The Little Girl

Li Xian looked down at the small figure clutching his sleeve. The little girl was dressed beautifully, in a pale pink dress and spotless white shoes. She also wore a children's watch with plenty of buttons on her wrist. She looked like a thoroughly pampered child.

She craned her head up, blinking as she gazed intently at Li Xian. Beneath her well-behaved demeanor was an innocence unique to children, making people want to lower their guard and answer her questions.

Faced with this seemingly harmless little girl, Li Xian quietly heightened his vigilance and replied:

"We weren't playing tag."

The little girl shook his sleeve and pressed:

"Then what were you playing?"

After a moment's thought, Li Xian answered, "We weren't playing. That lady isn't very mentally stable. Good children shouldn't copy her."

At that, the little girl puffed out her cheeks as though he had hit a sore spot and reluctantly replied, "Hmm-okay."

Her lively reactions all but confirmed to Li Xian that she was the special passenger controlling the glass doors in Carriage 3. But a child this young...

Li Xian looked around the carriage again.

Wasn't her guardian here?

Though puzzled, Li Xian didn't ask where her parents were. So far, she was behaving fairly normally. If that question made her start crying and demanding her parents, they would have a problem.

The little girl still had hold of his sleeve. Li Xian couldn't very well shake her off, so he crouched down and placed a piece of candy in her palm.

"We're in a hurry. Could you let us leave first?"

Li Xian made his request as gently as he could.

They really were in a hurry. Less than an hour remained before their deadline, and they still had three carriages to get through. Every previous