After rushing out of the internet cafe, Qin Tian hurried towards the mall, repeatedly calling Xia Nuannuan's phone.
All calls went straight to voicemail, indicating the phone was turned off.
As for Tian Jiajia's phone, Qin Tian assumed it was also stolen along with the bag, otherwise Su Yan would have tried calling her.
Qin Tian's anxiety grew. It was highly unlikely that Xia Nuannuan's phone was out of battery. Like him, she habitually charged her phone overnight.
She had woken up late that day, her phone fully charged. She wouldn't have used it so much while shopping that it would run out of power.
This strongly suggested she might be in danger.
Spotting a taxi driving by, Qin Tian quickly flagged it down.
The taxi stopped, turned around, and pulled up beside him.
Qin Tian opened the car door and got into the passenger seat.
"Master, please take me to the Adidas store south of the mall. And please hurry, my girlfriend and her friends were mugged while shopping."
While buckling his seatbelt, he concisely explained the situation.
"What? Mugged? Alright, buckle up."
The driver, a good-natured man, immediately looked serious. He expertly shifted gears and set off towards the mall.
Qin Tian tried calling Su Yan again. The line was busy, likely because she was reporting the incident to the police.
Just as he hung up, his phone rang.
It was Zhang Peng.
"Hello?"
"Tian Ge, Hao Ge and I are taking a shortcut on our motorcycles. We just saw you get into a taxi. We should get there first. Do you know where they are?" Zhang Peng asked urgently.
"I only know Su Yan is reporting the incident. I'm going to find her. You guys head directly to the small shops behind the mall, especially look in less crowded areas. I suspect they might be in danger."
"What? Okay, we'll go look."
"If they really are in danger, it might be a group operation. Be careful and don't do anything reckless."
"Understood!"
With that, Qin Tian hung up and said to the driver,
"Master, please drive faster."
"Alright, alright, young man, don't worry. I'll get you there in the shortest possible time."
The driver nodded solemnly and maneuvered the car through the traffic.
Qin Tian was extremely anxious and tried calling Su Yan again.
Soon, the taxi arrived at the south side of the mall. Qin Tian spotted Su Yan standing by the roadside and immediately signaled the driver to pull over, handing him twenty yuan.
"No need to pay, consider it a favor."
The driver said, stopping the car by the roadside.
"No, thank you for your trouble."
Qin Tian still handed him the money, then quickly opened the door and got out.
"Young man, it'll be alright. Don't worry."
"Thank you!"
Qin Tian thanked him, closed the door, and called out to Su Yan.
"Qin Tian!"
Upon seeing him, Su Yan quickly jogged over.
"Which direction did you last see them heading?" Qin Tian asked directly.
"That way!" Su Yan pointed in a certain direction.
Qin Tian looked in that direction, his heart growing heavier.
Just as he suspected, entering through that opening led to a large area of backstreets behind the mall.
Unlike the various specialty stores on the main street, these backstreets were lined with small stalls selling cheap clothing, small eateries, and various snack vendors.
During holidays, these backstreets were packed with people and were also a common spot for pickpockets.
This area frequently saw bag slashing incidents, as well as people losing phones and money.
"You should have reported it first instead of chasing them! They are just two girls." Qin Tian frowned and chided.
"I told them that, but you know Jia Jia's personality. She yelled and chased after the thief. There were too many people inside, and the signal was poor. I couldn't find them after looking around, so I came out to call you first." Su Yan said with a grave expression.
"I'll go look for them. Zhang Peng and the others should already be searching. You stay here and wait for the police." Qin Tian instructed.
"Okay!" Su Yan nodded in agreement.
"I'm going then." Without further ado, Qin Tian ran towards the direction she indicated.
Watching him enter the backstreets, Su Yan anxiously turned towards the bustling intersection, hoping the police car would arrive soon.
...
...
Meanwhile, Zhang Peng and Xu Hao, having arrived earlier, were already searching the area separately.
The backstreets were a maze of winding paths and alleys, some secluded, others packed with people.
Following Qin Tian's instructions, the two focused their search on the more secluded alleys and corners.
In a sparsely populated alley, Tian Jiajia and Xia Nuannuan, their faces pale, looked fearfully at three men blocking both exits of the alley.
The three men wore masks, obscuring their faces. They were armed, and two of them held Tian Jiajia's bag and Xia Nuannuan's phone, respectively.
"What do you want? We don't want our things anymore. Just take them and let us leave."
Tian Jiajia shielded Xia Nuannuan behind her, trying to remain calm as she spoke loudly.
Clearly, she was deeply regretting her actions.
After her bag was snatched, her more spirited nature took over, and she immediately started shouting about a thief and chased after the culprit.
However, bystanders did not intervene; instead, they fearfully made way.
At that moment, Tian Jiajia hadn't seen that the bag snatcher was also holding a gleaming switchblade.
It wasn't until she chased into this alley that the bag snatcher suddenly stopped, turned around, and she realized something was wrong, but it was too late.
Glancing back, she saw another accomplice appear behind her, also holding a weapon.
Following that, a third accomplice, who had snatched Xia Nuannuan's phone, forced her into the alley at knifepoint.
"Do you think we're stupid? It's too late to say you don't want them now." The man holding Tian Jiajia's bag said with a cold smile.
"You should think clearly. Our friend has definitely called the police by now." Tian Jiajia said, trying her best to remain composed.
"So what? It's just a bag snatching. The police won't deploy many forces. By the time they find us here, we'll be long gone." The man said dismissively.
The other two accomplices let out sinister laughs at his words.
"Brother, it's been a while since we had some fun. These two girls are quite pretty, especially the one in the back. That figure and face... tsk tsk, it's making me hot. Why don't we tie them up, have some fun for a few days, and also extort some money from their families."
"Yeah, yeah, I'm tired of petty theft. Let's do something big, go party in another city for a while, and then come back. Nothing will happen."
The two men spoke consecutively, their eyes shamelessly appraising Xia Nuannuan and Tian Jiajia.
The man blocking the other side remained silent, seemingly considering whether to agree with the proposal.
Xia Nuannuan and Tian Jiajia's faces turned deathly pale, their hearts filled with fear and unease.
"Nuannuan, I'm sorry. It's all my fault..." Tian Jiajia apologized with teary eyes, then whispered, "Nuannuan, let's run towards the one who's alone. Let's charge at him together. I'll hold him back with all my might, and you take the opportunity to run out!"
"No, he has a knife!" Xia Nuannuan exclaimed in terror, rejecting the idea.
"We can't worry about that anymore. Don't worry, they won't actually use the knife." Tian Jiajia gritted her teeth.
This was her only gamble. Otherwise, if they were actually kidnapped by these three, she couldn't even imagine the consequences.
This was all her foolishness. No matter what, she had to ensure Xia Nuannuan escaped.