Chapter Summaries

Lin Qi used his National Security Committee connections to investigate Richard’s corrupt branch and confronted him with a three-round card game that exposed Richard’s cheating and greed. Richard lost every round, cut off his own little finger as punishment, and Lin Qi ordered him to report to the company the next morning.

• Lin Qi enlisted the National Security Committee’s branch to locate Richard, then questioned the local company’s employees and learned about the branch’s widespread misconduct.
• Lin Qi summoned Richard and offered to let him go if he won one of three rounds of cards.
• Lin Qi won all three rounds, including one after Richard shuffled and dealt, and told Richard that he had lost.
• Lin Qi demanded that Richard sacrifice one finger as a lesson, and Richard cut off the little finger on his left hand.
• Lin Qi praised Richard for showing courage and ordered him to appear at the company the next morning.

Lin Qi dismantled a local gambling fraud ring, taking nearly three hundred thousand dollars from its members before letting them go. Adelaide then invited him to meet the governor, and Lin Qi realized the governor wanted his support ahead of the coming election.

• Lin Qi forced the four gamblers to keep playing, threatening to value their fingers and arms as bets after they ran out of money.
• Before dinner, Lin Qi had taken nearly three hundred thousand dollars from the ring and let its members go.
• Adelaide visited Lin Qi at his hotel and invited him to meet the governor the next afternoon.
• Adelaide explained that the governor wanted to speak with Lin Qi as the election year approached, and Lin Qi understood the governor was seeking his support.

Lin Qi confronted Richard about wanting to start his own company and offered him another chance as a business partner, provided he continued bringing in profits. The chapter ended with Lin Qi asking whether Richard had heard of Level 5 Ternary.

• Lin Qi told Adelaide that he and the governor would work to improve York State’s declining social climate.
• Adelaide informed Lin Qi that the mayor had learned he used his National Security Committee position to mobilize public resources and said judges could help deal with the con artists.
• Lin Qi noticed Richard had not reattached his severed little finger and asked whether he wanted to strike out on his own.
• Richard admitted he wanted to start a company after seeing how profitable Lin Qi’s business was and becoming addicted to gambling.
• Lin Qi said he would overlook the rift and provide Richard with what he needed if Richard continued producing profits.
• Lin Qi asked Richard whether he had heard of Level 5 Ternary.

Lin Qi encountered Penny in York State, where she was filming, and learned that a powerful male star wanted her to fake a romantic scandal with him. After Penny explained that the arrangement could involve unwanted physical contact, Lin Qi offered to help, leaving his intentions unclear.

• Lin Qi left Richard after explaining sales techniques and considered moving Richard's business group to Gefra.
• Lin Qi wandered through the city and met Penny while waiting for a car.
• Penny told Lin Qi she had come to York State to film because of its tax rebates and subsidies.
• Penny revealed that a top-tier male star wanted her to stir up a scandal with him, and she felt uneasy about the physical contact involved.
• Lin Qi asked Penny what she wanted him to do and offered to intervene.

Penny asked Lin Qi to pretend to be her boyfriend to protect her from Shi Long’s plan to stage a scandal with her. Lin Qi agreed, and Penny brought him back to her agent, who hoped his presence would keep Shi Long at bay.

• Penny asked Lin Qi to be her boyfriend for a while, and he agreed.
• Penny’s agent worried that Shi Long planned to stage a romantic poolside scandal with Penny and feared the consequences of resisting him.
• Penny returned to the hotel holding Lin Qi’s hand and introduced him to her agent as her boyfriend.
• Penny’s agent thanked Lin Qi and recognized that he had agreed to help her.

Lin Qi protected Penny from Shi Long’s unwanted attention, leaving Shi Long eager to win his favor. After Penny kissed Lin Qi, he met with the governor, who asked what changes York State needed.

