Chapter Summaries

Dong Xuebin gave Chen Xiaomei White Tea and a pair of expensive jeans as gifts, explaining that the clothes were also an apology for accidentally groping her before. Chen Xiaomei tried the jeans on in his office, leaving Dong Xuebin staring as she pulled them over her skirt and stockings.

• Dong Xuebin offered Chen Xiaomei White Tea, and she accepted a box after praising its flavor.
• Dong Xuebin brought Chen Xiaomei a pair of Miss Sixty jeans he had bought in Capital City and urged her to keep them.
• Dong Xuebin explained that the jeans were a small gift and an apology for the earlier accidental groping.
• Chen Xiaomei admired the jeans and decided to try them on over her skirt.
• Chen Xiaomei pulled the jeans up to her waist, but left them unzipped, exposing her underwear through the front.

Dong Xuebin visited Jiang Fangfang after returning to work, and they discussed the awkward incident at the Family Compound. Jiang Fangfang suggested they put it behind them and invited him to dinner, leaving their relationship on friendlier terms.

• Chen Xiaomei tried on the jeans Dong Xuebin had given her, thanked him, and left his office.
• Dong Xiaobin called Jiang Fangfang's office, then went to see her when no one answered the phone.
• Jiang Fangfang apologized for her behavior at the Family Compound, and Dong Xuebin assured her he held no resentment.
• Jiang Fangfang said the incident had helped them understand each other and suggested they could be friends.
• Jiang Fangfang invited Dong Xuebin to her home for dinner and said she would buy groceries after work.

After returning to work, Dong Xuebin confronted a flood of officials and acquaintances demanding portions of the county’s newly received funds. The chapter left him facing an aggressive group of village officials in his office as more people pressed him for money.

• Jiang Fangfang told Dong Xuebin that she and Secretary Meng would decide how to allocate the new funds at the Standing Committee meeting and would reject ordinary improvement grants.
• Ci Boyang asked Jiang Fangfang for funding to pay promised bonuses, while the Health Bureau’s Old Liu called Dong Xuebin about equipment funds that Ci Boyang had promised.
• Jiang Dashui invoked his distant relation to Jiang Fangfang to request one million in disaster relief for Clear Water Township, but Dong Xuebin declined to promise anything.
• Yao Cui told Dong Xuebin that Clear Water Township had exaggerated its drought and that officials and relatives were using connections to seek money; she also said people wanted to take him to dinner.
• Xu Xuelong asked Dong Xuebin to buy a vehicle for the Civil Affairs Bureau, then a group of village officials entered and demanded funding for their village.

Dong Xuebin confronted county and village officials who were pressuring him for funds, rejecting their demands and taking control of major disbursements. He left the compound having also refused the Education Bureau’s request for more money.

• Dong Xuebin ordered Yao Cui and a driver to take the village officials to the central government, then called their town head and berated him for letting them make trouble at the county government.
• Dong Xuebin scolded Civil Affairs Bureau Director Xu Xuelong over complaints about lacking a car and told him he could resign if he could not manage his department.
• Dong Xuebin found Chen Xiaomei surrounded by officials seeking funds, returned their applications, and warned that he would raise their departments as pilot cases for a provincial disciplinary crackdown.
• Dong Xuebin instructed Chen Xiaomei that all Finance Bureau disbursements over one hundred thousand required his signature.
• Dong Xuebin berated Deputy Director Zheng of the Education Bureau for spending several million without results and refused to provide more funding.

Dong Xuebin drove off officials seeking funds by publicly scolding them, easing the pressure on Meng Rui and Jiang Fangfang. Meng Rui appreciated Dong Xuebin for taking on the unpleasant task, while Jiang Fangfang cautioned him about his methods and invited him to dinner.

• Dong Xuebin ordered officials to submit funding applications through the proper procedure and sent away those pressing him for money.
• After Dong Xuebin left the compound, the officials who had come to ask for funds departed without confronting him again.
• Meng Rui returned to the County Party Committee Compound, learned from Zhang Feng that Dong Xuebin had scolded away the fund-seekers, and appreciated his willingness to shoulder the pressure.
• Jiang Fangfang thanked Dong Xuebin for his help and told him not to curse people out in public next time.
• Dong Xuebin agreed to Jiang Fangfang's dinner invitation and requested chicken wings and Kung Pao chicken.

