Chapter Summaries

Plot points and events

• At Elder Xu’s birthday banquet, Yue Xiaofei recognizes Cao Xuanye, heir to the powerful Cao Family. The family is suspected of involvement in the false charges that imprisoned Yue’s father, and Cao Xuanye recently targeted businesses connected to Jiang Lan and Su Guohua.
• Yun Nongyue of the Cloud Family and Hua Jieyu of the Flower Family arrive. Xu Yiming explains that the Eight Great Clans control major sectors of the kingdom and are locked in a tense contest for influence, with the Cao Family growing especially dominant.
• Cao Xuanye approaches Yue Xiaofei, ostensibly to make friends. He praises Yue’s service to the country and drains a toast to him, displaying impeccable courtesy.
• Yue does not acknowledge the toast. He stays seated and calmly tends to his tea, leaving Cao Xuanye standing awkwardly before a stunned crowd.

Character developments and interactions

• Yue Xiaofei remains composed and refuses to be won over by Cao Xuanye’s polished manners. He senses concealed danger in him and treats the approach with open distrust.
• Cao Xuanye presents himself as humble and generous, but others suspect his friendliness is a calculated test. Yue’s deliberate snub disrupts the image of a cordial encounter.
• Xu Yiming warns Yue that Cao is deceitful, then briefly wonders whether he has misjudged him when Cao behaves so graciously.
• Elder Xu receives Cao politely but coolly. The arriving daughters of the Cloud and Flower families underscore the gathering’s political importance.

Significant themes

• Appearances versus intent: Cao’s perfect etiquette may hide ambition and manipulation.
• Power and political rivalry: The banquet is a meeting ground for influential clans, not merely a birthday celebration.
• Defiance and suspicion: Yue refuses to show deference to a potentially dangerous rival, turning a polite toast into a public confrontation.

Key plot points and events

• At Elder Xu’s birthday banquet, Cao Xuanye makes repeated efforts to befriend Yue Xiaofei, first inviting him to his private club and then offering an apology and a handshake.
• Yue rejects each offer. His final declaration—“You and I cannot be friends”—turns the exchange into a public humiliation of Cao and is perceived as a direct challenge to the Cao Family.
• Cao suppresses his anger because the banquet is held on Xu Family territory and an attack could provoke the Xu Family and the military. He withdraws politely, but privately vows revenge.

Character developments

• Yue Xiaofei remains calm and uncompromising, showing that he will not accept Cao’s overtures despite the social and political advantages.
• Cao Xuanye maintains a courteous façade under intense humiliation and rage. His restraint reflects political calculation, while his final hostile thoughts reveal his real intentions.
• Xu Yiming becomes increasingly anxious, hoping Yue will accept the handshake to prevent a dangerous feud.

Significant themes

• Public image versus private intent: Cao’s gracious behavior masks deep resentment and a desire for retaliation.
• Power and social pressure: The guests expect Yue to accept a valuable alliance, illustrating the influence of elite connections and status.
• Defiance and consequences: Yue’s blunt refusal establishes his independence but risks a serious conflict with a powerful clan.

Character interactions

• Cao repeatedly lowers himself in an effort to win Yue’s friendship, while Yue answers with increasingly direct refusals.
• The assembled guests watch the exchange, shifting from admiration of Cao’s status to sympathy and schadenfreude as he is rejected.
• Xu Yiming silently urges Yue to cooperate, while Cao’s controlled departure conceals his vow to make Yue pay.

Key events

• After Yue Xiaofei rejects Cao Xuanye, Cao calmly reframes the public slight as a misunderstanding caused by Yue’s hot temper, presenting himself as generous and magnanimous.
• His remarks sway many Longevity Hall guests. They begin criticizing Yue as arrogant, ungrateful, and politically naïve, while sympathizing with Cao and warning that Yue has antagonized the powerful Cao Family.
• Yun Nongyue sees through the crowd’s reaction and dismisses the onlookers as fools. Hua Jieyu, meanwhile, is entertained by Yue’s resolve and says it makes her like him more.
• Xu Yiming, alarmed by the growing hostility and Yue’s apparent public challenge to the Cao Family, pulls him aside and demands to know why he refused Cao’s approach.

