Chapter Summaries

Zhong Lizhen remained imprisoned in an isolation room at a research institute on Fu Continent and demanded to be released. After learning that gunfire had erupted outside, she refused to help with the institute’s experiment and wondered whether the Republic had abandoned her.

• Zhong Lizhen asked Tom to let her leave the isolation room, but he refused and told her that soldiers had been deployed after gunshots sounded around the institute.
• Zhong Lizhen worried that the people who came to rescue her might not get past the institute’s defenses.
• A researcher demanded the data Zhong Lizhen had prepared, but she refused to cooperate unless she was allowed to leave.
• Zhong Lizhen warned that she had deleted the crucial research data and would rather let the project fail than help the institute.
• Zhong Lizhen resolved to find a way home and wondered whether the Republic had abandoned her.

Zhong Lizhen tried to escape the research institute but was caught and moved to another isolation room, where she rejected David’s demand that she finish the research. A mysterious young man appeared in the room and applauded her defiance.

• Zhong Lizhen disabled the isolation room’s security system and opened the door, but tripped on the stairs and was caught by a soldier.
• David moved Zhong Lizhen to Isolation Room Number Two and said he would report her escape attempt.
• David told Zhong Lizhen that someone from the Republic had come to rescue her and offered a possible return home if she completed the experiment.
• Zhong Lizhen refused to finish the research, condemned the people holding her, and began eating.
• A young man in sunglasses appeared in the room and applauded Zhong Lizhen, startling her and David.

Dong Xuebin entered the isolation room and confirmed that the captive was Zhong Lizhen, whom he had come to rescue. He shot David when the American scientist tried to trigger the alarm, leaving Zhong Lizhen stunned that Dong Xuebin had come alone.

• Dong Xuebin used STOP to enter the isolation room unnoticed and confronted David over his country's treatment of the Republic.
• Dong Xuebin questioned Zhong Lizhen and verified her identity through her connection to Xie Huilan.
• Dong Xuebin told Zhong Lizhen he had come to rescue her, and she said she was ready to return home.
• David ran for the emergency alarm, so Dong Xuebin shot and killed him.
• Zhong Lizhen objected to the killing, and Dong Xuebin revealed that he was the only person on the rescue operation.

Dong Xuebin helped Zhong Lizhen disable the isolation room’s fingerprint lock after killing David, and prepared to take her out of the institute. Zhong Lizhen remained skeptical that he had come alone, while Dong Xuebin insisted he would walk them out openly and protect her.

• Dong Xuebin told Zhong Lizhen that he had infiltrated the institute alone and urged her to leave, but she insisted on dismantling equipment to disable the lock quietly.
• Zhong Lizhen opened the lock, then vomited after the sight of David’s corpse overwhelmed her, and Dong Xuebin moved the body out of view and comforted her.
• Dong Xuebin accidentally unclasped Zhong Lizhen’s bra while patting her back, and she later tucked it into her coat pocket as she fixed her clothes.
• Zhong Lizhen asked Dong Xuebin to avoid killing soldiers and questioned whether he had accomplices, but he said he had come alone and would take her home himself.
• Dong Xuebin and Zhong Lizhen prepared to leave the isolation room, with Dong Xuebin promising to walk out openly and keep her safe.

Dong Xuebin rescued Zhong Lizhen from the isolation room and helped her copy her research data while they tried to escape the institute. They left with her USB drive, but Dong Xuebin secretly pocketed something else as well.

• Dong Xuebin and Zhong Lizhen opened the isolation room door and found two armed soldiers guarding it.
• Dong Xuebin killed both soldiers with dinner knives, then led a shaken Zhong Lizhen toward the stairs.
• Zhong Lizhen stopped on the fifth floor to break into the institute's main system and copy her research data onto a USB drive.
• Zhong Lizhen refused Dong Xuebin's suggestion to copy other researchers' work, insisting she would take only her own research.
• Dong Xuebin agreed to keep Zhong Lizhen's USB drive safe and secretly made something appear in his pocket as they left.

Dong Xuebin escorted Zhong Lizhen through the Research Institute as soldiers closed in after her escape was discovered. He killed the pursuing soldiers with seemingly impossible accuracy, and Zhong Lizhen began to believe he could get her out safely.