• Shi Long waited for Penny at the pool, then recognized Lin Qi when he emerged with her and greeted him.
• Lin Qi asked Shi Long to look after Penny during filming, and Shi Long agreed while avoiding her.
• Shi Long invited Lin Qi to dinner, but Lin Qi declined because he was meeting with the governor.
• Penny thanked Lin Qi by kissing him, leaving his lip split.
• The governor praised Lin Qi’s insight about the Federation needing a victory, then asked what changes York State needed.

Lin Qi proposed that York State revive its economy by building regulated industry trusts and powerful local pillar enterprises. Governor listened as Lin Qi argued that monopolies could create jobs and restore economic cohesion, leaving the idea under consideration.

• Governor asked Lin Qi how York State could solve unemployment and revive its economy.
• Lin Qi proposed creating industry trusts and monopolistic giants, prompting Governor to listen rather than dismiss him.
• Lin Qi argued that monopolies could create jobs and that their harms could be limited by sound laws and regulation.
• Lin Qi described regulated monopolies as local pillar enterprises capable of restoring York State's economic ecosystem.
• Lin Qi pointed to the collapse of the Listoan Group as a cause of York State's economic problems and warned that its scattered businesses were weakening one another.

Lin Qi explained to the governor why York State needed a new pillar enterprise and argued that light industry could not create jobs quickly enough before the election. He proposed that the state seek opportunities in the Amelia Region, where Gefra planned major development.

• Lin Qi explained how pillar enterprises could support a region’s economy, and the governor suggested rebuilding the Listoan Group.
• Lin Qi rejected Listoan and Heng Hui as solutions, saying light industry would develop too slowly and the state had only half a year until the election.
• Lin Qi agreed that Nagaril could not provide enough jobs for York State’s lower-class workers and identified the Amelia Region as a better opportunity.
• Lin Qi told the governor that Gefra’s plans for the Amelia Region could create an opening for the Federation to intervene there.
• The governor invited Lin Qi to dinner, where Lin Qi discussed the growing cooperation between the Federation and Gefra.

The governor discussed Lin Qi’s concrete plans for economic recovery with Adelaide, while in Amelia Province the governor confronted a worsening resistance campaign against infrastructure. With Gefra unable to send another fleet after its naval defeat, he pinned his hopes on new army equipment to change the situation.

• Adelaide asked the governor how his meeting with Lin Qi had gone, and the governor praised Lin Qi’s practical proposals involving Amelia, turmoil, and tearing everything down to rebuild.
• The governor considered how the Federation’s submarines and torpedoes had forced Gefra to abandon plans to send another fleet to Amelia’s inner gulf.
• The governor concluded that foreign profiteers had turned armed resistance into a business by funding and supplying groups opposing Gefra.
• An officer reported that resistance members had attacked the Kobar Hydropower Station, killing nine attackers but damaging the facility and interrupting electricity supplies.
• The governor refrained from blaming the officer and clenched his fist as he declared that Gefra’s new army equipment would change the situation.

Swallow built Amelia's Light of Freedom into a better-funded, more organized resistance force while relying on support from Robin. When an encrypted message revealed a chance to seize Gefra military supplies, the Chief Instructor warned that the unusually detailed intelligence might be a trap, and Swallow agreed to send scouts first.

• Swallow's Resistance Organization established a base and hired retired Baratan Knight Order soldiers to train its members.
• A young soldier brought Swallow an encrypted message reporting that Gefra military supplies would arrive by rail the night after tomorrow.
• Swallow told the cadres that capturing the shipment could strengthen the resistance and reduce its dependence on Robin.
• The Chief Instructor cautioned that the message contained suspiciously detailed information and might be bait.
• Swallow agreed to scout the route before deciding whether to attack, while privately hoping to gain leverage against Robin.

Haiyan’s Resistance fighters attacked what they believed was a Gefra supply train, only to discover it was a heavily armed Land Battleship. The Governor learned that the ambush had crushed the attackers, but warned that the conflict in the Amelia Region had only just begun.