Character developments and interactions

• Cao Xuanye demonstrates skill at social manipulation: without openly retaliating, he shifts blame onto Yue and protects his own reputation.
• Yue Xiaofei remains firm in his rejection, though the reason for it is not yet revealed. His refusal costs him support among the guests.
• Xu Yiming is anxious and politically cautious. He warns Yue about the Cao Family’s influence and pleads for an explanation, unsure why Yue chose to confront Cao so directly.
• Yun Nongyue remains perceptive and disdainful of people who accept Cao’s framing; Hua Jieyu becomes more interested in Yue.

Significant themes

• Public image and rhetoric: A polished narrative can turn a rejected powerful man into a victim and make the person who stands firm look unreasonable.
• Power and social influence: The guests fear the Cao Family’s reach, revealing how reputation and connections can matter as much as strength.
• Integrity versus pragmatism: Yue’s refusal to yield contrasts with Xu Yiming’s belief that tact and compromise are necessary to survive in Longdu.

Key plot points and events

• Yue Xiaofei tells Xu Yiming why he publicly rejected Cao Xuanye: he believes the Cao Family framed his father and caused the Night Watchers squad his father served with to be wiped out at South Mountain five years ago.
• Yue admits he has no direct proof yet, but says the clues point to the Cao Family. His rejection was a deliberate declaration that he intends to take revenge openly.
• Xu Yiming initially struggles to believe the accusation, then recognizes Yue’s sincerity and understands his anger.
• Xu apologizes for urging Yue to observe social niceties and vows that he—and the Xu Family—will support Yue if he can produce evidence.
• Yue thanks him but refuses to involve the Xu Family or alert the Cao Family before he has conclusive proof. He suspects a larger conspiracy may lie behind his father’s imprisonment.
• Across the banquet hall, Yun Nongyue and Hua Jieyu notice Yue’s isolation and Cao Xuanye’s favorable reception. They see a chance to recruit Yue to their side.

Character developments and interactions

• Yue Xiaofei reveals the personal motive behind his confrontation with Cao Xuanye. His calm manner conceals deep, enduring anger, but he remains cautious about evidence and political consequences.
• Xu Yiming shifts from confusion and resentment to guilt, understanding, and firm solidarity. He offers family backing, while Yue gently declines for now.
• Yun Nongyue and Hua Jieyu independently identify Yue as a valuable potential ally, setting up a new political maneuver.

Significant themes

• Revenge and justice: Yue’s public defiance is driven by a blood debt and a demand for accountability.
• Loyalty and solidarity: Xu’s support shows that personal friendship can expand into family allegiance.
• Caution amid power: Yue recognizes that accusing a powerful clan without proof could expose him to danger or compromise his search.
• A wider conspiracy: Yue suspects the Cao Family may be only part of a larger, more frightening plot.

After Yue Xiaofei’s public clash with Cao Xuanye, Yun Nongyue and Hua Jieyu saw a chance to recruit him as an ally against the Cao Family. Yun Nongyue formally offered the Cloud Family’s protection and partnership, leaving Yue Xiaofei to consider the proposal.

• The Cloud and Flower Families viewed Yue Xiaofei’s break with Cao Xuanye as an opportunity to gain a powerful ally against the Cao Family.
• Yun Nongyue approached Yue Xiaofei and warned him that Cao Xuanye could use the Cao Family’s influence to target him in Longdu.
• Hua Jieyu joined Yun Nongyue and suggested that Yue Xiaofei would be better off with powerful allies.
• Yue Xiaofei asked the two women to state their proposals directly.
• Yun Nongyue formally invited Yue Xiaofei to accept the Cloud Family’s protection and join them in pursuing a great undertaking.

Yun Nongyue and Hua Jieyu competed to recruit Yue Xiaofei, offering him powerful support from their families. Yun Nongyue escalated the Cloud Family’s proposal to a possible marriage alliance, leaving Xu Yiming stunned.

• Yun Nongyue offered Yue Xiaofei money, status, connections, and information in exchange for serving as the Cloud Family’s guardian and supporting it against the Cao Family.
• Hua Jieyu mocked Yun Nongyue’s offer and invited Yue Xiaofei to become a member of the Flower Family, granting him access to all its Southeast resources without demanding anything of him.
• Yun Nongyue formally invited Yue Xiaofei to join the Cloud Family through a partnership or a marriage alliance.
• Xu Yiming was stunned by the possibility that Yun Nongyue would marry Yue Xiaofei.

