Chapter Summaries

Director Zhou reported evidence that Zhuang Rongliang’s land-acquisition contract may have involved an illicit exchange of power for sex with Vice Mayor Xie Chenglin, who demanded a Discipline Inspection Commission investigation to clear his name. The inquiry was assigned to Ye Feng, while Zhuge Ruoyun explained how Zhuang Yuqian’s attachment to Xie had made the scandal possible and warned Sima Qiushui about expecting too much from a man.

• Director Zhou told Xie Chenglin and the city officials that statements and evidence linked Zhuang Rongliang’s contract to a possible exchange of power for sex involving Xie.
• Xie Chenglin denied the allegations and requested that the Discipline Inspection Commission investigate and clear his name, and Director Zhou agreed.
• Han Jianguo and Zong Weixin decided Ye Feng would oversee the matter, while Director Zhou prepared the materials and Changlin prepared to conduct interviews.
• At Qiushui Garden, Zhuge Ruoyun explained that Zhuang Yuqian’s hopes of keeping Xie Chenglin had helped create the scandal and cautioned Sima Qiushui about expecting a lasting relationship.

Ye Feng, Han Jianguo, and Zong Weixin weighed Zhou Yi’s evidence against Xie Chenglin, while Xie realized the photographs could ruin his career. In a separate call, Jian Wanyan revealed that Zhou Yi had helped change Old Master Xie’s opposition to his move to Capital City.

• Zhou Yi delivered photographs of Xie Chenglin and Zhuang Yuqian to Ye Feng, who found evidence of their affair and sought guidance from Han Jianguo.
• Han Jianguo and Zong Weixin decided Ye Feng would show Xie Chenglin the photographs, temporarily suspend him, and meet Zhou Yi with Mayor Zong Weixin to hear his views.
• Ye Feng gave Xie Chenglin the envelope, and Xie realized Zhou Yi could use the photographs to destroy his political career.
• Wei Siqi asked Jian Wanyan about the Xie Family’s resistance to his move to Capital City, and Jian said Old Master Xie had changed his mind because Zhou Yi was his wonderful son-in-law.

Zhou Yi’s role in exposing Xie Chenglin helped Jian Wanyan secure political support, and Xie was transferred out of Changtian. Zhou Yi withdrew his transfer application for now, but told Wen Wan he still planned to leave and might simply go somewhere else.

• Jian Wanyan told Wei Siqi that Zhou Yi had caught Xie Chenglin slipping, and Wei Siqi offered to discuss supporting Jian Wanyan’s move to the capital.
• After consulting his father-in-law, Zhou Yi learned Xie Chenglin had been transferred to Danqing City, and he thanked Zhao Qiushui and Li Ruoyun for helping bring it about.
• Cao Cheng told Han Jianguo that the province had approved Zhou Yi’s transfer, but Han replied that Zhou Yi had withdrawn his application and intended to stay in Changtian.
• Wen Wan called to confirm whether Zhou Yi was staying, and he told her he would definitely leave, though his destination might change.

Zhou Yi’s transfer to the Southwest Province was finalized, and he left Changtian after farewells from city officials, colleagues, and friends. As a police convoy escorted him out of the city, he silently said goodbye to Changtian.

• Zhou Yi agreed to his honorary uncle’s request to transfer him to the Southwest Province, leaving behind his planned promotion in Liaodong.
• Han Jianguo, Zong Weixin, Ye Feng, and other Changtian officials hosted farewell dinners for Zhou Yi, while Ye Feng drunkenly confessed how relieved and sad he felt about Zhou Yi leaving.
• Wen Wan and Zhao Qiushui shared a farewell dinner with Zhou Yi, where Zhao Qiushui drunkenly confessed her love and later fulfilled her wish to trample him underfoot.
• On September 3, Liao Wensong led Changtian City Public Security Bureau officers in a final salute as Zhou Yi left the bureau.
• Mu Junjie, Wang Gang, and other officers escorted Zhou Yi’s car toward Ganquan, and Zhou Yi silently said goodbye to Changtian.

