When the man saw him, he smiled and nodded.
Su Yuanyuan was startled. She hadn’t paid attention to what her son had been muttering. When she looked up, she saw the man standing at the connection between the train carriages.
He had a tall, straight, and imposing figure, with strong facial features and a buzz cut. His eyes were bright and full of spirit. He looked to be around 1.8 meters tall, and the military uniform made him look even taller and more formidable.
What a handsome man.
His aura was just a little cold.
“Okay, thank you.” Su Yuanyuan stepped aside.
She was carrying two children as well as several large and small bags, so it was indeed somewhat inconvenient. She could manage on her own, but since someone was willing to help, of course she was happy to accept.
The man said nothing more. With one hand, he easily and steadily picked up Lu Mingzhu.
A handsome face suddenly appeared right in front of her.
Lu Mingzhu let out a little “Wow.”
“Uncle Soldier, you’re so handsome!”
The man’s movements paused. His eyes flickered, and he looked a little embarrassed.
“Wash your hands.”
Lu Mingzhu giggled and obediently washed her hands and mouth.
“I’m all clean!”
The little girl’s eyes were bright and clear as she blinked up at the man with a smile.
Her cheerful mood infected him, and the corners of his lips curved slightly.
“Very good.”
The man put the child down. After washing his own hands, he nodded to Su Yuanyuan and returned to his carriage.
Su Yuanyuan watched his retreating figure, her gaze landing on the waist cinched by his belt.
That waistline…
A perfect V-shaped, muscular waist.
And especially that face.
It was seriously handsome.
Handsome was handsome, but he also looked somewhat familiar.
Yet Su Yuanyuan was certain that whether before or after transmigrating into the book, she had never seen a man with such outstanding facial features and physique.
Why did he seem familiar?
Strange.
“Mommy, the soldier uncle is very handsome, right?” Lu Mingzhu grabbed Su Yuanyuan’s hand, her face full of mischief.
Caught by her daughter, Su Yuanyuan’s face flushed.
She awkwardly coughed a few times.
“It’s okay. J-just average.”
She was a married woman, after all.
In this era, having an affair could get someone arrested.
The man was indeed handsome, but there were more important matters at hand.
After thinking it over, Su Yuanyuan realized that with two children beside her, they could easily become targets if she wasn’t careful.
She still needed to ask the train attendants for help regarding the traffickers.
Su Yuanyuan found a train attendant one carriage away from where the couple was.
The train had already traveled some distance from the station, and very few people came to the connection between the carriages.
Su Yuanyuan pulled the attendant into a corner and explained the situation.
The attendant was shocked after listening.
“Could you be mistaken? Some children are just naturally heavy sleepers.”
If traffickers were caught, they could be executed.
The attendant was in her early twenties. Her family was relatively well-off, and she had grown up in a big city. Human trafficking wasn’t something she encountered often in her world.
“This train is headed all the way to Jingbei, and the passengers have been lively throughout the journey. The security officers are also very professional, so it’s a little hard to believe that traffickers would be bold enough to board this train.”
“I was in the sleeping carriage with my children just now. I personally saw people arguing twice, yet that child showed no sign of waking up. There wasn’t even the slightest reaction. Something is wrong.”
In fact, she herself had been one of the people arguing with the woman, but Su Yuanyuan was too embarrassed to say that.
Just as she finished speaking, another train attendant came pushing a food cart from the other end.
She cheerfully announced the various foods and drinks available.
Someone called out asking for a bottle of water, while quite a few children gathered around to see what food was being sold.
Despite all the noise and commotion, the child in the woman’s arms didn’t wake up.
There wasn’t even the slightest reaction.
The train attendant realized something was wrong.
What Su Yuanyuan said was true.
The child had most likely been given something, which was why he couldn’t wake up no matter what happened.
“Thank you for telling me, Comrade. There are a lot of people in the carriage right now, so acting immediately could easily injure other passengers. Take your children to the other side first. I’ll contact the station. When the train stops at the next station, we’ll contact the police officers and have them take control of the traffickers.”
The reason they couldn’t arrest them immediately was because the space was limited, and there were too many people on the train.
If the traffickers became desperate, there was no telling whether they might randomly hurt someone.
Having all the train attendants suddenly rush over would also alert the traffickers.
The attendant was just about to contact the conductor when Su Yuanyuan hurriedly grabbed her.
“No. When I passed them with my children just now, I heard them say that they’re getting off at the next station. We don’t know whether someone will be waiting for them outside. If so, the situation could become even more dangerous.”
Traffickers had extremely sharp instincts.
If the train stopped at the station and instead of letting passengers off, police officers boarded first, they would immediately realize something was happening.
If they decided to go all out, the situation could become extremely dangerous.
“Then…” The attendant frowned.
Su Yuanyuan was right, but if that was the case…
“Then we’ll have to enlist the help of passengers and the railway police. First, have two people approach the traffickers and restrain them. Then the others can rush in, evacuate the passengers, and secure the area.”
The train attendant had received emergency-response training before taking up her post and knew how to handle various emergency situations.
“There is a way, but the arrest will be very dangerous. It’s difficult to find suitable passengers. Even if we find someone capable, they may not be willing to help.”
Anyone willing to become a trafficker was usually ruthless and desperate for money. It was perfectly normal for ordinary passengers to be unwilling to get involved.
Finding someone among the passengers who was both physically capable and willing to help wasn’t easy.
A handsome face immediately flashed through Su Yuanyuan’s mind.
The soldier who had helped her at the washbasin.
He looked upright and righteous, and his physique suggested that he trained regularly.
His skills should be quite good.
“I have someone in mind!”
Su Yuanyuan explained to the train attendant about the soldier she’d just encountered.
The attendant’s eyes immediately lit up.
