Free Web NovelChapter 352: Chapter 288: Robbing a Bank in This Day and Age
Wang Xiaojiang held Gang Ya’s leash.
He had searched the square for a while but hadn’t found anything yet.
Just then, Wang Xiaojiang saw Shen Xin on the move, heading toward the east side of the square.
After a moment’s hesitation, Wang Xiaojiang headed east as well.
He planned to follow Shen Xin.
Tian Kui’s ability was beyond question, and Shen Xin was a criminal police officer with a sharp mind. The two of them combined would surely be the first to find the target.
Several others noticed Shen Xin’s movement and followed suit.
The remaining few continued their slow search of the square.
Li Yanfei was among them.
He had also noticed Shen Xin’s action and hesitated, wondering if he should follow.
He suspected Shen Xin had found something.
But after some thought, he decided to stick to his own plan.
"Yige, let’s go."
Li Yanfei offered a word of encouragement and continued to search the vast square inch by inch for the target.
「The Command Center.」
Wan Chao stared intently at the large screen, which displayed a real-time location map and feeds from ubiquitous surveillance cameras. The movements of Shen Xin and the others were all laid bare.
"What do you guys think? When will this kid realize his mistake, or is he just going to follow this path to the bitter end?"
Wan Chao actually really wanted Shen Xin to win the championship.
Using Shen Xin, an outsider, to challenge these professionals would serve as a wake-up call, pushing them to improve their skills.
Lin Weinian glanced at Wang Peidong, asking for his thoughts.
Wang Peidong shook his head and said he didn’t know.
"I don’t know him well, after all, but I hope he realizes."
Lin Weinian let out a soft "oh" and asked him to explain.
Wang Peidong said, "This is like investigating a case. Amidst a tangled mess of clues, we need the ability to make quick decisions, trust our instincts, and choose a direction to pursue."
"As a criminal police officer, you must have this kind of judgment."
"But at the same time, you also need the ability to decisively give up when you’ve been investigating for a while without finding any clues."
"When you’ve invested enormous energy, manpower, or resources, and you’re still not sure if more effort will yield results, choosing to give up is not an easy thing to do."
"If he can realize his mistake, it proves he has that ability."
Lin Weinian smiled and nodded, then suddenly said, "Peidong, you’re holding him to the standards of a leader."
The ability to make swift decisions, and to turn back decisively after hitting a dead end.
To put it bluntly, that’s leadership ability.
If he were just a junior officer, he would simply do whatever his superiors told him without question.
Wang Peidong laughed heartily and retorted, "Is there a problem with that, Director Lin? With this kid’s skills, I estimate it won’t be long before he’s in a leadership position."
Lin Weinian nodded. He believed that.
On screen, Shen Xin moved through the crowd.
Shen Xin was looking at the map on his phone, checking the surrounding surveillance cameras, and listening to Tian Kui’s thoughts.
Still no discovery.
Just then, Shen Xin noticed Wang Xiaojiang and the others following him. He quickly gestured for them to stop following him.
Looking around, Shen Xin chose a narrow alley with relatively few people.
Tian Kui sniffed everywhere but still found nothing.
Shen Xin looked at the map again, recalled the test parameters, and then tried to analyze how Wan Chao and the others might have designed the test from their perspective.
’The tracking distance probably wouldn’t be set too far.’
’With so many people, the scent interference is severe. After nine hours, it’s already extremely difficult.’
’And to simulate a real-life situation, the target wouldn’t let himself be caught so easily.’
’He can’t just be standing on the street drinking bubble tea, can he?’
’He’s definitely going to be moving around to evade pursuit.’
’So, a place that’s close enough and also convenient for evasion would have to be here, in Charming Street.’
’There are tons of alleys, big and small, that connect everywhere. A few twists and turns could easily confuse a police dog.’
So, Shen Xin felt that searching in Charming Street should be the right move.
Charming Street was crowded and had complex terrain. After a few twists and turns, Shen Xin had lost Wang Xiaojiang who was following behind.
Wang Xiaojiang felt a headache coming on. After some thought, he decided to continue searching in Charming Street anyway.
’Shen Xin’s judgment should be solid.’
