After a few seconds of silence, Chen Shi glanced at the rear-view mirror indifferently and asked, "What's up?"
"I told you to stop the car! Didn't you hear me?!"
"Look, do you think I can just spontaneously stop in the middle of the road? We have to go past the intersection coming up before I do anything!"
"Stop the car! Stop right now!" Lin Dongxue was severely dissatisfied with the other party's indifferent attitude. He was clearly the murder suspect, yet he seemed so apathetic about the current situation. In response to his words, she kicked the driver's seat.
Aside from her nervousness and fear, she also felt a little excited. This situation was God helping her by placing the suspect right in front of her. With this, she finally had a sliver of hope of gaining recognition for her skills and merits.
The slightest change on her face was observed by the sharp eyes looking back at her from the rear-view mirror. Chen Shi casually reasoned, "When you looked at your phone just then, your attitude changed dramatically. It seems that you guys must have made a mistake and think that I'm a murder suspect."
"Made a mistake? That isn't for you to decide. Now, come back to the station with me!"
"I'll point out three flaws for you."
"What?!" Lin Dongxue doubted her ears for a second. Was this guy retarded?
"Firstly, when you first found out that your driver was the suspect, you should have immediately contacted your colleagues and reported your current location to them while simultaneously trying your best to secure the suspect. Secondly, who are you trying to scare with a gun that still has the safety on? Thirdly, threatening someone with a gun in a moving car is extremely irrational. Let's say I was to..."
Without waiting for Lin Dongxue to react, Chen Shi abruptly slammed his foot on the brakes. The sudden force caused Lin Dongxue to hit her head on the back of the driver's seat, letting the gun slip from her hand.
She lifted her head, only to see the black muzzle of her gun pointed directly at her face. Situated behind the weapon was Chen Shi's ridiculing gaze, "See? It was a breeze to put you in your place. Even if I were to kill you now, your colleagues wouldn't even know. You lack experience, young one!"
"You... What do you plan on doing?!" Lin Dongxue was so scared that her words caught in her throat. She tried to find her phone in a panic, but couldn't find it anywhere.
Chen Shi turned the gun around and handed it back to her, "I was only pointing out some of the shortcomings in your actions."
Lin Dongxue didn't know what to do, as she couldn't believe that the suspect had just given the gun back without putting up a fuss. Chen Shi warned, "Don't point that damn gun at me again. You need to be careful of accidentally discharging the firearm. Doesn't everything work out if I just come back to the station with you?"
"Stupid cunt, are you trying to die?!" The disgruntled driver behind them cursed angrily, leaning on the steering wheel to produce a harsh and sharp noise from the horn.
Chen Shi stuck his hand out the window and gave the other driver the middle finger before he started the car again.
Lin Dongxue rubbed her aching head, completely dumbfounded. As a suspect, this person was abnormally calm.
"Hmm, the road back to the station is relatively blocked with traffic. Can I take a little detour?" Chen Shi asked.
Lin Dongxue coordinated her thoughts, "Don't play tricks!"
Chen Shi smiled, "What about the order? I'll confirm this added fee for the new route first!"
"Do as you please!"
Lin Dongxue found her phone underneath the seat and saw that Xu Xiaodong had sent another message, "Fuck, we really wouldn't have known unless we checked, but when I found out, it actually scared me a bit. This guy's rap sheet is super thick. He used to be part of a gang and has been charged with assault, extortion, and kidnapping. In one fight, the other party even went into a vegetative state because of him. He was sentenced with inflicting serious harm and had to serve a ten-year prison sentence. Wang Yueche's employee background check is too slack, to the point where even a person like him could become a driver. It's scary just thinking about these types of people driving unaccompanied female passengers around the city at night."
So that's how it is, his guy is an experienced old fox. No wonder he's so calm.
Lin Dongxue gave herself a very reasonable and logical answer. She quickly typed out a message and sent it, "I am currently in the suspect's car. I have ordered him to drive back to the station. It would be convenient if the officers present at the station could respond and take over."
