Chapter 444 Got Robbed

• “Glug… glug…” The bearded guy’s throat sounded like it was filled with boiling water, making a weird gurgling noise. His face flushed red to purple fast. He was choking, mouth gaping, tongue almost hanging out, eyes wide with panic as he begged Lin Shuainan for mercy. Lin Shuainan didn’t even glance his way. “Big bro, what do we do with these clowns? They’re way too weak, right?” Lin Shuainan clearly figured once you take away their guns, they’re just ordinary crooks. The fact they managed to grab Duan Chenfeng and the others was pure bad luck for Duan Chenfeng’s group. Finneas turned and stepped onto the big coach bus. Thud, thud! His footsteps were heavy. The whole bus jolted when he got on. The nearby robbers stared like they’d seen a ghost. “H-Hey, don’t come up!” “Get off! Why are you coming up here? One more step and I’ll shoot!” “Don’t move! I’ve got hostages. I’ll kill them!” Clearly, Finneas scared them a lot more than Lin Shuainan. A few were already babbling nonsense. Lin Shuainan hauled the bearded man up onto the bus too. “Heh. You jokers call yourselves robbers? So unprofessional. Hostages? You think we’re cops or something?” He snickered, eyes full of mockery, and shoved the bearded guy’s pinned neck closer to the group. That move made their faces go ice-cold. “Don’t act rashly—boss is in his hands!” One guy who looked like the number-two waved the others to stop, then fixed on Finneas. “Brother, we’re just after money. If we offended you, please show mercy.” He gave Finneas a cupped-fist salute, trying to play tough-guy etiquette. Finneas didn’t look at him. From the second he got on, his gaze had locked onto Duan Chenyang. “Mr. Lockwood, you’re here. Thank you—again. You saved the two of us one more time.” Duan Chenfeng stood up, pouring out gratitude. Finneas dipped his chin, but kept his eyes on Duan Chenyang in the wheelchair. Duan Chenyang no longer looked like a wreck wrapped in rags. His hair was neat, his face clean-shaven—just a normal man around fifty. Still, his expression was cool and gloomy. He stared hard at Finneas. Their eyes flickered a few beats, then he gave the slightest nod. Finneas got it and nodded back without a word. “Shuainan, let him go.” His voice was calm. “Huh? Big bro, these guys have blocked roads, stolen cash, and messed with women. How can we just let them walk?” Lin Shuainan was stunned. This wasn’t like Finneas. Sure, Finneas looked cold most days, but deep down he hated evil. No way he’d let scum go this easy. Even so, Lin Shuainan loosened his grip a bit. The bearded guy sucked in air, gasping hard, and blurted, “Hey, hey! Mercy, hero, please!” Lin Shuainan froze at being called “hero,” then puffed his chest, feeling pretty proud. “Heh. Didn’t expect I’m so handsome you could tell I’m a hero?” The bearded man blinked, cursing Lin Shuainan in his heart for being a big idiot, but pasted on a fawning smile and nodded over and over. “You’re definitely a hero of the greenwood! Hero, this is just how we make a living—grab some cash. We never mess with anyone’s wife or kid! We all have parents. We’ve got professional ethics, you know?” He explained fast, and his little brothers bobbed their heads. They’d figured it out—these two weren’t people they could handle. So the smart move was not to fight head-on. Just leave, fast. They already had some money. As long as Duan Chenfeng didn’t demand it back, this trip wasn’t a total loss. “Really?” Lin Shuainan squinted, suspicious, eyes narrowed sharp on them. He focused so hard his eyes went slightly cross without realizing. He thought it helped him concentrate and see through lies. In reality, the robbers were choking back laughter. “I’m a high-IQ criminal investigator. You won’t fool me with even half a lie.” He slapped another label on himself. The gang was about to burst out laughing when Finneas’s voice went colder. “Shuainan, let them off. You four, get Mr. Duan off the bus.” “Oh. Got it, big bro!” Lin Shuainan answered, then kicked the bearded man on the butt. The guy tumbled off the bus and face-planted, totally embarrassed, but scrambled up, bowing in thanks. “Thank you, hero, for sparing me! Rivers and hills meet again. See you around!” Lin Shuainan got swept up in his own wuxia fantasy and cupped his hands back. “Mountains stand, waters flow! Till we meet again!” Thud-thud-thud! With hurried steps, the robbers rushed for the door. Half of them had pushed out when— From the huddled passengers, someone yelped, “W-Wait! We can’t just let them go!” A cold spark flashed in Finneas’s eyes. Lin Shuainan quickly blocked a few robbers. “Hold up. What’s going on?” The door was left open. Finneas waved, and the Liu family folks were already rolling the wheelchair and guiding the dazed Duan Chenfeng off the bus. “Mr. Lockwood, let the rest of the passengers get off too. They’ve been through a lot.” Duan Chenfeng called back as he exited. Finneas didn’t answer. Lin Shuainan shouted at the passengers instead. “Hey! What’s your deal? Why won’t you let them go? Be easy on people. We’re in the middle of nowhere—what, you really want us to slice them up?” “No! They took our money. We can’t just let them walk!” “Yeah! That bearded jerk grabbed my Rolex. I want it back!” “How can you two just let them go? You’re basically encouraging robbers!”