Dong Xuebin returned to his dusty apartment after work, gave Li Xiaona a ride home, and gifted her Chanel perfume. Jiang Fangfang visited with groceries and insisted on helping him clean, leaving them tidying the apartment together.

• Dong Xuebin offered Li Xiaona a ride home after learning she was exhausted from investigating townships.
• Dong Xuebin gave Li Xiaona a bottle of Chanel perfume, which she accepted and happily tried after he left.
• Dong Xuebin returned to his apartment and began unpacking, but stopped cleaning when he grew tired.
• Jiang Fangfang arrived with groceries and entered Dong Xuebin's dusty apartment.
• Jiang Fangfang began cleaning the apartment, and Dong Xuebin joined her by sweeping the floor.

Jiang Fangfang spent the evening cleaning Dong Xuebin’s home, then helped him cook and shared tea with him. As the visit ended, she agreed to accept an outfit from him and went to fetch a Hermès belt for him in return.

• Jiang Fangfang cleaned Dong Xuebin’s home while he helped and steadied her as she worked on a chair.
• Dong Xuebin cooked dinner with Jiang Fangfang’s advice, and they ate together.
• Dong Xuebin brewed Big Red Robe tea, and Jiang Fangfang accepted fifty grams after recognizing its quality.
• Dong Xuebin offered Jiang Fangfang an outfit he had bought for her, and she agreed to take it in exchange for a Hermès belt.
• Jiang Fangfang went home to fetch the belt, leaving Dong Xuebin waiting.

Dong Xuebin accepted a fashionable belt from Jiang Fangfang and suspected she had chosen it especially for him. After he gave her a gift, he discovered he had mistakenly handed her a box of black lace underwear instead of the white blazer he had bought.

• Jiang Fangfang gave Dong Xuebin a belt she said her father had rejected, and he liked its fashionable style.
• Dong Xuebin tried on the belt, and Jiang Fangfang helped fasten it.
• Dong Xuebin offered Jiang Fangfang one of the bags he had bought and went to wash the dishes.
• Jiang Fangfang revealed the gift was black lace underwear, and Dong Xuebin realized he had picked up the wrong box.

Dong Xuebin mistakenly gave Jiang Fangfang a bag of sexy underwear instead of the suit he had bought for her, then explained the mix-up and discussed road funding for the county. Jiang Fangfang accepted both the suit and the underwear, leaving Dong Xuebin flustered as she went home.

• Dong Xuebin realized the bag he had urged Jiang Fangfang to try on contained Xu Yan's underwear, and he apologized for the mistake.
• Dong Xuebin showed Jiang Fangfang the white suit he had intended for her, and she tried it on and said she liked it.
• Jiang Fangfang and Dong Xuebin discussed using central government funds to repair several key roads and agreed to support the plan at the Standing Committee meeting.
• As Jiang Fangfang prepared to leave, she asked whether Dong Xuebin meant the underwear as a gift and offered to pay for it.
• Dong Xuebin said the underwear had been intended for Jiang Fangfang, and she accepted it.

Dong Xuebin used Forward to read a future newspaper and discovered a coming incident that could undermine Jiang Fangfang’s position in the funding meeting. He burned the paper and rushed to the Standing Committee meeting, but arrived late and could not warn Jiang Fangfang beforehand.

• Dong Xuebin met with Jiang Fangfang before the Standing Committee meeting and learned that she wanted at least eight million yuan for road construction.
• Dong Xuebin prepared road-construction documents and used Forward to bring a future County Newspaper into his drawer.
• Dong Xuebin read the future paper, found a damaging upcoming story, and burned it so no one else could discover it.
• Dong Xuebin tried to call Jiang Fangfang and Pu An, but their phones were off, so he hurried to the meeting.
• Dong Xuebin arrived five minutes late, and Zhang Wanshui reprimanded him before Jiang Fangfang defended him by citing his injuries.

At a county Standing Committee meeting, the Meng faction proposed spending the available funds on roads in the county seat, while Jiang Fangfang's faction wanted to prioritize roads in the towns and villages. Dong Xuebin unexpectedly stayed silent, then proposed renovating or rebuilding the County Government Dormitories, leaving the meeting stunned.