The group chat immediately exploded. "No way!" "Miss Lin won the top prize!" "Could something like that even happen? Just bumping into a suspect like that, what a life of good fortune!" and "Report your location, do not expose your identity, and don't do anything that would aggravate the suspect. Try your best to stay on his good side, but for now, buy time!"
Lin Dongxue's brother, Lin Qiupu, was the one who sent the last message. Lin Dongxue sent out her current location.
After the car turned the corner, it suddenly stopped. Chen Shi opened the door and rushed out like a mad dog. Lin Dongxue was very scared. I should have expected that he wouldn't be an honest guy! She could only blame herself for lowering her guard.
"Stop right there!" Lin Dongxue yelled as she chased after him.
Chen Shi was able to run at an incredible pace, and Lin Dongxue, who was wearing leather sandals, was thoroughly outmatched. This street was extremely hectic, with people continually hurrying about. Firing a gun willy-nilly in this situation would cause chaos and, not to mention, would definitely be on tomorrow's headlines.
Lin Dongxue was only able to run for a few steps when her right sandal failed her and snapped at the heel. She kicked off her shoes in annoyance, and despite the ground hurting the soles of her feet, she gritted her teeth and continued the chase.
The crowd gave way, and Lin Dongxue saw a young man running for dear life in front of Chen Shi. When the distance between the two narrowed to less than two meters, Chen Shi pounced and shoved the man onto the ground. Chen Shi grabbed a woman's bag from the man's hands.
Chen Shi took out a cable tie from his pocket and bound the young man's hands together behind his back. The people around the area slowly gathered around the two and praised Chen Shi's unrelenting spirit at the sight of injustice.
Lin Dongxue was flabbergasted. He suddenly rushed out of his car just to stop a thief?
A middle-aged lady came out from the crowd and cried, "Thank you so much, brother! This is the money I struggled really hard to raise for my mother's medical fees. If that money were stolen, I honestly would have no idea what to do."
Chen Shi handed the bag over to the lady, "Remember to stay alert; this is a heavily populated area."
"Thank you, thank you!" The lady took out a stack of banknotes and handed them over to Chen Shi to show her gratitude.
Chen Shi roughly took three or four sheets from the stack and said, "These are enough. 10,000[1] is too much; I can't accept that."
After the lady called the police, Chen Shi turned around and left. Lin Dongxue remarked, "If you're going to do a good deed, then do it. There was no need to collect money from her. And here I thought that you were noble and selfless!"
"Being noble and being selfless is not the same thing. I think that it's actually bizarre if there's unlimited altruistic behavior. Besides, receiving a small reward not only made me happy, but it ensures that the other party won't feel like they owe me."
Lin Dongxue was speechless and changed the topic, "Say, you're only a driver, yet you were such a risk all by yourself. Aren't you afraid that people will come back to retaliate and take revenge on you?"
"Fear over these local hoodlums are mostly due to ordinary people overthinking it. After all, mice are scared of humans to begin with[2]."
"Thinking about it, you needn't be afraid of revenge, since you need to enter the imperial palace[3] either way, murder suspect Chen!"
Chen Shi didn't respond to her words, and looked down at her bare feet, "What happened to your shoes?"
Lin Dongxue went back to look for her shoes, but the sandals had been taken away long ago by a homeless recycler. The soles of her feet were worn and painful. She acted tough and informed Chen Shi, "It's nothing you need to worry about!"
Chen Shi took Lin Dongxue's hand and led her to a shoe store nearby. Lin Dongxue shook his hand away, "What are you doing, tugging me along as if we're familiar with one another?!"
Chen Shi ignored her and nudged her shoulder along, saying, "Let's go, let's go!"
Lin Dongxue was quite uncomfortable being taken by an unfamiliar man to buy shoes. He casually picked out a decent pair of sneakers. When it was time to pay, she announced, "Let me do it myself!" When she reached into her pocket, however, she realized that she had left her phone in the car.
"Let's just say that I'm lending you the money," Chen Shi smiled and threw the reward that he had received earlier on the table.
1. 10,000 Yuan (RMB) is the equivalent of about $1,400 USD.
2. He compares hoodlums to mice as they both live in the shadows, fearing humans, which are those that live in light.