• Haiyan and the Chief Instructor watched a heavily guarded train carrying an unusually large load move through the Amelia Region.
• A loose canvas rope revealed crates of weapons, ammunition, and medical supplies, prompting Haiyan’s fighters to attack the train.
• The Resistance fighters drove off the Gefra soldiers and began to claim the supplies, but the Chief Instructor pulled Haiyan down as the canvas was removed.
• The train’s turrets opened fire under searchlights, killing more than four hundred Resistance fighters while a small number escaped.
• The Governor heard that the attack had been repelled and ordered close monitoring of medical supplies and household circumstances.
• The Governor called the battle no victory, recognizing that Gefra’s secret Land Battleship had been exposed and that the wider war had only begun.

The Federation debated the threat posed by Gefra’s newly revealed Land Battleship while the Fleet Commander returned home to a hero’s welcome after destroying Gefra’s fleet. The Minister of Defense warned that the Commander might lose his post, but privately welcomed him home as the Federation weighed how to answer Gefra.

• The Federation’s Department of Defense examined a sketch of Gefra’s Land Battleship, and military designers argued that its dependence on tracks made it vulnerable.
• The Fleet Commander and navy captains returned to Bu Peien station, where crowds cheered them and the Commander-in-Chief celebrated the Federation’s strength.
• The Minister of Defense considered relieving the Fleet Commander of his posts because he had issued an annihilation order after Gefra surrendered, risking war despite his popularity.
• The Fleet Commander arrived at the Department of Defense and joked that he might be arrested, while the Minister said he could lose his job.
• The Minister of Defense quietly welcomed the Fleet Commander home, and Department of Defense soldiers greeted him warmly.

The Federation’s contract with Nagaril boosted the economy, created overseas job prospects, and raised the President’s popularity. At a banquet, Mr. Wo Delike discussed Lin Qi’s limited influence and the social standing he would need to marry Sai Weiruila, then asked for advice on sending a team to Nagaril.

• The Federation and the Nagaril United Kingdom signed a development contract, and the President said it would create hundreds of thousands of overseas jobs for Federation citizens.
• The contract lifted the Financial Market and improved the President’s popularity and reelection prospects.
• Mr. Wo Delike hosted a banquet to celebrate winning support for his conglomerate’s plans to expand into the International Community.
• Mr. Wo Delike told his wife that Lin Qi still needed greater influence and status to have a chance of marrying Sai Weiruila.
• Mr. Wo Delike asked Lin Qi for advice on sending a team to inspect Nagaril, and Lin Qi described its polygamous customs.

At Mr. Wo Delike’s reception, Lin Qi accepted his offer of a recommendation to join the Saint and Harmony Society, knowing it would tie him to Wo Delike’s faction. Later, Sai Weiruila approached Lin Qi and asked if he could write books, eager to discuss an idea with him.

• Mr. Wo Delike offered Lin Qi a letter of recommendation to join the Saint and Harmony Society as an investment in his future.
• Lin Qi accepted the recommendation, recognizing that joining would associate him with Mr. Wo Delike’s faction and its allies and enemies.
• After Mr. Wo Delike left, guests approached Lin Qi at the reception to speak with him.
• Bored in her room, Sai Weiruila went downstairs for wine and noticed Lin Qi talking with a guest.
• Sai Weiruila approached Lin Qi, asked whether he could write books, and said she had something to discuss with him.

Mr. Wo Delike’s board approved an international infrastructure strategy after Lin Qi suggested that the conglomerate could protect its interests by influencing local governments. While Lin Qi and Sai Weiruila met in her room, Mary Joe arrived to keep watch, and Lin Qi guessed that her father had sent her.

• Mr. Wo Delike and the directors discussed the risks and potential profits of Nagaril contracts, then unanimously approved the international strategy.
• The butler told Mr. Wo Delike that Lin Qi had gone upstairs with Sai Weiruila carrying wine, so Mr. Wo Delike ordered Mary Joe to watch them and intervene if necessary.
• The butler asked Mary Joe to protect Sai Weiruila’s chastity, and she went to the young couple’s room with tea.
• Sai Weiruila asked Mary Joe to leave while she and Lin Qi discussed writing, but Mary Joe stayed silent.
• Lin Qi pressed Sai Weiruila’s hand and guessed that her father had sent Mary Joe, prompting Sai Weiruila to ask what Mary Joe had come for.

