Searching for someone in northern Myanmar, and you call that earning tuition fees?

Ivan pressed the call button, his Adam's apple bobbing.

Su Ming placed his thumb on his elbow joint, without applying any force, just resting it there.

Ivan spoke.

"Alpha Wolf, Viper reporting." His Russian trembled slightly from the pain, but his tone, breath, and enunciation were normal—Su Ming stared intently at his lips, observing every word he uttered. "The target jumped out of the emergency window of carriage number seven, heading southeast, moving towards the snow hill. There are two men with him, and they are moving very fast."

There was a three-second silence on the walkie-talkie.

"Jump out of the car?" The alpha wolf's voice held a hint of doubt. "In this weather?"

Ivan's throat tightened, and Su Ming's thumb gently rotated Ivan's elbow joint—without applying force, but the angle was so precise that it made the hairs on Ivan's entire arm stand on end.

"Confirmed." Ivan added through gritted teeth, "I saw it with my own eyes. The target was wearing a gray windbreaker, and his companion was carrying a canvas bag. They climbed out of the emergency window, and there were footprints in the snow."

A brief electrical noise came through the walkie-talkie.

"Roger!" The alpha wolf's voice immediately became decisive. "All squads, attention! Target spotted, move east to the snowy hills to encircle! Eagle Eye, provide illumination from the high ground! Wolf cubs, dinnertime!"

Outside the window, the roar of engines suddenly intensified. A dozen beams of light simultaneously changed direction, and the snowmobile's taillights trailed orange-red arcs in the snowstorm as it sped towards the snow-covered hills to the east.

Within thirty seconds, most of the encirclement around the train dissipated.

Su Ming released Ivan's arm and stood up.

"Thank you for your cooperation."

Ivan closed his eyes, not wanting to say anything more.

"I'll go meet up with Brother Li." Su Ming stood up, dusted off his trousers, and said to Lao Zhao, "Keep an eye on the three of them."

"Don't go..." Ah Xue was about to speak up to stop her.

Su Ming had already disappeared into the darkness of the corridor.

The private room was silent for a few seconds.

Ah Xue gripped the edge of the bunk so tightly her hands turned white, then turned to look at Lao Zhao.

Aren't you worried at all?

Old Zhao leaned against the corner, the prayer beads on his thermos swaying gently. He unscrewed the lid and blew on the steam.

"Don't be nervous. If he says he'll help, then he really means it."

Ah Xue opened her mouth, but then swallowed her words back.

Two muffled thuds came from the end of the corridor, less than a second apart, followed by the crisp sound of metal hitting the ground.

Then, footsteps.

The sound of two people's footsteps approached the private room at a leisurely pace.

The door was pushed open.

Su Ming walked ahead, his clothes spotless, even his coat buttons were perfectly in place. Li Changfeng followed behind, a speck of dust on his right glove.

"All done?" Old Zhao asked.

"Hmm." Su Ming bent down to rummage through his canvas bag. "The main force outside has been transferred, but two guards were left on the vehicle. That's just enough for one person each."

Ah Xue's mouth gaped open again. In the mouths of these two people, packing up the elite mercenaries left behind in the car was as simple as going out to pick up a package.

Su Ming crouched down and began searching the equipment on Ivan and his two companions. Tactical flashlights, two boxes of 9mm ammunition, a military compass, three energy bars, and a Swiss Army knife. He arranged each item on the bunk, and finally pulled a flat flask from the burly man's coat pocket.

I unscrewed it and smelled it. Vodka, at least 60 degrees.

"This will be useful." Su Ming put the wine flask into his bag.

"You still drink?" Ah Xue glared at him.

"For disinfection."

Su Ming sorted out the useful items, stood up, and looked at Li Changfeng.

Li Changfeng nodded.

Li Changfeng walked up to Ivan and squatted down.

Ivan looked up and met Li Changfeng's cold, hard gaze. There was no malice in his eyes, but there was no room for negotiation either.

"No—" Ivan opened his mouth.

Li Changfeng delivered a karate chop to Ivan's neck, and he passed out without uttering a sound.

The remaining two mercenaries shook their heads frantically as Li Changfeng's hand approached them.

"Bang!"

"Bang!"

In three seconds, all three of them drifted off to sleep.