After returning to Dongji, Zhou Yi reunited with former colleagues and arranged to bring several trusted subordinates with him to his new post in Changning. He left the story preparing to recruit more help from Shan Wenxu in Yangcheng.

• Zhou Yi shared a meal in Dongji with Yan Xiangyu, Lei Ming, Zhang Liping, Zheng Yifan, and Jiang Xinting, and said he expected to take up his new post in Changning after the National Day holiday.
• Jiang Xinting offered to connect Zhou Yi with her uncle at the Changning City Procuratorate, and Zhou Yi welcomed the offer.
• Cai Xiaobo invited Zhou Yi to dinner with Shao Mingbao and Zhu Jianping, and Zhou Yi agreed to meet them at Old Liu Family Barbecue.
• Zhu Jianping asked Zhou Yi to take him along to his new post and squeezed out tears when Zhou Yi hesitated, prompting Zhou Yi to agree.
• Zhou Yi called Shan Wenxu and asked to borrow Li Linsen, Yu Xiao, and Meng Shen for his move to Southwest Province.

Zhou Yi prepared to take up the Public Security Director post in Changning, while local criminals discussed how to handle him. The chapter ended with Zhang Hao threatening that Zhou Yi would have to join their side or die.

• Shan Wenxu accepted that Zhou Yi would not return to Yangcheng and reflected on their friendship and Zhou Yi's ties to the Jian Family.
• Zhou Yi told Jian Wanyan and her parents that he had arranged with Secretary Wei to bring criminal police and SWAT officers from Yangcheng to Changning.
• After spending more than a week in Liaoyang with Jian Shuyue and Tian Tian, Zhou Yi departed for Southwest Province on October 8.
• At Heavenly Joy Entertainment City, Zhang Hao, Qiu Xiao, and Fan Dongqiang discussed Changning's incoming Public Security Director while Ling Jiu arranged hostesses for them.
• Fan Dongqiang warned Zhang Hao that Zhou Yi was capable and dangerous, and Zhang Hao declared that Zhou Yi must join them or die.

Zhang Hao dismissed concerns that the incoming Public Security Director, Zhou Yi, could challenge his criminal empire and prepared to draw Qiu Xiao and Fan Dongqiang into his drug trade. Zhou Yi arrived in Changning and took up his post, then began meeting with the bureau’s leadership team.

• Qiu Xiao warned Zhang Hao that Zhou Yi’s connections and record of bringing down powerful figures made him a potential threat, but Zhang Hao and Fan Dongqiang remained confident in their armed strength.
• Qiu Xiao and Fan Dongqiang asked Zhang Hao to sell them fresh drugs, and both sampled his stock while Zhang Hao watched their reactions.
• On October 11, Jiang Hua chaired a meeting where Xu Jingwei announced Zhou Yi’s appointment as Changning’s new Public Security Director.
• Zhou Yi addressed the bureau officers, welcomed the chance to serve in Changning, and pledged to work with them to keep the city safe.
• After the meeting, Zhou Yi saw off the provincial officials and City Leaders, then convened the bureau’s leadership team to learn its members’ responsibilities.

Newly appointed Changning Public Security Director Zhou Yi assessed the city’s criminal powers and planned how to build a loyal team to take down Zhang Hao. Deputy Director Chen Gang then visited Zhou and tried to bribe him with imaginary cash and two dancers.

• Zhou Yi met the Party committee members, and Chen Gang jokingly asked whether he had a girlfriend; Zhou said he was already taken and offered to find Chen a suitable young man.
• Back in his office, Zhou reviewed the criminal forces in Changning, including Zhang Hao and Xu Qinglan, and concluded he needed more allies within the bureau.
• Zhou recalled Chen Gang’s future death as an anti-drug hero and the tragedies that had left Chen raising his niece.
• Chen Gang entered Zhou’s office and offered him an imaginary case containing five hundred thousand in cash.
• Chen Gang then pointed behind him and offered the twin performers Big Jade and Little Jade, leaving Zhou to realize that the veteran was acting like a brash briber.

