Chapter 43: Shazhu is Coming Out

“Is Shazhu coming out?”

“Yeah, I just passed by the deaf old lady's house. I saw her putting on a new jacket, looking all spirited and ready, preparing to go to the police station to pick up Shazhu.”

Early in the morning.

While Li Aiguo was still deep in sleep, Xu Damao knocked on his door.

Yawning, Li Aiguo said, “Brother Damao, thanks a lot.”

“Bah, with our relationship, there's no need for thanks.” Xu Damao squinted his eyes, looking quite pleased with himself.

He loved snooping for news more than anything.

Moreover.

It looked like Li Aiguo was about to take action against Shazhu.

He couldn't afford to miss this show.

After receiving the news, Li Aiguo didn't even eat breakfast.

He hopped on his tandem bicycle and rode straight toward the Railway Police Station, facing the faint morning sun.

The Railway Police Station had existed before the Liberation; back then, it was called the Railway Patrol Training Institute.

After the Liberation, it was renamed the Railway Police Station, responsible for railway security.

It was managed by the Transportation Security Bureau of the Ministry of Public Security (the Tenth Bureau of the Ministry of Public Security) and was not subject to local constraints.

Li Aiguo was heading to the Railway Police Station, which was located within the Qianmen Locomotive Depot.

Since he hadn't received his work permit yet, as he rode his bicycle to the entrance, he flashed his train driver's license under the stunned gaze of the security officer.

“Comrade, I have business at the Railway Police Station.”

“Please... please, go right in.”

The security officer didn't even look at the license; his eyes remained fixed on the bicycle.

*Heh, I pulled off another cool move.*

The corners of Li Aiguo's mouth curled up slightly as he rode his bicycle into the locomotive depot.

Along the way, he received gazes of envy, jealousy, admiration, and resentment.

If he didn't have business to attend to today, he would have ridden around for another loop.

Just like those fishermen in his past life who, after catching a twenty-pound fish, wouldn't go home until the fish was stinking and covered in flies.

The Railway Police Station operated twenty-four hours a day.

Despite the early hour, people were already coming and going in a steady stream, and railway police could occasionally be seen escorting prisoners in and out.

As Li Aiguo entered, he was wondering which department he should report to when someone gave his shoulder a heavy pat.

“Aiguo, what are you doing here?”

Turning around, he saw Zhou Ke standing behind him.

Beside him was a comrade in uniform.

That comrade was escorting a young man, who was tied up tightly with hemp rope, his head hanging low.

“Zhou Ke, what's this?”

“Bah, this kid isn't honest. He actually dared to pickpocket on a train and got caught red-handed by us!” Zhou Ke said with a proud expression.

Were there still pickpockets on trains in this era?

As expected.

Thieves and prostitutes are the two oldest professions in the world.

Li Aiguo gave him a thumbs up. “Not bad! You're quite the big shot now.”

“Of course.”

Zhou Ke nodded triumphantly. “What brings you to the police station?”

“To report a case, of course.”

“Report a case?” Zhou Ke's eyes widened.

Seeing Li Aiguo's serious expression, he turned to the comrade behind him and said, “Xiao Liu, please take the thief to the detention room and ask Captain Zhang and the others to help with the interrogation. I have some business to handle here.”

“You got it!”

The railway policeman reached out to pull the thief away, but the thief was somewhat reluctant, dragging his feet.

“Hurry up,” he said with an impatient kick. “You only know how to be afraid now? Why didn't you think about it carefully when you were stealing?”

After the two left, Zhou Ke pulled Li Aiguo into the office and poured some tea.

Leaning his elbows on the table, his face was full of curiosity: “Aiguo, what are you reporting? Did you lose something? Don't worry, I can help you find it immediately.”

“It's not that.”

Li Aiguo set down his enamel mug and recounted the recent beating he received and the news about Shazhu's upcoming release.

*Bang!*

Zhou Ke looked furious and slammed the table hard. “How despicable! Those people are truly despicable.”

“Deliberately assaulting someone—they should all be arrested. You acted for the sake of the bigger picture and made concessions, yet those people are still ungrateful.”

“It's just...”

He paused, looking puzzled. “Why didn't you come to our Railway Police Station to report it back then?”

The railway department was equivalent to an independent little kingdom, not subject to local constraints.

According to regulations, all cases involving the railway department fell under the jurisdiction of the Railway Police Station.

If railway employees encountered trouble, they could seek help from the Railway Police Station.

Li Aiguo spread his hands helplessly. “At that time, I hadn't passed my driver's exam yet. I was just an ordinary citizen.”

“That's true!”

Zhou Ke stood up, his expression solemn. “To think they dare to bully someone from our railway. This time, I'll make sure that idiot knows exactly who he's dealing with.”

“Wait here for a moment. I'll report this immediately.”

With that, Zhou Ke walked quickly out of the office.

He went quickly and returned just as fast.

In just a short while, he returned with two comrades in uniform.

One comrade had a Type 24 rifle slung over his waist, and the other was carrying a Thompson submachine gun with both hands.

Zhou Ke, carrying a carbine, gave Li Aiguo a triumphant smile. “Let's go. We're going to pick someone up right now.”

“Pick someone up? More like kidnap someone,” Li Aiguo muttered under his breath.

In this era of scarcity, the equipment of the Railway Police Station was quite outdated.

Generally, when going out on cases, the officers rode bicycles.

Considering the urgency of the situation, Zhou Ke had actually managed to request a sidecar motorcycle.

“How about it? This bike was captured on the Korean battlefield. They say it was a Japanese brigade commander's mount.”

Looking closely, Li Aiguo saw that the paint on the sidecar motorcycle was mottled and the original color was no longer visible.

There were several holes in the sidecar, and some parts were rusted.

Even so, the black smoke billowing from the exhaust still gave off a sense of majesty and power.

Since childhood, Zhou Ke loved to compete with Li Aiguo—in studies, in exams, even in picking wives. Now that he was riding a sidecar motorcycle, he naturally had to show off.

Looking at the childish Zhou Ke, Li Aiguo shook his head with a smile and turned to push his tandem bicycle out of the shed.

*Gulp. Gulp. Gulp.*

The three men on the sidecar motorcycle swallowed in unison.

Aside from lacking gasoline power, the tandem bicycle was not inferior to the sidecar motorcycle in terms of appearance or size.

Zhou Ke's eyes widened. “Good heavens, if you put an engine on this, it would be a four-wheeled motorcycle.”

A four-wheeled motorcycle? Such a thing existed?

Li Aiguo smiled. “That's a good idea. I'll save up to build one later.”

Zhou Ke: “...”

Fine, he felt like Li Aiguo had pulled off another cool move.

However, he didn't feel angry.

Zhou Ke's eyes darted around, and he smiled. “Aiguo, can you lend me this bicycle over the weekend?”

“Lend it to you? Don't you have a bicycle?” Li Aiguo was surprised.

“My bicycle isn't comfortable for two people to ride,” Zhou Ke said, his face flushing slightly.

The comrade holding the Thompson submachine gun nearby teased, “You don't know yet, do you? Our Comrade Zhou Ke is seeing someone.”

“Go away, don't talk nonsense! It's not even official yet!”

Zhou Ke's face turned as red as a monkey's butt.

*Zhou Ke is already seeing someone even though he's a few months younger than me. Looks like I need to hurry up too.*

Li Aiguo agreed without hesitation.

Seeing that time was running out and fearing Shazhu might slip away, the sidecar motorcycle sped toward the Siheyuan Police Station, trailing black smoke.

Li Aiguo followed closely behind on his tandem bicycle.

The two of them became a striking sight within the capital.

(End of Chapter)