Chapter Summaries

Dong Xuebin stayed in the hospital, anxious to return to the earthquake rescue efforts, and called to check on Xie Huilan and his family. Mother Qu told him Yun Xuan had gone into labor early and was at the hospital, while Father Qu urged him to remain at the disaster site; the chapter ended with Dong Xuebin realizing he was about to become a father.

• Dong Xuebin struggled to rest in his hospital room and asked a nurse for cigarettes and news from outside.
• The nurse helped Dong Xuebin call Xie Huilan, who briefly confirmed she was safe before the call disconnected.
• Dong Xuebin reached Luan Xiaoping and learned that his family and Uncle Yang were safe.
• Mother Qu called Dong Xuebin and told him Yun Xuan had gone into labor early and was at the hospital.
• Father Qu told Dong Xuebin to stay and focus on rescue work while the family cared for Yun Xuan.

Dong Xuebin anxiously waited in the hospital for news about Yun Xuan’s delivery and finally learned that she had safely given birth to a healthy daughter. He spoke with Yun Xuan by phone and promised to return to Beijing when he finished his work.

• Dong Xuebin stayed awake in the hospital, waiting for a call about Yun Xuan and chatting with nurse Zhan Rourou.
• Dong Xuebin worried about whether an early delivery could be dangerous, but Zhan Rourou said she was not an obstetrics nurse.
• Mother Zhai called Dong Xuebin and told him that Yun Xuan had given birth and that both mother and baby were fine.
• Dong Xuebin heard the newborn crying and then spoke with Yun Xuan, who said their daughter was healthy and had been delivered by Caesarean section.
• Dong Xuebin told Yun Xuan he would return to Beijing when his work was finished, and Yun Xuan urged him to focus on work and stay safe.

After waking from a happy dream about his newborn daughter, Dong Xuebin saw the earthquake’s devastation at First Hospital and gave up his private room so injured patients could use it. A powerful aftershock struck as he and Zhan Rourou were in the ward, and the hospital collapsed, killing them both.

• Dong Xuebin woke from a dream about holding his daughter with Yun Xuan, then told Zhan Rourou that the earthquake had caused widespread deaths and destruction beyond the hospital area.
• Zhan Rourou pushed Dong Xuebin through the overcrowded hospital, where he saw injured patients filling corridors and learned that the building had developed cracks.
• Dong Xuebin insisted that Dean Sun give his single room to someone more seriously injured, and Dean Sun agreed to move him into an eight-person ward instead.
• A strong aftershock shook the hospital while Dong Xuebin and Zhan Rourou were in his room.
• The hospital’s main building collapsed; falling debris killed Zhan Rourou and Dong Xuebin.

Shan Si Yu met his longtime friend Tang Xiao Bao at Shentang Bay, where A Bao tried to kill them both over Shan Si Yu’s past with his younger sister. Shan Si Yu escaped A Bao’s grip and plunged from the cliff, leaving A Bao behind as his voice called up from below.

• Tom was summoned to meet Shan Si Yu and obeyed, rolling into the living room and kneeling before him.
• Shan Si Yu recalled how he and Tang Xiao Bao had met in a fight eight years earlier and joked about their past.
• At Shentang Bay, A Bao gave Shan Si Yu two bottles of Maotai and asked whether he remembered what happened when he was twelve.
• A Bao revealed that Tang Xiao Yu was his younger sister and said he planned to jump with Shan Si Yu to avenge her.
• Shan Si Yu drank the wine, struck A Bao back onto the cliff, and fell toward the bay as A Bao stood above him.

Dong Xuebin rushed to evacuate First Hospital before an approaching aftershock, while Wang Anshi ordered the patients back inside and accused him of causing trouble. The chapter ended with Dong openly defying and cursing Wang as the countdown to the aftershock dwindled to seconds.

• Wang Anshi arrived at First Hospital and ordered the evacuated patients to return inside, dismissing concerns about cracks in the building.
• Dong Xuebin continued evacuating the hospital, insisting that the building was about to collapse despite Wang's order.
• The crowd hesitated between the conflicting instructions, but many trusted Dong because he had previously predicted the earthquake.
• Wang, Xue Qingrong, and Wen Wei confronted Dong and tried to make the patients go back inside.
• With the aftershock less than a minute away, Dong cursed Wang and ordered nurses to stop moving supplies and get outside.

