Chapter Summaries

Song Ning confronted Lu Changqing about manipulating their relationship and his military applications to avoid disciplinary action. After he admitted she was right and begged her to trust him, she insisted he be honest, and he began explaining what happened after the disaster.

• Song Ning questioned Lu Changqing about his conduct toward Chen Yuting and his efforts to make their relationship appear favorable to his superiors.
• Song Ning accused Lu Changqing of submitting marriage and family housing applications to protect his military record and pressure her into caring for him.
• Lu Changqing admitted Song Ning was right and confessed that he feared a disciplinary warning would delay his promotion.
• Song Ning told Lu Changqing to be honest with her instead of trying to manage or manipulate her.
• Lu Changqing asked Song Ning to hear what happened after the disaster, and he began telling her the rest of the story.

Lu Changqing recounted how Doctor Song saved his life during the flood and entrusted him with a secret mission involving the Blue Tears, along with a promise to marry Song Ning when she turned eighteen. After Doctor Song disappeared and Lu Changqing pursued military communications training, he delayed going to Hunan Province to take part in a border communications exercise.

• Lu Changqing and Doctor Song became trapped in a mountain crevice after a landslide, and Doctor Song gave Lu Changqing his food and medicine so one of them might survive.
• Doctor Song asked Lu Changqing to look after his granddaughter, and Lu Changqing promised to marry Song Ning when she turned eighteen.
• Rescuers found them on the sixth day, but Doctor Song had contracted encephalitis and pneumonia and never regained his health.
• Lu Changqing promised Doctor Song he would go to Hunan Province to marry Song Ning, then studied communications and searched for the Blue Tears while serving in the army.
• After Doctor Song stopped writing in 1977, Lu Changqing decided he had died and continued the mission alone.
• Lu Changqing postponed his planned trip to Hunan Province to attend advanced training and secure a place in a border communications exercise.

Lu Changqing explained his wartime promotion and pleaded with Song Ning not to end their engagement, but she refused to let the engagement affect the organization's judgment of his case. After treating Elder Zhou, Song Ning told Chief of Staff Xu to assess the matter fairly, then saw Zhou Yunzhi crying beside Chen Liang.

• Lu Changqing told Song Ning how he earned a second-class merit citation and an early promotion after destroying an Annamese communications station, and said he still needed to advance to learn more about his mission.
• Lu Changqing asked Song Ning not to break off their engagement and to speak favorably for him, but Song Ning said she would end it and trusted the leaders to judge his conduct fairly.
• Gu Zheng spotted Song Ning and Lu Changqing talking, chose not to interrupt, and worried that his worsening chest symptoms might signal a terminal illness.
• Wang Ze took Lu Changqing back while Song Ning went to give Elder Zhou acupuncture, then Song Ning told Chief of Staff Xu that the organization's decision should not be influenced by her engagement.
• Song Ning saw Zhou Yunzhi crying and complaining in the hospital corridor beside the silent Chen Liang.

Song Ning tried to end her engagement to Lu Changqing, but he kept delaying the conversation while she treated patients at the hospital. After leaving the hospital, she encountered Zhou Yunzhi, who wanted news about Gu Zheng and then insisted on accompanying her around town.

• Zhang Qianjin told Song Ning that Lu Changqing had asked him to return to his unit, and Song Ning agreed to visit the hospital the next morning.
• Song Ning brought breakfast to Lu Changqing and told Old Zhang that she and Lu Changqing were calling off their engagement, but Lu Changqing delayed their private conversation by claiming he had reopened his wound.
• Song Ning gave acupuncture to Gu Zheng while he pretended to sleep, and Chen Liang urged him to keep sleeping when Zhou Yunzhi arrived with soup.
• Old Zhang asked Song Ning to examine an old comrade's chronic leg injury, and she agreed to help if she got the chance before leaving Lu Changqing's ward without settling their engagement.
• Zhou Yunzhi stopped Song Ning outside the Guesthouse to ask how Gu Zheng was doing, then followed her and insisted on keeping her company.

Song Ning and Zhou Yunzhi were kidnapped after a thief lured them into an ambush, and Gu Zheng learned that Ge Liang had taken them. After waking in an abandoned warehouse, Song Ning freed herself and prepared to attack a guard while planning their escape.

• A thief stole Zhou Yunzhi's bag and led her and Song Ning into an alley, where Ge Liang's men surrounded them and captured them.
• Han Xiao told Gu Zheng that Ge Liang had kidnapped Zhou Yunzhi and that Song Ning had been taken too, prompting Gu Zheng to order a search and go himself.
• Song Ning woke bound in an abandoned warehouse, freed herself with a piece of sheet metal, and quietly woke Zhou Yunzhi.
• Song Ning instructed Zhou Yunzhi to call for water, then hid behind the door with an iron wrench when a guard left to fetch it.

