Chapter 9

“Ah!”

Brother Biao barely had time to grunt before his vision went black—he had been knocked out cold by the newcomer.

As Brother Biao collapsed, Lin Xiaoxiao finally saw clearly the tall figure standing there.

Her legs gave way, and she instinctively leaned against the man’s solid chest.

“Brother Gu!”

Only when she wrapped her arms around the man’s firm waist did Lin Xiaoxiao’s taut nerves finally relax.

Seeing how frightened the young girl was, Gu Jinchuan felt a pang of heartache.

He gave her a quick once-over from head to toe, confirming she was unharmed.

Only then did he breathe a sigh of relief, gently stroking her hair and comforting her.
“You don’t have to be afraid. Let’s go to the dining car together and hand these two human traffickers over to the train police.”

“Mm, I’ll listen to you.” Lin Xiaoxiao nodded obediently.

Gu Jinchuan, true to his background as a reconnaissance soldier, was able to subdue the criminals hand-to-hand without any trouble.

He untied the shoelaces from Brother Biao’s shoes, bound both criminals’ hands behind their backs, and then, one in each hand, hauled them out of the restroom.

“What’s going on here? What’s going on?”

Just then, a train policeman, alerted by the commotion, came rushing over with a baton in hand.

Gu Jinchuan tossed Brother Biao and Sister Mei into the aisle, first producing his identification for the policeman to see, then pointing at Lin Xiaoxiao.

“Officer, you came just in time. This man and woman are human traffickers—they just tried to assault this young lady in the restroom.
If I hadn’t passed by and rescued her, they might have succeeded. I’m handing them over to you now. Wake them up and see if there are any accomplices still on board!”

“Thank you, Company Commander Gu, I understand!”

The discovery of human traffickers on the train rattled the policeman quite a bit.

After giving Gu Jinchuan a crisp military salute, he escorted Brother Biao and Sister Mei away.

With the traffickers handed over, Gu Jinchuan finally had time to speak to the young girl.
“How did you end up on the train? Where are you going?”

Lin Xiaoxiao smiled. “Where else? I’m going to the countryside as an educated youth!”

Gu Jinchuan frowned slightly. “Didn’t I tell you? Once the Lin family’s case is settled, you should go to the munitions factory’s family housing to find your real parents. Wouldn’t it be better for the family to be reunited? Why suddenly decide to go to the countryside?”

“I don’t want to find them!” Lin Xiaoxiao shook her head. “All these years, I’ve gotten by without them. I’m already grown up—I don’t need their care anymore.”

Hearing this, Gu Jinchuan understood at once.

Her biological parents had abandoned her and never planned to take her back.

Instead, they had doted on the fake daughter.

He thought of how, when she was just born, this cruel woman Yan Zhaodi had switched her at birth—taking her from a wealthy family to the Lin household, where she was treated like a servant and almost forced to be some old man’s mistress.

Now, she had finally escaped the Lin family’s control, yet had nowhere to go except becoming an educated youth in the countryside.

A lump formed in Gu Jinchuan’s throat.

He glanced at her and asked impulsively, “Where are you being sent for the countryside work? North or South?”

“Zhaoyang County, Hongqi Commune, Hunan Province,” Lin Xiaoxiao replied.

“Zhaoyang County, Hongqi Commune? What a coincidence!”

Gu Jinchuan’s face lit up. “That’s my hometown—we’re headed to the same place!”

He had originally wanted to say they were “fated to meet,” but considering they had only met a few times, he didn’t want to scare her off, so he quickly changed his wording.

Realizing she had randomly chosen a location that happened to be his hometown, Lin Xiaoxiao was delighted.

“Brother Gu, you’re from Zhaoyang County? That’s great! When I’m an educated youth in your hometown, you’ll have to look out for me!”

“Of course I will,” Gu Jinchuan agreed eagerly. “I’ve got a month’s family leave this time—I’ll help you with farm work every day.”

Talking about farm work made Lin Xiaoxiao suddenly remember an important detail.

When she registered at the educated youth office, she could only choose the county and commune, not the specific village.

If she and Gu Jinchuan weren’t in the same village, how could he help her with the farm work?

Gu Jinchuan saw her frown and knew what she was thinking.

He smiled. “Comrade Lin Xiaoxiao, don’t worry. I’m good friends with Secretary Yang of Hongqi Commune. I’ll ask him to assign you to my village.”

“Then I’ll thank you in advance, Brother Gu!” Lin Xiaoxiao beamed, her smile dazzling enough to make Gu Jinchuan’s heart skip.

Oh, my—just now she smiled so brightly at me!

She really was beautiful, like a fairy stepping out of a painting.

It was just a pity she was so thin—her waist looked like he could snap it with one hand!

Still, no matter. With a month of family leave, he could make sure she ate well and became fair and plump.

“Xiaoxiao, why were you in the restroom so long?”

Gu Jinchuan’s daydream was interrupted by a crisp female voice.

He turned to see a round-faced girl eyeing him warily.

Lin Xiaoxiao quickly pointed at Gu Jinchuan and explained to Huang Lihong, “Lihong, I ran into traffickers in the restroom just now—thank goodness Company Commander Gu saved me.”

Huang Lihong’s face went pale. “Oh, Xiaoxiao, you’ve got such an innocent, baby-like face—it’s no wonder you’re an easy target. If I’d known, I would have walked you over myself.”

After looking her over to confirm she was unharmed, Huang Lihong turned to Gu Jinchuan. “Thank you for saving my fellow townsman, Company Commander Gu.”

Gu Jinchuan replied quickly, “Think nothing of it. Arresting criminals and safeguarding public order is every soldier’s duty.”

Just then, the train conductor arrived with the train policeman. Smiling, he shook hands with Gu Jinchuan and Lin Xiaoxiao.

“Company Commander Gu, Comrade Lin Xiaoxiao, thank you for helping us catch two human traffickers. As a token of our appreciation, we’d like to give you two a free sleeper berth so you can rest well!”

“That’s wonderful of you, Conductor, but—”

Lin Xiaoxiao pointed to Huang Lihong. “Comrade Huang Lihong is traveling with us. Could you please give her a berth as well?”

“Of course! I’ll let the sleeper car attendant know to save one for her.”

And so, with the conductor leading the way, the four of them carried their luggage to the sleeper car next door.

The sleeper carriage was spacious and comfortable, with about two-thirds fewer passengers than the regular cars. Without the constant stream of people getting on and off, it was much quieter.

Lin Xiaoxiao chose a middle bunk and climbed up, enjoying a good sleep.

The next morning, when she woke up, the train had already arrived at Zhaoyang Station.