Dong Xuebin’s evacuation warning proved correct when another earthquake began collapsing the hospital, but falling debris injured him and trapped Zhan Rourou inside. Wang Anshi and Xue Qingrong fled instead of helping, while Geng Yuehua, Wu Liang, and civilians rushed toward the danger to save them.

• Dong Xuebin continued evacuating people as Wang Anshi and Xue Qingrong demanded that patients return to the hospital.
• A powerful aftershock split and tilted the hospital, confirming Dong Xuebin’s warning that the building was unsafe.
• A falling window struck Dong Xuebin and left him bleeding and unable to move, while Zhan Rourou cried for help inside.
• As the hospital began collapsing, Wang Anshi and Xue Qingrong abandoned Dong Xuebin and Zhan Rourou and ran toward safety.
• Geng Yuehua, Wu Liang, Ma Li, district officials, and civilians rushed forward to try to rescue Dong Xuebin and Zhan Rourou.

Dong Xuebin went back into the collapsing hospital to rescue Zhan Rourou and used STOP to carry her toward an exit. He threw her through a window before the building buried him, leaving Geng Yuehua and the others to order a rescue amid fears that he was dead.

• Wang Anshi and Xue Qingrong fled while Geng Yuehua, Wu Liang, and others rushed toward the hospital to save Dong Xuebin and Zhan Rourou.
• Dong Xuebin emerged from the hospital entrance but turned back inside to find Zhan Rourou, whose leg was pinned beneath a rock.
• Dong Xuebin freed Zhan Rourou and carried her toward the entrance, but found it blocked by rubble as the building collapsed around them.
• Dong Xuebin used STOP to halt the falling debris, then threw Zhan Rourou through a remaining window when his time ran out.
• Zhan Rourou survived and told Geng Yuehua and Wu Liang that Dong Xuebin had saved her, while the hospital collapsed over him.
• Geng Yuehua ordered the rescue team to dig through the rubble, then fainted as Wu Liang and others cried out for Dong Xuebin.

Trapped beneath the hospital ruins, Dong Xuebin survived his wounds by waiting for midnight and using REVERSE, but he began running out of air. The chapter left him holding an empty oxygen tank as he tried to find a way to escape suffocation.

• Dong Xuebin woke beneath the collapsed hospital and realized he was trapped in a small gap with serious wounds.
• After hallucinating about his loved ones, Dong Xuebin resolved to stay alive and endure until midnight, when his REVERSE time would replenish.
• At midnight, Dong Xuebin used REVERSE on his body and healed his wounds, then shouted for help without reaching anyone.
• Dong Xuebin began suffocating as the rubble cut off the air, and he searched the cramped space for something that could help.
• Dong Xuebin found an oxygen tank, discovered it was empty, and commanded REVERSE one second.

Buried beneath the ruins, Dong Xuebin survived by restoring Yūn Qi, food, and water with BACK while he waited for rescue. He learned from a repaired radio that hundreds of residents were digging for him by hand, and hoped they would reach him.

• Dong Xuebin used BACK on the Yūn Qi Tank to breathe and survived the night beneath the ruins.
• The next morning, he restored the tank and used BACK on his body to relieve his hunger and thirst.
• Dong Xuebin tried to move the rubble but stopped when dust fell and he feared the ruins would collapse.
• Hearing people working overhead, Dong Xuebin shouted and struck the ground, but they did not hear him.
• Dong Xuebin repaired a broken radio with BACK and heard that hundreds of residents were digging through the ruins to rescue him.

Trapped beneath the earthquake ruins for ten days, Dong Xuebin listened as rescuers fell silent and the radio reported the disaster’s casualties and his many rescues. The broadcast declared him dead and praised his deeds, while he remained alive and desperate to escape.

• Dong Xuebin restored the oxygen tank and radio batteries with REVERSE, then heard civilians and Rescue Team members digging above him.
• After ten days, the aftershocks and rescue noises stopped, and Dong Xuebin feared the rescuers had given up.
• Dong Xuebin heard that the earthquake had killed more than 42,000 people, while Yantai County had only 25 deaths after its evacuation order.
• The radio credited Dong Xuebin’s warning article and Guangming Street Office’s preparations with preventing many deaths.
• A female announcer recounted Dong Xuebin’s past rescues and declared that he had died beneath the hospital ruins, while he listened alive and wanted to escape.