Song Ning and Zhou Yunzhi escaped their captors and were rescued by Gu Zheng and his soldiers. After returning to the Guesthouse, Song Ning learned the kidnapping investigation was continuing and wondered whether Elder Zhou’s advice to rest was connected to her operation.

• Song Ning knocked out and tied up three men while Zhou Yunzhi cried to draw them into the warehouse, then led her toward the courtyard wall.
• Song Ning climbed a tree and helped Zhou Yunzhi onto the wall as Gu Zheng’s soldiers surrounded the warehouse.
• Gu Zheng called for them to jump and caught Song Ning, while two soldiers caught Zhou Yunzhi; he then ordered the women escorted away and returned to the operation.
• Gu Zheng kept his soldiers at the warehouse to investigate whether Ge Liang had acted alone or had someone behind him.
• Han Xiao visited Song Ning at the Guesthouse, told her to keep the incident quiet, and said Elder Zhou wanted her to rest; Song Ning asked whether it was because of her operation.

Song Ning rejected Lu Changqing’s attempts to keep her engaged and move into the approved family quarters, while he pleaded for more time. She later went to meet Professor Yang and found that Zhou Yuanhang had returned from Shanghai City with an urgent request for her help.

• Zhang Qianjin delivered Lu Changqing’s monthly allowance to Song Ning, saying Lu had sent it because she was new to Rong City.
• Song Ning took the money to Lu Changqing at the hospital, returned it, and refused to use the quarters he had arranged for them.
• Lu Changqing explained that the quarters were approved for visiting family, but Song Ning insisted their engagement would end and she would find her own place.
• Song Ning went to give Gu Zheng acupuncture but learned from a nurse that Regimental Commander Gu had not returned to his ward the night before.
• Wang Ze told Song Ning that Professor Yang wanted to see her, and Professor Yang introduced Zhou Yuanhang, who had returned from Shanghai City to ask for urgent help.

Song Ning learned that Professor Qi needed help negotiating Hua Country’s first CT scanner purchase and agreed to meet him. After recognizing the name Qi Shiyuan as the Old Man Qi she knew from her future, she wondered whether her family also existed in this world.

• Zhou Yuanhang told Song Ning that foreign manufacturers had made importing a CT scanner difficult and asked her to help Professor Qi.
• Song Ning recognized Professor Qi’s name as Qi Shiyuan, a senior expert she knew from her future.
• Song Ning wondered whether Qi Shiyuan, Madam Mei, Old Man Song, and her family existed in this world.
• Song Ning agreed to help with the purchase so she could meet Qi Shiyuan and find out whether he was the man she knew.
• Zhou Yuanhang asked whether they could leave the next day, and Song Ning said she was ready to go.

Song Ning prepared to leave Rong City for Shanghai City to help Elder Zhou’s son, while Gu Zheng struggled with his feelings after realizing that holding Song Ning had changed how he saw women. The chapter ended with Gu Zheng alone at the training ground, reflecting on his past and the moment he held her.

• Song Ning treated Elder Zhou with acupuncture, wrote him a prescription, and told Professor Yang that she would be away in Shanghai City.
• Song Ning told Lu Changqing she wanted to end their engagement when she returned, and he agreed to wait for her.
• Song Ning asked Wang Ze to contact Gu Zheng and arrange a chance to check his pulse before she left.
• Han Xiao and Xiong Gang speculated that Gu Zheng’s recent behavior had something to do with a woman, and Gu Zheng caught them gossiping.
• Wang Ze told Gu Zheng that Song Ning was leaving the next day and wanted to see him, but Gu Zheng only said he understood.
• Gu Zheng jogged alone at the training ground and recalled how holding Song Ning had made him realize he had been wrong about his ability to love a woman.

Gu realized he had fallen for Song Ning, his comrade’s bride-to-be, while Song Ning set off for Shanghai City with Zhou Yuanhang. Their train journey ended in a false accusation against Zhou Yuanhang, and Yang Ye arrived to take them from the police office.

• Gu recognized that his growing worry and longing for Song Ning meant he had fallen in love with her.
• Chen Liang delivered Song Ning the medical fees Gu had sent, and Song Ning traveled to Shanghai City with Zhou Yuanhang.
• On the train, Feng Yan and her mother tried to draw Zhou Yuanhang into conversation, but he showed little interest.
• Near Shanghai City, Feng Yan accused Zhou Yuanhang of embracing her, and her mother backed up the claim; Zhou Yuanhang demanded that the police investigate.
• After Zhou Yuanhang called for help, Yang Ye arrived at the station police office, collected him and Song Ning, and welcomed Song Ning to Shanghai City.

