The old woman was not moving slowly. Supporting the young woman, she swayed with every step, making her leisurely way closer from the distance and passing through the carriage where Lian Youming sat.
As she approached, she greeted the passengers with an apologetic look. "Sorry, this is my daughter-in-law. She's not feeling well."
How could ordinary people see what was really going on? They all moved aside, and some even asked a couple of concerned questions.
Watching the young woman's puppetlike steps, Lian Youming raised his eyebrows.
It seemed he had run into a "child-snatcher," also known as a "cotton-beater," though both terms referred to human traffickers.
The old woman had most likely boarded the train with him and was fleeing immediately after abducting someone. The only question was whether she would get off at Jinmen or keep heading south.
With a low chuckle, Lian Youming picked up his bag and followed. He could not afford to lose her, or finding her again might mean searching the whole country for a needle in a haystack.
Although night had fallen, it was not particularly late. Some people were asleep, while others were still chatting.
Lian Youming looked around as he walked, his expression betraying nothing. He glanced this way and that as though looking for a seat, but his eyes were watching the passengers along the way.
As the saying went, master thieves traveled alone, while petty thieves moved in packs. Traffickers like these certainly would not operate alone. Judging by the little old woman's extraordinary grip strength, she clearly had martial training. If so, there might well be accomplices on the train covering for her.
Sure enough.
The farther back Lian Youming went, the more people he noticed watching him-or, more precisely, watching whoever walked behind the little old woman.