Chapter 1: The Entanglement of Fate and Enmity, Haicheng's Solitude

  Red ticket.

  There is a specialized field of study for every profession, and this is the intuition of a thief. The key point is not how much copper smell there is, but whether it catches the eye.

  First, the fat man chose to sit by the window as soon as he got on the bus and put his belongings on the side of the window. This way, passersby wouldn't easily notice them. Next, Li Huqiu noticed that he bought a lot of dry food and cooked meals, including drinks, all of which were packaged and had a clear origin, ensuring food safety. However, these two points are not enough. Li Huqiu also discovered that after getting on the bus, the fat man only ate and drank and didn't talk to his neighbors or people across from him, thus preventing himself from being cheated. Moreover, after finishing his meal, although he closed his eyes to rest, he frequently used wind oil to wipe his temples, apparently to prevent himself from falling asleep. He had two bags, a large one and a small one. The large bag was casually thrown under his feet, while the small bag was tightly attached to the side of the bus seat, looking very precious. Li Huqiu dared to conclude that there was the least amount of money in his small bag.

  Two small thieves were deceived by the appearance of a fat man who was eating and drinking heavily, thinking that he was a frequent traveler who wouldn't carry much money. As the train sped along, when it reached Jilin Province, it was already midnight. The two small thieves, who had been lucky enough to not be exposed during the day, began their nocturnal activities, carrying out the most unskilled and indiscriminate attack in the world of pickpocketing. This is a method of large-scale assault that targets sleeping passengers. From the inside pockets of suits to large and small packages, the two thieves worked together, one keeping watch for police raids, while the other rummaged through the personal belongings of sleeping passengers with abandon.

  The little thief noticed that Li Huqiu was staring at them with a provocative gaze. The kid pointed at Li Huqiu with his middle finger. Li Huqiu, who was leaning against the end of the carriage with his arms around his knees, opened one hand and made a "please" gesture. The little thief quickly moved to the fat man's side, and so far their gains could be described as dismal. The fat man was not what they had expected, but they still went through the motions of searching the fat man's bag. When their hands touched the fat man's bag, trouble came - the fat man woke up, yawned, and the fermented smell of chicken butt in his mouth almost knocked the little thief who was face to face with him off balance.

  Li Huqiu noticed the movements of Da Baozi, who first clamped his thighs together, hugged his waistband, then used his toes to press down on the large package, and finally used his body to squeeze the small package.

  "What are you doing?" The fat man shouted and stared at the little thief who was dazed by his tone, asking cautiously. "Are you a thief? Catch the thief, there is a thief!" The fat man shouted without hesitation. Another little thief rushed up and grabbed the fat man's neck with his small hands, which looked like chicken claws. The scene was like an eagle landing on an elephant's back, thinking it would have a delicious meal. The fat man's thick lower jaw fat resisted the thief's chokehold. He let out a high-pitched scream, instantly waking up everyone in the car. Everyone turned to look, and the fat man roared: "There are thieves, catch them quickly, they are thieves!"

  The little thief who had been smoked out was already safe and sound, he had just been sprayed with a large amount of carbon dioxide, the most powerful thing was still that smell. He pulled out a dagger from his pocket and fiercely shouted at several young men who were about to rush up: "Who dares to interfere? Be careful, I'll stab him to death." The fat man's arrogance was extinguished. He was so scared that he couldn't shout anymore.

  The little thief was nervous, watching as a passenger ran out of the car with quick movements, clearly not going to the bathroom. The two thieves exchanged a glance and rushed towards the last carriage with knives in hand. Li Huqiu guessed they were trying to jump off from there, watching their distant figures, he let out a sigh and thought: "Good, this way we won't have to bother the police at the back of the train, these brothers are walking into a trap." Sure enough, not long after, the loudspeaker broadcasted the train staff's reminder for passengers to beware of pickpocketing.

  Li Huqiu was annoyed at Pangzi, not for anything else, but because Pangzi sat there occupying most of the seat, squeezing the old lady who Li Huqiu had given up his seat to, leaving her with only a tiny space that could barely fit half of her body.

