Chapter 67 This man has a sense of responsibility
Xie Zhongming was secretly delighted.
Although Xingyue did not acknowledge her as her husband's wife in front of her maternal uncle Huang Guiyi, only saying that he was the Xie family's nanny, she introduced the relationship between the two of them to outsiders without a second thought.
After saying the previous sentence, Qiao Xingyue took Xie Zhongming's arm and followed the two train police officers forward. "Xie Zhongming, come on, let's see if we can help in any way."
Xie Zhongming followed behind Qiao Xingyue, his gaze fixed on the spot where Qiao Xingyue was holding his arm. He had just felt the atmosphere was tense and he was on guard, but now he was only immersed in the joy of being held by his wife.
Soon, two train police officers called them to the crew room and closed the door.
One of the train police officers, whom Qiao Xingyue had met before, spoke up, "Comrade Qiao, my surname is Gao, and this is our Director Zhou."
Director Zhou reached out to Qiao Xingyue, briefly grasped her fingertips, and then got straight to the point, "Comrade Qiao, there have been armed robbers in carriage number 8 of the train. Two have been found so far. Based on intelligence, there may be more than two. One of them has taken a seven-year-old boy hostage. We need your help."
Upon hearing that they were carrying guns, Xie Zhongming tensed up. Just as he was about to speak, Qiao Xingyue nodded and said, "Okay, I'll go with you to check out the situation."
"No." Xie Zhongming grabbed Qiao Xingyue's wrist and pulled her back.
Qiao Xingyue could feel the tightness and weight in his palm. She turned to look at him and said, "You should come with us. That seven-year-old boy must be in great danger right now, and his parents must be very worried."
She is also a mother, and ever since she had An'an and Ningning, she can't bear to see any child suffer.
Xie Zhongming looked at the two train police officers, his gaze settling on the fifty- or sixty-year-old director. "Director Zhou, I have participated in many criminal arrest operations in the military and solved many border cases. I have experience in these kinds of emergencies. Let me go, and my wife will stay here."
They have guns.
Guns don't discriminate.
Xie Zhongming glanced at Qiao Xingyue, his firm gaze revealing his concern and worry for her. "Xingyue, listen to me, I'm going, you stay here."
Qiao Xingyue frowned. "No, your hand is injured. Besides, you're wearing a military uniform, and you're a man. The kidnapper might become defensive if he sees you, which would be more detrimental to rescuing the seven-year-old boy. You can come with me, but let me get closer to the kidnapper. I'm a woman, and I'll definitely be able to lower his guard."
Director Zhou nodded. "Comrade Qiao is right."
Qiao Xingyue: "There's no time to lose, let's get to carriage number 8 right away."
Xie Zhongming knew that Qiao Xingyue's analysis made sense, and he couldn't dissuade her, so he followed suit.
The passengers in the first few carriages were unaware of what had happened.
Only at the connection between carriages 8 and 7, the carriage doors have been sealed off by railway police.
A passenger wanted to use the toilet in carriage 8, but two train police officers stopped him. They then moved all the passengers from carriage 7 to carriage 6, and a train attendant was assigned to calm everyone down.
Nevertheless, some of the passengers crammed into carriage number 6 were still filled with anxiety.
As Qiao Xingyue, Xie Zhongming, Comrade Gao, and Director Zhou walked through the group of anxious passengers toward carriage number 8, the atmosphere was particularly heavy and oppressive.
They all remained highly vigilant.
The train continued its clattering journey, the clanging sound rolling over Qiao Xingyue's chest, and also over Xie Zhongming's chest.
Qiao Xingyue looked at the seven-year-old boy, while Xie Zhongming was worried about her.
When the people in carriage 6 saw the train police passing by, they hurriedly asked what had happened. Director Zhou stopped and said a few words of reassurance before following Qiao Xingyue and the others.
Soon, the four of them arrived at the door of carriage number 8.
The railway police officers standing at the door saluted Director Zhou.
Director Zhou nodded. "These two comrades are here to help. Let them in."
"Xingyue, walk behind me." Xie Zhongming grabbed Qiao Xingyue's arm.
This time, besides feeling the extra force in her palm, Qiao Xingyue also felt Xie Zhongming tremble slightly. It wasn't that he was afraid, but that he was worried about her.
Qiao Xingyue understood immediately, "Trust me."
Then, she looked at Director Zhou and Comrade Gao and said, "Could you please get me a blanket or some clothes, and a loose-fitting outfit to put on? I need to pretend to be pregnant."
Comrade Gao's eyes lit up. "That's a great idea!"
