Ye Nian'an's heart skipped a beat, and she knew something was wrong. She immediately rushed over to where the sound came from.
The man was frantically searching through his bunk, waking up several passengers around him who were complaining impatiently.
"Comrade, what are you yelling about! Don't you know how to let people sleep in the middle of the night?!"
"Exactly! If you lose something, go find the train police. What's the use of yelling here?"
The man seemed not to hear him; his eyes were bloodshot, his whole body was trembling, and he kept muttering to himself.
"It's over...it's all over...the nation's hard work...it's all gone..."
The nation's hard work?
Ye Nian'an's pupils suddenly contracted!
She instantly realized that her intuition was correct!
That box definitely doesn't contain ordinary things!
"Comrade, please don't rush."
Ye Nian'an strode forward, her voice calm and powerful, like a tranquilizer that instantly gave the panicked man a sense of security.
"Think carefully, what has happened since you returned to your bunk? Has anyone suspicious passed by?"
The man looked up and saw that it was Ye Nian'an who had helped him earlier. As if grasping at a lifeline, he grabbed her arm, his voice trembling.
"I...I put the suitcase next to my pillow after I got back. I was afraid it would get lost, so I didn't dare close my eyes!"
"But just now, I felt my eyelids getting heavy, so... I just dozed off for a little while! No more than five minutes! When I opened my eyes again, the box was gone!"
Within five minutes, how can someone steal a half-meter square box from the pillow of a highly vigilant person without them noticing?
This is something no ordinary thief could do!
Ye Nian'an's face instantly darkened.
These guys are professionals!
Moreover, they came specifically for this box!
"I'll go call the train police right away!"
Ye Nian'an made a quick decision and comforted the man who was on the verge of collapse: "You stay here, protect the scene, and don't let anyone touch your bunk!"
She turned and left, her steps as swift as the wind.
However, she knew in her heart that by the time the train police arrived, it would be too late.
In those brief five minutes, the thieves had ample time to move the box, and may even have already devised an escape plan.
No, we can't put all our hopes on the train police!
As Ye Nian'an ran quickly toward the police station, her mind raced.
In a flash, a detail went through her mind!
When she bumped into that man, she smelled a very peculiar scent!
It wasn't the smell of smoke, nor the smell of sweat, but rather a... extremely subtle odor, similar to a mixture of turpentine and some kind of chemical reagent!
She didn't pay attention at the time, but now that she thinks about it, that smell was definitely not something an ordinary passenger would have!
It's a thief!
The thief smelled like this!
Ye Nian'an's eyes lit up instantly!
She immediately changed direction and did not go to the police station.
Instead, like a cheetah with a keen sense of smell, it began to search silently against the flow of people in the dark carriage.
She didn't miss a single corner of the train—the toilets, the smoking area, the luggage racks…
Finally, she found it in the corner where the two carriages met, a place most easily overlooked and filled with miscellaneous items.
There were three men sitting or standing there, pretending to smoke and chat.
They were dressed plainly, looked normal, and appeared no different from ordinary passengers.
But who exactly is Ye Nian'an?
She immediately saw through their feigned composure and the slight tension in their muscles!
One of the men, wearing a brown trench coat, was the very same man Ye Nian'an had just bumped into, the one whose scent she recognized!
That's them!
Ye Nian'an's heart settled instantly.
Instead of immediately alerting the enemy, she quietly retreated, her mind racing as she devised a countermeasure.
Forcibly taking it is definitely not an option. There are three of them, and judging from their seemingly calm yet secretly wary stance, they are definitely professionally trained repeat offenders, and they might even be carrying weapons.
If a fight breaks out in the cramped carriage, not only are innocent people easily injured, but they may also take advantage of the chaos to escape.
We must outsmart them! We absolutely must outsmart them!
Her thoughts raced, and the outline of a bold plan began to form in her mind.
However, this plan requires the cooperation of official forces to ensure its success.
Ye Nian'an made a quick decision and turned to head straight for the police station in the middle of the train.
"Luckily, I was prepared!"
As a traditional Chinese medicine practitioner and the backbone of two large families, she knows all too well that anything can happen when you're away from home.
Therefore, she had long ago refined and concentrated a kind of anesthetic that could be described as "god-level".
This anesthetic was colorless and odorless, and worked incredibly fast. She gave it a simple and direct name—"One Smell and You're Gone".
They are usually kept in specially made small bottles for emergencies.
Unexpectedly, it actually came in handy today.
With this trump card, Ye Nian'an felt even more confident.
She arrived at the door of the train police station and knocked.
The person who opened the door was a middle-aged man in his forties with a square face and an upright demeanor.
He was somewhat surprised to see Ye Nian'an, a young woman, visiting late at night: "Comrade, is there anything I can help you with?"
Without wasting any words, Ye Nian'an took out a red booklet from his pocket and handed it over along with a certificate issued by the military region.
Police Chief Liu Jianguo took the ID, glanced at it, and his pupils suddenly contracted.
Good heavens! The 74th Division of the Army, Commander Chu Yan!
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