Old Zhao watched from the side, grinning from ear to ear: "That was quick and efficient."

Li Changfeng cracked his knuckles: "Let's go. This diversionary tactic won't last long. Once they reach the eastern snow hill and find no one there, they'll turn back within fifteen minutes."

"Let's go?" Ah Xue stood up from her bunk. "Where to?"

"Jump out of the car." Su Ming picked up his canvas bag.

Ah Xue was stunned.

"Jump...from the car?"

"We will trek into the snowfield, bypass the pursuit line, and cut into the target area from the northwest."

Hiking in minus forty degrees Celsius?

"right."

Old Zhao stood at the emergency exit of carriage number seven, his fingers resting on the handle, looking down at the scene below.

Outside the door was pure blackness. The wind and snow lashed at him, making it hard to open his eyes, and the biting cold cut into his bare skin.

"Su Ming".

"Um."

"Minus forty degrees Celsius."

"Um."

"on foot."

"Um."

"There are no cars."

"Um."

There is no road.

"Um."

Old Zhao was silent for two seconds, then looked up at the sky and sighed.

"You know what? You're the most sincere conman I've ever met in my life." Old Zhao's voice was hoarse. "Every time you said 'it's not dangerous,' 'it's purely business,' or 'we're talking about the law,' I should have canceled my ticket immediately."

Su Ming didn't reply, but handed the two winter-proof inner linings he had taken from the mercenary to Ah Xue and Lao Zhao.

"Wearing these will keep you warm for a while longer."

Old Zhao snatched the inner liner and put it on, muttering to himself, "Why is my life so miserable! I haven't even had a chance to warm this third-class merit medal yet..."

Li Changfeng was the first to jump.

The snow was thick, reaching above his calves. After he steadied himself, he looked up and stretched out his hand.

Ah Xue gritted her teeth, grabbed Li Changfeng's arm, and jumped down. The moment she landed, the biting cold made her shiver violently, and her teeth started chattering.

Su Ming landed silently, his boots sinking into the snow. He looked up to check his location.

Old Zhao was the last one.

He stood on the edge of the emergency door, gripping the door frame with both hands. He looked down at the drop of more than a meter below, then at the warm carriage behind him, his face filled with hesitation and struggle.

"Uncle Zhao, hurry!"

"I know!" Old Zhao roared, closed his eyes, and let go.

His landing was anything but graceful; he plopped down in the snow and let out a series of screams—not from pain, but from the snow instantly filling his waistband.

"My back—! It's freezing cold!!"

Li Changfeng grabbed him and pulled him up.

"Let's go." Su Ming had already started walking, his canvas bag swaying in the wind and snow. "Follow the railway tracks northwest, and after three kilometers we'll enter the forest belt, where we can find shelter from the wind."

The four of them trudged into the snowfield, their steps uneven.

The wind was so strong it was hard to stand. Old Zhao walked in the middle of the group with his neck hunched, bending over and dry heaving every few steps—not from nausea, but from the cold air. He pulled out a blister pack of nitroglycerin pills from his pocket, shivering as he pressed out two pills and popped them directly into his mouth.

The pills were as cold as pebbles, and they made a crunching sound when chewed.

Li Changfeng heard this from ahead and turned around.

"Did you chew your medicine?"

Old Zhao's voice came out muffled from inside his military overcoat collar: "I can't hold it in, my mouth is numb from the cold, my tongue is numb, I'm afraid it will go down my trachea."

Ah Xue walked between Lao Zhao and Su Ming, the wind and snow covering her face, ice crystals clinging to her eyelashes. She walked mechanically, head down, her mind revolving around only one thought—

Half an hour ago, she thought these three people were sent by the platform to make people laugh.

A first-year college student carrying legal documents.

A retired veteran without a gun.

An elderly man who could have a heart attack at any moment.

Now, the student took down three top mercenaries in a matter of seconds, used a walkie-talkie to lure the armed bandits outside in the opposite direction, and then led them off the train into the snowfield where the temperature was minus forty degrees Celsius.

Ahead, Su Ming's back was straight, his steps steady, and he walked easily and freely in the knee-deep snow.

Behind him, Old Zhao chewed his medicine and cursed as he went. After he finished cursing, he took a step to catch up, not missing a single step.

She suddenly realized that this combination was indeed outrageous.

But they are indeed still alive.