They quickly found what Qiao Xingyue wanted. Qiao Xingyue changed into a loose cotton coat, which was covered in sweat. It must have been taken off from some fat man, but she didn't care about the smell of sweat.
She stuffed the extra clothes into her stomach and secured them with rope.
This way, criminals will be less wary of her.
Xie Zhongming was still worried, so he asked the other carriages and comrades to change out of their military green trousers and shirts.
It's rare to meet a man as tall as him, standing at 1.87 meters, on the train. His coarse cloth shirt was a bit too short, and his baggy trousers were also too short, revealing a section of his long calves.
"Xingyue, we'll pretend to be a couple in a bit, and I'll help you inside." Xie Zhongming said, already holding Qiao Xingyue's hand.
Qiao Xingyue nodded.
She could feel Xie Zhongming's concern and nervousness towards her, and a strange warmth welled up in her heart.
Director Zhou, who was standing nearby, said, "Aren't you two a couple? Why are you pretending to be one?"
Just as Qiao Xingyue was changing her clothes, Director Zhou and Comrade Gao also changed into the villagers' clothes, no longer dressed as railway police officers.
The atmosphere in carriage number 8 was extremely tense.
A man in his early thirties, not very tall but muscular like a block of iron, wearing a faded, pilling green shirt with the sleeves rolled up to his arms and several shocking knife scars on his arms, pressed a gun forcefully against the little boy's temple.
The little boy had developed hypothermia due to excessive tension and fear.
The air in the carriage, which was originally filled with the smells of coal smoke and sweat, suddenly froze.
No one could smell the stench of sweat anymore, and no one dared to move. Some were sitting, and some were standing.
The atmosphere was like an ice-cold iron plate, so oppressive that everyone could hardly breathe.
It also made Qiao Xingyue feel a little breathless.
She was a doctor, and when she saw the little boy with a gun pointed at his temple and experiencing hypothermia, her heart clenched. Even if the assailant hadn't fired, the little boy was still in danger.
When a person is excessively frightened, it can trigger a sympathetic nervous system storm, releasing a large amount of adrenaline, leading to sudden cardiac arrest and arrhythmia.
This is what is commonly known as being terrified.
Qiao Xingyue, a mother herself, saw the baby's limp body, lifeless eyes, and completely pale face, and a sense of foreboding washed over her.
The woman kneeling on the ground cried and pleaded, "I beg you, let go of my Qiangzi, I'll be your hostage, please..."
"Get out of here."
As Qiao Xingyue approached the child, Xie Zhongming followed closely behind, observing the situation inside the carriage and watching the reactions of each attendant.
When her gaze fell on a gay man, her back tensed up.
As Qiao Xingyue approached, the thug with several long scars on his arm shouted, "Don't come any closer, or I'll shoot him dead."
"Comrade, you want me to be a hostage? I'm Qiangzi's aunt, and I'm pregnant. I'll be your hostage. What are your conditions? Tell me."
She approached the thug step by step.
Perhaps because he saw that she was heavily pregnant, the thug lowered his guard.
Xie Zhongming did not step forward.
If he stepped forward at this moment, it would alert the criminals. Seeing Xingyue, who was disguised as a pregnant woman, cautiously approaching step by step, he was sweating. But seeing that the kidnapped child was already paralyzed with fear, he had to harden his heart and let Xingyue approach. Then, he exchanged glances with Comrade Gao and Director Zhou, who were in disguise.
The train clattered and rattled.
Each blow felt like a heavy hammer pounding on Xie Zhongming's chest.
"Comrade, what are your conditions? I'll go and talk to them for you."
She had prepared a water bottle beforehand. As she slowly approached the thug, she handed it to him, saying, "Comrade, are you thirsty? Would you like some water? We can talk about what you want later."
The thug forcefully rammed the water bottle Qiao Xingyue was offering him with his arm, saying, "Don't try that..."
With a clatter, the kettle fell to the ground.
The sudden sound startled everyone in the carriage.
Just as everyone was terrified and sweating profusely, a gunshot rang out.
After the gunshot, screams erupted in the carriage, followed by silence, with everyone holding their breath.
Then came another round of screams.
The screams came from the gunman.
Qiao Xingyue twisted his wrist, the hand holding the gun. The shot had been fired at the ceiling of the carriage, leaving a hole.
Qiao Xingyue's three silver needles pierced the thug's neck with lightning accuracy. "Ah!" With a scream, the hand holding the gun instantly lost its strength, the muscles twitched uncontrollably, and the pistol clattered to the floor.
"Quickly carry Qiangzi to the side." Qiao Xingyue decisively ordered the kneeling aunt, the mother of the seven-year-old boy, who crawled over weakly and carried Qiangzi to the side.
