Beware of Pickpocket Gangs and Their Cunning Tricks

A stocky, flat-headed man with dark skin was wearing a black tank top.

He had a fanny pack around his waist and was stepping on yellowed white slippers as he swaggered through the clothing street on the basement floor.

The man was about the same height as Lin Yu.

Coupled with his build and his domineering gait, the crowded pedestrians coming and going would involuntarily make way for him.

This must be Mr. "Black Bear", right?

Beside him was a skinny yellow-haired man who was a head shorter than him.

He had an earring and when he smiled, one could clearly see his uneven teeth and a missing one at the bottom.

His washed-out ripped jeans must have been worn for at least two years and were probably used year-round.

Presumably, he was the little minion called "Yellow Lion".

When Lin Yu looked over,

the two of them were mingling in the crowd, pretending to casually size up Lin Yu and Aunt Qimeng.

They kept discussing their "get-rich-quick scheme" with each other...

Black Bear: "Hey, see that woman and her little boyfriend?"

Yellow Lion Minion: "I see, Brother Xiong. He's carrying all these bags. They're easy prey! Is that kid really her boyfriend?"

Black Bear leaned against a fire extinguisher box, took out a cigarette and lit it:

"Definitely! I'm never wrong about people."

"That slutty woman's little slutty skirt is quite alluring. That little bastard eats better than me!"

"No need to look anymore. We'll target them later!"

The Yellow Lion Minion didn't light a cigarette.

He stared longingly as Brother Xiong took a few deep puffs.

After a while, the half-smoked cigarette was handed to him.

Only then did he happily say:

"It'll be easy. Bringing so many things down here, they clearly don't come here often."

"After we're done, let's go have skewers!"

Black Bear slapped the little minion on the head.

He said in a tone of disappointment:

"All you think about is eating. Do you have any ambition at all?"

"Hurry up and steal from them. After that, go to the arcade and pay back the 200 tokens we owe to Lao Si."

"Then keep playing the fishing game! I don't believe it!"

"I lost so much yesterday. I told Lao Si to keep that machine for me and not let anyone else play it.

Today, I'll make it spit out all the tokens it swallowed!"

The Yellow Lion Minion didn't get angry at all after getting slapped.

He still happily smoked the cigarette that was almost down to the filter:

"Okay, I'll follow Brother Xiong's lead!"

"If it really spits them out, then tonight, can we... hehe."

Black Bear patted his fanny pack:

"Once it's full, we'll go straight to Second Street for the full package!"

...

After clearly hearing their conversation while they were smoking, Lin Yu instantly understood who these two "outlaws" were.

The clothing street was an affordable and popular clothing market.

All kinds of people could be found on this street.

The footfall was really heavy, far exceeding that of the clothing section of any mall in Pingchuan.

With so many people coming, there were bound to be some lawbreakers who targeted others.

Walking on this street, if you weren't careful,

your phone and wallet in your pocket might just disappear!

Wasn't there any surveillance in the underground shopping street?

Yes, of course there was.

However, most of the cameras were just for show.

Only a few of the working ones couldn't capture the details in the crowded crowds.

The most frustrating part was that

by the time you realized your things were missing, it might have been a while.

You had no idea in which area or which store you lost them.

Moreover,

the thieves who dared to operate on the clothing street knew better than anyone where the cameras didn't work.

If you didn't keep a close eye on your belongings, you'd just have to accept your loss.

People like Lin Yu with a backpack and Chen Qimeng with a handbag were easy targets for these "pickpockets".

These thieves often worked in groups.

One would do the stealing and the other would handle the transfer.

The thinner Yellow Lion was probably the one responsible for the actual theft.

Once he succeeded, he'd quickly hand the stolen goods to Black Bear beside him for transfer.

Even if you were quick to react and noticed someone trying to steal from your bag or pocket,

by the time you turned around and caught Yellow Lion, the stolen items wouldn't be on him.

They'd already be in Black Bear's fanny pack!

Wouldn't the people around notice such an operation?

Of course they would!

But if you were alone or with just one other person and witnessed the whole process from stealing to transfer,

would you bravely step forward and say the stolen items were in Black Bear's possession when faced with his burly build and menacing glare?

People aren't afraid of thieves stealing from them; they're afraid of thieves having their eyes on them!

There was nothing one could do.

The cost of doing a good deed was simply too high.

If you were retaliated against, the person you helped might not even step in to help you.

So,

90% of the people would choose to pretend they didn't see anything.

The remaining 10% would be glad it wasn't them being targeted.

These pickpockets would choose their targets carefully.

Single or double female shoppers, as well as young-looking or honest - looking men.

Coincidentally,

Lin Yu and Chen Qimeng perfectly fit the bill.

Lin Yu just wanted to have a peaceful date and enjoy some sweet time with Chen Qimeng.

Unexpectedly, there were fools who came to cause trouble.

There was nothing he could do.

Since they'd been targeted, it was impossible to avoid them.

In that case,

he'd just calmly accept the inevitable miserable ending for these two.

Chen Qimeng was completely unaware that they were being targeted.

She was still immersed in the joy of being "in her territory".

What was more important was that

Little Yu was willing to accompany her shopping here!

Chen Qimeng had heard many stories about how men's personalities and mentalities would change greatly once they got rich.

She didn't know if the same would happen to Lin Yu, and she was quite nervous on the way.

Fortunately,

the Little Yu beside her wasn't like that!

"Little Yu, it's that store up ahead!"

"They have both men's and women's clothes. Let me take you there to have a look."

"You can wear the clothes we bought at the mall at school.

At home, you can buy a few more here. The quality is quite good!"

Chen Qimeng led the way in front, pointing to the innermost store on the left side of the underground street.

Regardless of the actual quality,

judging from the footfall, these small shops and individual stalls here were very popular.

The number of people here was more than twice that of the area near the stairs.

At this time, Lin Yu, who was walking behind, deliberately slowed down, pretending to struggle to make his way through the crowd.

He would occasionally look back at his backpack.

The purpose was to tell Aunt Qimeng that

because he was carrying a backpack, it was very difficult for him to move forward in the crowded area.

Chen Qimeng quickly walked around the pedestrians and came over.

"Little Yu, how about..."

Chen Qimeng raised her finger towards Lin Yu's backpack and was just about to ask if she could help.

However,

the moment she got close to Lin Yu,

Lin Yu took the opportunity to "struggle" to get around another person and then casually grabbed Chen Qimeng's hand!

Chen Qimeng: "!!!"

...