Zhou Yi confirmed that he intended to bring down Zhang Hao and asked Deputy Director Chen Gang for advice. Chen Gang recommended targeting Zhang Hao’s henchmen first and using them to uncover evidence, while Zhou Yi identified Yu Jinhai and Tianyue Entertainment City as a likely starting point.

• Chen Gang warned Zhou Yi that Zhang Hao would retaliate through threats, violence, or official connections after Zhou refused his bribe.
• Chen Gang explained that Chen Mingsheng’s praise had convinced him Zhou Yi was committed to fighting Zhang Hao.
• Zhou Yi asked Chen Gang how to dismantle Zhang Hao’s influence, and Chen Gang advised arresting his henchmen and gathering evidence against him.
• Zhou Yi revealed that he knew about Zhang Hao’s Eight Great Vajras, then rejected a call from an unfamiliar number ending in four eights.
• Chen Gang identified Yu Jinhai as Zhang Hao’s trusted lieutenant and linked him to Tianyue Entertainment City, which they suspected of prostitution and drug crimes.

Zhang Hao arranged a meeting with Zhou Yi while Chen Gang won Director Zhou’s trust and approval for his proposal. Meanwhile, police officers infiltrated Tianyue Entertainment City and discovered that Zhang Hao’s confidant Yu Jinhai owned it and Ling Jiu managed its operations.

• Zhang Hao failed to reach Zhou Yi, then asked Feng Dehui to arrange a meeting at Shunxing Restaurant for the next evening.
• Chen Gang presented his proposal to Director Zhou, who approved it, and learned that the director knew of his record as an anti-drug hero.
• Shao Mingbao, Cai Xiaobo, and Zhu Jianping posed as wealthy clients at Tianyue Entertainment City to gather intelligence and evidence of crimes.
• After returning to the Shengteng Hotel, Shao Mingbao reported that Yu Jinhai was behind Tianyue Entertainment City and that Ling Jiu ran its daily business.
• Li Linsen heard the report while Yu Xiao and Meng Shen waited for orders to take action.

Director Zhou attended a dinner with senior legal and law-enforcement officials, then followed them to the Mingxiang Teahouse, where Zhang Hao arrived and ordered that Zhou be invited to meet him. Chen Zhong called for Meng Shen and another ally to protect the director as the confrontation approached.

• Feng Dehui invited Director Zhou to dinner with He Yinghui, Tian Libo, and Gong Zheng, who all tried to win him over with hospitality.
• When the group suggested going to the Qinglian Club, Director Zhou refused and eventually agreed to play cards at the nearby Mingxiang Teahouse instead.
• Chen Zhong spotted Zhang Hao arriving at the teahouse and called for someone and Meng Shen to keep the director safe.
• Zhang Hao entered the teahouse with his underlings and told Tao Su to arrange a private room and invite Director Zhou over.
• Zhang Hao declined Tao Su's offer of attendants and brought Big Jade and Little Jade with him.

Zhang Hao tried to bribe and threaten Zhou Yi, but Zhou Yi beat him down and arrested him during a police raid. Zhang Hao vowed that Zhou Yi would not leave alive, and Zhou Yi taunted him about their past.

• Zhou Yi refused Zhang Hao’s invitation and made him come to the card room himself.
• Zhang Hao offered Zhou Yi a case of cash and the twin sisters Big Yu and Little Yu, but Zhou Yi rejected both gifts.
• Zhang Hao put a Type 54 Pistol on the table to threaten Zhou Yi, who said he would accept it and attacked him.
• Zhou Yi knocked Zhang Hao to the floor and aimed the pistol at Zou Yun as Zhang Hao’s men rushed into the room.
• Chen Zhong, Yu Xiao, and Meng Shen arrived with police and ordered the outlaws to freeze.
• Zhang Hao threatened Zhou Yi, who taunted him as he held him at gunpoint.

