After crossing over, I am popular with both men and women

Although it was only evening, candles had already been hung on Chang'an Avenue. Clusters of red lights set off the unique Chang'an-style buildings, which was extremely beautiful.

Su Qinchao led Guanqi and walked along the flow of people, occasionally asking about the prices of special snacks from vendors on both sides. After a while, both of them had several items in their hands.

"Master, don't buy any more. I can't fit them in my hands!" Guanqi protected the things in his arms, fearing that they would rub against other people's clothes. There are nobles everywhere in Chang'an City, and the clothes are expensive!

"I got it." Su Qin agreed verbally, but when he saw something he wanted to eat, he still paid for it. Soon, he added several more items.

As we were strolling around, there was a sudden commotion not far away. After a while, a short figure flashed through the crowd, followed by a series of hoarse shouts of "Catch the thief!"

It turned out that a thief was caught stealing money. Su Qinchao didn't want to get involved at first, as it was the job of the patrolling yamen runners.

But the person who was robbed was a sixty-year-old man with white hair. The old man was carrying a rag bag on his back and holding an ignorant child of eight or nine years old in his hand. His face was full of despair. It seemed that what was stolen was probably the only money he had on his body.

Su Qinchao pushed the thing in his hand towards Guanqi and chased after him. Fortunately, he had good eyesight and recognized the thief's general appearance.

Thanks to the fact that there were so many people on the street today, the thief, although agile, did not get far away, not to mention that there were also enthusiastic people who tripped him from time to time.

After following him for two streets and entering a small alley, Su Qin pounced on him and caught him.

"You still want to run? Hand over your things!" Su Qinchao picked up the thief by the back of his collar.

"I stole it with my own ability, why should I hand it over!" The thief was very petite, like a child of eleven or twelve years old. He was lifted three feet off the ground, and his hands were flapping.

"So now that you've been caught by me, why don't you hand it over?" The little thief was quite sharp with words. Just as he was about to reach out to search, he saw Guanqi coming with the victim and two patrolling yamen runners.

"He is the one who stole my money!" The old man grabbed the thief's hand with tears in his eyes, and kept shouting, "Give it back to me quickly, this is the only money I have left to support my grandson."

"Don't worry, old man. The thief has been caught. The officials will give you an explanation." Su Qinchao handed the thief in his hand to the patrolling yamen runner.

"Niu Shisan, it's you again! It's the third time this month. Is the punishment not enough?" The tall yamen runner who took over recognized him at a glance.

It turned out that this thief was a habitual criminal. He was only twelve or thirteen years old. He stole things all day long and went to jail frequently.

The thief's life story was pitiful. His parents died when he was seven or eight years old, and he had no uncles or aunts. He relied on charity from his neighbors until he was in his teens. In the past two years, he somehow learned some petty thefts.

"Old man, are these what you want?" The bailiff searched the thief and found a small cloth bag. When he opened it, he found only a few pieces of silver and a dozen copper coins inside.

"Yes, thank you, sir!"

Su Qinchao saw that the matter had been almost resolved and was about to leave when another yamen runner who was slightly fatter and shorter called him.

"What's your name, sir? You look very skilled. Could you be the candidate who will be attending the military examination in Beijing this time?"

"I dare not. I am Su Qinchao, a candidate from Yueyang. I just happened to come across this matter and am here to help."