Accidental Hero: The Rookie Who Outshines the Force - Chapter 99

The scenery outside the high-speed train window blurred past in a steady rhythm.

Qin Mian munched happily on the tea egg Lu Cheng had brought.

He Xueting had cooked it with preserved mustard greens in a small clay pot, letting the rich flavors soak through the shell—so tasty that Qin Mian couldn’t stop praising it.

Qin Mian wasn’t much of a talker. The two of them dozed on and off, and before they knew it, they were in Su Province.

The stop before Su City was Shanghai Hongqiao. Half an hour later, they would reach Su City North.

At that moment, a middle-aged couple carrying a baby entered the carriage.

They happened to sit directly across from Lu Cheng and Qin Mian.

Qin Mian crossed his arms and fell back asleep, composed as ever.

Lu Cheng’s gaze merely scanned the couple once, then he lowered his eyes to his phone.

The system skill [Flycatcher] activated, releasing two tiny flies.

On a high-speed train, there weren’t many flies around, so these were small and unremarkable. They hovered beneath the seats, then landed steadily on the couple’s pant legs.

In Lu Cheng’s vision, they glowed blue.

Fugitives?

He thought to himself. You’ve got some serious luck—unfortunately for you, you ran into me.

From a casual glance, their expressions and posture seemed perfectly natural. Nothing suspicious—on the surface.

Then, out of the corner of his eye, Lu Cheng noticed a baby bottle in the side pocket of the woman’s backpack. His heart skipped a beat.

In his vision, the bottle glowed green.

[Trace Evidence] triggered.

Why the bottle?

It was half-filled with milk.

Lu Cheng quickly connected the dots. These weren’t mere fugitives—they were probably kidnappers.

Something had been added to the milk, causing it to glow green.

Seeing the infant sleeping peacefully, Lu Cheng decided to test the waters. He cranked his phone volume to the maximum and opened Douyin.

“Everyone, listen to me—”

The sudden blast of sound startled nearby passengers, who turned to frown at him.

Even Qin Mian woke up.

Lu Cheng feigned apology, cupping his hands and lowering the volume.

Many sleeping passengers had been disturbed. They were annoyed but saw his polite gesture and didn’t make a scene, only grumbling quietly in their minds.

Lu Cheng’s goal was achieved—the baby remained asleep.

Lacing milk with drugs was standard practice for kidnappers.

Qin Mian assumed Lu Cheng’s earlier outburst was unintentional and intended to go back to sleep.

But Lu Cheng started talking to the couple across from him.

“Oh, what a cute baby! How old is he?”

“Huh? Oh, three months.”

The woman answered naturally.

“What’s his nickname? So adorable! My wife is pregnant too!”

“He’s called Kele. Sorry, young man—he fussed last night. Please don’t wake him.”

“Ah, I see. Where are you two headed?” Lu Cheng asked softly.

Qin Mian felt something was off. Lu Cheng was never the type to start casual conversations.

Also… when did his wife get pregnant?

Qin Mian’s eyes shifted to the baby.

Despite Lu Cheng blasting his phone earlier, waking the other passengers, the baby hadn’t stirred.

Experienced as he was, Qin Mian immediately understood.

“I need to use the restroom. Move aside.”

He got up.

Lu Cheng stood to let him pass, and they exchanged a meaningful glance.

Qin Mian headed for the train door, while Lu Cheng remained seated, continuing to chat with the couple.

Two minutes later, Qin Mian summoned the train police, who called two more officers patrolling nearby.

They arrived at Car 6.

Despite facing a line of officers, the couple remained composed, their mental fortitude impressive.

“Hello, are you the baby’s parents?”

“Yes.”

“For work purposes, we’re conducting routine checks on passengers, especially those traveling with children…”

The couple cooperated when asked for their personal information. But questions about the baby’s details made them evasive.

They could only provide the nickname Kele and age—three months. Full name and identification? Impossible.

“Oh, we’ve always called him by his nickname. Who names a baby at this age?”

“We’re not educated… the fortune teller gave him a name… Chen something… we forgot!”

“Birth certificate? Household registration? All at home, didn’t bring them.”

At first glance, nothing seemed wrong.

The officers asked further, “Which hospital was the baby born in? We can check using the mother’s name.”

The couple’s eyes flickered with panic.

If checked, everything would be exposed. They had taken multiple high-speed trains before, never facing such scrutiny.

It was obvious—they were the target!

The usually quiet man spoke: “I have the doctor’s WeChat. Let me check.”

He pulled out his phone—but the screen faced away from the officers.

The officers didn’t suspect anything and waited.

He typed quickly. Just as he sent the message, a hand pressed down on his phone.

Lu Cheng snatched it with lightning speed. The man hadn’t even reacted yet.

Once the phone was in Lu Cheng’s hands, it glowed green—definitely suspicious.

All three officers looked at Lu Cheng.

He glanced at the screen and handed it to the train police.

“He’s warning them,” Lu Cheng said.

The chat profile read “Brother Hu”—what doctor would use such a nickname?

The message itself confirmed everything: “The hat’s coming, the kid’s gone.”

“Kid” was code—the baby.

At that moment, Lu Cheng moved, grabbing the woman by the shoulders.

She felt as if a vice gripped her bones, her arms instantly paralyzed.

“Qin Team!”

Qin Mian reacted immediately, catching the baby.

“My child!!”

The woman screamed in despair.

…

Train G1347 departed ten minutes late.

Four more officers from the Hongqiao Railway Police arrived, taking the couple and the baby into custody.

Passengers were abuzz—this seemingly harmless couple turned out to be worse than beasts, human traffickers.

Parents on board were horrified.

They applauded the officers’ swift and precise action.

On the platform, local officers handed cigarettes and shook hands with Qin Mian and Lu Cheng, showing their gratitude.

“Captain Qin, your team is full of hidden talents. Officer Lu is incredible!”

From spotting suspicion, decoding the WeChat alert, to controlling the woman to prevent desperate actions—they had anticipated every move.

In Jiang Hai, are young officers really this capable?

For human traffickers, running into Officer Lu Cheng was sheer bad luck.

Qin Mian lit a cigarette, his gaze sweeping over Lu Cheng.

This kid’s potential far exceeded expectations.

…

The baby’s real parents arrived at the station in tears, kneeling before the officers as they reclaimed their child.

And the ones who truly deserved the thanks were already en route to Su City North Station.

It was nearly 9:00 a.m.

Qin Mian grabbed a taxi and headed to the prearranged hotel.

Early the next morning, he brought Lu Cheng to the Gusu Branch Criminal Investigation Team.

The office was chaotic—another serial murder case had everyone on edge.

Some officers hadn’t gone home in days, dozing at their desks.

The whiteboard was covered in dense charts and notes, reflecting the case’s complexity and severity.

“Captain Qin, you’ve finally arrived!”

Gusu Branch CID Chief Zhao Gang strode over and shook Qin Mian’s hand firmly.

No formalities—once Qin Mian and Lu Cheng arrived, the meeting began immediately.

Zhao Gang’s gaze lingered only briefly on Lu Cheng—likely just a junior assistant or trainee here to observe.