Chapter 9

Chen Suihuan had just wanted to withdraw her gaze and lie down again to continue pretending to sleep when she suddenly saw a man standing at the entrance of the train carriage. His shifty eyes kept staring at the middle-aged woman.

From the way he looked, he was probably sizing up whether the woman had any money on her.

Chen Suihuan frowned slightly, but she quickly figured it out. The middle-aged woman and the young man must have been going to see a doctor. Since they were seeing a doctor, they surely had money on them.

It seemed that this man dressed in black had set his sights on them.

Trying to steal even their life-saving money—how shameless, Chen Suihuan thought. So she no longer pretended to sleep but deliberately kept her eyes on the man, watching for the moment he might make a move.

This young patient’s illness was serious, and perhaps they were counting on that money for treatment. She absolutely had to protect it.

In the past two days, Chen Suihuan’s strength had grown. With the physical power she now had, she was sure she could punch the thief away with one blow.

After the train stopped at two more stations, the carriage became even more crowded. Many people were standing without seats, complaining loudly in small groups, making the carriage noisy and buzzing in one’s head.

The man still hadn’t moved, occasionally glancing at the bundle the middle-aged woman held in her lap. Chen Suihuan didn’t stare at him continuously but would occasionally pretend not to care and glance his way.

Suddenly, Chen Suihuan saw the man turn his head and then make a few hand gestures to another man smoking not far away.

It turned out to be a gang operation, Chen Suihuan frowned.

Not knowing how many people they had, Chen Suihuan was even more careful not to reveal any sign of suspicion. She continued chatting with a few fellow sent-down youth nearby, but all her attention was on those two men.

Soon, night fell. In the train carriage, besides various unpleasant smells, the aroma of cooked food began to spread.

People around them started taking out boxed meals to eat. Qin Fei and Gao Yue were eating braised pork packed from a state-run restaurant.

Chen Suihuan took out dumplings she had made earlier, which she had carefully cooled and stored in the luggage rack, and now took them out to eat just right.

Across from them, three young men—Xu Tao was eating meat dumplings like Chen Suihuan, while Lang Changxu and Ren Caiying also ate dumplings, but with vegetable fillings.

As the saying goes: “when away, dumplings; when home, noodles.” It seemed the families of these three young men treated them fairly well.

After the six of them finished eating, they took turns getting up to use the restroom.

Chen Suihuan went once as well. After coming out of the restroom, she deliberately acted like she had been sitting too long and was uncomfortable, standing by the passageway for a while to stretch.

By this time, Chen Suihuan had basically determined that there were only two people in the black-clothed gang—the man standing by the door and the one smoking.

Knowing the number of people on the other side, Chen Suihuan relaxed a bit. She was confident she could handle these two men.

Soon, the carriage became quieter and quieter as many people fell asleep.

The six people in their seats discussed taking turns sleeping, leaving two to stay awake.

Chen Suihuan said: “I slept a bit during the day, so I’m not tired yet. I’ll keep watch for the first half of the night.”

Xu Tao said: “I’ll keep you company.”

Chen Suihuan didn’t refuse. So the two of them started their watch. At first, they talked back and forth, but later, as the carriage grew quieter, they stopped talking and fell into silence.

Chen Suihuan no longer paid attention to Xu Tao and focused all her attention on the two men in black clothes standing in the dark corner—the black-clothed man and the man who was smoking.

These two pickpockets were probably experienced veterans; their patience was truly remarkable. They waited until after midnight, when everyone in the entire carriage was drowsy and nearly asleep, before they began to make their move.

Before falling asleep, Chen Suihuan had adjusted her seat to the outermost position, precisely so she could act quickly if needed.

She leaned against the backrest of her seat, squinting her eyes and pretending to be drowsy, but in reality, all her attention was fixed on the black-clothed man approaching.

Originally, many people had been standing in the aisle, but at this time, all those people were sitting on the aisle seats, leaning against the chairs and fast asleep.

The man painstakingly reached the middle-aged woman and the young man, squeezed out a spot, and quietly began to make his move.

Meanwhile, the man who was smoking did not warn the black-clothed man; instead, he pressed himself against another seat and reached his hand toward a well-dressed young female sent-down youth.

Chen Suihuan felt she could wait no longer. She quietly stood up, intending to approach the black-clothed man who had his back to her and was rummaging for money.

But just a few steps in, her hand was suddenly grabbed. Startled, Chen Suihuan turned her head and saw a dark-skinned but handsome man.

This man looked about fourteen or fifteen years old. He wore a neat shirt and black trousers.

He sat upright in his seat, firmly holding Chen Suihuan’s hand.

At first, Chen Suihuan thought the two men might have accomplices, but when she saw this young man, she immediately relaxed a bit.

Though his appearance was somewhat fierce, he had a very masculine, sharply defined face. His brows were heroic and imposing, especially his eyes—deep with a sharp glint.

With that kind of look, he was definitely not a thief. On the contrary, he looked like a soldier.

Chen Suihuan’s stiffened body instantly relaxed. Following his strength, she slowly crouched down beside him.

“Are you a soldier?” Chen Suihuan lowered her voice and asked him.

The young man nodded, eyes still watching the two thieves up ahead. He said: “Yes. Sit back down. Leave this to me.”

With a soldier present, Chen Suihuan truly felt more at ease. Catching thieves was best left to professionals.

She obediently nodded and quietly sat back in her seat.

No sooner had she sat down than a black shadow flashed past her. It was the young man. His movements were fast and clean; in an instant, he grabbed the black-clothed man by the shoulder.

A cold glint flashed in the man’s eyes. With a sudden twist of his wrist, the black-clothed man’s arm was instantly dislocated.

“Ah!” the black-clothed man let out a miserable, piercing scream, but the young man paid no attention to him and immediately charged toward the smoking man a few steps away.

The smoking man was short but quick and agile. Hearing the black-clothed man’s cry, he immediately withdrew his hand and ran.

However, the aisle was filled with people lying down, and after running only a few steps, he stepped on several people, causing many to cry out in pain as they sat up grumbling.

Seeing these people sit up, the young man frowned, planted his hands on the backrest, and leapt over the heads of those seated.

The smoking man barely ran a few steps before the young man kicked him to the ground.

Meanwhile, the black-clothed man, tears in his eyes, held his injured arm. Seeing that everyone in the carriage had been awakened by the noise, he gritted his teeth and stumbled forward to escape.