Yun Nongyue offered Yue Xiaofei a marriage alliance with the Cloud Family, and Hua Jieyu countered by offering the Flower Family’s resources and herself. Yue rejected both offers, insisting he needed no one’s backing.

• Yun Nongyue offered Yue Xiaofei a marriage alliance to bind him to the Cloud Family.
• Hua Jieyu linked arms with Yue Xiaofei and offered the Flower Family’s resources, then privately said she would give herself to him.
• Yue Xiaofei recognized that both women wanted to use his strength and status against the Cao Family.
• Yun Nongyue promised that choosing either family would keep anyone in Longdu from touching Yue Xiaofei.
• Yue Xiaofei pulled away from Hua Jieyu, thanked the women, and refused their offers, saying he needed no one to back him.

Yue Xiaofei rejected Yun Nongyue and Hua Jieyu's offers of protection, insisting he needed no family or women to shield him from the Cao Family. Cao Xuanye took the rejection as proof that Yue had isolated himself and looked forward to having the Cao Family destroy him.

• Yun Nongyue and Hua Jieyu threatened Yue Xiaofei with the consequences of refusing their families' support.
• Yue Xiaofei declared that he would make his own choices and feared neither the Cao Family nor the need to stand alone.
• Yun Nongyue and Hua Jieyu watched Yue Xiaofei leave and became even more determined to win him over.
• Cao Xuanye saw the women’s reactions and burned with jealousy over Yue Xiaofei’s effect on them.
• Cao Xuanye concluded that Yue Xiaofei had made himself vulnerable by rejecting the Cloud Family and the Flower Family, and toasted his coming downfall.

After Yue Xiaofei rejected the Cloud Family and the Flower Family, Elder Xu warned him that his shallow roots left him exposed to the Cao Family. Yue Xiaofei declared his resolve to become a towering tree that could shelter the country, earning the Xu Family’s support before Elder Xu revealed he had news about Yue Xiaofei’s father.

• Xu Yiming caught up with Yue Xiaofei and asked whether the Cloud Family and the Flower Family might retaliate after his rejections.
• Xu Yiming told Yue Xiaofei that Elder Xu wanted to see him in a private dining room.
• Xu Sanjiang warned Yue Xiaofei that his public humiliation of the Cao Family’s young master and rejection of the two families had stirred up trouble in Longdu.
• Elder Xu cautioned Yue Xiaofei that the Cao Family’s influence threatened him, but Yue Xiaofei vowed to become a deeply rooted tree that would shelter the people and his land.
• Elder Xu praised Yue Xiaofei’s ambition and pledged the Xu Family’s support.
• Elder Xu told Yue Xiaofei that he had something important to say about his father.

Elder Xu told Yue Xiaofei that his father, Yue Changlong, had been secretly removed from Yanshan Prison after his treason conviction, and that Ye Jincheng had led the trial and signed the order. Yue Xiaofei left determined to investigate Ye Jincheng and uncover the truth about his father’s case.

• Elder Xu revealed that Yue Changlong had been taken from Yanshan Prison by a mysterious military unit on the day he was sentenced.
• Elder Xu said the trail was classified at the highest level and suspected the Ye Family might be involved.
• Elder Xu identified Ye Jincheng as the official who led Yue Changlong’s trial and signed the order five years earlier.
• Yue Xiaofei thanked Elder Xu and left to investigate Ye Jincheng himself.

Key plot points and events

• Yue Xiaofei leaves Elder Xu’s private room shaken by two revelations: his father is not in Yanshan Prison, and Ye Jincheng presided over his trial. He realizes the case is far more complicated than simply bringing down the Cao Family, and he has no clear way to confront Ye Jincheng.
• Seeking somewhere quiet, Yue takes a side exit rather than return to the banquet hall. There he encounters Su Wanning, Xu Yaoyang, and a group of wealthy young people.
• Xu Yaoyang mocks Yue and insults his late grandfather. Yue ignores the taunts, but when Xu reaches for him, Yue’s killing intent terrifies the group. He warns Xu to get lost.
• Xu receives a call announcing that a celebrated national hero—famous for planting the Dragon Kingdom’s flag atop Mount Fuji—is at Longevity Hall. He claims Elder Xu personally saluted the hero.
• Su Wanning, an ardent admirer of the hero, excitedly asks Yue whether he saw him, since Yue was also in the main hall.

