How Should I Repay You?

Su Ke pedaled away in a panic, as if he'd just escaped with his life. Luo Feiyan's tongue sweeping over her red lips kept flashing through his mind, and he couldn't help shuddering. He really had no idea whether taking a job at Fangfei Yiren had been a good decision!

Still, he supposed people would be fighting tooth and nail for a chance like this. His boss was practically a goddess, and the charm she radiated with every smile and frown could take down any man. He wasn't walking straight into a trap, was he?

He shook his head. What was done was done. He put those rather unrealistic fantasies aside and entered the Flower Picking System's space. The electronic screen was still prompting him to claim his reward.

He claimed it as he pedaled. A flash of white light filled the space, and a flood of mathematical knowledge poured into his mind. After going through this several times, Su Ke had grown somewhat accustomed to the sensation.

Just then, he noticed the electronic screen had changed again and hurried to check it.

"Mission: Catch a thief and return the stolen property; reward: 400 yuan."

Another new mission? Seeing the prompt on the screen, Su Ke began looking around. Based on his experience, almost all of the Flower Picking System's missions had something to do with women, and every one of those women had been young and beautiful. So his first instinct was to search for clues.

First he'd taken Wei Lan home, then he'd gone to interview at Fangfei Yiren. By now, the sky was growing dim, and people hurried along the streets. Most were probably heading home to eat or make dinner.

He scanned his surroundings carefully but didn't see anything suspicious. Could the mission not have started yet?

"Thief! Catch him!" Su Ke heard a woman scream behind him. Before he could even turn around, a man ran right past him.

The mission had started! The thought flashed through his mind. Su Ke pedaled hard after the fleeing figure, without a moment's hesitation.

He pedaled as fast as he could, but the thief was surprisingly quick on foot. Su Ke chased him, shouting for someone to help stop the man. To his frustration, no one helped—instead, they cleared a path for the thief.

Su Ke gritted his teeth and pedaled even harder. At last, he drew closer. He threw himself forward and grabbed the thief's clothes. They both tumbled to the ground. Taking advantage of the roll, Su Ke locked an arm around the thief's neck and pinned his head down. A pale purple handbag flew off to the side.

Suddenly, Su Ke felt a jolt of alarm. His instincts warned him of danger, and he quickly let go and dodged aside. The thief had a dagger in his hand and was about to stab backward at him. As Su Ke evaded the attack, the thief scrambled to his feet.

The thief was about Su Ke's size, with a dark complexion and a vicious expression. He brandished the dagger and glared at Su Ke. "Get lost, or I'll kill you!"

At the sight of the dagger, Su Ke drew a sharp breath. He held out his hands in a placating gesture, palms open. "Fine. I'm out of it."

Seeing the genuine panic in Su Ke's eyes, the thief curled his lip in contempt. He'd seen this sort of thing plenty of times. Once he pulled out a dagger, anyone would think twice before getting in his way.

As if to intimidate him, the thief gripped the dagger and thrust it straight at Su Ke. He only needed the kid in front of him to retreat, and that would give him time to escape.

"Ah!"

Maybe Su Ke's confidence had soared after receiving Military Boxing Mastery, or maybe it was just instinct. Seeing the thief's arm thrust toward him, he didn't back away. Instead, he kicked out, toes pointed, fast as lightning, and struck the thief's wrist.

The thief let out a scream, and the dagger fell from his hand. Su Ke rushed in, clenched his right fist, drew it back, then drove it into the thief's stomach. But he didn't stop there. He stepped forward, crouched low, and grabbed the thief's legs, then slammed his shoulder forward.

With a leg-grabbing shoulder throw, he rammed his right shoulder into the thief's chest and sent him flying.

From the moment Su Ke struck to the moment he hit the ground, the thief had no time to react. By the time he realized he was in trouble, Su Ke had pinned him down again and pulled his arms behind his back. He was completely helpless.

Only then did onlookers shouting "Catch the thief!" and "Call the police!" begin to approach, slowly forming a circle around them. Some were so outraged that they rushed over and started kicking the thief.

Frowning, Su Ke let go. But now the crowd's courage and fury could sweep away anything in their path. The moment he released the thief, someone stepped in to take over.

He glanced around and realized the pale purple handbag had vanished. Had someone swiped it while no one was looking? What a pain. The bag had been stolen twice over; it looked like he wouldn't be able to complete the mission.

He lowered his head and walked out of the crowd, then stood his five-year-old bicycle upright. It didn't seem to be damaged, which eased his frustration a little.

"Thank you!"

Su Ke had just been about to get on his bike when he noticed a woman standing in front of him.

She looked to be around twenty-seven or twenty-eight. She wore a red-and-white striped tank top made of light, breezy chiffon, with a black bandeau peeking out beneath it and accentuating her ample chest. Her black-and-white polka-dot miniskirt showed off the lines of her legs.

Her short, layered hair gave her a smart, dashing look. She had fair skin, and her eyes held a gentle gaze as she looked at Su Ke. The pale purple handbag in her hand was the one he'd seen earlier.

"Is this your bag?" Su Ke asked, checking the Flower Picking System's space as he spoke. Sure enough, the prompt on the electronic screen had changed.

"Mission: Catch a thief and return the stolen property (complete); reward: 400 yuan."

"Claim reward!"

"Mm, thank you for helping me get my bag back!" The mature woman had an elegant, alluring air about her as she spoke. Her unmistakable mature charm was a little hard for Su Ke to handle.

"You're welcome. It was no trouble." Su Ke did have a sense of justice, but the main reason he'd chased the thief was the Flower Picking System's mission. Now he felt an urge to complete every mission as soon as it appeared.

"You're still a student, right? Take this as a little token of my appreciation." As she spoke, the mature woman took a stack of bills from her handbag. Su Ke took one look and guessed it was about a thousand yuan. She certainly was generous.

Su Ke liked money and wanted a lot of it, but the situation had his pride flaring up. He waved his hand. "No need. I'm just glad I could help you get your things back!"

"It was dangerous just now. He even pulled a knife on you. If you won't accept this, I won't feel right about it." The mature woman smiled, but there was an air of authority about her that made it hard to refuse.

Su Ke had always been somewhat timid, but that only made him more stubborn about things like this. He waved his hand again.

"I've already felt your gratitude, but I can't take the money." With that, Su Ke turned to push his bike.

"Then tell me, how should I repay you?" Seeing him like this, the mature woman didn't insist. Instead, she gave him an even more captivating smile. Her earlier smile had been charming, but mostly polite. This one was warmer and more sincere.