Arc 9Chapters 201–225
No recap yet.
No recap yet.
Zhao Qiushui proposed targeting Director Zhou to resolve the Zhao Family’s problems, while Zhou Yi and Jian Shuyue spent the night together. The chapter ended with Zhao Yongbin presenting Vice Mayor Xie Chenglin as another potential ally for the family to win over.
Zhou Yi reported on the 83 Major Arson Case to Vice Mayor Wen and suspected her warning about the Zhao Group might conceal something. After learning Wang Jiang had recanted, Zhou rejected Ji Fengning’s suspicion of a mole and told him to gather the investigators to retrieve evidence from Prosperity Garden.
Zhou Yi used the tip about the arson evidence to stage a confidential operation and catch Jing Xianfeng passing the location to Zhao Xuanwen. The incriminating message was found inside Wu Cheng’s cigarette pack, leaving Jing Xianfeng exposed before the task force.
Zhou Yi exposed Deputy Director Jing Xianfeng as Zhao Xuanwen’s informant, then ordered Zhao Xuanwen’s arrest. As powerful figures across Changtian City and the Province mobilized against him, Zhou Yi faced the gathering pressure without concern.
Tang Guohua, Lai Jiale, and Fang Rong confessed to the Heavenly Fragrance Tower arson, presenting a complete chain of evidence that Zhou Yi suspected had been fabricated to protect the Zhao Family. After city leaders pressured him to close the case quickly, Wen Wan invited him to her office and asked what he really thought.
Zhou Yi told Wen Wan he would continue checking inconsistencies in the arson case, then attended a dinner where Zhao Yongbin challenged him about the investigation. As Zhao received an alarming phone call, Zhou Yi said the call was the explanation Zhao had wanted.
Zhou Yi revealed that evidence had led police to arrest Zhao Xuanwen, Jiang Xin, Zheng Shunda, and Liu Xidong in the 83 Major Arson Case. Video footage of Jiang Xin’s recorded confession left him ready to implicate the others as he accepted his fate.
Zhao Yongbin sought powerful allies after Zhou Yi obtained video evidence linking Zhao Xuanwen to the arson, while Zhao Qiushui began planning her own escape and approached Qiu Guoguo about working together. Zhou Yi revealed how he forced Wei Shanshan to disclose the hidden video and prepared to pursue the case against Zhao Xuanwen.
Zhou Yi sought new leads to secure Zhao Xuanwen’s conviction while investigating possible corruption around the Zhao family. As Zhao Yongbin planned to eliminate Zhou Yi, Zhou received an unexpected promotion to deputy secretary of the Municipal Political and Legal Affairs Commission.
After Zhao Yongbin reshuffled the Public Security Bureau and Zhou Yi’s colleagues, Zhou Yi realized the promotions and his enforced leave were part of a calculated effort to sideline him. Zhao Qiushui tested Xie Chenglin, then told Zhou Yi she knew where Kim Nam-joo was, prompting him to send Chen Zhong to help arrest her.
At a banquet hosted by Zhao Yongbin, Zhao Qiushui and the officials believed the case against Zhao Xuanwen would quietly end, while Xie Chenglin resolved to pursue Zhao Qiushui. The mood shifted when Wang Haidong learned that Some Jiang had posted evidence of Jiang Xin’s crimes online, leaving the Public Security Bureau facing a fast-growing wave of public outrage.
Zhou Yi used public-opinion pressure to expose questions surrounding Zhao Xuanwen’s release, prompting Changtian’s leaders to debate how to answer the controversy. He ended the chapter by challenging senior officials to confront whether their account of the case was truly the truth.
At a Standing Committee meeting, Zhou Yi challenged the findings in the 83 Major Arson Case and called for the investigation to be reopened. Wen Wan and two Standing Committee members backed his proposal, shifting the discussion against Zhao Dingzhi and Wang Haidong’s position.
Zhou Yi challenged the officials’ handling of Zhao Xuanwen’s release, and public anger forced Changtian authorities to hold a press briefing on the arson case. After the police announced that Tang Guohua, Lai Jiale, and Fang Rong had confessed and that the online video was genuine but its audio fabricated, reporters turned to Zhou Yi for comment.
At a press conference on the arson case, Zhou Yi challenged the Changtian City Public Security Bureau’s account of the evidence. Wen Li’s questions exposed a contradiction between Zhou Yi’s and Chen Bin’s statements, leaving Chen Bin to answer whether the videos were the same.
After Zhou Yi challenged the officials over the disputed video evidence at a press conference, Zhao Dingzhi and Wang Haidong confronted him, but he refused to back down. Later, Tian Tian met Wen Li and confirmed that Zhou Yi’s willingness to expose the truth was part of why she valued him as her best buddy.
Zhou Yi anticipated retaliation after publicly challenging powerful officials, while allies and Lin Fang amplified scrutiny of the 83 Major Arson Case. Changtian City and influential figures suppressed the growing coverage, as Jian Wanyan condemned abuses by the provincial Department of Human Resources and Social Security and questioned Li Wengui’s intentions.
Zhou Yi used secretly collected videos to prompt the provincial Discipline Inspection Commission to investigate Changtian officials, while Jian Wanyan and Wei Siqi protected him from political interference. The chapter ended with Zhou Yi arriving with police officers to confront Zhao Xuanwen.
Zhou Yi had Zhao Xuanwen arrested again as provincial authorities swept up officials tied to the Zhao family. Zhao Yongbin realized the provincial leadership had turned against him, while Zhao Qiushui rejected Xie Chenglin’s offer of protection and left the café.
Zhou Yi raided Zhao Group headquarters seeking the secret evidence hidden in Zhao Yongbin’s gold Buddha, while Wei Siqi weighed whether to move against Zhao despite political pressure. Wen Wan then reported that Zhou Yi had found enough evidence to imprison Zhao Yongbin for at least a hundred years.
Zhou Yi’s surprise raid on the Haitian Building uncovered crucial evidence against Zhao Yongbin, while arrests and evidence in Changtian City threatened to unravel Zhao Xuanwen’s criminal network. Kim Nam-joo was taken into State Security custody, and Zhao Yongbin raged against his arrest as Liao Wensong prepared to question him.
Zhao Yongbin was arrested after his children’s confessions and evidence exposed his crimes, ending the Zhao family of Changtian’s downfall. Elder Sun blamed Zhou Yi and began considering how to respond, while Jian Yan asked Jian Shuyue when she would bring Zhou Yi home.
Jian Shuyue showed her grandparents a photo of Zhou Yi and described how officials kept borrowing him for difficult cases, while Jian Yan agreed to bring the couple to an old friend’s birthday. In Jiangnan, Zhou Yi continued investigating the Zhao Group’s crimes and, after becoming Changtian City’s Public Security Director, approved Zhao Qiushui’s release on bail pending trial.
After receiving two weeks of leave, Zhou Yi visited his parents and then traveled to Capital City to meet Jian Shuyue’s family. He was welcomed at the Jian family villa and began a chess game with Jian Yan, who opened by asking his opinion of the nationwide campaign against organized crime.
Zhou Yi impressed Jian Yan and Zhou Chunyi by explaining why anti-organized-crime campaigns needed sustained prevention and coordinated action alongside crackdowns. He left the elders convinced of his insight and grasp of the practical obstacles and national resolve required to carry out those reforms.