Character developments and interactions

• Yue Xiaofei remains outwardly controlled despite his anger and uncertainty about his father’s case. He dismisses the young people’s insults as beneath his attention, but his frightening presence makes even Xu Yaoyang back down.
• Xu Yaoyang shifts from swaggering bully to terrified target, then quickly regains his bravado when he hears exciting news.
• Su Wanning disapproves of the insult to Yue’s grandfather, though she still looks down on Yue. Her disdain gives way to intense admiration when she hears the hero may be present.
• The wealthy youths join in mocking Yue, then fall silent when confronted by his menace; afterward, they share in the excitement about the hero.
• Su Wanning’s sudden question places Yue at the center of the group’s attention, setting up the chapter’s cliffhanger.

Significant themes

• Power and vulnerability: Yue’s physical authority silences his social antagonists, while Ye Jincheng represents a much larger political obstacle.
• Reputation and hero worship: The group’s treatment of Yue contrasts with their reverence for the celebrated national hero.
• Respect and dignity: Su Wanning objects to the disrespect shown toward Yue’s deceased, veteran grandfather, even though she otherwise holds Yue in low regard.

Key plot points and events

• At the Xu Family birthday banquet, Su Wanning excitedly asks Yue Xiaofei whether he has met the national hero who planted Hongqi on Mount Fuji. The crowd joins in, eager to hear about the hero.
• Yue Xiaofei mischievously says the hero looks “pretty much like me.” Although he is telling the truth, everyone assumes he is boasting or lying.
• Xu Yaoyang mocks Yue and challenges him to prove he is the hero, while Su Wanning angrily accuses him of insulting her idol. Yue refuses to explain and leaves.
• Back at the Su Family villa, Jiang Lan is relieved to see Yue return and checks that he is unharmed. Su Guohua, worried Yue’s conflict with the Cao Family may bring trouble to the Su Family, scolds him and threatens to throw him out. Jiang Lan defends Yue, who calmly goes to his room.

Character developments and interactions

• Yue Xiaofei stays composed despite being ridiculed. He enjoys the irony of being admired as a hero while being disbelieved when he hints at his identity, and chooses not to defend himself.
• Su Wanning’s admiration for the hero turns into disappointment and contempt when she thinks Yue is making fun of him.
• Xu Yaoyang reveals jealousy of the attention Su Wanning gives Yue, then uses the crowd’s laughter to belittle him.
• Jiang Lan shows sincere concern and warmly supports Yue, contrasting with the hostility he faces from others.
• Su Guohua responds to Yue with suspicion and anger, driven by fear that Yue’s actions will endanger the family.

Significant themes

• Truth and disbelief: Yue’s real identity is dismissed because it seems too implausible to those around him.
• Reputation and class prejudice: People judge Yue by his perceived social status rather than considering that he might be the hero they admire.
• Misplaced admiration and jealousy: Su Wanning idolizes an absent figure while dismissing Yue, and Xu Yaoyang resents the attention Yue receives.
• Loyalty and family: Jiang Lan’s genuine care stands apart from Su Guohua’s fear and rejection.

Plot points and events

• Yue Xiaofei withdraws to his room after a tumultuous evening and contacts the Reverse Scale team for information on Cao Ruolin.
• Hacker Han Duoduo reports that a frequently detected signal is associated with Serenity Manor, a heavily guarded Cao Family property that appears more like a prison than a vacation retreat. Its isolated internal network prevents her from confirming Cao Ruolin’s presence.
• Reverse Scale infiltration expert Bai Bing has been sent to investigate. Yue Xiaofei hopes Cao Ruolin can provide evidence that the Cao Family framed his father.
• Yue also resolves to confront Ye Jincheng after handling the Cao Family.
• Elsewhere, Su Wanning receives a blurry video of the military honor guard saluting a young man at Elder Xu’s birthday banquet. She believes it shows the national hero celebrated for planting the Hongqi on Mount Fuji.
• The figure’s height, build, and walk remind her of Yue Xiaofei. She rejects the possibility that he could be the hero, but cannot stop wondering.

