The four of them boarded a bus to the county. The bus was really small back then, but there were quite a few people on it.

Huo Junshan and Zhang Qiang were worried that the two girls wouldn't have seats, so as soon as the car stopped, they rushed in. Huo Junshan was even worried that his girl would get carsick, so he specifically grabbed one of the first two seats.

Zhang Qiang grabbed two seats in the row behind the two girls, a tacit understanding between them.

In this era, men and women were strictly separated, and even married couples could not sit together in public.

The two girls sat together, while Huo Junshan and Zhang Qiang sat together.

Huo Junshan stood there in his seat. He was tall and imposing, and his silence gave people a strong sense of pressure. Nowadays, most people are not very tall because of malnutrition.

He stands there like a human pillar, and no one would bother him.

Yun Ningyan and Lin Mengmeng were the last to board the bus, and they sat down steadily amidst the envious gazes of the others.

Huo Junshan then went to Zhang Qiang's place.

The two women chatted and laughed without stopping. Huo Junshan kept looking around and keenly noticed two shifty-looking men in the car—thieves!

Zhang Qiang obviously noticed it too.

The two exchanged a glance, and Huo Junshan stood up next to Yun Ningyan, his long arm gripping the handle on the roof of the car, his sharp eyes scanning the surroundings.

Yun Ningyan looked up and asked him, "Go back and sit down, you don't need to stay here, it's alright!"

She winked at him as she spoke, indicating that she knew, but Huo Junshan was still worried. What if these two habitual criminals were carrying weapons?

The little girl was sitting on this side of the aisle, and he couldn't let her get hurt in the slightest.

Seeing that she couldn't persuade him, Yun Ningyan simply gave up and continued chatting and laughing with Lin Mengmeng.

Lin Mengmeng teased her enviously, "Look at your Huo, he's so good to you. He's so worried about you even when you're on a bus, he'd rather stay and watch over you than sit down."

She shook her head and sighed, "Where can you find such a perfect man? I'm so jealous."

She spoke very softly, but Huo Junshan and Zhang Qiang both heard it.

Zhang Qiang was a little puzzled; wasn't his reaction to her obvious enough?

Why envy others?

Huo Junshan was tough and his face wasn't as fair as Mengmeng's. Although he didn't earn as many work points as Huo Junshan, he could still support Mengmeng with the help of his family's subsidies.

Little did he know that Huo Junshan had overheard his thoughts. Huo Junshan turned and glared at him, startling Zhang Qiang. Why was this scoundrel glaring at me?

Huo Junshan ignored him.

Just as the car reached a clearing on the side of a mountain, the two habitual offenders exchanged a glance.

The burly, dark-faced man held a ten-centimeter knife to the driver's neck, snarling, "Slow down! Don't stop, or don't blame me for shaking your hand."

The driver was so frightened he almost lost control of the steering wheel, but seeing the knife right at his neck, he could only try to calm himself down and do as he was told.

Everyone in the car was startled; some of the more timid women and children were already crying.

Another, thinner man was also carrying a knife, and he started searching the wallets of people one by one, beginning with the person at the front.

Yun Ningyan suddenly stood up from her seat, but Huo Junshan reached out and pressed her down. "Don't move. You two protect yourselves. Zhang Qiang and I will handle this!"

Huo Junshan walked up to the thief who was searching his wallet and calmly asked, "How much money do you want? As long as you don't hurt anyone else, I'll give you whatever you want."

Everyone was grateful to Huo Junshan for being such a good person. The thief was overjoyed to see that this man was so bold. He had thought he was a bit fierce, but he turned out to be a fat sheep who had willingly taken the bait.

Zhang Qiang spoke up at the opportune moment, patting his pocket and saying, "I have several hundred yuan in my pocket. Are you sure you want to threaten a driver?"

Upon hearing this, the man who had threatened the driver thought to himself, "What great luck I'm having today! I can have a big meal when I get home, and I can also pay for my sister's medical treatment!"

Huo Junshan frowned slightly. Was there a reason this person was robbing people?

The man released the driver and stood with his accomplice. Everyone in the car crowded into the back of the vehicle, not daring to make a sound.

Huo Junshan and Zhang Qiang made their moves simultaneously.

Huo Junshan's large hand clamped down on the dark-faced man's knife-wielding hand. Realizing he had been tricked, the dark-faced man tried to resist with his left hand, but Huo Junshan grabbed his hand and twisted it forcefully. With a crack, the man's hand seemed to break!

The knife clattered to the ground.

The burly, dark-faced man realized he'd met his match; this guy was a trained fighter.

He was sweating profusely and begged for mercy, "Comrade, comrade! I had no choice, I had no choice. My sister is sick and we don't have money for treatment, so I had to come out and rob! This is the second time. The first time I robbed two yuan."

Zhang Qiang also restrained the thinner man.

Huo Junshan kicked the two knives that had fallen to the ground toward Yun Ningyan, who then picked them up.

Zhang Qiang kicked both men to their knees with one kick each.

Yun Ningyan shouted, "Search their pockets and hand them over to the police station later."

Upon hearing this, the driver hurriedly drove to the county police station. Catching two thieves and ridding the people of a menace was a good thing.

Shortly after, four people got off at the entrance of the county public security bureau.

Two men and two women, Huo Junshan and Zhang Qiang restrained two people and led them inside. The gatekeepers were puzzled. Was this how people were brought in?

The group explained the situation, and the police praised them and then asked where they lived.

The two thieves also felt remorse and tearfully explained that they had sick family members who would not survive if they did not receive treatment.

The police officers investigated and returned, and it was indeed the case.

The dark-faced man was named Wei Xiangdong, and the thinner one was named Liu Erwa.

Yun Ningyan's lips twitched. This name was too down-to-earth.

Wei Xiangdong's mother and sister are both in bed. His sister broke her arm, which is inflamed and has been refusing to heal, and she also has a fever.

His mother is bedridden, and he can't work because he has two sick family members to take care of. He has to go out and grab food, and before he goes out, he has to prepare food for his sister and mother.

Liu Erwa's family wasn't well-off either, so he was there to keep him company.

After listening, Yun Ningyan sighed deeply. This era was too hard; many people couldn't get enough to eat. She wasn't God and couldn't save so many people.

But now it's right in front of her. As a person from the 21st century, she has enough to eat and wear, and she can't bear to see this.

She said to the police, "Comrade, their situation is understandable. Could you please let them go and have them write a guarantee that they won't do it again? Last time they only stole two yuan, but this time they didn't get a single penny. And with their family in such a state, if they go to jail, their family won't be able to survive."

Finally, the police reported the situation to their superiors and agreed.

After the two men finished writing their guarantee, they came out with the others.

Yun Ningyan asked him, "How much money do you need to solve your predicament?"