Chapter 103: Miss, Please Come With Us!

During a lull in passenger traffic, the fast ordinary train K4123 from Jinhai City to Jiangning was not crowded; at times, empty seats could still be spotted. This made the aisle in the middle of the carriage feel quite spacious, without the usual congestion of standing ticket holders blocking the way.

This spaciousness proved convenient for the man in the blue cloak and the young man dressed in black. The distance from carriage five to carriage three was no more than a minute’s walk, but as they crossed from the fourth into the third carriage, their steps naturally slowed.

Searching for someone in a carriage is always troublesome, especially when carriage three was nearly full. The atmosphere was lively, with many passengers chatting casually or playing cards, adding to the difficulty of finding Leng Nini. Fortunately, the two men had met her before, so a careful search would not lead them astray.

Leng Nini’s head rested heavily against the carriage wall, her gaze as vacant as ever, staring into the pitch-black night outside. Perhaps due to passing through a tunnel, the carriage’s air pressure felt slightly oppressive. The voices inside did not lessen in volume, but the change in pressure caused a dull ache in the ears, making sounds seem to buzz continuously.

The tunnel seemed long, prolonging this sensation. Yet the passengers, accustomed to it, continued their amusements, while those overcome by boredom and drowsiness bowed their heads and fell asleep.

Leng Nini was petite and delicate by nature, and she had curled herself up intentionally. Though she sat hugging her knees, her head sagged halfway, making her body appear as if it were sinking into the seat. With the seat’s backrest shielding her, from behind it seemed as though the seat was empty.

This made the search more time-consuming. Moreover, Leng Nini’s seat was near the middle of the train, so the two men took over a minute to cover just half a carriage.

Midway through their approach, both men stopped simultaneously, their eyes fixed without exception on the vacant-eyed Leng Nini.

At first glance, their gaze resembled that of men admiring a beauty, unable to look away. But the lingering stare felt unsettling. The first to notice this was a cheerful little girl who had earlier greeted Leng Nini warmly.

Children speak without reserve and innocence; she did not perceive the murderous intent in the two men’s eyes. Turning to look between them and the still-stunned Leng Nini, she called out, “Pretty sister, someone’s spying on you! Get up quickly, or the big bad wolf will come and grab you!”

Her youthful, mischievous tone caught the attention of nearby passengers, though those farther away continued their conversations undisturbed.

The men’s faces darkened instantly upon hearing the girl’s words and noticing the curious glances from others. Their murderous intent intensified, and they glared fiercely at the child.

Perhaps raised in a rough environment, the little girl was unusually bold. Despite the lethal glare, she did not cry but instead straightened her slender chest, stood tall, and looked up defiantly at the two men. Folding her small hands on her hips and puffing her cheeks, she scolded coldly, imitating a quarrelsome neighbor auntie, “What are you glaring at? You think you’re the only ones who can glare? Humph!”

Being reprimanded by a little girl left the two ruthless men momentarily embarrassed. To avoid drawing too much attention, the man in the blue cloak forced a friendly smile and coaxed, “Hey there, whose little girl are you? Uncle will buy you some candy.”

Prepared as ever, he pulled a lollipop from his pocket and held it out to the child with a sly grin. Yet despite the smile, a stiffness remained, betraying his true nature as a killer walking among the innocent.

The girl, wiser than most her age and likely well-taught by her elders, shook her head firmly. “Aunt Wang next door said never to eat anything given by strangers.”

She pushed the offered lollipop away. The scene unfolding in the middle of the carriage soon drew the gaze of nearly every passenger. The little girl’s innocence, mischief, charm, and boldness provided a brief respite of joy to the adults burdened by the pressures of life.

Perhaps the girl’s voice caught her attention, or perhaps memories of a once-innocent childhood stirred within her. Leng Nini, whose eyes had remained vacant and silent as she leaned against the carriage wall staring out the window, moved slightly.

Her long inactivity had slowed the blood flow through her body. At that movement, she felt numbness, as if half her limbs were no longer hers. Slowly, she turned her head toward the little girl with her hands on her hips, who resembled a little shrew. A faint, relieved smile blossomed on Leng Nini’s face—a smile radiant as a flower in full bloom, captivating and enchanting.

