During a serious robbery, what would you feel if the robber suddenly gave you a flirtatious smile?
Chills!
To this day, Ping An shudders whenever he recalls that scene.
"I thought he was smiling at me as a 'little trick' before executing me. But what happened? I was prepared to be shot, but he turned away and chose to 'ignore' me," Ping An said with a mix of amusement and distress.
After an awkward smile, the robber silently turned his head, and then… nothing more happened.
What did that mean? Disdain to kill me?
At that moment, Ping An, who was already stunned by fear, watched what was happening with a bewildered look, unable to comprehend the robber's intentions.
Time ticked by. Police cars had already filled the area outside the restaurant, and heavily armed special police were openly assembling on the street, ready to storm in at any moment.
"Do you want to talk?"
Outside the restaurant, after a long standoff, a man claiming to be the police "commander" began shouting at the robbers through a megaphone.
"Enough talk. Prepare a car with a full tank of fuel, in good condition, and bring it here. Start the engine, open all four doors, and have all armed police officers step back a bit," the robber shouted from inside the restaurant, laying out his demands. "But before that, we want sandwiches, four of them!"
The robbers were asking for food from the police inside the restaurant?
Were these robbers idiots?
Ping An, who remained standing, couldn't help but feel a sense of bewildered amusement at the robber's demands.
"Yes, sir, I am the head chef of this restaurant. If you require food, I can prepare it for you," a restaurant chef cautiously offered.
"Don't speak, get down!" the robber rejected the offer, not choosing the most advantageous course of action.
Soon, the sandwiches were delivered.
After the previous incident, Ping An seemed to snap out of his daze and quickly assessed the current situation.
Three heavily armed robbers had just robbed a bank and were forced into a restaurant. Logically, they should be trying to escape as quickly as possible, but now they were in the mood for sandwiches? And what after the sandwiches? Wait for the police to deliver a car? Then flee?
Ping An warily watched the robbers devour their sandwiches, his mind racing to figure out the situation.
No, there must be something amiss with the robbers' actions and their demands to the police.
Or rather, they were doing this intentionally.
What was their purpose?
And what was it they were doing intentionally?
As darkness fell, after a considerable time, the police finally drove a dilapidated car to the restaurant's exterior and, as requested, kept the engine running with all four doors open.
Without needing to look closely, Ping An could tell just by glancing through the window that the car provided was far from ideal. And opening all four doors – was that meant to delay the robbers' escape?
No, no! Opening four doors wasn't the police's request; it was the robbers'! Why would they ask for four doors? There were only three of them. Even if they intended to take a hostage, under the police's arrangement, did they expect the hostage to enter from another door?
This wasn't right! It was genuinely wrong! Since earlier, the robbers had asked for four sandwiches, and then demanded four doors to be opened – this was to give the police the false impression that there were four of them.
But there were only three of them?
And the police didn't know that?
But why would they want the police to think there were four robbers?
To boost their morale, to fool the police? But why not say five!
The crucial question was, did the police actually believe there were four robbers?
The sandwiches were finished, and the robbers were still chatting and laughing, even taking the time to brew coffee.
Ping An looked at the robbers before him with confusion, genuinely unsure of their plan, until one of the robbers brought him a cup of coffee, gave him a meaningful smile, and then left.
The robber was offering him coffee!
Could robbers be so kind?
Something was wrong!
Ping An carefully picked up the cup of coffee and sniffed it. The aroma was captivating. He casually glanced at the other customers lying on the floor and noticed some of them glaring at him fiercely.
Was it out of jealousy? They were all held hostage, so why was he being treated specially?
No! They were glaring at him because—
"Both the hostages and the police observing through surveillance equipment saw me as an accomplice to the robbers," Ping An said. "When I realized this, I was almost scared to death. How did I become an accomplice?"
"Perhaps it was to conceal the true fourth robber?" Su Tang suggested.
"Heh, keep listening," Ping An chuckled and waved his hand.
Having realized he had inadvertently become an "accomplice," Ping An immediately made a new assessment. First, he needed to know why he was mistaken for an accomplice.
Asian, young, no companions, and probably couldn't speak German.
