Chapter Summaries

Li Ye spent an evening bowling and eating with Wen Guohua and Pan Xiaoying, then learned how closely Pan Xiaoying had investigated his ties to Ning Pingping. The chapter left Li Ye pretending to play dumb while Wen Guohua warned him that Pan Xiaoying was no easy mark.

• Li Ye scored repeated bowling strikes, and Wen Guohua stopped playing before Pan Xiaoying paid for the group’s meal.
• Li Ye learned Pan Xiaoying worked in the Postal and Telecommunications System and exchanged telephone numbers with her.
• Pan Xiaoying called Li Ye and questioned him about his relationship with Ning Pingping, prompting him to insist he kept his distance out of respect for Wen Leyu.
• Li Ye decided not to act on Pan Xiaoying’s questions, and Wen Guohua called to confirm that she had contacted him.

Li Ye refused to interfere with Ning Pingping’s advertising contract after Pan Xiaoying asked about her, prompting Wen Guohua to support him and insist Pan speak to him directly. The next morning, Li Ye and Li Yue prepared to fly to Hong Kong Island to see their mother, while Li Yue broke down over being separated from her family after marriage.

• Li Ye warned Wen Guohua that Pan Xiaoying had investigated Ning Pingping, and Wen Guohua angrily confirmed she was pressuring him to end Ning Pingping’s advertising contract.
• Li Ye told Wen Guohua he would keep family matters separate from business unless Teacher Ke asked him to intervene, and Wen Guohua agreed that Pan should come to him with any further questions.
• Wen Guohua lectured Li Ye about not letting women control him, then warned him to treat Xiao Yu well and said he would beat him if he hurt her.
• Li Yue woke Li Ye and urged him to hurry because their mother, Fu Guiru, had arrived in Hong Kong Island and their flight was that afternoon.
• Li Yue cried about missing her father, grandmother, and home after marrying Yang Yumin and moving far away, and Li Ye comforted her as they prepared to leave.
• Li Yue stopped crying and wondered how Fu Guiru had endured years away from home with Xiao Ruo, while Li Ye reflected that even strong women could cry unseen.

Li Ye, Li Yue, and Li Dayong arrived in Hong Kong Island, where Pei Wenhui, Fu Yiruo, Pei Wencong, and Luo Runbo welcomed them with a lavish convoy. Li Ye reunited with his mother and prepared to discuss the next stage of his investment plan with Pei Wencong and Luo Runbo.

• Li Yue called Li Dayong to meet her and Li Ye at the capital's airport, and Li Dayong brought gifts for his first New Year's visit to Pei Wenhui's mother.
• Li Dayong lamented losing his Land Cruiser and said he would have broken Qi Muyuan's legs over it, while Li Ye joked about giving him another car.
• Pei Wenhui, Fu Yiruo, Pei Wencong, and Luo Runbo met Li Ye, Li Yue, and Li Dayong at Hong Kong Island Airport with two Ferraris and two Rolls-Royces.
• Taxi drivers watched the group arrive, and Old Ghost argued that mainlanders would be calling the shots after 1997.
• Pei Wencong drove Li Ye to the Peak mansion, agreed to find a comfortable car for Li Ye's mother, and welcomed him to discuss the next stage of the plan with Luo Runbo.

Li Ye reunited Li Yue with Fu Guiru at his Hong Kong villa, then warned Pei Wencong and Luo Runbo that their next investment plan could bring enormous returns and risks. Luo Runbo guessed that Li Ye intended to target Japan, and explained that American companies had been quietly entering its market amid growing trade tensions.

• Pei Wencong showed Li Ye his villa and asked Pei Wenhui to bring Fu Guiru over for dinner.
• Li Yue reunited with Fu Guiru, and the two embraced and discussed how Li Yue had been doing since her marriage.
• Fu Yiruo told Li Yue that the villa belonged to Li Ye, and Li Yue reflected on how much her younger brother had changed.
• Li Ye told Pei Wencong and Luo Runbo that their next investment plan could yield ten or dozens of times their past returns, but would carry far greater risks.
• Luo Runbo guessed that Li Ye planned to invest in the Japanese Market and explained that American companies had been entering it amid worsening US-Japan trade tensions.