She then twisted the assailant's wrist and pressed her knee against his lower back, pinning him firmly against the carriage wall.
The silver needles remained stuck in the acupoints, and the thug was in so much pain that he was sweating profusely and his whole body was numb. He could barely move a finger while struggling.
In just over ten seconds, the once ferocious thug was now slumped on the ground.
She stood there, her fake pregnant belly protruding, completely unharmed.
"careful!"
Bang!
The passengers in the carriage all thought the criminal had been subdued and breathed a sigh of relief. But then the criminal's accomplice stood up and pointed his gun at Qiao Xingyue.
At the critical moment, a figure rushed out like the wind and stood in front of Qiao Xingyue.
Gunshots rang out. Xie Zhongming was shot in the left shoulder. At the same time, he smashed the safety hammer in his hand at another accomplice of the criminal, knocking the gun out of the criminal's hand. Director Zhou and Comrade Gao subdued the accomplice together.
"Xie Zhongming..." Qiao Xingyue rushed over and helped the wounded Xie Zhongming.
Blood trickled down his coarse cloth shirt, quickly soaking a large area of his left chest.
He was shot in the left shoulder.
...
Kuncheng Military Region Hospital.
Xie Zhongming is lying in his hospital bed after his surgery.
The military doctor stood beside her and instructed Qiao Xingyue, "Comrade Qiao, the wound of Regiment Commander Xie needs to be rinsed with saline solution every day, then this mercurochrome should be applied, and it should be bandaged with gauze. But don't worry, a nurse will come to help Regiment Commander Xie change the dressing. As long as we do a good job of preventing infection, stopping bleeding and relieving pain after the operation, and immobilizing the wound for recovery, there shouldn't be any major problems."
Before Qiao Xingyue could speak, Xie Zhongming, who had just finished the surgery, said decisively, "Xingyue is also a medical professional, so there's no need for the nurse to help me change my dressing."
Although the injury was only on the left shoulder, it was still necessary to take off clothes when changing the dressing.
He was unwilling to take off his clothes in front of other women, not even his shirt.
Qiao Xingyue smiled, recalling how this man had injured his genitals so badly back in Shantang Village, yet he still refused to let her perform surgery on him.
That's really conservative!
But she was also very angry, "You rushed up and shielded me from the bullet. Luckily, the thug's aim was poor and he didn't hit your heart."
Thinking about it now, I feel a chill run down my spine!
Qiao Xingyue's heart was still pounding.
He was just as resolute when he encountered the group of villagers who robbed him in Chadian Village.
Although she was glaring angrily at Xie Zhongming, her eyes were suddenly warm with tears of emotion welling up.
Without letting him see, she turned around and wiped it.
This man was always tough and resolute, but when he spoke, his voice was a little weak; surgery for being shot was no minor procedure.
Xie Zhongming saw everything as she turned to wipe her tears.
When she turned around, she wanted him to rest, but Xie Zhongming comforted her instead, "I'm fine, it's not a serious injury. We often get injured on missions, it's nothing, I'll be fine in a few days."
Xie Zhongming lay in his hospital bed, his face pale from the surgery.
The lip color was also light.
His left shoulder was wrapped in thick gauze, with some dark red bloodstains seeping through.
He had just come out of the operating room, and his breathing was still a little shallow.
Ignoring his own injuries, he quickly asked, "Xingyue, how is the little boy who was kidnapped on the train?"
The voice conveyed a sense of weakness following surgery, yet also a deep tension.
Qiao Xingyue knew that all soldiers cared about the people, let alone a seven-year-old boy.
She reassured him, "Don't worry, Qiangzi was also taken to the hospital for emergency treatment, and he's fine now. I even went to see him when you had your surgery."
The boy was so frightened on the train that his heart stopped beating, but Qiao Xingyue immediately performed CPR on him.
Xie Zhongming's eyes suddenly showed a lot of relief. "That boy isn't much older than our An An and Ning Ning. He must have been terrified."
“An’an was also kidnapped once.” Qiao Xingyue recalled that incident, and she still has psychological trauma from it. It happened when An’an was less than four years old. “But An’an probably had a lot of experiences with me and was brave, so she wasn’t scared.”
"When did An'an encounter robbers? What happened to her in the end? Was she injured?"
"No, the robber wanted to steal my money, but I didn't have any on me. But I have guts. If anyone dares to hurt my daughter, I'll fight them to the death."
When Qiao Xingyue talked about fighting desperately, her eyes were full of fierce determination, which was a mother's greatest strength. However, Xie Zhongming's eyes were filled with guilt and heartache.
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