Mystery on the Rails

Postscript Three months later, Beijing West Railway Station. The "Railway Guardians" special operations team's office was located on the third floor of the station's public security office. It was a small room with a national railway map and timelines of several major cases hanging on the wall. The platform was right outside the window, where trains could be seen coming and going, and the sound of their whistles could be heard from time to time. Tang Yan sat at her desk, reviewing a case file. Her injuries had healed, leaving only a faint scar on her back. Li Xu sat opposite her, holding a newly purchased pager—by the end of 2001, mobile phones were becoming common, but pagers were still in use. "There's a case." Tang Yan looked up. "It's reported by the Guangzhou Railway Police. A series of thefts occurred on train K325, from Shenzhen to Beijing. The victims were all foreign businessmen. It's suspected to be a gang crime, and there might be an inside man." When do we depart? "Tonight, on train T107, from Beijing to Shenzhen. We'll pose as foreign businessmen and lure them out." "Okay, I'll go get ready." Li Xu stood up and walked to the window. On the platform, a brand-new "Harmony" bullet train was pulling into the station, its streamlined front gleaming in the sunlight. "What are you looking at?" Tang Yan walked up to him. "Look at the train," Li Xu said. "The railway is changing, the trains are changing, but some things will never change." "For example?" "For example, crime, justice, and us." Li Xu turned to look at her and smiled. Tang Yan smiled and took his arm: "Yes, like us." Outside the window, another train pulled out of the station, its whistle blaring as it sped off into the distance. And their new journey has begun. The railway tracks are endless, and life is long. Fortunately, they have each other by their side. Forever. (The End)