Chapter 12: I had no idea you had a talent like this
Hmm…
That actually made a lot of sense.
Remembering the title’s negative side effect, Jiang Xia raised her middle finger at the system.
I was just praising you, and then you pull this?
You really can’t be happy unless you screw me over once, huh?
Silently cursing the system, Jiang Xia was already on one knee, her shoulder pinned down while one of her arms was twisted behind her back.
The young patrol officer, Cao Cheng, was enthusiastically snapping handcuffs onto her wrists. Naturally, he wasn’t gentle with someone he believed to be a criminal, and the rough handling made her arm ache.
Recalling the title’s effects that she’d checked before leaving home, Jiang Xia didn’t immediately reveal who she was. Instead, she used her mind to have the system unequip the “King of Thieves” title before speaking in a muffled voice.
“Easy there, brother. I’m one of your colleagues—Jiang Xia from Zhouying Police Station. I’m here investigating leads on a case. If you don’t believe me, call the station and ask.”
“Shut up! Who’s your brother?”
Cao Cheng barked before she had even finished speaking. But after yelling, the rest of her sentence finally registered.
She had given both her full name and police station, and even told him to call and verify it.
His hands froze.
Did I just arrest a fellow officer?
Looking down, he realized the person he had pinned to the ground was a young woman. His face instantly cycled through every color imaginable.
Come to think of it, it was strange. Just moments ago, everything about her had seemed suspicious, making him eager to slap the cuffs on her.
But now that he knew her identity… well, she suddenly looked completely different. Her movements clearly carried the discipline of someone trained at a police academy, and there was even an air of uprightness about her.
Cao Cheng couldn’t help stealing several more glances at her face.
Was the change really this dramatic?
Did I seriously see things just now?
Questioning himself, he then remembered what she had been doing moments earlier, and his head immediately started to ache.
“Master… what do we do now?”
The veteran officer beside him remained remarkably calm.
“Leave things as they are. Take her back to the station first, and we’ll sort it out after we’ve confirmed everything.”
Jiang Xia cooperatively allowed herself to be escorted back to their police station.
To be honest, it was quite a novel experience.
It would have been even better if there weren’t so many onlookers watching.
…
Anping Police Station
Inside the office, Jiang Xia sat in a chair, rotating her wrist.
Several patrol officers from the station kept glancing at her face, then turning to Cao Cheng and making comments like, “She doesn’t look like one at all.”
Cao Cheng’s face had turned bright red.
“Ah, okay. No need to come pick her up. Ah… that works too.”
Deputy Chief Yang hung up the phone with a click, then turned to Jiang Xia with a smile.
“We’ve verified your identity. Xiao Jiang, just wait here for a bit—someone’s coming to pick you up.”
Jiang Xia nodded. “Thank you, Chief Yang.”
“It’s nothing, it’s nothing.”
He waved his hand, then asked with concern, “By the way, today’s arrest didn’t spook the suspects you’re investigating, did it?”
“No.”
Jiang Xia answered confidently, “They know I can keep my mouth shut.”
That wasn’t the real reason.
The truth was that Brother Hua and Bald He believed she was part of the underworld, someone who understood the rules and would never report them to the police.
It wasn’t because criminals were honorable or loyal. People in that world were experts at cheating and deception—who had room for virtues like that? The real reason was that everyone involved had dirty hands. Who knew how many crimes they had committed? The less they confessed, the sooner they could get out. Otherwise, detention could turn into a prison sentence.
“Good. That’s what matters.”
Deputy Chief Yang didn’t ask further questions. Once he was sure their actions hadn’t affected the investigation, he returned to his own work.
Jiang Xia waited for someone to come get her.
She didn’t sit idle. She took off her patched outer jacket, fetched a basin of water, washed her face clean with soap, removed the wig, and tied up her hair properly again.
After all that, she looked like a completely different person. Even if Brother Hua had been watching outside, he probably wouldn’t have recognized her.
Before long, the person sent to pick her up arrived.
It was Hu Wei.
He parked his sturdy black bicycle, hurried into the office, greeted Deputy Chief Yang with a serious expression, explained a few things, and then motioned for Jiang Xia to leave with him.
But the moment they stepped outside, he could no longer keep up the act.
He broke into a wide grin, flashing a row of gleaming white teeth, and even laughed out loud.
“Jiang Xia, weren’t you supposed to be gathering intelligence today? How’d you end up getting arrested?”
“So what?” Jiang Xia shot back. “That just proves my acting was convincing!”
It wasn’t like she’d lost her badge or done anything embarrassing. She casually swung the evidence wrapped in her jacket—the two sets of bedsheets and pillowcases—then looked down at him with a smug expression.
“I found the fence. The evidence is right here. Admit it—you’re impressed.”
“I am!”
Hu Wei turned his bicycle around, then stepped aside and made a grand welcoming gesture.
“Our hero, please take your seat. Let’s hurry back so we can discuss how to make the arrest.”
Jiang Xia placed the bundle of evidence into the front basket before climbing onto the rear seat sideways.
Hu Wei stepped on the pedal, gave it a hard push, and the bicycle shot forward.
Not long afterward, they returned to the police station.
It was nearly noon.
Jiang Xia hopped off the bicycle, picked up the evidence from the basket, and headed toward the office. Before she even stepped through the door, the rich aroma of meat drifted into her nose.
She glanced inside.
Hey—that’s a familiar face.
It was the veteran railway police officer from the train station.
He was standing beside Chief Wu, with a large insulated food carrier set on the table in front of him. The delicious smell was coming from inside it.
