Ye Wenxi’s rebuke wasn’t loud, but it was sharp and clear enough that passengers in several nearby rows turned their heads.
Lu Weidong reacted first.
His tall frame stepped forward in one stride, positioning himself directly in front of the woman and blocking her path.
“W-What nonsense are you talking about! I’m the child’s grandmother!”
The woman’s face turned pale, her voice shrill as she tried to shake off Ye Wenxi’s grip.
“Let go of me! Or I’ll call the police!”
Ye Wenxi let out a cold laugh, tightening her hold instead, and said to Lu Weidong,
“Go ahead and call them. I’ll wait right here with this ‘grandmother.’”
Seeing that intimidation wasn’t working, the woman suddenly shoved Ye Wenxi hard.
In an instant, the two of them were grappling, tugging at the baby in her arms.
Despite being jostled like that, the baby remained deeply asleep, completely unresponsive.
“Something’s wrong with the child!” Ye Wenxi snapped. “He’s definitely been drugged!”
Passengers around them began murmuring, pointing as they caught on to the oddity.
Realizing the situation was turning against her, the woman abruptly stuffed the baby into Ye Wenxi’s arms and twisted away, trying to squeeze into the crowd.
Lu Weidong reacted swiftly. His long arm shot out, gripping her arm in a steel-like hold.
“Don’t move. Struggle again, and you’ll be the one getting hurt.”
Pinned in place, the woman’s eyes darted. Suddenly she burst into exaggerated wails:
“Help! A soldier is beating people! Is there no justice left? They’re bullying an old woman!”
With the woman firmly restrained, the little boy who had been sitting blankly finally dared to tug at Ye Wenxi’s sleeve.
His eyes were red and brimming with tears, but he stubbornly held them back.
“Big sister… I want to find my mom… I want to go home…”
Ye Wenxi’s heart clenched painfully.
She immediately bent down and pulled the boy tightly into her arms, not caring at all that the wet patch on his pants would stain her clothes.
She gently patted his back, her voice softening.
“It’s okay. It’s okay now. The police will be here soon. You’re safe. Don’t be afraid.”
But as she patted him, the boy suddenly flinched, his small face scrunching up as he sucked in a sharp breath.
Sensing something wrong, Ye Wenxi carefully lifted the back of his shirt.
Her breath caught.
Across the child’s thin back were streaks of whip marks—some already scabbed over, others still red and swollen.
The boy trembled slightly, sensing her movement, and whispered in a tearful voice,
“I won’t cry…”
“I’ll endure it. I won’t talk. I won’t cry.”
A surge of fury shot through Ye Wenxi, so fierce her eyes burned.
She whipped her head around, glaring at the woman who was still howling theatrically.
“You animals!”
The woman stiffened her neck. “Ain’t got nothing to do with me! The kid fell while playing!”
Seeing her stubborn denial, Ye Wenxi stood up without another word and reached straight for the inner pocket of the woman’s padded coat.
Child traffickers always carried tools or drugs.
She would find it.
“What are you doing? Someone’s stealing money!” the woman shrieked, struggling.
Ye Wenxi moved swiftly. In just a few motions, she pulled out a small oil-paper packet from a close-fitting pocket.
Inside was white powder.
“What is this?” she demanded coldly.
“T-That’s just milk powder for the baby!” the woman stammered, eyes panicked though her mouth stayed defiant.
“Milk powder?” Ye Wenxi sneered. “Fine. Then eat it. Right now. In front of everyone.”
“Why should I eat it! I—I won’t!” The woman stiffened her neck but didn’t dare look at the packet.
“You don’t dare because it’s a sedative! The filthy stuff you used to drug the child!”
The moment those words landed, the surrounding passengers erupted in anger.
“If it weren’t for that soldier being here, she’d have rushed up herself.”
Her chest swelled with pent-up rage, nowhere to vent it.
She wasn’t the only one.
Several passengers who had been simmering with fury were already itching to step in.
“Just beat her to death! Worse than an animal!”
“Comrade, step aside! Let us handle her!”
The crowd was seething. If Lu Weidong hadn’t still been firmly restraining the woman, she might have been torn apart by the furious passengers.
“Don’t touch her! Wait for the railway police! The law will punish them!”
At this point, the trafficker wilted completely, shrinking back and even trying to hide behind Lu Weidong.
“The police are here! Make way!” someone shouted.
Two railway officers in green-and-blue uniforms with peaked caps quickly pushed through the crowd.
Seeing Lu Weidong’s standard army uniform, the leading officer immediately raised his hand in salute.
“Comrade, thank you for stepping forward!” the officer said in a clear voice. “We’ll handle the rest.”
Click. Click.
Cold handcuffs snapped shut around the trafficker’s wrists.
Ye Wenxi crouched down and gently patted the little boy’s head.
“See? The police are here. They’ll take you home to your mom.”
The boy, who had been holding back his fear and grievance for so long, looked up at the officer, then at Ye Wenxi’s gentle face.
The tight string inside him finally snapped.
With a loud wail, he burst into tears, as if crying out all his terror at once.
Ye Wenxi looked up and added to the officer,
“Officer, the child wet himself. It’d be best to find him dry clothes as soon as possible. It’s cold—he might catch a chill.”
“Understood. Thank you for the reminder.”
“Comrade, that’s your partner, right?” an older woman asked Lu Weidong. “You two are something else! What do they call it… talented man and beautiful woman—perfect match!”
“What talented man and beautiful woman? It was the girl’s quick thinking that saved the day!”
“That’s right, both of them are outstanding!”
As the police escorted the trafficker and the two children away, the crowded carriage gradually returned to its usual noisy rhythm.
Lu Weidong turned to look at Ye Wenxi.
She looked a little disheveled.
Dust clung to the hem of her clothes. Because she had knelt on the floor, two dark stains marked her knees.
Her sleeves and clothing still carried traces of the boy’s urine. Sweat had pasted strands of hair to her forehead.
She looked like someone who had just come out of a fierce battle.
Yet she didn’t seem bothered at all.
No complaints.
There was even a trace of ease and openness at the corners of her lips.
Sensing his gaze, Ye Wenxi turned and met his eyes.
Lu Weidong’s gaze flickered. Slightly flustered, he looked away and handed her the bottle of soda he hadn’t opened.
“Have some,” he said, voice a bit dry. “Tired?”
She took it, twisted the cap open, and gulped down a big mouthful before letting out a long breath.
“Exhausted… and starving.”
During the remaining twenty-plus minutes of the train ride, Lu Weidong asked many questions about her past.
Ye Wenxi gave him a half-true, half-false introduction to her situation.
She spoke honestly about the original host’s family background and adoptive father.
But when it came to “herself,” she subtly wove in pieces of her real personality.
She laid the groundwork by mentioning her habit of reading and hinted that she had a few personal strengths.