Meanwhile, back at the square near the main street, Li Yanfei’s dog, Yige, barked a warning.
He’d found the target.
Li Yanfei immediately gave the order for Yige to begin tracking.
Based on the direction, the trail led toward the main street.
In the command center, Wan Chao nodded slightly.
As a decorated police dog, Yige’s ability was truly impeccable.
Others were also searching the square, but only Yige had locked onto the scent source.
Wan Chao glanced at Shen Xin’s position again. He was still wandering around Charming Street.
It seemed Shen Xin wouldn’t rest until he’d searched every corner of Charming Street.
The problem was, Charming Street wasn’t small.
Wan Chao looked back at the numerous surveillance feeds.
One of the screens showed the end of the pedestrian street. In front of the shops lining the road, there was a bubble tea shop with a fairly long line.
In the line, a young man about 1.8 meters tall was waiting.
He was tall and not fat.
He was the target.
He had set off early and had been wandering all over the pedestrian street for a long time, leaving his scent everywhere, and he would also move randomly.
Tracking him would not be an easy task.
Twenty minutes had passed since the competition began.
As Shen Xin led Tian Kui through the streets and alleys, doubts began to surface in his mind.
’Something’s not right.’
Shen Xin had already searched a third of Charming Street. ’If the target was active in this area, we should have found something by now.’
"Tian Kui, you’re not slacking off, are you?"
Shen Xin looked down at Tian Kui.
Tian Kui pawed at Shen Xin’s pant leg in dissatisfaction.
[Don’t you dare say that about me!]
’Then what’s going on?’
Shen Xin scratched his head. ’This is clearly wrong. Could it be that my thinking was off?’
Shen Xin stopped in his tracks and thought about it seriously again.
’I probably really did think about this the wrong way.’
’If there really were a suspect who had just committed a crime, nine hours is a long time. He’d be long gone by now.’
’Since the logic doesn’t hold up on this point, then the whole bit about a wanted fugitive and telling everyone not to act rashly was just a misdirection.’
’All of my deductions are flawed.’
’Wan Chao and the others were playing mind games, deliberately trying to confuse us.’
’Then the safest method is still to start from the square and track him by the book.’
Shen Xin cursed inwardly and immediately turned back.
A right turn ahead, through the alley, would lead to the main pedestrian street.
Shen Xin hurried back, having already wasted a considerable amount of time.
A young man with a black messenger bag slung across his body walked toward him. Shen Xin led Tian Kui past him.
After a few more steps, Shen Xin stopped.
Tian Kui, pulled by the leash, also stopped and turned to look at Shen Xin in confusion.
Shen Xin turned his head.
The young man was a few meters away.
He was tall and thin, wearing a black, medium-length, loose-fitting coat, jeans, and sneakers. The bag was an ordinary canvas messenger bag.
But it was bulging, probably stuffed with things.
Also, his walking posture wasn’t natural.
He was gripping the bag’s strap with his right hand, and when he swung his left arm, it swung slightly outward.
’It’s like there’s something under his armpit, or something strapped to his body, preventing him from swinging his arm close to his side.’
Most importantly, the man’s mental state was off.
He had medium-length hair, a rather gaunt face, and greasy hair that looked like it hadn’t been washed in days.
His skin was on the paler side, which made his dark circles look very heavy.
He was biting his lip and furrowing his brow, looking heavily preoccupied. As they passed each other, he had flicked his gaze up to glance at Shen Xin before quickly looking away.
’It’s the feeling of someone who’s afraid of running into people, like he has a guilty conscience.’
In short, this was the type of person Li Dongsheng had talked about—the kind who stands out in a crowd as obviously problematic.
"Does he have any dangerous goods on him?"
Shen Xin asked Tian Kui in a low voice.
Tian Kui shook his head.
"Are you sure?"
[Affirmative.]
Tian Kui stared at Shen Xin as if to say, ’How can you not even trust me?’
Shen Xin frowned.
The young man’s unnatural walking posture bothered Shen Xin.
"Let’s go."
Shen Xin called out.
’Since Tian Kui confirmed there are no dangerous goods, like gasoline or explosives, then it should be fine. I must be overthinking things.’
But after a few more steps, Shen Xin stopped again.