Li Ye ordered Luo Runbo and Pei Wencong to begin investing their accumulated funds across Japan’s stock, foreign exchange, and property markets, while Fu Guiru learned the scale of the plan. The chapter ended with Luo Runbo realizing that Li Ye had more than one powerful backer.

• Luo Runbo explained his reasoning about the Japanese Market, and Li Ye praised his financial instincts before deciding they should invest there.
• Pei Wencong revealed that people in Hong Kong had been targeting him with insults, and Li Ye approved a cautious, diversified entry into Japan’s markets.
• Luo Runbo reported that their investment accounts held about 1.745 billion US dollars and proposed establishing offshore companies to distribute their investments.
• Fu Guiru discovered that the figures were in US dollars and was stunned by how quickly Li Ye, Pei Wencong, and Luo Runbo had committed to the enormous plan.
• After dinner, Pei Wencong told Luo Runbo that several powerful figures stood behind Li Ye, reassuring Luo Runbo about their protection.

Fu Guiru agreed to oversee Li Ye’s vast investments, though she refused to take a share of the family’s money. During their morning run in Mid-Levels, Li Ye and Fu Guiru unexpectedly spotted Fu Guiyin jogging affectionately with Ai Zhixin.

• Fu Guiru asked Li Ye whether he truly trusted her to supervise more than a billion dollars, and he said he trusted her completely.
• Li Ye explained that Fu Guiru was best suited to oversee the family’s investments and legal arrangements, and he said the wealth should be shared with her, Older Sister, and Xiao Ruo.
• Fu Guiru refused to take money, saying she already had a good life through reuniting with her children and seeing Li Ye succeed.
• Li Ye and Fu Guiru saw Fu Guiyin and Ai Zhixin jogging together on the Mid-Levels paths.
• Ai Zhixin recognized Fu Guiru and Li Ye, but he held back his greeting after Fu Guiru gave him a cold stare.

Fu Guiru confronted Fu Guiyin, who accused her of embezzling Fu family money and mocked her for living in Pei Wencong’s house. After Fu Guiru slapped her, Pei Wencong arrived, took Fu Guiyin’s remark as defamation, and vowed to destroy her with a legal team.

• Fu Guiyin accused Fu Guiru of meddling in Xiao Man’s affairs and questioned how she could afford a house on Victoria Peak.
• Fu Guiru challenged Fu Guiyin to have Xiao Man audit the Fu family’s finances, leaving Fu Guiyin worried that her own past withdrawals would be exposed.
• Mr. Ming and Mr. Tong arrived, and Mr. Tong revealed that Fu Guiru lived in Pei Wencong’s former residence at Number Seventeen.
• Fu Guiyin insulted Fu Guiru over her connection to Pei Wencong, and Fu Guiru slapped her before Li Ye restrained her from striking again.
• Pei Wencong arrived and, after hearing Li Ye recount Fu Guiyin’s remark, called for a legal team and threatened to destroy her for defamation.

After Fu Guiru’s confrontation with Fu Guiyin, Li Ye and Fu Yiruo found that gossip papers had turned Pei Wencong’s remark about eighteen-year-olds into a scandal. They visited Pei’s party, where Li Ye met Nansun Shi and Lizhen, and the chapter ended as Pei Wencong approached while two girls watched from an upstairs window.

• Fu Guiru refused food while angry, then later ate and asked Li Ye and Fu Yiruo to buy gossip newspapers.
• Li Ye and Fu Yiruo found more than twenty tabloids carrying sensational stories about Pei Wencong and drove to Pei’s home.
• At Pei Wencong’s party, Li Ye recognized several actresses and spoke with Nansun Shi and Lizhen about films and a possible collaboration.
• Pei Wencong approached Li Ye, while Li Ye noticed two girls peeking at him from an upstairs window and wondered whether they would tell Xiao Yu.

Fu Yiruo and Pei Wenhui watched the gathering below and worried about their brothers among Hong Kong film-industry figures and actresses. Li Ye avoided the crowd, spoke with Nansun Shi about her husband Tsui Hark and mainland film opportunities, and left her with a warning to cooperate with the mainland as an equal.

