Accidental Hero: The Rookie Who Outshines the Force - Chapter 41

The middle-aged man suddenly sensed something. He slowly turned his head—and froze. At the alley’s entrance stood a young man.

He glanced the other way—and there was another young man.

Surrounded?

Cops?

Wearing frog-skin sunglasses, his expression was unreadable. Slowly, he turned to face Lin Wenbin.

Lin Wenbin stepped forward confidently.

“Don’t move! Police!” he shouted, his hand brushing toward his lower back.

Yesterday, Lu Cheng had drawn his gun with such style that it was breathtaking. Inspired, Lin Wenbin had bought a toy gun that looked identical to Lu Cheng’s.

He drew it, aimed at the man, and then pulled out his handcuffs.

“Squat! Hands on your head! Or I shoot!”

The middle-aged man stared at Lin Wenbin, unmoving.

Lin Wenbin’s brow furrowed. “I’ll say it again—squat! Hands on your head!”

He shook the gun for emphasis.

Finally, the man raised his hands and slowly crouched.

Lin Wenbin’s heart leapt. The gun worked.

He stepped closer, about to apply the cuffs.

A sinister smile flickered across the man’s face. In the brief moment Lin Wenbin let his guard down, the man seemingly conjured a small knife in his hand and lunged at Lin Wenbin’s abdomen.

Fast. Deadly. The blade gleamed.

“Lin! Watch out!”

At the same moment, Lu Cheng shouted a warning.

Lin Wenbin’s pupils shrank. Cold dread shot from his feet to his head. Instinctively, he dodged.

Bang!

He narrowly avoided the blade but slammed his back into the wall with force.

The man, likely realizing the gun was fake, immediately bolted.

In a flash, Lu Cheng leapt past Lin Wenbin and gave chase.

Though Lu Cheng had boosted his speed recently, he was still a few steps behind. With the crowd outside, letting this man escape could be disastrous—especially since he had a knife.

Lu Cheng drew his pistol—still a toy gun, but it fired air pellets.

He aimed and fired—pfft pfft pfft!

Being a hundred-yuan toy, the aim was off. A few plastic pellets hit the man’s back, barely causing pain.

But the goal was achieved: the man’s sprint slowed.

Closing the distance, Lu Cheng threw the gun, a solid one-and-a-half-pound weight, striking the back of the man’s neck.

The man staggered, lost balance, and fell.

Lu Cheng pounced, pinning him down.

He didn’t hold back. With a heavy smash, he struck the man’s head. Stars exploded in the man’s vision.

Lu Cheng quickly knocked the knife away and cuffed him.

Lin Wenbin ran up, back aching but unharmed. If not for Lu Cheng’s timely warning, he would have been impaled. His shirt was slashed, but thankfully no skin was broken.

A thrill—danger avoided! Cold sweat drenched him.

The man’s head spun for several seconds. Now immobilized with hands cuffed behind his back, there was no escape.

Lin Wenbin yanked him up. “Damn! Assaulting a cop? You’re dead meat!”

The man’s sunglasses were crushed, revealing a furious face.

Lu Cheng collected the man’s dropped wallet and called for backup.

Soon, Shuangqiao officers arrived to take him away. For Lu Cheng and Lin Wenbin to catch another thief, it was hardly surprising. Yesterday’s record-breaking catches had already set a new high for the Anti-Pickpocket Squad.

Once the man was taken, Lin Wenbin exhaled in relief. He had been hiding the slash on his shirt to avoid embarrassment in front of the officers.

He couldn’t help but wonder—did the thief notice the gun was fake, or was he just fearless, bold enough to attack a cop?

“Lu Cheng, thanks! I almost went down today!”

Lu Cheng patted his shoulder. “Lin, be careful next time.”

They left the alley and continued their patrol. Lin Wenbin bought a cheap 19-yuan T-shirt to replace his torn one.

Lu Cheng heard the system chime in his mind. Rewards for catching a thief:

[Attribute Points Gained: Strength +1] (Current Strength: 19)
[Attribute Points Gained: Stamina +1] (Current Stamina: 19)

Lu Cheng blinked. Strange—two rewards for catching a single thief?

At Shuangqiao Police Station, Lü Zhengbo saw two officers escorting a captured thief toward the interrogation room.

“Another one? Which team caught him?”

“Chief Lü, it was the trainee Lu Cheng’s team from Sanliqiao!”

“Damn! Again him! That kid’s unstoppable! Wherever he goes, thieves fall!”

Lü Zhengbo was now in awe of Lu Cheng. Yesterday’s grilled fish dinner had been worth every penny.

“Has facial recognition been run?” Lü Zhengbo asked.

“Yes, already logged. Matching in progress,” an officer replied.

Within minutes, results arrived. An internal officer rushed over, excited.

“Chief Lü, this man’s name is Wang Da, alias ‘Old Cat.’ He’s the city-wide fugitive thief king in Su Province!”

Lü Zhengbo froze. “Thief King Old Cat? The one with over a hundred theft cases?”

“Yes, him!”

Everyone in the office gasped.

A fugitive from another province—the notorious thief king—had been caught by Sanliqiao trainee Lu Cheng!

Holy…!

Everyone drew a sharp breath.

Lu Cheng was unstoppable—yesterday he took down a five-person theft gang and dismantled multiple chop shops. Today, he caught the thief king!

He probably didn’t even know he’d caught a king, thinking it was just another thief!

Terrifying.

With the thief king accounted for, Lü Zhengbo considered this anti-pickpocket operation a major success.

At Sanliqiao Police Station, Qin Mian of the Third Criminal Investigation Unit asked Su Qingwu to collect a suspect’s files.

“Well, Miss Su, here to quench your thirst with some tea? What big case are you working on lately?”

Chen Weimin hosted her warmly, sending someone to fetch the files.

Sanliqiao had become a hot topic in the police network. Chen Weimin had to show off the station’s achievements.

Particularly the young prodigy—Lu Cheng.

Su Qingwu had been immersed in a murder case and hadn’t followed the anti-pickpocket action.

Upon learning that Lu Cheng had used a fake gun to dismantle a five-person gang, her almond-shaped eyes widened in slight shock.

She took a sip of tea, realizing yet another rookie had made a huge splash.

Lu Cheng truly was a “born thief-catcher.”

Even Su Qingwu felt a twinge of envy. Some people were just blessed by fate.

Just as she admired him, Chen Weimin checked his phone. His eyes widened.

“Holy… Lu Cheng caught the Thief King too?!”