  A man in his fifties, who was not originally from this carriage, walked over from the fifth carriage and asked the old lady to swap seats. Although his seat on the other side was also by the aisle, it was a three-person seat with two female students, so it was quite spacious. The old lady greeted Li Huqiu, who nodded and said "please go ahead". So the fat man's seat was swapped with that of the fifty-year-old man. Li Huqiu sized up this well-dressed middle-aged man with long hair down to his shoulders, earrings, and a very trendy look. His eyes couldn't help but reveal a hint of admiration.

  When the train arrived in Changchun, several fashionably dressed young people passed through this carriage, and when they brushed past the old man, Li Huqiu's sharp eyes caught their movements as they transferred stolen goods. The old man sat there without making a sound, and before long, he had at least twelve wallets on him. Li Huqiu understood that his stylish outfit was definitely custom-made, specially designed to hold wallets and cash. Even if you put twenty or thirty thousand yuan in it, you wouldn't be able to tell from the outside. It turned out that this old man was a pigeon-dropping thief who collected money.

  Li Huqiu suddenly had an idea and thought that this person might also be a contestant. He decided to test it out. The train was going to stop in Changchun for 40 minutes, the man got off to buy something, Li Huqiu followed him off the train. The old man rushed straight to the toilet outside the platform, Li Huqiu chased after him and blocked his way, shouting: "Sir, you dropped something!" The old man's face turned red with anger!

  Just now, when the two of them brushed past each other on the train, Li Huqiu made a move like a king, and from the old man's body, he quietly took eight wallets. Even if he pretended to be innocent, the old man knew that he had encountered a tough nut.

  Li Huqiu smiled and said, "Why bother changing your hair color? Just by looking at you, I can tell that you've been through a big storm. I gave you eight money bags, but your hands haven't been idle either, have they? The book in my arms was borrowed by you, did you use it as the 10,000 yuan registration fee? That's my pillow for sleeping, are you going to return it to me first?"

  The old man obviously let out a sigh of relief and smiled: "Youngster, quick hands, let's get acquainted. I'm Xie Hongjun, codename 'Crab Claw', leader of the Jilin Changchun line. And you? Judging from your skills and accent, you should be from a gang too?"

  Li Huqiu took the book handed over by Lao Zei and put it in his bosom, saying: "Pincer son, eight hands, indeed a well-deserved reputation. Li Huqiu has no nickname, Haicheng South Station's leader, doesn't bring a gang, acts alone."

  The two men shook hands on the spot, and after letting go, Xie Hongjun took out a handkerchief to wipe his hand, then returned the handkerchief to Li Huqiu, with an expression of slight complacency. It was clear that the handkerchief belonged to Li Huqiu. In that fleeting moment, it had already been stolen by him. Li Huqiu suddenly raised his hand to glance at the time, and said: "This stinky habit can't be changed, I like to pull it out when looking at my watch." After finishing speaking, he returned the watch on his wrist to Xie Hongjun. The two men looked at each other and smiled, then burst into loud laughter. When Xie Hongjun went to take Li Huqiu's handkerchief, however, Li Huqiu's hand was waiting at the opening of his pocket, and with a quick move, he pulled out one of the connecting rods from Xie Hongjun's watch, pulling it off his wrist. During the time Xie Hongjun was wiping his hands, Li Huqiu had already put the watch back on his own wrist.

  Li Huqiu asked: "Did you also receive an invitation to attend the Zei Wang Conference?"

  Xie Hongjun retorted: "Aren't you?"

  Li Huqiu nodded affirmatively and said, "Of course, if we win, there will be five million to take. This is a good thing that brings both fame and fortune, and it's also a grand event in our line of work. Even you, a senior expert, have come out of retirement, let alone me, a young man."

  Xie Hongjun asked him: "There's a big fish in the carriage, did you see it?"

  "Hmm, I see." Li Huqiu nodded and said: "Isn't there already an old cat sitting next to him?"

  Xie Hongjun smiled and said, "How about we make a bet?" Li Huqiu asked with interest, "A bet? What kind of bet? What are the rules?" Xie Hongjun said, "Let's bet on that fat guy. I bet he has at least 500." Li Huqiu narrowed his eyes and smiled, "Alright, I'll bet he has more than that, at least 1,000. Anything below 1,000 is considered a win for you." Xie Hongjun said, "The loser will be the winner's assistant in the Thief King competition." Li Huqiu agreed, saying, "It's settled!"