What perfect "accomplice" conditions. Once mistaken for a robber's "accomplice," no one could prove his innocence.
If the robbers deliberately needed such an "accomplice," Ping An was the best candidate in the entire restaurant. Even the police outside would likely believe it, especially after that cup of coffee. Professional snipers were probably already aiming at him.
Realizing this, Ping An's palms began to sweat. He hadn't offended anyone, so why was he being targeted like this? Would he really have to walk hand-in-hand with the other three "robber brothers" to the car and escape?
Just then, an elderly man lying on the floor let out a pained groan.
Ping An bravely took two steps towards the old man and stopped to observe. He noticed that although the robbers were watching him, they made no move. Then, Ping An took a few more bold steps towards the old man, and despite the robbers' glares, they still didn't intervene.
This was it! If they wanted him to play the "fourth robber," then under everyone's watchful eyes, they wouldn't dare kill him. So, for the time being, he didn't have to worry about his life?
With this thought, Ping An's courage grew. He walked directly to the old man's side, lifted his head, and checked his condition.
It was a heart attack.
Following the old man's instructions, Ping An retrieved a bottle of medicine from his pocket and helped the old man take it.
Soon, the old man's complexion began to improve.
"Do you understand English?" Ping An suddenly asked in English, seeing that the old man's condition had stabilized.
The robber who had been supervising Ping An, hearing him speak and in English, seemed unable to contain himself. He walked over to Ping An and raised his hand to strike the old man.
"Stop!" Ping An quickly shielded the old man.
Seeing Ping An dare to resist, the robber instinctively reached for his gun, but at a critical moment, he was stopped by another robber.
"Don't worry about him, don't worry about him. They can't cause any trouble," the other robber said.
Seeing that the two robbers were temporarily ignoring him, Ping An's conviction that he had been designated as the "fourth robber" grew stronger.
"Child, I understand English. What do you want me to do?" The old man was astute. He seemed to have understood Ping An's intentions, or perhaps he was grateful for being saved. He said in a low voice, speaking English.
"It's like this, sir. Firstly, I am not an accomplice to the robbers. I think they are doing this to cover for the real fourth robber," Ping An said, his tone serious and earnest. "Secondly, I will find a way to get you out. You need to tell the police what you know, including the fact that I, an Asian, was mistaken for an accomplice, and caution them."
The old man nodded solemnly after hearing Ping An's words.
Seeing the old man's cooperation, Ping An began to devise a plan.
He put the old man down and walked over to the robbers.
"Gentlemen, I don't know your purpose for doing this, but it seems I've been mistaken by the police as the fourth robber without my knowledge, haven't I?" Ping An said calmly.
"Hahahaha!"
Upon hearing Ping An's words, the other three robbers burst into laughter.
Without needing an answer, Ping An knew he had guessed correctly from their laughter.
"Gentlemen, I don't want to know why I was chosen. Because I want to live, I will cooperate with you. Therefore, I apologize for my earlier impulsiveness," he said sincerely, gesturing to the old man behind him.
"Alright, go back to your place. Don't be nervous. You can have some drinks, and we'll let you go later," one of the robbers, who seemed to be the leader, patted Ping An's shoulder as if to console him.
"But, the thing is, that gentleman is actually a friend of mine, we know each other," Ping An said with an apologetic expression. "This is also why I lost my composure earlier."
"Is that so? You know each other?" one robber asked. "Then why weren't you eating together?"
"We just know each other; we don't know each other well enough to dine together. I'm still young," Ping An replied.
The old man still had his arm around Ping An's neck, but his entire face suddenly darkened.
"You?"
Ping An said incredulously.
At the restaurant entrance, the old man cheerfully took a large suitcase from a robber, gave Ping An a mischievous glance, opened the door, and walked out.
"Don't shoot, oh, God, I'm just an ordinary citizen…"
The old man shouted in fear as he ran towards the police contingent.
Ah, an elderly hostage had escaped from the hands of a kind Asian robber.
Ping An's eyes widened, watching the scene unfold.
"Snap!"
The door closed. The leader robber smiled at Ping An and said, "The boss just told me, thank you for your cooperation, our Asian accomplice."