• Fu Yiruo pulled Pei Wenhui down when she thought Li Ye had spotted them, and the two watched Pei Wencong become surrounded by actresses and film-company executives.
• Pei Wenhui explained that the film-company men had brought their actresses to entertain potential investors, and Fu Yiruo tried to get her to warn Li Ye about them.
• Li Ye slipped away from the gathering and observed Man Shen, Xiaoqian, and the other actresses from a quiet corner.
• Nansun Shi approached Li Ye and offered to introduce him to Xiaoqian and Zhilin, but Li Ye said he was more interested in her husband, Tsui Hark.
• Li Ye suggested that Nansun Shi and Tsui Hark pursue opportunities in the mainland film market, then told her they would need to cooperate with the mainland as equals.

After Fu Guiyin’s dispute with Pei Wencong, Mr. Huo arrived to mediate, and Li Ye agreed to hear the parties out while refusing to let the matter be easily dismissed. As Prince framed the dispute as a misunderstanding over business with the mainland, Li Ye realized Fu Guiyin did not understand what was happening.

• A Fang disparaged mainland film workers while speaking with Pei Wencong, and Li Ye stayed calm as Nansun Shi reacted with displeasure.
• Pei Wencong told Li Ye that Mr. Tong had arranged for Mr. Huo to mediate, and Li Ye agreed to meet him but insisted the discussion not involve his mother.
• Mr. Huo arrived with Mr. Tong, Prince, Ai Zhixin, Fu Guiyin, and a young girl, then greeted Pei Wencong and recognized Li Ye as Seven-Inch Blade.
• Mr. Tong called the conflict a misunderstanding, but Li Ye and Pei Wencong remained cold toward him.
• Prince said he had invited Ai Zhixin and Fu Guiyin to discuss a business deal with Mr. Tong, and Li Ye suspected Fu Guiyin did not realize she had fallen into a trap.

Prince offered Pei Wencong an antique teapot set as an apology, but Li Ye questioned how it had been brought to Hong Kong and exposed the possibility that it was part of an illicit antiques trade. The discussion shifted to Prince’s plans to enter Hong Kong’s wealthy collectors’ circle, and Li Ye raised questions about Ms. Chen’s rosewood furniture dealings.

• Prince offered Pei Wencong a Ming Dynasty teapot set to apologize, but Pei Wencong refused it and said they should follow Hong Kong law.
• Li Ye noticed the teapots closely resembled a set in his home, then asked Ai Zhixin how a mainland first-class cultural relic had been transported to Hong Kong.
• Prince claimed he had bought the teapots back from Japan and defended trading mainland antiques as a way to keep them among Chinese collectors.
• Mr. Tong revealed that Pei Wencong had also dealt in armor brought from the mainland, and Pei Wencong explained that it was a modern imitation exported through customs.
• Prince described his interest in the Hong Kong antiques market and mentioned Ms. Chen’s rosewood furniture business.
• Li Ye said Ms. Chen had acquired two warehouses of rosewood furniture, including centuries-old pieces, and Pei Wencong remarked that the furniture had been confiscated from the people.

Li Ye warned Wei Jiaxian to have Old Song watch Guan Cihui and the antiques deal, while Fu Guiyin agreed to invest two million US dollars in Ai Zhixin’s risky venture. The chapter ended with Ai Zhixin embracing Fu Guiyin and promising her a mansion, though he secretly looked down on her.

• Li Ye told Pei Wencong that he could wait two years before choosing a partner, and Pei Wencong happily agreed.
• Li Ye called Wei Jiaxian and ordered him to warn Old Song to keep an eye on Guan Cihui and the Ai family’s antiques deal.
• Tan Min caught Wei Jiaxian trying to leave for his hometown and insisted on going with him.
• Fu Guiyin overheard Ai Zhixin tell Mr. Ming that he could not yet raise the two million US dollars needed for their deal.
• Fu Guiyin agreed to put up two million US dollars and told Ai Zhixin to proceed quickly with the antiques business.
• Ai Zhixin promised Fu Guiyin a mansion and many children while privately regarding her with contempt.

Li Ye and Fu Guiru reviewed company documents and discussed the lawsuits involving their family, while Old Song watched the Guan brothers’ courtyard in Shantou for hidden antiques. Wei Jiaxian and Tan Min arrived to meet Old Song, who confronted them for coming despite his warning.