Character developments and interactions

• Yue Xiaofei remains controlled despite his anger and shock, relying on his team to investigate before acting. He trusts Bai Bing’s abilities and remains focused on clearing his father’s name.
• Han Duoduo provides useful intelligence while maintaining her playful, childish manner, prompting Yue to tell her to get to the point.
• Su Wanning is torn between her admiration for the national hero and her contempt for Yue. The video begins to unsettle her certainty about who Yue is.
• Xu Yaoyang sends Wanning the video, unknowingly triggering her suspicion.

Significant themes

• Truth and wrongful judgment: Yue seeks proof to expose the Cao Family’s framing of his father.
• Appearance versus reality: Wanning’s assumptions about Yue clash with the possibility that he may be the hero she idolizes.
• Suspicion and suspense: The hidden prisoner at Serenity Manor and the hero’s possible resemblance to Yue set up revelations to come.

Plot points

• Su Wanning arrives at breakfast exhausted after dwelling on Yue Xiaofei and a mysterious heroic figure, whose identities she has begun to suspect might be connected.
• Though she resists bringing Yue to her audition, she agrees so she can quietly test her suspicions.
• At Longdu Film Academy, Su delivers a powerful, wordless audition for Beacon Fire Beauty, portraying a woman who cuts her hair after her fiancé dies and chooses to join the front lines. The director and judges are impressed, and the director is about to name her the lead.
• Gao Yuanyuan arrives with her godfather, the production’s major investor, General Manager Wang. She claims the role as though it is hers by right.
• Under the investor’s pressure, the director avoids announcing a winner and abruptly ends the auditions, leaving Su humiliated and effectively dispossessed of the role.
• Yue witnesses the injustice. Though he is not especially fond of Su, Gao’s bullying provokes his displeasure.

Character developments and interactions

• Su Wanning moves from confidence in her preparation to shock, anger, and hurt when her success is blocked by favoritism. Her lingering curiosity about Yue’s possible connection to the mysterious hero remains unresolved.
• Yue Xiaofei appears indifferent throughout the audition, but his reaction to Su’s treatment hints at a protective or justice-minded side.
• Gao Yuanyuan is presented as entitled and openly contemptuous, using her connection to the investor to claim the lead.
• Director Li admires Su’s performance but chooses to appease General Manager Wang rather than defend the fair outcome.
• Jiang Lan encourages Su and insists Yue accompany her, believing he can offer company and protection; Su reluctantly accepts.

Significant themes

• Talent versus privilege: Su earns the judges’ admiration, but influence threatens to outweigh merit.
• Public humiliation and power: The abrupt reversal turns Su’s moment of triumph into a spectacle of unfairness.
• Unspoken suspicion and protection: Su’s doubts about Yue’s identity, and Yue’s quiet response to her mistreatment, set up further tension.

Key plot points and events

• Su Wanning leaves an audition devastated after losing a role she spent three months preparing for, without receiving a fair chance.
• Gao Yuanyuan corners and humiliates her, boasting that talent is useless without powerful connections. She exploits rumors of Su Wanning’s family’s financial trouble and insinuates that Su should trade sexual favors for a role.
• Gao’s lackeys restrain Su when she tries to slap her. As Gao continues to degrade her, Yue Xiaofei appears and demands an apology.
• Yue intimidates the group with a three-second countdown, but when Gao refuses, he does not confront her physically. He takes Su away and calmly warns Gao that she will be gone from Longdu by the next day.
• Gao and her lackeys laugh at the threat, unaware that Yue has secretly sent a message ordering someone to blackball Gao Yuanyuan.

Character developments

• Su Wanning is shown as proud and determined, but deeply wounded by the unfair audition and Gao’s attacks on her dignity and family. She is stunned and vulnerable when Yue intervenes.
• Gao Yuanyuan displays cruelty and entitlement, using her connections and Su’s misfortune to assert power. She remains confident even after Yue’s warning.
• Yue Xiaofei appears calm and controlled, but his cold authority unsettles Gao’s group. Rather than argue or fight, he quietly takes action through his connections.

Significant themes

• Power versus talent: The entertainment world is portrayed as driven by influence and connections as much as ability.
• Humiliation and dignity: Gao targets Su’s career, family, and self-respect, turning professional rejection into personal abuse.
• Hidden power and consequences: Yue’s understated threat seems laughable to Gao, but his secret message suggests that real retaliation may already be underway.

