Chapter 71: The Gun

From the moment Ye Tian picked up his bag and stepped out of his seat, the man’s gaze seemed to have never left the backpack in his hands. Now that he saw Ye Tian’s backpack come loose, the man couldn’t help but turn his head to look, leaning forward as if about to stand up.

But at that moment, Ye Tian had already reached him. Just as the man turned his head, Ye Tian’s right hand suddenly shot out like lightning. He wrapped his arm around the man’s neck, took a step back, and with a forceful push of his right hand, slammed the man’s head hard against the small table next to the train window.

Thud!

A dull sound echoed through the carriage, only to be quickly drowned out by the clank-clank of the moving train. Even Cen Jinglan, who had just made way for Ye Tian, didn’t notice. Still sleepy-eyed, she only saw a shadowy figure pass by.

Time seemed to freeze for a moment. A few seconds later, a howl-like scream erupted in the carriage. The man under Ye Tian’s grasp was tough—even with his nose bridge completely shattered, he tried to stand up by pushing hard with his feet, while his right hand reached toward his waist.

Ye Tian didn’t give him the chance. He pressed both hands on the man’s shoulders, tightening and loosening his grip. With a crack! sound, the man’s arms went limp and dropped weakly. The intense pain from his shoulders made his screams even louder. But after Ye Tian’s right hand gently brushed past his temples, the world fell silent again.

From the time Ye Tian stood up to the moment he subdued the man, the whole process took no more than ten seconds. When the passengers who had been startled awake by the screams rose from their seats, they saw a bloodied man half-lying on a seat, with a tall, innocent-looking boy standing next to him.

“What… what happened?”

“He killed someone! Someone’s been killed! Quick, call the train police…”

“Was it that tall boy? Why did he beat someone so brutally? Look at all that blood.”

The sudden commotion woke up everyone in the carriage. Some braver ones moved closer, while others shouted for the train attendants. In short, the carriage was in chaos.

“Ye Tian, what happened? Did… did you hit him?”

Cen Jinglan stared in disbelief at the scene before her. Although she hadn’t seen exactly what happened, it seemed like Ye Tian had been closest to the man just now. Apart from him being the culprit, there seemed to be no better explanation.

“Make way, everyone make way, hurry up and move aside…”

Just as Ye Tian was about to reply, a train attendant from this carriage and a railway police officer pushed through the crowd. Seeing the scene before them, they couldn’t help but gasp in shock.

“What happened? Did you hit him?”

Seeing that only Ye Tian was standing next to the bloodied man lying on the seat, the train police officer quickly assessed the situation. He reached toward the back of his waist, and when he withdrew his hand, he was holding a pair of handcuffs.

Hearing the officer’s words, Ye Tian’s face showed fear. Whether intentionally or not, he reached out and tugged at the man, saying, “He tried to steal my bag. I… I just pushed him, and he ended up like this.”

Clatter!

As Ye Tian spoke, a dark, lumpy object slid from the man’s waist, instantly grabbing everyone’s attention.

“A gun?”

“That’s a handgun!”

Several exclamations rang out. The train police officer standing before Ye Tian also turned pale. He quickly stepped forward and picked up the handgun.

“Crap, no wonder my heart was racing so fast. This guy had a gun?”

Seeing the handgun on the floor, Ye Tian finally understood why he had felt that eerie sensation earlier. So this really was a desperate criminal he was dealing with.

“Step back, everyone step back! Xiao Wu, hurry up and call the train conductor…”

Just as Ye Tian was feeling a bit shaken, the officer who had grabbed the gun pulled the slide. A brass-colored bullet immediately popped out.

Seeing this bullet, the officer’s expression grew even grimmer. He noticed that not only was the gun loaded, but the safety wasn’t on either—it had been ready to fire at any moment.

He was an experienced train police officer. He knew that even local police officers carrying guns on trains wouldn’t leave a round in the chamber with the safety off. From this detail, he could tell that the man lying on the seat definitely wasn’t from the police force.

“Major case?!” The words flashed across the officer’s mind, sending a chill down his spine.

Firearms-related cases almost always involved lives. The officer didn’t hesitate any longer. Shouting at Ye Tian, who seemed scared stiff, he said, “Turn his hands behind his back. Hurry up!”

No matter what, it was essential to subdue the person carrying the gun first—even if he was a fellow officer, they would need to check his firearm permit to clear any suspicion.

Actually, Ye Tian was also a suspect. By any logic, he shouldn’t have been asked to help subdue the man on the seat.

But from the moment he saw Ye Tian’s slightly boyish face and heard his timid tone of voice, this officer instinctively chose to trust Ye Tian. Plus, Ye Tian was closest to the man at that moment, so the officer just blurted it out.

“Huh? I… I can’t do that.”

Seeming to snap out of his daze at the officer’s shout, Ye Tian’s reluctance was clear to everyone.

“Hurry up! You were capable enough when you beat him up, weren’t you?” The officer was getting impatient.

“Oh, then… uncle, you… you better handcuff him quickly.”

Scared by the officer’s tone, Ye Tian’s face turned pale. His voice trembled as if he were about to cry. He stepped closer to the bloodied man, clumsily turning the man’s body over and placing his hands behind his back.

But no one noticed that when Ye Tian grabbed the man’s shoulders, he applied a slight force, realigning the joints. Ye Tian’s movements were quick and discreet—even the officer standing right beside him didn’t realize it.

“Stay still, don’t move…”

Just as he finished handcuffing the man, a pained groan was heard. The man had woken up from the pain of his joints being realigned. Seeming to sense something was wrong, he struggled to stand up but was immediately pressed back into the seat by the officer.

At that moment, a commotion came from the carriage entrance. Three or four police officers in uniform swarmed in. Seeing this, everyone in the carriage breathed a sigh of relief.

“Old Yang, what’s going on?”

After the newly arrived officers worked together to subdue the man, a middle-aged man with the words “Train Conductor” on his armband walked over.

“Train Conductor, we found someone carrying a firearm. The handgun was loaded with the safety off. We’ll talk about it later back at the station…”

The officer called Old Yang glanced around and then said to Ye Tian, “You, grab your things and come with me. Any companions? You should come too…”

“I’m alone…” Ye Tian clutched his backpack tightly.

“I’m with him. I’ll go with you.” To Ye Tian’s surprise, the girl named Cen Jinglan stepped forward.

“So you two are together, right? Hmm, you, and you few over there—all of you, follow me…” Old Yang glanced at Cen Jinglan and called over the several people who had been sitting in the same area as Ye Tian.