While all eyes in the carriage were on the little girl and the two men standing in the aisle, there was one pair of eyes that never left Leng Nini’s delicate face. That gaze was fixed intently, unblinking, with the young man resting his chin on his hands as he observed her earnestly. This was the timid yet scheming young man.

When Leng Nini turned her head, he hastily averted his eyes toward the three people who were anxiously watching him.

As Leng Nini faced forward again, the two men ceased paying any mind to the girl’s antics and focused instead on her hollow eyes. At first, surprise flickered across their faces. Leng Nini was always lively and spirited; seeing her so vacant and dim-eyed shocked them. But they quickly masked their emotions.

The man in the blue cloak spoke low and commanding: “Miss, come with us.”

His voice was deep and chilling. The onlookers who had earlier been enjoying the spectacle now turned their heads back. They were not fools; they sensed the tension and understood the two men came with ill intent.

Moreover, the man in black deliberately revealed the sharp black iron Wusha knife concealed in his sleeve. Spectators may enjoy watching a show, but most were cowards driven by self-interest and fear.

With the crowd’s gaze withdrawn, the two men’s expressions grew smug. Yet as they reached to seize Leng Nini, the ignored little girl erupted in protest. Ignored by the two adults, she flared up, shouting in a clear, childish voice: “Hmph, you two big bad guys, don’t you dare touch pretty sister! Shanshan doesn’t agree!”

She stretched out her small hands like eagle talons, blocking their large hands.

The man in the cloak had a terrible temper. Having feigned friendliness before, he now showed no mercy. A thick aura of murderous intent surged from him as his cold eyes fixed on the stubborn girl. Without hesitation, he raised his hand and dealt her a brutal slap.

The force was immense, the sharp, crisp sound of the slap ringing out through carriage three. Instantly, silence fell—a deathly quiet enveloped the carriage. The sharp intakes of breath from the passengers could be heard clearly.

The defiant little girl was struck halfway to the ground, collapsing onto a shabby, disheveled man who smoked a dry pipe, his beard concealing his age.

Wailing from the harsh slap, the girl’s piercing cries echoed throughout the carriage.

“Stop crying! If you keep it up, I’ll give you another slap.” The warning came from the young man in black standing behind, who waved the black iron Wusha knife menacingly before the girl’s eyes, signaling her to be silent.

Frightened, the girl’s sobs abruptly ceased.

“Leng Sha, Leng Tu?” Leng Nini’s hollow gaze fixed on the two men, her voice low and questioning.

“That’s right. We are who you think we are. Miss, come with us,” the man in the blue cloak nodded, his voice still grave.

“They actually value me enough to send you to take me back. Ha ha ha.” Looking at their cold faces, Leng Nini let out a bitter, self-mocking laugh, heavy with grievance, helplessness, and sorrow.

Her family—truly heartless, ungrateful, selfish. For their own gain, they were willing to cast her into the fire, to hand her over to that scoundrel and playboy. Yes! In this moment, Leng Nini’s heart overflowed with bitter self-derision and endless sadness—for being born into such a tragic family, for her mother’s misfortune, for losing the chance to share carefree moments with her brother, and for the hatred and disgust she harbored against her reckless father.

“They don’t want the mistakes of last time to happen again. So, Miss, you should understand. And if you don’t want to implicate innocent people, it’s best to surrender. That way, the innocent won’t suffer. I believe this is something you don’t wish to see happen, especially to this little girl.” The man in the blue cloak spoke coldly, his words laced with threat, sparing no mercy even for the eight-year-old girl.

But Leng Nini took none of it as a joke. These two, demons of hell who killed without blinking, would surely carry out their threats.

Leng Sha, with at least fifty lives on his hands, would not fear adding one more. Clearly, he was unafraid.

Glancing at the ragged man trembling nearby, Leng Nini said nothing. As an outsider, she had no right to scold him. Yet she felt a chill toward the man who smoked his pipe so indifferently, ignoring the tears on the little girl’s face after the slap, offering no comfort.

“Move aside,” she ordered coldly, unwilling to look at such a man any longer. Men like him were an eyesore.

“Heh, Miss, you’re sensible. Come with us.” The man in the blue cloak took a step forward toward carriage five.

“You… you… can’t go with them.” Just as Leng Nini took a step to leave, a timid yet resolute voice came from behind her.