After nearly twenty days trapped beneath earthquake rubble, Dong Xuebin realized rescue workers were still digging and used REVERSE to break through the last stones. He escaped into the open air beneath a starry sky.

• Dong Xuebin heard a radio report that rescuers were still excavating his remains and realized faint rumbles came from their machinery.
• As the digging grew louder, Dong Xuebin waited for hours, fell asleep, and woke when moonlight and outside air reached his hiding place.
• Dong Xuebin heard the exhausted rescue workers leave for the night, but his shouts did not reach them.
• Dong Xuebin used REVERSE to preserve his strength and kicked away the stone blocking the opening.
• Dong Xuebin forced his way through the rubble and emerged beneath a sky full of stars.

After escaping the hospital ruins, Dong Xuebin returned to Guangming Street to reassure his family and colleagues, rescuing a trapped shopkeeper along the way. He arrived at the temporary shelter just as officials were mourning his supposed death, leaving them stunned by his sudden appearance.

• Dong Xuebin left the hospital ruins, changed into a cleaner suit, and learned that residents were living in temporary shelters while rescuers searched for his remains.
• Dong Xuebin rode toward the Guangming Street Office and heard television reports claiming the search for him was nearing its end.
• Dong Xuebin rescued a shopkeeper trapped beneath debris and accompanied her to the Guangming Park shelter.
• Geng Xinke and the other Guangming Street officials mourned Dong Xuebin and planned to visit the ruins the next day to see him off.
• Dong Xuebin arrived at the shelter with the rescued shopkeeper, and the officials stared in disbelief as he greeted them.

Dong Xuebin returned alive after being trapped beneath the rubble for more than ten days, then contacted his family and colleagues to reassure them. His return stunned the Street Office and quickly spread across the district and city.

• Dong Xuebin revealed himself to the Guangming Park residents and Street Office officials, who struggled to believe he had survived.
• Dong Xuebin called Luan Xiaoping and Yang Zhaojue, and they realized he was alive and broke down in relief.
• Dong Xuebin called Xie Huilan, who recognized his voice and said she was coming to see him.
• Dong Xuebin called Qu Yunxuan and learned that she and the child were safe, though she had been worried sick about him.
• Dong Xuebin called Geng Yuehua and explained how he had survived, while officials and residents reported his return and celebrated.

After Dong Xuebin’s survival was confirmed, the news spread across the city, and he reassured his family, friends, and colleagues by phone. The strain of his ordeal caught up with him, and officials rushed him to the Community Hospital.

• The city television station reported that Dong Xuebin had survived more than three hundred hours beneath the rubble.
• Dong Xuebin called Yu Meixia and reassured her and Yu Qianqian that he was safe.
• Dong Xuebin spoke with Xu Yan, Han Jing, Xie Hao, Lin Pingping, Luo Haiting, and others who called to check on him.
• After finishing the calls, Dong Xuebin became dizzy and struggled to stand.
• Zhou Yanru, Geng Xinke, and Peng Gang carried Dong Xuebin toward the Community Hospital.

After waking from a two-day sleep, Dong Xuebin learned that the earthquake rescue work was nearly complete and received a visit from Fenzhou City Party Secretary Wan Fanglei. Wan then handed him a personal call from the General Secretary, leaving his colleagues convinced his career would soon advance.

• Dong Xuebin woke in the hospital after sleeping for two days and two nights, and the doctor assured him he was fine.
• Geng Xinke, Zhou Yanru, and other officials briefed Dong Xuebin on the completed rescue work and preparations for reconstruction.
• Wan Fanglei visited Dong Xuebin, praised his earthquake rescue efforts, and urged him to recuperate.
• Dong Xuebin told a television reporter that saving people was a cadre's responsibility and that he could not abandon civilians in danger.
• Wan Fanglei returned with a phone and handed it to Dong Xuebin, who spoke with the General Secretary about his actions and recovery.

After waking from his injuries, Dong Xuebin spoke with Xie Huilan and Zhai Yunxuan, learned that his daughter was named Zan Qian, and decided to leave the hospital. He left to a massive public send-off, with tens of thousands of earthquake survivors thanking him for saving them and urging him to stay safe.