Song Ning arrived at the Red House Hotel as negotiations over a CT scanner were nearing completion and insisted she could save the country money. She entered the conference hall and challenged the German representatives for offering Hua Country an obsolete scanner at an exorbitant price.

• Song Ning, Yan Chengzhi, and Zhou Yuanhang rushed to the Red House Hotel after learning that the final negotiations had been moved to that morning.
• Song Ning told the staff outside the conference hall that she could save the country at least one million yuan, and she entered with Yan Chengzhi and Zhou Yuanhang after one staff member left.
• Song Ning interrupted the negotiations and asked for a few minutes to present points from Hua Country's perspective.
• Song Ning identified the SOMATOM scanner as a first-generation CT and challenged the German representatives for selling Hua Country obsolete equipment at an excessive price.

Song Ning challenged Siemens over its offer of obsolete first-generation CT equipment and pushed the negotiations toward a deal for newer technology. She demanded third-generation equipment for US$450,000, provoking outrage from both teams as Mike prepared to end the talks and Professor Qi urged her to raise the offer.

• Song Ning explained the differences between CT generations and accused Siemens of offering obsolete equipment at a misleadingly high price.
• Mike defended Siemens’s pricing, but Song Ning named competing products from Philips, Toshiba, and Fuji, weakening the German delegation’s confidence.
• Professor Qi welcomed Song Ning and asked how to proceed; she advised rejecting first-generation equipment and considering second- or third-generation models.
• Mike offered to reduce the price to US$900,000 for first-generation equipment, but Song Ning rejected the offer and demanded third-generation CT equipment for US$450,000.
• Mike and the foreign representatives protested and prepared to leave, while Professor Qi asked Song Ning to consider raising her offer.

Song Ning secured Hua Country’s purchase of the latest third-generation CT equipment for 450,000 yuan by revealing knowledge of a technical bottleneck and refusing to tie the equipment sale to future cooperation. After the delegation left the Red House Hotel for lunch, two men in a truck spotted them and prepared to ram them.

• Song Ning challenged Mike’s pricing and implied she could help solve the detector-trajectory bottleneck in fourth-generation CT equipment.
• Mike returned to the negotiations and offered to sell the latest third-generation equipment for 450,000 US dollars while seeking technical cooperation.
• Song Ning clarified that her offer was 450,000 yuan and kept the purchase separate from future cooperation, though she accepted Siemens receiving priority if technical cooperation later became possible.
• The delegations signed the agreement, and Zhou Yuanhang learned that Song Ning had sought equipment capable of scanning Elder Zhou’s spine.
• At the Red House Hotel, two men in a small truck spotted Song Ning’s group and shouted for the driver to ram them.

Song Ning was struck by a van while saving Mike and Professor Qi, then stayed in the hospital under observation as Wu Fengying cared for her. Yang Ye investigated the apparent accident and found a charred scrap marked with the letter “K,” suggesting it was not an accident after all.

• Song Ning pushed Mike and Professor Qi out of the van’s path but was clipped and knocked to the ground.
• Song Ning was taken to the hospital, where Professor Qi stayed with her and Wu Fengying arrived with food.
• Song Ning asked Wu Fengying to make Wensi tofu soup and braised lion’s head meatballs.
• Yang Ye investigated the van incident and found that the vehicle, driver, and worker appeared ordinary.
• Yang Ye searched the vegetable depot manager’s home and discovered partially burned paper bearing a single printed “K.”

Song Ning impressed Professor Qi and Wu Fengying with her knowledge and helped secure her first chance at recognition, while Yang Ye warned Gu Zheng that “K” had appeared again. The chapter ended with Wu Fengying urging Professor Qi to find Song Ning legitimate credentials so her talents would not go to waste.

• Yang Ye called Gu Zheng, mentioned Song Ning’s car accident, and warned him that “K” had appeared again.
• Song Ning enjoyed Wu Fengying’s Wensi Tofu and Braised Lion’s Head, then claimed she could tell fortunes when Wu Fengying asked how she knew so much about her.
• Professor Qi asked about Song Ning’s education, and she said she had studied under Jiang Chengshi for two years.
• Professor Qi grew emotional at news of Jiang Chengshi and asked Song Ning how to contact him, but she said she had lost touch with him.
• Professor Qi explained that Song Ning’s lack of credentials made formal honors or employment difficult, and Wu Fengying urged him to help her obtain legitimate credentials.