• Dong Xuebin and Zhong Lizhen descended through the Research Institute, avoiding soldiers until the alarm sounded and revealed their escape.
• As armed soldiers approached, Zhong Lizhen urged Dong Xuebin to leave her behind, but he insisted on protecting her.
• Dong Xuebin knocked Zhong Lizhen down to shield her and shot two soldiers who appeared around a corner.
• He evaded a hail of gunfire and fired blindly around the corner, killing five more soldiers with shots to their heads or hearts.
• Zhong Lizhen saw the dead soldiers and realized Dong Xuebin might be able to lead her through the encirclement.

Dong Xuebin carried the nauseated Zhong Lizhen out of the research institute and faced a large force of soldiers. After a prolonged battle, he defeated them all, leaving himself and Zhong Lizhen as the only survivors at the scene.

• Zhong Lizhen agreed to trust Dong Xuebin and leave with him, but she began vomiting at the sight of the dead soldiers.
• Dong Xuebin carried Zhong Lizhen toward the rear exit and told her to keep her eyes closed.
• Dong Xuebin and Zhong Lizhen found the rear exit surrounded by more than twenty soldiers, an armored vehicle, and several military jeeps.
• Dong Xuebin rejected the soldiers' demand to surrender, and they began firing as he carried Zhong Lizhen through the battle.
• Zhong Lizhen opened her eyes after the gunfire stopped and saw the soldiers dead, the armored vehicle overturned and burning, and only herself and Dong Xuebin still alive.

Dong Xuebin escaped the research institute with Zhong Lizhen, evaded a checkpoint, and stole a sedan to continue toward the airport. Meanwhile, Zhai Shun and Zhang Longjuan believed Dong Xuebin and Zhong Lizhen were probably dead and prepared to withdraw.

• Zhong Lizhen vomited after seeing the bodies and wreckage, then left the institute with Dong Xuebin in an intact Military Jeep.
• Zhong Lizhen warned Dong Xuebin not to use his phone and removed the Jeep’s signal transmitter to prevent them from being tracked.
• Dong Xuebin sped through a guarded checkpoint and lost the vehicles pursuing them on smaller roads.
• After learning the airport was fifteen kilometers away, Dong Xuebin knocked Zhong Lizhen unconscious, used Stop to steal a sedan, and resumed driving toward the airport.
• Zhai Shun told Old Hong that the research institute had suffered gunfire and explosions and ordered the team to withdraw.
• Zhang Longjuan called Zhai Shun, who told her that Dong Xuebin and Zhong Lizhen might be in grave danger.

Dong Xuebin disguised himself and brought the unconscious Zhong Lizhen through the airport while evading military inspections and security. With normal boarding too risky, he hid with her in the plane’s cargo hold, hoping to return home safely.

• Dong Xuebin changed clothes from a suitcase and dressed Zhong Lizhen in a borrowed jacket before disposing of weapons and evidence.
• Dong Xuebin used Stop to bypass the airport’s military vehicle inspection and carry Zhong Lizhen into the terminal.
• Dong Xuebin saw airport staff taking Republic citizens away for individual inspections and realized he could not board normally.
• Dong Xuebin used Stop to carry Zhong Lizhen to their flight, then hid with her behind cargo boxes in the plane’s hold.

Dong Xuebin and Zhong Lizhen hid in the cargo hold of a plane leaving Fu Continent, hoping to return home undetected. As the flight continued through freezing temperatures, Dong tried to keep Zhong warm.

• Zhong Lizhen woke in the cargo hold and learned from Dong Xuebin that they had boarded a plane without being noticed.
• Airport workers entered to secure luggage but left without finding them, and the plane took off with Dong Xuebin and Zhong Lizhen hidden among the crates.
• Dong Xuebin and Zhong Lizhen waited through the noisy, unheated flight, planning to reach Capital Airport the next morning.
• Several hours into the flight, the cold woke Dong Xuebin, and he realized Zhong Lizhen was shivering badly.
• Dong Xuebin gave Zhong Lizhen his jacket, then took her icy hands and rubbed them to warm her.

Trapped in the freezing airplane cargo hold, Dong Xuebin kept Zhong Lizhen warm with his body while they waited for the flight to reach Capital Airport. The chapter ended with Zhong Lizhen returning from relieving herself and settling back onto his lap for warmth.