• Dong Xuebin called Xie Huilan, who told him she had visited the hospital several times and promised to see him again soon.
• Zhai Yunxuan told Dong Xuebin their daughter was named Zan Qian, and he listened to the sleeping baby breathe over the phone.
• Dong Xuebin insisted he was well enough to leave the hospital, and the doctor discharged him after another examination.
• Geng Xinke and other Street Office officials met Dong Xuebin and told him they had recovered his Cayenne and that the dormitory was usable.
• Dong Xuebin found more than ten thousand people gathered outside the hospital to thank him for warning them about the earthquake and rescuing them from the rubble.
• Dong Xuebin and the officials walked a kilometer to the Street Office Family Compound as the crowd followed, growing to tens of thousands before stopping outside the gate.

Dong Xuebin returned home after the earthquake and learned that Wang Anshi and Xue Qingrong had abandoned him during the hospital collapse. After footage exposed their actions, Yang Zhaode told him that both had been removed from their posts and Geng Yuehua would become Nanshan District party secretary.

• Dong Xuebin returned home, urged Geng Yuehua to let him help with reconstruction, and learned she wanted him to rest.
• Dong Xuebin watched news footage showing Wang Anshi and Xue Qingrong flee while he was injured beneath rubble, then rush into the collapsing hospital to rescue people.
• Dong Xuebin called Yang Zhaode, who said the municipal committee had removed Wang Anshi and Xue Qingrong from all their posts.
• Yang Zhaode told Dong Xuebin that Geng Yuehua would become Nanshan District party secretary the next day.

After returning to work following the earthquake, Dong Xuebin learned that his rescue and prevention efforts had earned him a place in a Central Party School advanced training program for department-level cadres. The exceptional assignment pointed toward his promotion to deputy department level, and he prepared to leave Guangming Street Office.

• Dong Xuebin returned to Guangming Subdistrict Office and assigned staff to continue post-disaster reconstruction work.
• Ma Li summoned Dong Xuebin to meet Geng Yuehua, who had become Nanshan District Committee Secretary.
• Geng Yuehua reprimanded Dong Xuebin for returning to work so soon, then told him that higher-ups had approved him for a department-level advanced training program at the Central Party School.
• Geng Yuehua gave Dong Xuebin a month off, put Geng Xinke in temporary charge of Guangming Street Office, and instructed Dong Xuebin to report to the Central Party School the following week.
• News of Dong Xuebin's training assignment spread through the district, where officials were astonished by his rapid rise at age twenty-five.

As Dong Xuebin prepared to attend the Central Party School before taking up a new post, he said farewell to colleagues and old connections in Nanshan District and Yantai County. He discovered that Geng Xinke might be the father of Lin Pingping’s son, then spent his final days settling affairs and seeing people off.

• Liu Dahai and Guangming Street Office colleagues congratulated Dong Xuebin and invited him to dinner, while Dong insisted he was only going to the Party School and praised Geng Xinke for overseeing the office.
• Lin Pingping invited Dong Xuebin to dinner with his former subordinates, and Dong asked Geng Xinke about their past relationship.
• Dong told Geng Xinke that Lin Pingping had a four- or five-year-old son, and Geng realized the child might be his because they had broken up around the time the boy was conceived.
• Geng Xinke hurried away to contact Lin Pingping, while Dong returned home and began packing for his departure.
• Dong spent two days attending farewell dinners and visiting his connections in Nanshan District and Yantai County before leaving for the Party School.

Dong Xuebin returned to Beijing and surprised Qu Yunxuan and her family after finishing his work in Nanshan District. He reunited with Qu Yunxuan and learned firsthand that she was nursing their daughter, Qian Qian.

• Dong Xuebin drove his damaged Cayenne from Nanshan District to Beijing and called Qu Yunxuan without telling her he was already nearby.
• Dong Xuebin bought supplies and surprised Mother Qu and Father Qu at their home, where they checked on him and discussed his rescue work.
• Qu Yunxuan came out of the bedroom, saw Dong Xuebin, and embraced him after making sure he was unharmed.
• Dong Xuebin told the family that he would attend cadre training at the Central Party School for over a month, and Mother Qu celebrated his likely promotion.
• After the older couple left them alone, Dong Xuebin kissed Qu Yunxuan and discovered milk on his hand when he touched her breast.