Lin Qi reassured Sai Weiruila that Mary Joe was watching over her because her father feared she might be hurt, then left the Wo Delike residence with a recommendation letter for academy admission. The next day, Lin Qi arrived at Saint Secheka College to discuss attending, while his future plans also pointed toward Nagaril.

• Lin Qi explained to Sai Weiruila that her father had arranged for Mary Joe to watch them because he cared about her and feared she might be hurt.
• Sai Weiruila calmed down, shared a warm moment with Lin Qi, and asked when they would meet again before he left for the evening.
• Mary Joe reported the visit to Mr. Wo Delike, who ordered her to keep watch over Sai Weiruila for the time being.
• The Wo Delike household's butler gave Lin Qi a recommendation letter for admission to a Saint and Harmony Society Alliance College.
• The next day, Lin Qi went to Saint Secheka College to discuss attending the school.

Anna confronted the school administration over the rising number of Recommended Students and secured a promise to reject future applicants. Lin Qi arrived at Saint Secheka College and, unable to find anyone in the offices, interrupted a conference meeting to ask where his recommended-admission interview would be held.

• Anna criticized the administrators for admitting nearly ten percent of the incoming class as Recommended Students and warned that they would damage the school.
• The Dean of Academic Affairs explained that wealthy families were increasingly using connections to send their children to the college after the Financial Tsunami.
• Anna accepted that past admissions could not be undone but demanded that the school refuse future Recommended Students, and the Dean agreed to find a way.
• After declining two students' offers to guide him, Lin Qi registered at the guard post and searched the administration building for help.
• Lin Qi knocked on the conference-room door and asked the teacher who answered where he should go for his recommended-admission interview.

Lin Qi arrived at Saint Secheka for a Recommended Student interview, surprising the school leaders and Student Union President Anna, who had opposed accepting such students. The principal welcomed him and invited him to speak at the new student orientation, while Anna left still objecting.

• A female teacher told the conference room that Lin Qi was waiting outside for a Recommended Student interview, and Anna reacted angrily.
• The Dean of Studies went to reject Lin Qi but returned unsettled, and Lin Qi entered the room and introduced himself.
• Anna refused to shake Lin Qi’s hand and questioned whether he was a Recommended Student, but Lin Qi approached the principal and presented his recommendation letter.
• The principal read Mr. Wo Delike’s letter, welcomed Lin Qi, and confirmed that the interview could happen immediately.
• The principal invited Lin Qi to speak as the new student representative at orientation, and Lin Qi accepted.
• Anna restated her objection and left, while Lin Qi asked the others whether he had offended her.

After completing his school enrollment, Lin Qi attended a gathering where capitalists prepared to divide opportunities tied to Nagaril’s development. He encouraged Lyme to seek investors for himself, then spotted Mr. Truman and disappeared into the crowd.

• Lin Qi completed his enrollment and promised to donate money to the school upon graduation.
• Lin Qi attended a golf-course gathering for capitalists involved in Nagaril, where guests sought to build connections and divide opportunities.
• Lyme worried about attending, but Lin Qi encouraged him to seek financing partners and offered him five percent of any funds he secured.
• Lin Qi spotted Mr. Truman beside the buffet, exchanged a toast with him, and disappeared into the crowd.

Lyme pitched railway investments to wealthy guests at the banquet, while Patu Akinger and his daughter Anna discussed Anna’s dissatisfaction with her school. Mr. Truman brought Lin Qi over to meet them, leaving the introductions about to begin.

• Lyme approached Patu Akinger and pitched an investment in three long railway projects, but Patu rejected the proposal and walked away with Anna.
• Patu complained about the banquet’s attendees and told Anna he disliked Lyme mistaking her for his mistress.
• Anna began telling Patu that her school had admitted many Recommended Students, but their conversation was interrupted by Mr. Truman.
• Mr. Truman greeted Patu and Anna, then called Lin Qi over and introduced Patu and Anna to him.