• Dong Xuebin warmed Zhong Lizhen by holding her, rubbing her legs and feet, and letting her put her freezing hands inside his shirt.
• Zhong Lizhen gradually stopped shivering and thanked Dong Xuebin as they remained pressed together in the cargo hold.
• After several hours, Zhong Lizhen told Dong Xuebin she needed to use the restroom, though the cargo hold had none.
• Zhong Lizhen felt her way through the dark, relieved herself, and returned to Dong Xuebin.
• Dong Xuebin placed Zhong Lizhen back on his lap, and she slipped her hands inside his clothes again to warm them.

Dong Xuebin brought Zhong Lizhen back to Capital City after rescuing her from America, using Stop to get them out of the airport unseen. As they took a taxi into the city, Zhong Lizhen asked him to keep what happened on the plane secret.

• Dong Xuebin woke in the cargo hold and realized he had been holding Zhong Lizhen in an intimate position while they slept.
• After the plane landed, Dong Xuebin used Stop to carry Zhong Lizhen through the airport and hide in an office area until time resumed.
• Zhong Lizhen woke and asked how they had reached Capital City, while Dong Xuebin explained that he had come alone and wanted nothing in return.
• Dong Xuebin and Zhong Lizhen agreed to go together to buy clothes and take a taxi into the city.
• In the taxi, Zhong Lizhen told Dong Xuebin not to tell anyone about what happened on the plane, and he agreed.

Dong Xuebin and Zhong Lizhen bought clothes, then checked into a hotel to clean up after their ordeal. After their showers, Zhong Lizhen said she would take him to meet Sister Han, Xie Huilan’s mother, and repay and thank him for rescuing her.

• Dong Xuebin bought a jacket and paid for Zhong Lizhen’s white lab coat, while she carefully recorded their expenses.
• Dong Xuebin discovered his bank card was broken, so Zhong Lizhen paid for a single hotel room while the staff questioned their arrangements.
• Dong Xuebin and Zhong Lizhen went upstairs together, and she showered first while he waited outside.
• After they both showered, Zhong Lizhen reflected that she was glad to be home and offered to take Dong Xuebin to meet Sister Han.
• Zhong Lizhen explained that Sister Han was Xie Huilan’s mother and promised to repay and thank Dong Xuebin.

Dong Xuebin accompanied Zhong Lizhen to the Standing Committee Family Compound so she could reunite with Sister Han, while he struggled to tell her who he was. After the guards let Zhong Lizhen in because they recognized Dong Xuebin, he decided to enter as well, despite expecting trouble from his family.

• Dong Xuebin helped Zhong Lizhen arrange her hair before they checked out of the hotel, where staff gossip about them and a guard's insult made him angry.
• Zhong Lizhen stopped Dong Xuebin from confronting the guards, and they took a taxi to the Standing Committee Family Compound.
• On the way, Zhong Lizhen explained her close bond with Sister Han and insisted on introducing Dong Xuebin to her family, but he could not bring himself to reveal the truth.
• Zhong Lizhen hurried toward Villa Number One, and the guards let her pass after Dong Xuebin signaled them to stand aside.
• Dong Xuebin worried that Xie Guobang, Han Jing, and Xie Huilan would criticize him for secretly going to America, but he finally entered the compound.

Xie Guojian told the Xie family that Zhong Lizhen and Dong Xuebin might have been killed or captured in Fu Continent. With the city under blockade and no sign of Xuebin on his return flight, Xie Guobang vowed to find a way to get people in and rescue them.

• Xie Guojian told Xie Guobang, Xie Guoliang, and Han Jing that Zhong Lizhen was presumed dead, though her body had not been found.
• Xie Guojian revealed that Dong Xuebin had secretly traveled to Fu Continent under the fake name Little Dong and a false passport.
• Xie Guojian explained that Xuebin had stormed the research institute, killed dozens of soldiers, and failed to board his return flight before the authorities sealed off the city.
• Han Jing blamed herself for Xuebin's decision to go, while Xie Guojian said Xuebin and Lizhen might be dead, captured, or trapped while fleeing.
• Xie Guobang ordered that people be sent into Fu Continent to find and rescue Xuebin and Lizhen, and Xie Guojian admitted that the Old Master might already know.

The Xie Family feared that Zhong Lizhen and Dong Xuebin had been killed in Fu Continent, while the military arranged a rescue. The family’s grief was interrupted when a woman arrived at the villa and Xie Guoliang recognized her as Lizhen.

