Chapter 144 - A Robbery
Chapter 144: A Robbery
Tang Hao left the hotel early in the morning.
He planned to stay in Provincial City for another day before returning to Westridge District the next morning. He had already purchased the return ticket.
Provincial City was a big city, and he had only managed to cover a small area the day before. He planned to visit some more tourist spots that day.
In the evening, he returned to the downtown area and arrived at Zenith Plaza.
Zenith Plaza was a luxury shopping mall, like Sky City Plaza back in Westridge District. Tang Hao wanted to buy some gifts there for Sis Xiangyi and the rest.
He went around the shopping mall and bought anything that looked nice to him. He bought a lot of perfumes, cosmetics, handbags, clothes, footwear, watches, and others.
His initial plan was to buy gifts for the few people who were close to him. He then thought about it and felt that he should buy some more in case he needed to give more gifts in the future.
He bought many things as he walked, and did not know how much he had spent.
With the amount of money he had, he was not too concerned.
More than two hours later, Tang Hao felt that he had bought enough. He went downstairs and prepared to leave.
He had arrived at the foyer on the first floor of the mall when he saw two minivans stop at the entrance of the mall. The doors opened and a group of people rushed in.
All of them were dressed in black and wore weird monkey masks.
Tang Hao was shocked when he saw that. He stopped walking.
Meanwhile, the group of people rushed in and scattered across the foyer.
“This… This is a stick-up! Everyone, get down!”
One person shouted. He fired a shot with his gun into the air.
Bang!
The sound of the gunshot echoed in the cavernous foyer.
Immediately, the shopping mall descended into chaos. Some people shrieked in panic, while others tried to run toward the exit.
“Stop right there! Everyone, get down! I’ll shoot whoever moves!” The man holding the gun shouted and pointed his gun at the exit.
The people near the exit were frightened and immediately laid prostrate.
An atmosphere of fear permeated the shopping mall. Some people were already crying.
There were nine robbers in total and they wore the same disguise. Three of them wielded guns while the other carried knives. The weird monkey masks they wore looked menacing.
“Listen carefully, all of you. We’re here only for your money and belongings, and we’d rather not take your lives. Everyone can leave here alive if you all cooperate,” The leader of the gang shouted as he walked around brandishing a gun.
Then, he turned toward his gangmates. “Be quick! The police will be here in less than ten minutes.”
“Yes, Boss!”
The people scattered among the crowd, holding a sack in their hands.
“This… This is a st- stick-up. G- Give me your wal- wallets, phones, r- rings, ev- everything you have!” A short and fat robber stammered as he walked in Tang Hao’s direction.
Tang Hao stood on the spot with a curious expression.
He did not expect to encounter a stick-up. He wondered if he was unlucky, or if the robbers were the unlucky ones.
He looked around but did not immediately attract attention to him.
The fat robber collected wallets, phones, watches, and other expensive jewelry from the victims as he walked past them.
Zenith Plaza was a luxury shopping mall and its customers were all rich. They might not carry that much cash with them, but the jewelry and watches they wore were expensive.
Soon, he arrived in front of Tang Hao.
The fat robber glanced at him, then cursed, “Wh- What are you doing? Why… Why aren’t you on the floor?”
“Can I not lay down, Bro?” Tang Hao said.
“You… You… Bastard! D- D- Don’t you want to live? You dare talk back?” The fat robber cursed furiously and waved the knife in his hand.
“Bro, if I’m on the floor, how can I hand my things to you?” Tang Hao spoke with mockery.
“You…” The fat robber was getting flustered.
“Be quick, Fatty! Stop dawdling around,” someone shouted.
“Yes, yes!” The fat robber replied urgently. He pointed at Tang Hao and said, “H- H- Hand over ev- everything you have.”
“OK!” Tang Hao replied. He took out his wallet and handed it over.
The fat robber reached out to take the wallet.
Tang Hao flicked his wrist and the wallet disappeared.
The fat robber was surprised. “Wh- Where did it go?” He exclaimed.
Tang Hao flicked his wrist again, and the wallet reappeared.
The fat robber was surprised again. He thought that the trick was quite amazing, and he stared unblinkingly at Tang Hao’s hand for a long time trying to figure out the secret.
Someone shouted again. “What are you doing there, you damn fatty? You’d better be quick!”
The fat robber came to his senses and reached out to grab the wallet.
Tang Hao flicked his wrist again and the wallet disappeared.
The fat robber was immediately angry. “You… You dare to trick me?” He lifted his knife and stabbed it toward Tang Hao’s arm.
Tang Hao narrowed his eyes. Coldness flashed in his eyes and his aura changed entirely.
He reached out with his right arm and blocked the fat robber’s wrist. With a twist, he snatched the knife from the robber’s hands.
The fat robber squealed in agony, which attracted the attention of the other robbers.
They were immediately furious. A few of them rushed over with their knives in hand.
“You must be tired of living, you brat!” A burly robber cursed angrily as he ran over.
Tang Hao held the knife in his left hand and threw it at him.
Swish!
The sharp tip of the knife plunged into the burly robber’s leg. He stumbled and fell on the floor.
Then, Tang Hao punched the fat robber, which sent him flying. His body’s movements were like water as he knocked out the robbers in one fluid motion.
The remaining robbers were all dumbstruck when they saw that.
They did not expect a martial arts expert to be present in the mall.
“Dammit, he’s a master!” The leader muttered. He aimed his gun at Tang Hao and prepared to shoot.
Tang Hao grunted. He flicked his wrist and a knife shot out, hitting the leader on his shoulder. Meanwhile, he rushed ahead at full speed and snatched the gun.
He turned around, then with several shots, took down the remaining robbers.
In a flash, eight of the nine robbers had fallen and only the leader remained standing. His shoulder was cut, and he looked pathetic.
He trembled as he regarded the boy in front of him. His bulging eyes were full of panic.
That boy looked to be in his late teens, but he had such terrifying power!
“Who… Who are you?” The leader asked with a trembling voice.
Tang Hao smirked. “That’s not for you to know…
“I can only say that you’ve picked the wrong day to rob the place!” Then, Tang Hao took a large step forward and delivered a karate chop. The leader immediately fainted.
‘I just want money! Why am I so unlucky?’ was the last thought the leader had before fainting.
Tang Hao then went over to knock out any robbers that were still conscious.
After that, he dusted his hands and felt satisfied with what he did.
He turned around and was surprised by what he saw.
The entire foyer was silent. Everyone on the floor was looking at him with bulging eyes and stunned expressions.
The scene earlier was just like in a movie. It was too exciting and impressive!
Someone started clapping, and the rest clapped along.
“You’re too powerful, Little Brother! You must be a martial arts practitioner!”
“Thank you so much, Little Brother!”
Many people crowded around Tang Hao to thank him.
Tang Hao scratched his head. He talked with them for a while, then planned to leave the scene.
He did not want to stay. The police would be there in minutes, and he would rather not have to record a statement.
However, he heard someone shout behind him. “Wait!”
Tang Hao was shocked. He turned around and saw a woman walking toward him.