Chapter 0034: Bank Robbery [New book needs recommendation votes...]

Lin Yi was not the type of person with an extremely strong sense of heroism. On the contrary, he was rather low-key, knowing what he should and should not do. Just like in North Africa, Lin Yi always remembered that his duty was to protect the visiting delegation, not to play the hero in this war-torn place.

Therefore, in the current situation, Lin Yi was thinking about how to protect Chu Mengyao and Chen Yushu, rather than trying to catch the robbers. These matters would be handled by the police, and Lin Yi did not want to get involved.

Chu Mengyao and Chen Yushu had clearly never encountered such a situation before. They were now somewhat dazed, not knowing what to do.

"Everyone, listen up! Put your hands on your heads and squat down where you are. I promise not to hurt you, but if anyone moves, don't blame me for being ruthless!" The bald man fired another shot into the air, and the previously noisy bank instantly fell silent.

Children forgot to cry, adults forgot to shout, and everyone obediently began to squat down with their hands on their heads. Faced with the armed robbers, they had no choice but to comply if they wanted to survive.

This was not to say that these people lacked a sense of justice, but at this moment, anyone who stepped forward would pay with their life.

While the bald man was giving orders with his gun, his accomplices had already rushed to the bank counter. They smashed the windows with hammers and forced the bank staff to put money into designated bags.

"Hurry up! What are you dawdling for?" One of the robbers, impatient, shouted at a middle-aged bank employee, "If you keep dawdling, I'll shoot you!"

"Y-Yes... Yes..." The man, who was not very brave, was trembling with fear. With a "slap," a stack of bills fell to the ground and scattered.

"Damn it! Are you deliberately trying to delay us?" The robber glared and fired a shot, hitting the man's arm. The man let out a scream and clutched his arm.

The previous shots fired by the robbers were all blanks, which had a certain intimidating effect, but none were as strong as this one. This shot was aimed directly at a person, so both the staff and customers in the bank were shocked, covering their mouths and becoming even more afraid of the robbers, not daring to make any sudden moves.

The bald man was very satisfied with his subordinate's use of fear to control the crowd, and he scanned the entire bank with a smug look.

"Sister Yaoyao, I'm scared..." Chen Yushu, who usually acted tough, now clung tightly to Chu Mengyao's arm, her face pale.

"Don't worry, don't worry, Xiao Shu. I'll protect you." Chu Mengyao was actually very scared herself, but since Chen Yushu was a year younger, she had to act like a big sister and comfort her.

"You two don't need to comfort each other. I'll protect your safety," Lin Yi said calmly.

Although Lin Yi was not confident in capturing all the robbers, he was confident in protecting Chu Mengyao and Chen Yushu from harm.

Chu Mengyao's lips moved, and she was about to make a sarcastic remark, but seeing his determined gaze, she ultimately said nothing.

Just as the robbers were about to finish loading the cash and leave the bank, the sound of police sirens came from outside.

The bank customers, upon hearing the sirens, mostly frowned. Sometimes, the arrival of the police was a good thing, but in this situation, the robbers would be cornered and might take drastic actions.

If they took more hostages, it would be even worse. So, most people were now feeling gloomy. For them, the amount of money stolen from the bank was irrelevant; the most important thing was to get out of there safely.

"Robbers inside the bank, listen up! You are now surrounded. Please put down your weapons and surrender to receive lenient treatment. Otherwise, you will only face death!" A voice from a megaphone outside the bank called out.

"Hmph!" The bald man heard the announcement and sneered, then said to one of his subordinates, "Tell them outside that if they make any sudden moves, I'll start killing people!"

The subordinate immediately understood and went to the bank's entrance, shouting, "Shut up! If you keep shouting, our boss will start killing people!"

The police outside immediately fell silent. While they wanted to save the bank's losses, they also had to protect the safety of the people inside. This was a difficult task. After receiving the alarm, Deputy Chief Song Lingshan of the Criminal Investigation Team led a large team to the bank.

The team leader, Yang Huaijun, was out of town for a meeting, leaving Song Lingshan in charge. To be honest, Song Lingshan was under a lot of pressure, especially after receiving a call from the chief, instructing her to lead the team to handle the bank robbery and hinting that Chu Pengzhan's daughter and Chen Lao's granddaughter were inside the bank, and no harm could be allowed to come to them!

If anything happened to Chen Yushu, it would not only affect the chief but could also cause a major political earthquake.

Therefore, after the robbers' threatening words, Song Lingshan decisively ordered her subordinates to stop the announcements and avoid provoking the robbers.

The bald man was very satisfied with the police's silence. He walked through the crowd of customers squatting on the ground, scanning them. Many customers realized that the robbers were looking for a hostage to use as leverage in negotiations with the police!

Thinking of this, many people quickly lowered their heads, not daring to look up, fearing they would be chosen. After all, once they became the robbers' hostages, their fate would be uncertain. They did not have the courage to face these brutal criminals.

The bald man walked towards the crowd, his gaze finally landing on Chu Mengyao, who was standing next to Lin Yi.

"You! Stand up!" The bald man pointed his gun at Chu Mengyao and said.

Chu Mengyao was startled and instinctively tightened her grip on Chen Yushu's hand, looking up at the bald man.

"Huh? You're quite a pretty girl, aren't you?" The bald man grinned and pointed his gun at Chu Mengyao again, "I'm talking to you. Stand up!"

"I..." Chu Mengyao had never encountered such a situation before. Her heart was racing, and she did not know what to do, but she forced herself to stay strong, telling herself not to cry and to be brave.

So, Chu Mengyao gritted her teeth and slowly stood up. However, before she could fully stand, she felt a large hand press down on her shoulder, pushing her back down.