Police officer Chen Shu

Chapter 103 Getting on the High-Speed ​​Train
The next morning, the sky was a clear blue, and a gentle breeze swept across the land.

Chen Shu, Wang Chongming, and others went to the Jiuping City Detention Center to pick up Ma Zhongyun and then rushed to the Jiuping Railway Station.

Generally speaking, police officers do not transport criminal suspects by plane, not because it's impossible, but because it's inconvenient.

First, the approval process is complicated and requires the airport's consent; second, Chen Shu was carrying firearms, which is not allowed; and finally, there are not enough police officers. According to regulations, the number of police officers must be at least three times that of the criminal suspect in order to register.

Ultimately, it comes down to a matter of habit.

Since joining the police force, Chen Shu, Wang Chongming, and others initially followed veteran officers on missions, and later led their own teams. They always transported prisoners by high-speed train or car, so in their subconscious, they never considered using airplanes for prisoner transport.

"Yawn~"

Ma Zhongyun clearly hadn't slept well last night, as he kept yawning the whole way.

“Ma Zhongyun, your parents sent over some local specialties yesterday. Take a look.”

On the way to the train station, Chen Shu threw the large bag of things that Ma Zhongyun's parents had given him the day before to him.

Ma Zhongyun glanced at the bag but didn't open it. He knew it was a gift from his parents to the police, hoping they would take good care of him.

"Officer, you can take these home and eat them. I can't bring them inside anyway."

Having already been imprisoned three times, Ma Zhongyun knew perfectly well that he couldn't bring these things into the detention center.

Chen Shu opened the bag, which contained some local specialties such as braised chicken, smoked beef jerky, and mushrooms.

He hesitated for a moment, then slowly said, "According to the rules, we absolutely cannot accept these things. But the situation is special now, and we can't return them to your parents. Throwing them away would be a waste. Take a look at what's inside. When I send you to the detention center, I'll deposit five hundred yuan into your account."

Ma Zhongyun's expression suddenly froze: "No, absolutely not! Officer, if you find it inconvenient, just throw it away! These aren't valuable things, why should you pay for them!"

He knew perfectly well that these were just common local products from Jilin Province, not worth five hundred yuan at all. The officer's meticulous arrangements left him somewhat bewildered.

Chen Shu stared into Ma Zhongyun's eyes, not following his words, but abruptly asked, "You've been working away from home for over ten years, why don't you even have a decent TV or refrigerator at home?"

The night before, everyone hid in Ma Zhongyun's courtyard. Chen Shu took the opportunity to familiarize himself with the scene and looked through the first-floor window to see the entire house, including the hall and kitchen.

The house is empty.

He paused, looked at Ma Zhongyun who had lowered his head, and continued, "After you go in this time, there will be many more expenses at home, so you should still save where you can. There's no need to pretend to be so tough in front of us."

Out of professional habit, when escorting prisoners, Chen Shu would always offer a few words of comfort to prevent them from engaging in dangerous behavior due to emotional fluctuations during the journey.

As he spoke, Chen Shu kept recalling the extremely humble and cautious old faces of Ma Zhongyun's parents in front of him yesterday.

He felt a bit disgusted by this criminal suspect who would blow someone's head off at the slightest provocation, but at this moment he couldn't help but pay some attention.

Ma Zhongyun no longer had the courage to meet his gaze.

He didn't know why, even though the police officer in front of him looked much younger than him, he felt like a child who had done something wrong when he was with him.

Seemingly remembering something, the usually straightforward Ma Zhongyun stammered, "Young comrade, I'm sorry about the night before last. My mother doesn't understand anything and offended you. Please forgive her!"

As she spoke, she hurriedly shoved the large bag in her hand into Xu Lei's arms, who was sitting next to her. Xu Lei, who was reading a novel on his phone, looked bewildered. Before he could even react, a colorful mass of food appeared in front of him.

When the crowd was arresting people in Gajia Village in the early hours of the day before yesterday, Xu Lei, out of sympathy for Ma Zhongyun's parents, returned to their side to explain the situation as they quickly left. However, he was grabbed by them and subsequently surrounded by local villagers, unable to escape.

During the process, he was hit several times by Ma Zhiyun's mother.

Seeing the awkward expression on the face of the burly man from Northeast China, Xu Lei laughed and waved his hand, "It's alright, it's all over. Just cooperate with us in escorting him from now on."

Upon hearing this, Chen Shu, sitting in the passenger seat, narrowed his eyes and became serious.

With your disobedient attitude, Xu Lei, you'll probably drag everyone down with you again next time!

Is the matter over?
How can it be!

Dream on!
Chen Shu bought the bullet train tickets last night at the last minute. Due to the short notice, he could only buy two seated tickets, and the rest were standing tickets.

The journey from Dongzhou to Jiuping takes a total of seventeen or eighteen hours. Two seat tickets are not enough to properly guard Ma Zhongyun; usually, three consecutive seats in a row are required.

After getting into the car, the group, as usual, either sat or lay down in the aisle next to the door.

Chen Shu arranged a seat for Xu Lei to rest. After all, he was still just a student, and the institute only gave him a stipend of five hundred yuan a month. Although he made some mistakes on this long trip, he still needed to be taken care of.

Xiaoqiang and Zhu Chaoran took turns occupying a seat in three-hour shifts.

Police officers Chen Shu and Wang Chongming stayed close to Ma Zhongyun without taking a break. After all, the high-speed train is a public place with a high density of people, and they couldn't afford to be careless.

The two had gotten enough rest the night before, so the next ten-plus hours of driving would pass by easily.

Having worked in a local police station for so many years, I can't speak for everything else, but my ability to stay up all night is second to none.

Along the way, everyone became much more familiar with Ma Zhongyun. However, after all, he was a police officer and a criminal, especially since the two police officers leading the team were known for their prudence and caution.

Therefore, we must remain vigilant. Even if we catch fugitives, which seems like a done deal, we must be prepared to deal with any unforeseen circumstances.

After fighting continuously for many days, Chen Shu looked exhausted, hugging his coat, and squatted on the outside of the aisle, his body pressed tightly against Ma Zhongyun, who was sitting on the inside side.

Wang Chongming, who also had "panda eyes," sat on the side of the aisle with his back to the carriage, his gaze fixed intently on Ma Zhongyun.

Zhu Chaoran, who was on the first shift, took out some snacks he had bought at the cake shop while waiting for the bus and kept stuffing them into his mouth.

Ma Zhongyun simply lay down on the ground, put his hands behind his head and looked at the top of the bullet train, his brows furrowing all his agitation and unease.

Sitting in his seat, Xiao Qiang stared at Chen Shu's seat with his small eyes, tapping his fingers on the handrail, lost in thought.

Xu Lei leaned back comfortably in his seat, took out his phone, browsed a novel, and unceremoniously opened the local specialty that Ma Zhongyun's parents had sent, slowly eating it.

With a whistle from the high-speed train, the Harmony bullet train slowly began to move towards Dongzhou.

(End of this chapter)