• Fu Guiru reviewed Li Ye’s company registration documents and asked Luo Runbo about the lawsuits involving Acong and Fu Guiyin.
• Li Ye suggested that Fu Guiyin might soon quiet down, while Fu Guiru worried about her aunt’s behavior and legal expenses.
• Old Song monitored Guan Cihui’s courtyard in Shantou, waiting to see whether the Guan brothers would uncover and move their buried antiques.
• Old Song hid his rifle when Comrade Yao arrived with Wei Jiaxian and Tan Min, whom he claimed as relatives.
• After Comrade Yao left, Old Song coldly asked Wei Jiaxian why he had come despite being told not to.

Old Song, Wei Jiaxian, and Tan Min discovered that the Guan brothers were preparing to smuggle a large shipment of cultural relics, giving Old Song a chance to confront Prince over their families’ long-standing feud. Tan Min stopped them from rushing into danger, and Old Song went to Comrade Yao to report the case and enlist his elder brother.

• Wei Jiaxian joined Old Song and Tan Min at the attic, where Old Song tried to persuade him to abandon his family’s vengeance.
• Old Song and Wei Jiaxian spotted the Guan brothers digging up objects and packing them into crates, and Old Song prepared to pursue them.
• Wei Jiaxian insisted on following Old Song, but Tan Min blocked their way and demanded to know what was happening.
• Wei Jiaxian explained his family’s history with Prince and Nakamura Kenshou, then took Old Song’s weapon and said he would follow the smugglers while Old Song reported the crime.
• Old Song visited Comrade Yao late at night and offered him a lead on a major cultural relic smuggling case, hoping to secure three consecutive promotions for Yao’s elder brother.

Guan Cihui arranged to exchange antiques for appliances with Mr. Ming’s group at Xiawei Village, but the deal stalled over payment and inspection. As the goods were loaded, Guan Cihui held Ai Zhixin at knifepoint until the dollars could be verified, while Ai Zhixin planned to escape with the shipment.

• Old Meng agreed to help Guan Cihui ship antiques in exchange for appliances, hoping to gain access to Mr. Tong’s Hong Kong Island connections.
• Old Song led Tan Min, Wei Jiaxian, and Comrade Yao near the shore to watch the nighttime exchange, and three unlit boats arrived.
• Guan Cihui refused to load the antiques until he received payment and insisted that the goods be inspected on shore.
• Ai Zhixin came ashore with dollars, but Guan Cihui rejected his demand to load the goods before verifying the money.
• Fu Guiyin brought a suitcase of U.S. dollars, and Guan Ciying questioned whether the bills were counterfeit, prompting Guan Cihui to hold Ai Zhixin at knifepoint.
• As the boat crew loaded the goods, Ai Zhixin told Fu Guiyin to stay behind and promised to meet her in Pengcheng after he returned with the shipment.

Ai Zhixin tried to leave Fu Guiyin behind as a hostage so he could protect his share of the antiques, but the Guan brothers decided to hold them both. When the coast guard and police closed in, Old Meng escaped with Fu Guiyin and abandoned Ai Zhixin.

• Ai Zhixin urged Fu Guiyin to stay behind while he returned to Hong Kong Island with the antiques, but she refused to become a hostage.
• Ai Zhixin told Guan Cihui that Fu Guiyin's wealthy family made her a more valuable hostage, and Guan Cihui ordered both of them kept.
• Fu Guiyin attacked Ai Zhixin after he betrayed her, while the Guan brothers' men continued loading the antiques.
• Old Meng spotted the approaching coast guard and police, and the Guan brothers and the two cargo ships fled in different directions.
• Old Meng returned for Ai Zhixin and Fu Guiyin, but Fu Guiyin offered him money to push Ai Zhixin off the three-wheeler.
• Old Meng took Ai Zhixin's watch, kicked him off the vehicle, and escaped with Fu Guiyin, who said she was tired of playing with him.