Character interactions

• Gao bullies Su and her lackeys physically restrain Su when she tries to defend herself.
• Yue confronts Gao on Su’s behalf, demands an apology, then removes Su from the situation.
• Gao responds with threats and mockery, while Yue stays composed and acts behind the scenes.

Key plot points and events

• Gao Yuanyuan is publicly exposed for faking a five-million-yuan charity donation and falsely claiming a poverty grant while living lavishly.
• Public outrage erupts, and several government agencies announce investigations: tax authorities target her finances, cultural authorities ban her and order her work removed, and education officials investigate Longdu Film Academy’s grant process.
• Gao’s career collapses. She receives termination notices and compensation demands, while her investor and supposed “godfather,” General Manager Wang, stops answering her calls.
• Su Wanning watches the news, unsettled by how quickly Gao has been brought down.
• Director Li calls to offer Su the lead role in Beacon Fire Beauty, reversing his previous attitude.
• Su suspects someone has been quietly helping her and her family. Remembering unexplained investments that saved her father’s company and business partners’ sudden cooperation, she wonders if Xu Yaoyang is responsible.
• She calls Xu and asks directly whether he arranged Gao’s downfall.

Character developments and interactions

• Gao Yuanyuan goes from celebrated “Cinderella” figure to disgraced, banned celebrity. Confused and abandoned, she cannot identify who caused her downfall.
• Su Wanning gains the role she wanted but feels wary rather than purely triumphant. She begins connecting earlier help to a possible hidden benefactor.
• Director Li shifts from his earlier stance to deferentially declaring Su the only suitable choice, suggesting outside pressure or influence.
• Xu Yaoyang receives Su’s call; his role in the events remains uncertain at the chapter’s end.
• General Manager Wang abandons Gao by becoming unreachable.

Significant themes

• Public image versus reality: Gao’s carefully cultivated persona collapses when evidence exposes her hypocrisy.
• Power and hidden influence: The speed and scale of the response suggest a powerful, unseen force is shaping events.
• Justice and accountability: Gao, the academy, and potentially her business interests face investigations and consequences.
• Gratitude and suspicion: Su’s sudden good fortune brings excitement, but also questions about who is helping her—and why.

Plot points

• Su Wanning calls Xu Yaoyang after Gao Yuanyuan is suddenly disgraced and Su regains the lead role. Xu, who knows nothing about the events, realizes Su assumes he arranged them.
• Hoping to win her trust, Xu falsely claims he used his influence to help her. Su believes him and thanks him.
• Xu invites her to a celebration at the Hyatt Hotel, presenting it as a chance to meet entertainment-industry contacts. Su hesitates but agrees out of gratitude.
• Xu messages a group of friends, boasting that he has arranged for Su to come and making clear they intend to exploit her.
• At the hotel, Su finds only a few sleazy men waiting. Xu locks the door, introduces them as powerful industry figures, and urges her to please them. Their remarks and behavior reveal the gathering is a trap.
• Su tries to pull away and asks what they intend to do, but Xu restrains her as the scene ends on his threatening response.

Character developments and interactions

• Xu Yaoyang shifts from confusion to opportunistic deceit, taking credit for Gao Yuanyuan’s downfall to manipulate Su. His private messages expose his predatory intentions, sharply contradicting his outwardly helpful manner.
• Su Wanning moves from relief and gratitude to unease and fear as she recognizes the truth of the gathering. She tries to resist Xu, but he physically restrains her.
• Their interaction turns from apparent benefactor and grateful recipient into a betrayal: Xu exploits Su’s mistaken trust and uses her career ambitions to lure her into danger.

Significant themes

• Manipulation and false credit: Xu exploits an event he had no part in to gain Su’s confidence.
• Abuse of power and exploitation: He invokes influential industry contacts to disguise coercion and sexual predation.
• Betrayal and vulnerability: Su’s gratitude and desire to advance her career leave her exposed to a trap.