• Dong Xuebin sat silently through the meeting and struggled to signal Jiang Fangfang because his phone was off.
• Zhang Wanshui proposed repairing roads in the county seat, and the Meng faction supported spending the county's remaining forty million yuan on road construction.
• Pu An and Jian Xiangrong recognized that the Meng faction's plan favored quick political gains in the county seat rather than road access for towns and villages.
• Meng Rui asked Jiang Fangfang for other proposals, and Dong Xuebin interrupted her to suggest renovating or rebuilding all the County Government Dormitories for safety.

At a Standing Committee meeting, Dong Xuebin unexpectedly proposed spending the county’s emergency funds to repair and build civil servant dormitories, contradicting both Jiang Fangfang’s road-repair plan and his own objections from the previous day. Jiang Fangfang backed his proposal, leaving Dong Xuebin moved by her trust.

• Dong Xuebin proposed immediately repairing the county’s agency dormitories, which he said were dangerous, and building new dormitories.
• Zhang Wanshui, Cheng Fuguang, Ci Boyang, Liao Haiwei, and Meng Rui objected that the buildings were safe and the emergency funds should not be spent on civil servants’ housing.
• Dong Xuebin defended the proposal as necessary for everyone’s safety and argued that civil servants deserved decent living conditions too.
• Meng Rui asked Jiang Fangfang for her opinion, expecting her to oppose Dong Xuebin’s proposal.
• Jiang Fangfang said she shared Dong Xuebin’s opinion, and Dong Xuebin was moved by her support.

Dong Xuebin pushed for spending county funds on repairing dormitories, and Jiang Fangfang unexpectedly backed him despite the political backlash. As Meng Rui prepared to give the funds to road repairs instead, news arrived that the Public Security Bureau Dormitory Building had collapsed.

• Jiang Fangfang supported Dong Xuebin's proposal to repair dormitories, and Pu An and Jian Xiangrong reluctantly followed her lead.
• Dong Xuebin called for up to thirty million in funding to renovate or rebuild the county's agency dormitories.
• Meng Rui and the Meng faction argued that the money should go toward road repairs and considered denying the Jiang faction any funding.
• A County Party Committee Office cadre burst into the meeting and announced that the Public Security Bureau Dormitory Building had collapsed.
• Dong Xuebin slammed the table and declared that he had warned them.

A dormitory building at the Public Security Bureau compound collapsed, turning the county meeting into an emergency response. Dong Xuebin rushed to the scene and began rescuing residents, leaving the building still at risk as he went back for more people.

• A County Party Committee cadre reported that the Public Security Bureau dormitory building had collapsed, and Meng Rui, Jiang Fangfang, Chu Peng, and the other leaders mobilized emergency services.
• Dong Xuebin drove Meng Rui and several officials to the compound, where they found injured residents, trapped occupants, falling debris, and a fire in the damaged building.
• Meng Rui took charge of rescue efforts while Jiang Fangfang and Dong Xuebin helped evacuate residents; Dong caught a man who jumped from a second-floor window.
• After learning a child was trapped on the third floor, Dong climbed into the unstable building, brought the boy out, and turned back to rescue others.

Dong Xuebin rescued the last trapped resident, Sister Liu, by carrying her down from the sixth floor after the Fire Brigade’s ladder failed. The crowd applauded as he stopped her bleeding, and officials realized his earlier injuries from a third-floor fall had been deliberate.

• Dong Xuebin climbed the building and entered a sixth-floor window to rescue Sister Liu while firefighters struggled to prepare their ladder.
• Jiang Fangfang, Meng Rui, and Chu Peng learned that Dong Xuebin was inside and anxiously watched for him and Sister Liu to emerge.
• Dong Xuebin appeared at the sixth-floor window carrying the injured Sister Liu after the aerial ladder failed to extend.
• Dong Xuebin jumped down with Sister Liu, slowing their fall against windowsills, railings, and the wall before landing safely.
• The crowd applauded as Dong Xuebin stopped Sister Liu’s bleeding by pressing points on her leg, and onlookers suspected he had intentionally injured himself in an earlier fall.

After rescuing people from the collapsing Family Compound building, Dong Xuebin revealed his extensive scars, earning the respect of officials and residents. He used the accident to rally support for Jiang Fangfang’s dormitory renovation plan, while privately reflecting on how his Future Newspaper had let him foresee the disaster and shape the political contest.