Looks like he had quite the haul, Jiang Xia thought. He even brought food over to thank us in person.
Having figured out the reason, she walked into the office carrying the evidence.
“Master, I’m back.”
“Comrade Jiang, you’re back!”
Before Chief Wu could say anything, the railway officer enthusiastically greeted her. He stepped forward, grasped her hand, and shook it vigorously.
“Thanks to the suspect sketch you provided, we were able to identify every member of the gang. The day before yesterday we launched the operation and, ha! We wiped out three thief hideouts in one go and arrested more than a dozen people. Two of them were wanted fugitives, and one had even committed murder!”
Whoa!
Jiang Xia was genuinely surprised.
No wonder the railway officer was so thrilled.
That was a major accomplishment—more than enough to earn him an official commendation, and he probably wouldn’t have to worry about a promotion or raise this year.
Of course he’d come personally to express his gratitude.
Chief Wu’s expression, however, was a little complicated.
Such a huge achievement…
And it had been handed over to a sister police unit just like that.
Even though he knew luck had played a big part, he still couldn’t help feeling a little wistful.
After all, just as most people never complain about having too much money, Chief Wu certainly wouldn’t mind if his station kept stumbling upon opportunities to earn commendations.
Holding the suspect sketch in his hand, thinking about who had personally given it away, he looked at Jiang Xia, who had just returned, and sighed.
“Xiao Jiang, I had no idea you had a talent like this.”
Jiang Xia’s smile stiffened.
“Haha… well… it just never came in handy before.”
She gave a light cough and hurriedly placed the bundle of evidence on the desk.
“Um, Master, I found the gang’s middleman who was selling the stolen goods, and I brought back evidence. Look—these bedsheets are identical to the batch stolen from the bedding factory!”
“Oh?”
Chief Wu looked genuinely surprised.
Deputy Chief Yang hadn’t mentioned that over the phone. He had assumed Jiang Xia had been mistaken for an illegal black-market trader during her investigation and arrested because of that.
He hadn’t expected her to go straight to the gang’s middleman.
Good grief… I really did take on an extraordinary apprentice.
Chief Wu lifted a corner of one of the sheets and examined it closely.
“They really are identical. And they don’t have that musty smell you’d expect from goods that have been sitting in a warehouse for ages. This should be the batch stolen from the bedding factory.”
He nodded enthusiastically.
“Excellent! Once we arrest him, this case will be solved.”
He looked at Jiang Xia with approval.
“The middleman is a cautious fellow. The fact that you managed to track him down is impressive in itself.”
In a much better mood now, Chief Wu joked,
“Xiao Jiang, is there anything else you’re good at that I don’t know about? Tell your master now so I can prepare myself mentally.”
“That’s all, Master.”
Jiang Xia chuckled awkwardly and spread her hands.
“Those are the only things I can do.”
She actually knew a few other tricks.
But if she admitted them, her master would probably develop high blood pressure on the spot.
Better to keep those to herself.
“It seems I’ve come at a rather inconvenient time.”
By this point, the veteran railway officer had pieced everything together.
Jiang Xia’s case had already reached the final stage—they were about to make the arrests and were pressed for time.
“In that case, maybe I should get going.”
“Oh, don’t be like that.”
How could they let someone who had brought food to thank them leave without even sharing a meal?
Chief Wu quickly reached out to stop him.
“Most of our people aren’t back yet. Even if we’re making arrests, we’ll have to wait until everyone gets here this afternoon. Let’s eat first, then talk.”
“Exactly,” Jiang Xia chimed in.
“I still need to draw the suspect portraits first. Otherwise, what if you arrest the wrong people?”
The railway officer stopped in his tracks.
“Fair enough. Let’s eat first.”
Carrying the insulated food carrier, the four of them headed to the boiler room.
Hu Wei wiped down the small table while the railway officer unpacked the dishes one by one.
There weren’t many—just four—but every one of them was a hearty meat dish: braised chicken, sliced pork hock, steamed pork with rice flour, and braised prawns.
They were all Jiang Xia’s favorites.
Since the meal had been brought specifically to thank her, she didn’t stand on ceremony. As soon as everyone picked up their chopsticks, she reached straight for a piece of pork hock with the skin on.
After eating so many vegetable-heavy meals, rich, fatty pork hock tasted absolutely incredible.
There was still an arrest operation that afternoon, so Chief Wu skipped the alcohol. As he peeled a shrimp, he remarked leisurely,
“Old Qin, you really spared no expense on this meal.”
“I’m happy!”
Old Qin took a sip of water, then recalled the operation from two days earlier.
“It was pure luck. Originally, we were just waiting for that gang to gather so we could catch them all at once. Who would’ve thought there’d be three different gangs meeting together? Worked out perfectly—we swept them all up in one operation.”
Chief Wu looked puzzled.
“What were they gathering for?”
Old Qin narrowed his eyes, trying to remember.
“They were asking around about a thief known as the King of Thieves—someone supposedly incredibly skilled.”
Jiang Xia’s chopsticks froze halfway to her mouth.
No way… it couldn’t be that much of a coincidence, could it?
“The gang Xiao Jiang identified said they ran into a thief on the train who actually stole their wallets. They said his skills were unbelievable and that he scared them half to death. So they organized a dinner to ask around about him.”
Old Qin chuckled.
“And that’s exactly when we swooped in and arrested the whole lot.”
As he spoke, he suddenly remembered something and turned toward Jiang Xia.
“Come to think of it, what a coincidence. That King of Thieves was apparently on the very same train you took back here, Xiao Jiang.”
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