiancheng and his group were allowed to leave on the spot.
Since they didn't have to go to the police station, and there was still plenty of time, Ye Tiancheng accompanied Hou Mingzhu and the others to shop for a while longer. Because of what had happened earlier, many people on the street had noticed. Even those who didn't know quickly learned about it through word of mouth.
With this in mind, the rest of the shopping trip went very smoothly. No one dared to eye Ye Tiancheng and his group carelessly, as that would be asking for trouble.
Ye Tiancheng accompanied Hou Mingzhu and the others shopping like this until past ten o'clock at night. They then had a late-night snack, and the group of seven finally returned to their hotel to rest and recuperate, preparing for the next day’s more demanding tasks.