Old Song, Wei Jiaxian, and Tan Min helped Yao Dabing expose an antiques-smuggling operation, then searched the shore for Qiming, the Prince. Wei Jiaxian recognized him and nearly fell for his trick, but Tan Min shot him before he could attack, leaving Wei Jiaxian stunned by the others’ ruthless response.

• Old Song claimed he had discovered the smuggling lead after the woodworking factory’s people set a dog on him, and Yao Dabing agreed to share any reward with him.
• Yao Dayuan arrived with the police, but gunfire broke out as armed smugglers resisted, and he led officers to support the force under attack.
• Old Song reasoned that Qiming would land on the remote, rocky shore, so he, Wei Jiaxian, and Tan Min split up to search for him.
• Wei Jiaxian found wet footprints and confronted Qiming, recognizing him as the Prince and accusing him of killing his grandfather.
• Tan Min took Wei Jiaxian’s gun and shot Qiming, then showed Wei Jiaxian the dagger Qiming had been hiding.
• Old Song searched Qiming’s body and ordered Tan Min and Wei Jiaxian to throw him into the sea, leaving Wei Jiaxian to wonder what kind of people they were.

Old Song’s group staged Ai Zhixin’s death, but he escaped and took a hostage, prompting Fu Guiru and Li Ye to travel to Shancheng to pay the ransom. As they prepare for the exchange, Li Ye spots Nakamura Naoto leaving with suitcases and wonders whether the kidnappers have sold the same hostage to multiple buyers.

• Old Song’s group threw Prince’s body off a cliff, misled the search party, and left while Ai Zhixin secretly escaped into a village and took someone hostage.
• Fu Guiru learned that Fu Guiyin was being held in Shancheng for a $200,000 ransom and decided to go save her.
• Li Ye told Fu Guiru that Fu Guiyin may have been caught while smuggling antiques, then persuaded her to bring veterans from Factory No. 7 along.
• Li Ye and Fu Guiru arrived in Shancheng, where checkpoints and news of a major case heightened their concern.
• Fu Guiru arranged a ransom exchange on a commercial street, and Jiang He briefed the security team on how to protect her and Li Ye.
• Li Ye spotted Nakamura Naoto leaving the hotel with two suitcases and wondered whether the hostage had been sold to two buyers.

Fu Guiyin paid Old Meng to secure her release and, after learning she had lost her US dollars, proposed a smuggling partnership to rebuild her fortune. On the drive away, she resolved to pursue the water route and openly acknowledge Xiao Man as her son, while Fu Guiru agreed to end her role as his adoptive mother.

• Fu Guiru brought two hundred thousand to Old Meng to ransom Fu Guiyin, who remained calm and asked for her Breguet watch back.
• Old Meng kept the watch but returned twenty thousand, then told Fu Guiyin that her US-dollar suitcase could not be recovered because the couriers had been arrested.
• Fu Guiyin offered Old Meng a share of her goods business, and he accepted, returning her watch and agreeing to make friends.
• In the car, Fu Guiyin tearfully told Fu Guiru that she had been betrayed and intended to make money through the water route.
• Fu Guiyin said she wanted to acknowledge Xiao Man openly and repay Fu Guiru; Fu Guiru agreed to stop being called his adoptive mother.

Fu Guiyin returned to Hong Kong, repaid Fu Guiru, and began seeking custody of Fu Zhiman, while Li Ye arranged security for the trip to Malaysia. After learning Fu Zhiman opposed the transfer because he suspected his birth mother wanted his shares, Li Ye and his sisters went shopping before planning their return to Beijing.

• Fu Guiyin returned to Hong Kong, repaid Fu Guiru two hundred thousand dollars, and arranged to go to Malaysia to change Fu Zhiman's custody.
• Li Ye hired a security team for Fu Guiru's trip and told Luo Runbo to watch Fu Guiyin and leave Malaysia promptly after the custody matter was settled.
• Luo Runbo told Li Ye that Fu Zhiman refused the custody transfer because he believed Fu Guiyin wanted the shares he held, while Fu Guiyin had already applied to court for a custody change.
• Li Ye and Li Yue planned their return to Beijing and took Fu Yiruo shopping, buying gifts and hair accessories for their family.
• Li Yue said she wanted to meet Designer Fan, who had been sending custom-made clothes and shoes to Li Ye and Wen Leyu.