Zhou Yi arrested Zhang Hao and his armed henchmen after Zhang threatened him, launching his crackdown on organized crime in Changning. Days later, Municipal Party Secretary Deng Ruxue ordered Vice Mayor Wei Shouhe to tell Zhou Yi to release Zhang Hao.

• Zhou Yi beat Zhang Hao, then ordered him and the other armed men arrested and brought in for questioning.
• Feng Dehui, He Yinghui, and the others gave statements that avoided implicating Zhang Hao, but the confiscated firearms provided evidence for weapons charges.
• Zhou Yi planned to use Zhang Hao's arrest to announce his crackdown on organized crime in Changning.
• News of Zhang Hao's arrest spread through Changning, where residents celebrated but expected his protectors to intervene.
• Deng Ruxue called Wei Shouhe and ordered him to tell Zhou Yi to release Zhang Hao.

Zhou Yi faced pressure from city leaders to release Zhang Hao, then granted him bail while ordering surveillance. Deng Ruxue assumed Zhou Yi had submitted to his authority, but learned that Zhang Hao had already been arrested again.

• Vice Mayor Wei Shouhe and Deputy Secretary Jiang Hua urged Zhou Yi to release Zhang Hao, but he cited the seven seized firearms and refused.
• Tang Qingrui persuaded Zhou Yi that Zhang Hao could be released on bail pending trial, and Zhou Yi agreed while promising to keep him under surveillance.
• Tang Qingrui learned that Jian Wanyan had replaced Wang Ru as Municipal Party Secretary.
• Tang Qingrui told Deng Ruxue that Zhou Yi had released Zhang Hao on bail, and Deng assumed Zhou Yi knew his place.
• Li Feng reported to Deng Ruxue that the Public Security Bureau had arrested Zhang Hao again.

Deng Ruxue angrily challenged Zhang Hao’s re-arrest, and Tang Qingrui asked Zhou Yi to explain. After Zhang Hao staged a lavish welcome outside the detention center, Zhou Yi’s officers arrested him again, leaving him and six accomplices in custody.

• Deng Ruxue learned Zhang Hao had been arrested again and demanded an explanation from Tang Qingrui, who called Zhou Yi.
• Zhou Yi explained that he had expected Zhang Hao to make a public spectacle after his release and had ordered officers to watch for an opportunity to arrest him.
• On October 19, Zhang Hao left the detention center to a welcome by more than two hundred underlings and a hundred luxury cars.
• Cai Xiaobo, Shao Mingbao, and Zhu Jianping arrested Zhang Hao for disrupting public order as his men attacked the officers.
• Li Linsen fired a warning shot, and the officers threatened Zhang Hao until he ordered his men to stand down.
• The officers arrested Zhang Hao and six accomplices for disrupting public order, provoking trouble, and assaulting police officers.

Zhou Yi’s crackdown on Zhang Hao drew support from Mayor Tang Qingrui, while Min Aiwu urged Ou Jinliang to follow the new director’s orders and prepared to stand up for him. In Jincheng, Xu Qinglan learned of Zhang Hao’s arrest and wondered whether Zhou Yi might threaten her own interests.

• Tang Qingrui told Zhou Yi he would shield him for now, warned him that Deng Ruxue would resist, and advised him to get to know Min Aiwu, Chen Gang, and Tan Yongjun.
• Min Aiwu explained to Ou Jinliang that Zhou Yi’s rapid promotions and public reputation gave him unstoppable momentum, then told him to carry out the director’s orders without hesitation.
• Ou Jinliang worried about Min Aiwu’s persistent cough, but Min dismissed it and sent him to prepare for Zhou Yi’s meeting.
• Min Aiwu looked at his haggard reflection and resolved that he was no longer afraid of anyone.
• Xu Qinglan learned Zhang Hao had been detained again and considered Zhou Yi a possible threat, warning him in her thoughts not to provoke her.