’Something about this guy just feels off.’
After a moment’s thought, Shen Xin quickly turned back.
The man was already gone.
But he had Tian Kui, so he could track him.
Tian Kui led the way, and with a short sprint, Shen Xin quickly caught up to the young man.
Shen Xin slowed his pace, following him unhurriedly while observing him in silence.
His steps were hurried, and Shen Xin noticed that he was consciously avoiding passersby.
At the same time, his right hand never let go of the bag’s strap.
He weaved through streets and alleys, heading south continuously. After some distance, he wound up on a main street on the side of Charming Street.
At that moment, he stopped at the mouth of the alley, staring intently across the road.
Shen Xin followed his gaze.
Directly opposite was a three-story shopping plaza with a row of shops on the ground floor. It was unclear what he was looking at.
But a conspicuous target...
Shen Xin’s gaze sharpened, locking onto one of the storefronts.
Ningjiang Commercial Bank.
’Huh?’
Shen Xin frowned. ’This guy isn’t... heading for the bank, is he?’
’I mean, what era is this? Who still robs banks?’
’Mobile payments are so common now, and people use less cash. A small branch like this one probably has a million yuan in stock on a good day, and that’s only if there isn’t a large withdrawal scheduled.’
’Besides, there are cameras everywhere. You’d be arrested moments after you rob the place.’
’It’s not worth it for a million yuan.’
’Even if you managed to get the money, all the serial numbers are uploaded. You wouldn’t even be able to spend it.’
Just as he was thinking this, the young man crossed the road and, to Shen Xin’s astonishment, actually walked into the bank.
Shen Xin’s heart skipped a beat. He pulled out his phone as he quickened his pace to follow.
As Shen Xin approached the automatic doors, they slid open.
The branch wasn’t large. Just a few elderly people were waiting to be served.
The moment he entered, Shen Xin saw the security guard and what looked like the lobby manager stopping the young man from going further inside.
The guard was grabbing his arm, and the young man was struggling to break free.
The lobby manager, a middle-aged woman, was also blocking the young man, saying, "Li Kun, stop making a scene. Ningning really isn’t here. She’s been on leave for several days."
The few people waiting to be served had already turned to look.
The young man, who must be Li Kun, was very agitated. He said, "I don’t believe you! She must be avoiding me. I want to see her."
Shen Xin lowered his phone.
’Looks like it’s just a common dispute, not what I was thinking.’
"Don’t grab me," Li Kun shouted, shaking off the guard’s hand and glaring at him.
The guard’s voice also grew louder as he tried to drag him outside.
Shen Xin considered intervening. Just as he was about to step forward to de-escalate the situation, Li Kun suddenly shoved the guard, unzipped his bag, pulled out a long fruit knife, and roared, "Don’t move! I dare any of you to come closer."
Everyone froze for a second at the sight of the knife.
But that wasn’t all. Li Kun fumbled through his bag again and pulled out... dynamite!
It was sticks of dynamite, several of them bundled together with wires and a circuit board attached to the side.
"See this? I have a bomb! I’ll blow you all up!" Li Kun yelled, his eyes wide.
At this, everyone finally reacted and scrambled backward.
Surprisingly, no one screamed.
In their panic, they didn’t even have the presence of mind to scream.
Li Kun, on the other hand, wouldn’t stop shouting, showing the dynamite in his hand to everyone and yelling, "Don’t come over here! I’ll blow you up if you come over here!"
"And Ningning! I want to see Ningning! Get her out here! I want to see her, do you hear me!"
Li Kun kept backing away, moving toward the teller counters.
There were tellers behind the counter. Someone had probably already pressed the alarm.
The few elderly people reacted quickly at this point. They decisively fled, scrambling out of the bank in a panic.
The guard was also stunned and ran outside the door.
The lobby manager looked left and right, unsure whether to run or stay.
Li Kun was furiously kicking the metal door leading to the employee area, demanding the tellers inside open it.
Beside him, Tian Kui had become restless, repeatedly looking up at Shen Xin, awaiting the command to attack.
Shen Xin’s attention was fixed on the dynamite in Li Kun’s hand.
’The explosives I handled during K9 training didn’t look like this!’
’Why does it look like a fake?’