“If he’s a soldier, he’ll definitely agree to help if we ask him.”
Su Yuanyuan thought about it, then took the children’s hands and led the attendant in the direction the man had gone.
As luck would have it, the direction the man had gone in was opposite to the carriage where the traffickers were.
Otherwise, passing directly in front of the traffickers might have made them suspicious.
Even more coincidentally, the man’s seat was in the carriage right next door.
There weren’t many people in the neighboring carriage, and the seat beside the man was empty.
Su Yuanyuan asked the train attendant to watch the two children for a moment before walking over and sitting beside the man.
Lu Zheng’an was resting with his eyes closed.
Hearing the sound, he opened his eyes.
From the corner of his eye, he caught a glimpse of smooth, luminous skin.
Su Yuanyuan’s skin was exceptionally good, and under the light, it seemed to glow with a delicate sheen.
Lu Zheng’an looked up and saw the train attendant holding her two children.
Without looking directly at her, he lowered his voice.
“Comrade, are you having some kind of difficulty?”
Su Yuanyuan was just about to speak when she froze at his words and turned her head toward him.
Their eyes met.
In the reflections of each other’s pupils, they could see their own figures.
Lu Zheng’an looked at her against the light.
When he spoke to someone, his gaze was steady and firmly fixed on them.
Su Yuanyuan suppressed the strange feeling in her heart and explained the situation to him.
“Okay. I’m willing to help.”
The man agreed without hesitation.
Su Yuanyuan wasn’t surprised, but she had been somewhat nervous before.
Now, she finally relaxed.
“Thank you.”
Su Yuanyuan gave Lu Zheng’an a bright smile.
She didn’t notice the momentary daze in his eyes.
She stood up and ran over to take the children back.
“Comrade, please contact the railway police first. The soldier has agreed to help.”
The train attendant breathed a sigh of relief.
She nodded gratefully toward Lu Zheng’an before hurrying off to find the railway police.
Su Yuanyuan stood beside the aisle with the children, occasionally glancing toward the passage leading to the other carriage.
Her hair was long, but because of malnutrition, it was somewhat dry and frizzy, just like the two children she had with her.
Lu Zheng’an’s gaze rested on Su Yuanyuan’s back.
For some reason, he felt that the woman in front of him looked somewhat familiar.
“Comrade, this is the railway police officer. This is a set of civilian clothes. We’ll need your cooperation in apprehending the traffickers later.”
The train attendant quickly contacted the railway police.
Six officers made their way over separately so as not to attract attention.
Through the radio, the officers in the other direction had also been notified.
There would be people guarding both ends of the carriage when the time came, preventing the traffickers from escaping.
Lu Zheng’an nodded to the railway police officer and accepted the civilian clothes.
After discussing the arrest plan, the two of them went to the restroom and changed out of their military and police uniforms.
The train attendant went over to the other carriage first, pretending to conduct her usual inspection.
Lu Zheng’an and the railway police officer each carried a large cloth bag, disguising themselves as passengers traveling long-distance.
They walked toward the sleeping carriage one after the other.
After entering, they first glanced inside.
Seeing that there were still empty sleeping berths, both men relaxed.
Neither looked at the couple.
They simply greeted the train attendant.
The attendant immediately came over and happened to stop right beside the couple.
“Comrades, is there anything I can help you with?”
The railway police officer scratched his head and pointed toward the empty berth.
“Has anyone bought the sleeping berth here? If not, I’d like to upgrade from a hard seat. How much would it cost?”
As he spoke, the officer reached into his pocket for money.
Lu Zheng’an followed up.
“Is that berth over there still empty? I bought a ticket all the way to Jingbei.”
Lu Zheng’an put his bag on the floor, squatted down, and opened it to take out some money.
Inside were old clothes and a very thin blanket.
At a glance, it looked exactly like the belongings of someone traveling north for work or to visit relatives.
Lu Zheng’an pulled out an old wallet.
He opened it and glanced at the money inside.
A trace of hesitation flashed through his eyes, making him look like someone who hated spending money but was simply too exhausted and wanted to lie down for a while.
Lu Zheng’an raised his head.
His eyes met those of the couple sitting on the bench beside the aisle.
He gave them an awkward but friendly smile.
Seeing the man’s embarrassed expression, the traffickers had no idea that he had come to arrest them.
Before they could react, Lu Zheng’an suddenly struck.
He wrapped an arm around the trafficker’s neck and threw him to the ground.
The railway police officer immediately pinned the man down.
The officers stationed at both ends rushed over at once to help restrain him.
Lu Zheng’an reacted extremely quickly.
After throwing the trafficker down, he took advantage of the woman holding the child being caught off guard and snatched the child from her arms.
When the woman stood up, he swept his leg out and knocked her to the ground as well.
The trafficker being restrained was extremely strong.
He wore loose clothing, but underneath was a body covered in solid muscle.
As soon as he was pinned down, he pulled out a small knife hidden around his waist and frantically stabbed at the railway police officer.
The officer closest to him hadn’t expected him to have a knife hidden on him and suffered a cut to the arm.
The carriage immediately descended into chaos.
The other passengers had no idea what was happening and began screaming and running in panic.
The train attendants hurriedly cooperated with the railway police to evacuate the passengers into other carriages.
The trafficker was vicious.
Knowing that his identity had been exposed, he immediately fought for his life against the railway police.
The officers dodged the knife in his hand while keeping their distance and doing their best to protect the other passengers.
One passenger failed to get away in time and was stabbed in the thigh.
He let out a terrible scream and crawled toward the exit.
The train attendant helped him up and ran with him toward the other carriage.
The woman who had been knocked down climbed back to her feet.
She pulled out a knife and slashed toward the man holding the child…