• Old Master Xie angrily confronted Xie Guojian for telling Dong Xuebin about Zhong Lizhen, then said he had arranged help through Zhongnanhai.
• Han Jing told Xie Huilan that Dong Xuebin had gone to rescue Zhong Lizhen and might be in grave danger.
• Xie Huilan insisted that Dong Xuebin was alive and tried to book a flight to Fu Continent, so Xie Guobang arranged to have her stopped at the airport.
• The Xie Family members called in alarm as Xie Guojian contacted the airport and sought updates from Fu Continent.
• Xie Guoliang opened the villa door, saw a woman he recognized, and asked if she was Lizhen.

Zhong Lizhen and Dong Xuebin returned safely from Fu Continent and reunited with the Xie family. Dong Xuebin reassured his relatives and took their scolding, while Xie Huilan said she would discuss his dangerous rescue mission with him when she returned to Capital City.

• Xie Guoliang, Xie Guojian, Xie Guobang, and Han Jing were stunned when Zhong Lizhen arrived at the villa and embraced her in an emotional reunion.
• Dong Xuebin entered with Zhong Lizhen, revealed that he had rescued her from a research institute, and surprised her by explaining that he had married Huilan.
• Han Jing hugged Dong Xuebin and scolded him for going to Fu Continent without telling the family, while Xie Guobang was relieved that he had returned safely.
• Dong Xuebin called Old Master and Xie Huilan to report that he was safe, then contacted his mother and several others; Xie Huilan scolded him and said they would talk when she returned to Capital City.
• Xie Ran, Xie Jing, and Xie Hao arrived believing Dong Xuebin might be dead, then celebrated when he appeared alive and the family welcomed Zhong Lizhen.

After Dong Xuebin brought Zhong Lizhen safely back to the Capital City, her family prepared to receive officials and researchers who wanted to meet her. Academician Chen arrived and asked Dong Xuebin how he had managed to bring her home.

• At lunch, Zhong Lizhen learned that Dong Xuebin was an executive deputy county chief, while Xie Guojian received a serious phone call.
• After lunch, Xie Guobang told the family that military officials and Chinese Academy of Sciences researchers were coming to receive Zhong Lizhen, and Xie Guojian warned her about the danger of spies and the pressure from M Country.
• Dong Xuebin described their route from the airport, and Xie Guojian arranged to erase surveillance footage from the airport, Hualian Shopping Mall, and the Express Hotel.
• Zhong Lizhen insisted on repaying Dong Xuebin for the money he had spent, so Han Jing lent her the amount.
• Chen Xuekai arrived with his students, joyfully greeted Zhong Lizhen, and asked Dong Xuebin how he had brought her back.

Dong Xuebin explained that he had secretly gone to Fu Continent and rescued Zhong Lizhen, earning thanks from Chen Xuekai and the young man. Commander Yan arrived to welcome Zhong Lizhen home, praised Dong Xuebin’s extraordinary feat, and offered him a military career, which Dong declined for the time being.

• Dong Xuebin told Chen Xuekai and the young man that he had secretly gone to Fu Continent and rescued Zhong Lizhen, and the young man apologized for doubting him.
• Chen Xuekai tried to bow to Dong Xuebin in thanks, but Xie Guojian stopped him.
• Commander Yan arrived with military personnel to ensure Zhong Lizhen’s safety and personally welcomed her back.
• Commander Yan praised Dong Xuebin’s rescue and asked whether he wanted to transfer into the military.
• Dong Xuebin declined the offer for now, while Commander Yan urged him to think it over.

After Dong Xuebin brought Zhong Lizhen safely back to China, officials welcomed her and arranged her next steps. Zhong chose to join the Chinese Academy of Sciences, and Dong’s extraordinary role in the operation ensured his military registration level would rise.

• Commander Yan thanked Dong Xuebin for bringing Zhong Lizhen home, while Zhong handed over her research materials and confirmed she would restore her Republic nationality.
• Xie Guobang joined the gathering, praised Dong, and heard Commander Yan jokingly suggest a future match between their grandchildren.
• Zhong Lizhen asked Chen Xuekai for advice, then decided to join the Chinese Academy of Sciences and continue her research there.
• Commander Yan prepared to escort Zhong and Chen away, and Dong urged Zhong to contact him if her safety was threatened.
• The military officers recognized Dong’s feats during the rescue and expected his registration level with the military to rise by several grades.