• Dong Xuebin emerged from the rescue and reassured Jiang Fangfang and the gathered officials that he was unharmed.
• As Dong Xuebin changed into a clean shirt, the crowd saw his many scars, and officials including Chu Peng and Meng Rui gained new respect for him.
• Meng Rui took Chu Peng and others to visit the injured, while officials cordoned off the dangerous Family Compound building.
• Dong Xuebin told the residents that the county would arrange housing and reminded them that Jiang Fangfang had proposed spending thirty million to renovate or rebuild the dormitories.
• Dong Xuebin recalled that the Future Newspaper had revealed the accident and the Standing Committee’s coming decisions, allowing him to anticipate the disaster and undermine Secretary Meng’s faction.

After rescuing people from the collapsed dormitory, Dong Xuebin attended the resumed Standing Committee meeting, where the county approved the dormitory renovation and gave him a deputy commander role. He left with his first major achievement since arriving in Zhenshui County.

• Pu An and Jian Xiangrong praised Dong Xuebin for rescuing people and recognized that his earlier proposal had put Secretary Meng's faction at a disadvantage.
• Meng Rui commended Dong Xuebin for his rescue efforts and agreed to renovate the agency dormitories with thirty million yuan.
• Meng Rui allocated five million yuan to compensate affected families, set aside the remaining funds for emergencies, and postponed the road project.
• Pu An proposed Jiang Fangfang as chief commander of the renovation project, and Meng Rui appointed Dong Xuebin as deputy commander.
• Dong Xuebin accepted the assignment, while Secretary Meng's faction left the meeting defeated.

After Dong Xuebin’s proposal redirected the county’s 30 million yuan in central funding from township roads to renovating dangerous agency dormitories, Jiang Fangfang put him in charge of the project. He promised to find another way to fund the roads, and Jiang agreed they would work on it together.

• Jian Xiangrong congratulated Dong Xuebin with a thumbs-up after the Standing Committee meeting, while Jiang Fangfang invited him to her office.
• Meng Rui and his aides discussed their faction’s defeat and struggled to identify anyone responsible for the dormitory collapse.
• Dong Xuebin apologized to Jiang Fangfang for changing her plan and claimed a friend’s warning about dangerous buildings had inspired his proposal.
• Jiang Fangfang said she was not angry, praised Dong’s handling of the meeting, and made him the actual person in charge of the dormitory renovation.
• After Jiang Fangfang received a call about her promise to repair township roads, Dong assured her he would find funding, and she said they would work on it together.

Dong Xuebin arranged for a report and budget on renovating the agency dormitories, then declined a public celebration and planned dinner at Yao Cui’s home. As he left work, county officials discussed how the dormitory collapse had strengthened his reputation and signaled that Secretary Meng had lost political ground.

• Dong Xuebin asked Yao Cui to have the County Government Office prepare a dormitory renovation plan and budget capped at thirty million.
• Yao Cui invited Dong Xuebin to dinner with Finance Bureau directors Yan and Chen, but he suggested eating at her home to avoid gossip after the collapse and injuries.
• Li Xiaona told Dong Xuebin that County Chief Jiang had sent her to make sure he went home, and he agreed to leave work.
• Staff members watched Dong Xuebin leave and discussed the dormitory renovation project, the collapse, and his dramatic rescue from the sixth floor.
• County officials concluded that Secretary Meng had lost influence after Dong Xuebin’s proposal was rejected before the dormitory collapsed and County Chief Jiang took charge of the renovation project.

Dong Xuebin gathered Jiang Fangfang and several officials from the Jiang faction at Yao Cui’s home for a meal, after inviting them to help use up the food. Lu Zhi arrived at Jiang Fangfang’s request, hinting at his alignment with the faction, and Dong began cooking once Jiang arrived.

• Dong Xuebin arrived at Yao Cui’s home with groceries and accidentally walked in while she was dressing, then apologized and agreed to cook with her.
• Yao Cui told Dong that her parents and younger brother were away, and they prepared the groceries together before inviting Jian Xiangrong and Pu An to join them.
• Yan Yizhi and Chen Xiaomei arrived and helped prepare vegetables, followed by Jian Xiangrong and Pu An.
• Lu Zhi arrived and said Jiang Fangfang had asked him to come, prompting the officials to welcome him into their gathering.
• Jiang Fangfang arrived with Li Xiaona, and Dong Xuebin insisted on cooking dinner for everyone himself.