Song Ning considered Qi Shiyuan’s suggestion that she prepare for the college entrance exam, while focusing on finding her grandparents and possibly preventing the Song Family’s future tragedy. After her hospital discharge, Feng Yan asked Brother Huang to take revenge on Song Ning, and he threatened to cripple her.

• Qi Shiyuan suggested that Song Ning study for the college entrance exam, but she said she needed time to decide because she wanted to find her grandparents first.
• Mike thanked Song Ning before leaving Shanghai City and invited her to Germany in three months for the Siemens CT equipment handover; Qi Shiyuan resolved to try to secure her a place on the trip.
• After a week in the hospital, Song Ning was discharged, and Zhou Yuanhang and Yan Chengzhi took her to the Spring Breeze Restaurant.
• Zhou Yuanhang recognized Feng Yan at the restaurant as she walked with Brother Huang, but he continued on without speaking to her.
• Feng Yan told Brother Huang that Song Ning had helped get her taken to the police station, and he promised revenge, suggesting they take one of Song Ning’s legs.

After dining with Professor Qi and Wu Fengying, Song Ning learned that Zhou Yuanhang’s father needed a difficult operation and considered how to obtain medical qualifications quickly so she could help. As she left the restaurant, a truck’s load of steel pipes fell toward her.

• Feng Yan, resentful after being detained and forced to rely on Huang Youfu, saw Song Ning and Zhou Yuanhang at the restaurant and wanted to vent her anger, while they ignored her.
• Wu Fengying promised to bake Song Ning cookies if she stopped calling her Grandma Wu, and Professor Qi thanked Song Ning for helping secure funding and equipment before inviting her to Germany in three months.
• Professor Qi examined Zhou Yuanhang’s father’s medical scans and said the shrapnel had caused tissue changes and required a difficult operation; CT equipment would help locate it, but a capable surgeon was still needed.
• Song Ning asked Professor Qi about medical qualifications, learned the university route would take years, and said she would leave Shanghai City soon despite Wu Fengying’s invitation to stay.
• As Song Ning walked past a truck near the restaurant, its securing ropes snapped and the steel pipes began falling toward her.

Gu Zheng rescued Song Ning from a suspicious falling-pipes incident and brought her to the Oriental Hotel for protection while the team investigated possible attacks. Han Xiao’s findings linked the incident to Huang Youfu, who arranged it after Song Ning and Zhou Yuanhang had a run-in with his fiancée.

• Gu Zheng pulled Song Ning clear of the falling steel pipes, and Zhou Yuanhang joined them as they left the scene.
• Gu Zheng brought Song Ning to the Oriental Hotel and explained that the earlier car crash and the pipe incident might have been deliberate attacks targeting Mike, Professor Qi, or Song Ning.
• Gu Zheng told Song Ning to remain under protection, while she studied a map and marked places where Old Man Song might be located.
• Han Xiao reported that the truck and pipes had valid paperwork, but Huang Youfu, a team leader, had arranged the incident after Song Ning and Zhou Yuanhang clashed with his fiancée.

Gu Zheng discovered that Song Ning had marked numerous locations linked to K on a map, raising suspicions about her identity and how she knew about the secret organization. He was left shaken as he reconsidered everything he knew about her.

• Gu Zheng learned Feng Yan had arranged the attack on Song Ning out of revenge and that it was unrelated to the earlier car accident.
• Gu Zheng decided to return to the Military District with Song Ning and invited her to dinner before her planned departure.
• Gu Zheng found Song Ning studying a map, then asked Han Xiao to keep the details of the day’s case from her.
• Gu Zheng returned to Song Ning’s room and took the map from her drawer.
• Gu Zheng saw that more than half of Song Ning’s circled locations were places where K had committed major crimes.

Gu Zheng reconsidered whether Song Ning might be working for K, then traveled with her back to Rong City and learned she wanted a quicker route to qualify as a doctor. Song Ning decided to take the upcoming college entrance exam and apply to the Military Medical University.

• Gu Zheng recalled Song Ning’s remarkable past actions and resolved to reassess her identity and possible connection to K.
• At the Oriental Mall, Song Ning bought a watch with her own money while Gu Zheng kept his suspicions to himself.
• Gu Zheng traveled with Song Ning to Rong City and suggested the Military Medical University could let her qualify to practice medicine early.
• Song Ning learned the exam would take place July seventh to ninth and registration would run June first to third.
• Song Ning excitedly told Gu Zheng she would register and take the entrance exam that year.