At a Municipal Public Security Bureau meeting, Zhou Yi faced criticism over Zhang Hao’s arrests and questions about officers’ covert actions, but Min Aiwu and Ou Jinliang unexpectedly defended him. Min Aiwu then confronted Hu Chunqiu and angrily rebuked Vice Mayor Wei Shouhe by phone, leaving Hu unable to continue his challenge.

• Zhong Jiaqing questioned whether Zhang Hao’s conduct justified the charges, while Cai Xiaobo defended the arrests as legally supported.
• Yu Yisheng challenged Zhou Yi over Yu Xiao and Meng Shen’s covert operation, and Zhou told him he owed him no explanation.
• He Baoyong questioned Li Linsen’s appearance in the operation, but Min Aiwu defended Zhou Yi and angrily accused He of bypassing procedure.
• Ou Jinliang said Cai Xiaobo, Shao Mingbao, and Zhu Jianping had informed him, undermining the planned challenge to Zhou Yi.
• Min Aiwu told Hu Chunqiu he had no obligation to report to him, then berated Vice Mayor Wei Shouhe on the phone; Hu backed down when Min demanded to know what else he had to say.

Min Aiwu defied pressure from Wei Shouhe and Jiang Hua, then joined Zhou Yi in refusing to release Zhang Hao. After Deng Ruxue failed to sway Zhou Yi, Hu Chunqiu bypassed Min and ordered Zhang Hao released, prompting Zhou Yi to summon Hu and He Baoyong.

• Wei Shouhe and Jiang Hua each called Min Aiwu to press him to release Zhang Hao, but Min refused and stood by Zhou Yi's position.
• Zhou Yi spoke with Min Aiwu for over an hour, and Min decided to spend his remaining time acting freely and leaving something behind.
• Deng Ruxue summoned Zhou Yi and urged him to release Zhang Hao, but Zhou insisted the suspect must be punished under the law.
• After Zhou Yi returned to the bureau, he learned that Hu Chunqiu had bypassed Min Aiwu and ordered He Baoyong to release Zhang Hao.
• Zhou Yi sternly ordered Hu Chunqiu and He Baoyong to come to his office.

After Hu Chunqiu and He Baoyong were suspended for releasing Zhang Hao, Zhou Yi turned the setback into a renewed campaign against him and his criminal network. He assigned operations against Zhang Hao and the Eight Great Vajras, then went to seek Mayor Tang Ruifeng’s support.

• Zhou Yi reprimanded Hu Chunqiu and He Baoyong, and the leadership meeting suspended them pending investigation while reassigning their duties.
• Zhou Yi told Min Aiwu and Chen Gang that the arrests of the Eight Great Vajras had advanced their plan to bring down Zhang Hao, despite Zhang Hao’s release.
• Zhou Yi ordered a request for Jincheng’s help in pursuing Zhang Hao, a surprise inspection of Tianyue Entertainment City, and a public notice soliciting criminal leads.
• Min Aiwu volunteered to pursue Zhang Hao, Chen Gang took charge of the Tianyue inspection, and Wu Qiong was assigned the public notice.
• Zhou Yi called Mayor Tang Ruifeng and went to meet him, seeking support to counter Secretary Deng Ruxue’s influence.

Min Aiwu led Changning officers to arrest Zhang Hao at a Jincheng cocktail party despite local officials’ reluctance to assist. When Liu Wenjie ordered them to leave, Min warned the provincial official not to shield a suspect, leaving the guests stunned.

• Wu Kunsheng refused to openly help Changning police arrest Zhang Hao and ordered Lü Junfeng to take no action.
• Min Aiwu left Jincheng’s police headquarters after warning its officers not to obstruct the arrest.
• Zhang Hao realized Zhou Yi was using repeated arrest attempts to undermine his standing and challenged the police to take him away.
• Min Aiwu and sixteen Changning officers entered Hu Shiyuan’s cocktail party and announced Zhang Hao’s arrest.
• Liu Wenjie ordered Min’s team to leave, but Min warned him that his words could constitute shielding a suspect.