Plot points and events

• Xu Yaoyang and several wealthy young men corner Su Wanning in a hotel room and try to force her to drink a drugged cocktail, promising career opportunities in exchange for submitting to them.
• When Wanning refuses, Xu slaps and threatens her, and the others move to attack. Trapped and despairing, she believes she has no way to escape.
• Yue Xiaofei bursts through the door just before they reach her. He swiftly grabs Young Master Li by the throat and hurls him into a wall, knocking him unconscious.
• Yue turns on Xu Yaoyang and the remaining men, who are terrified, and warns them not to touch Wanning.

Character developments and interactions

• Su Wanning resists coercion despite fear and physical abuse, briefly finding the strength to knock away the drink. Her despair gives way to the possibility of rescue when Yue arrives.
• Yue Xiaofei shifts from his usual composure to barely restrained fury. He protects Wanning decisively, using overwhelming force against her attackers.
• Xu Yaoyang reveals himself as manipulative and violent: he disguises the assault as help with Wanning’s acting career, then attacks her when she resists.
• Young Master Li and the other men initially rely on their status and threats, but their confidence collapses in the face of Yue’s strength.

Significant themes

• Coercion and abuse of power: The men exploit their wealth and influence to threaten Wanning and control her.
• Resistance and vulnerability: Wanning refuses to cooperate even when isolated and overpowered.
• Protection and justice: Yue’s intervention halts the immediate assault, though the chapter ends before the attackers face further consequences.

Plot points and events

• After Yue Xiaofei knocks Young Master Li unconscious, Xu Yaoyang and Zhang try to intimidate him by invoking their families’ influence.
• Xiao Chusheng, whose uncle is military commander Lei Zhan, calls for help and claims Yue attacked him and Li.
• Su Wanning fears Yue will be overwhelmed by armed soldiers and urges him to escape. Xu shoves her aside and threatens both of them.
• Lei Zhan arrives at the Hyatt with an armed company from the Wolf Fang Special Operations Brigade. His soldiers secure the room and aim their rifles at Yue.
• Lei orders Yue to surrender. Instead, Yue calmly reaches into his pocket and produces a small, dark-red booklet, leaving the confrontation unresolved.

Character developments

• Yue Xiaofei remains unflinching despite being surrounded by armed troops, suggesting confidence or authority beyond his apparent fighting ability.
• Su Wanning shifts from being rescued to openly worrying for Yue, showing gratitude and growing concern for his safety.
• Xiao Chusheng reveals his reliance on family power, using a fabricated account of events to summon his uncle and threaten Yue.
• Lei Zhan presents himself as disciplined and authoritative, but must reckon with the fact that Yue shows no fear of his forces.

Significant themes

• Inherited privilege and abuse of power: The wealthy young men expect family connections to shield them and crush others.
• Power versus appearance: Yue’s calm suggests that physical force, weapons, and status may not be the ultimate source of authority.
• Loyalty and concern: Su Wanning’s plea shows her emotional investment in Yue.
• Suspense and reversal: The red booklet hints at a possible unexpected counter to Lei Zhan’s apparent advantage.

Character interactions

• The spoiled heirs threaten Yue by citing their families’ influence; Yue dismisses their claims.
• Su Wanning pleads with Yue to flee, while Xu humiliates and threatens her.
• Xiao Chusheng accuses Yue to Lei Zhan, but Lei first studies Yue and then formally orders him to surrender.
• Yue answers the armed standoff not with violence, but by revealing the booklet.

Yue Xiaofei revealed his Supreme Command credential to Lei Zhan, who recognized him as the legendary Peerless National Scholar and a major general. Yue Xiaofei rebuked Lei Zhan for misusing soldiers to protect his nephew, and Lei Zhan punished Xiao Chusheng before withdrawing with his troops.

• Lei Zhan inspected Yue Xiaofei's credential and recognized him as an eighteen-year-old major general appointed by the Supreme Command.
• Lei Zhan snapped to attention when Yue Xiaofei addressed him, shocking Xiao Chusheng, Xu Yaoyang, and Su Wanning.
• Yue Xiaofei condemned Lei Zhan for using military forces to protect his nephew and failing his duty as a soldier.
• Lei Zhan admitted his wrongdoing, bowed to Yue Xiaofei, and slapped Xiao Chusheng unconscious.
• Lei Zhan ordered Xiao Chusheng taken into confinement, promised to request disciplinary action, and left the hotel with his soldiers after Yue Xiaofei dismissed him.