Chapter Summaries

Fire inspector Chen Jianguo found multiple serious safety violations at Dongbei and ordered Li Wei to close indefinitely until the restaurant passed a follow-up inspection. After headquarters told Li Wei to cover the repair costs himself, a tax bureau inspection request left him laughing as he continued down the street.

• Chen Jianguo documented blocked fire exits, faulty equipment, unsafe wiring, and an uncleaned exhaust duct, then ordered Li Wei to cease operations until the violations were corrected and approved.
• Li Wei signed the fire department’s notice and told the employees to close the restaurant for rectification.
• Li Wei called the regional manager, who said headquarters was in chaos and told him to pay for the repairs himself for now.
• Li Wei closed and locked Dongbei, then decided not to tell his wife that the restaurant had shut down and he had lost his job.
• A tax bureau employee called Li Wei and asked him to come in that afternoon to discuss Dongbei’s operations, and Li Wei accepted while laughing.

Livelihood Watch exposed safety and management problems at Dongbei, triggering a wave of public outrage and leaving the company struggling to keep its restaurants open. As managers faced mounting losses and Zheng Dong suffered a medical crisis, the chapter ended with Dongbei’s outlets closing across the city.

• Zhou Ting presented Livelihood Watch’s report on Dongbei’s premade food, failed inspections, and safety hazards, including problems found at all twelve inspected restaurants.
• The report spread across social media and financial outlets, with users criticizing Dongbei and questioning its business practices.
• Old Liu ordered Dongbei’s managers to offer steep discounts and try to reopen sealed restaurants, while warning Li Wei that the company might not survive.
• Zheng Dong read the online criticism and a legal scholar’s analysis, threw his tablet, and lost consciousness after being sedated.
• Online criticism continued as Dongbei restaurants shut their doors, displayed closure notices, or removed their signs.

Dongbei’s leaders faced collapsing revenue, supplier and bank pressure, and a formal tax investigation, then agreed to cut the S Province business and close or sell unprofitable stores. Zhou Wenyuan told Lin Feng that anonymous financial records could help remove Dongbei from S Province, while Zheng Dong sought a meeting to apologize.

• Liu Min reported that Dongbei’s nationwide sales had plunged, suppliers had suspended deliveries, and its banks were reconsidering loans as the company faced potentially massive losses.
• Shareholders Sun and Zhao urged Dongbei to withdraw from S Province and close or sell failing stores, while Old Qian agreed to the plan and promised to take responsibility.
• Secretary Xiao Wang delivered notice that the S Province Tax Bureau had opened an investigation into suspected fraudulent invoices, inflated costs, and tax evasion, demanding three years of records within three working days.
• Old Qian told Zheng Dong’s wife to let him focus on recovering, then ignored a reporter’s call and sat alone in Zheng Dong’s empty conference-room chair.
• Zhou Wenyuan received anonymous financial records about Dongbei’s S Province branch and told Lin Feng that the material could help drive Dongbei out of the province.
• Zhou Wenyuan told Lin Feng that Zheng Dong wanted to apologize in person, and Lin Feng said they could talk when Zheng Dong truly understood he was wrong.

Zheng Dong woke in the ICU to learn that Dongbei Catering faced legal and tax investigations, closures, layoffs, and a deeply discounted share sale. As the company’s collapse became public, he accepted responsibility, asked to apologize to Lin Feng, and prepared a public confession.

• Zheng Dong woke in the ICU, and his wife urged him to rest and avoid company news.
• Xiao Wang told Zheng Dong that Lin Feng’s law firm had sent a legal notice, the tax bureau had opened a case, and shareholders had voted to withdraw from S Province and close struggling stores.
• Xiao Wang reported that Shareholder Sun planned to sell shares to an investment company under Yunchuan Group for thirty percent of market value, and Zheng Dong left the decision to the shareholders.
• Zheng Dong watched a news report on Dongbei Catering’s closures and share sale, then called Director Liu to ask for a meeting with Lin Feng so he could apologize in person.
• Zheng Dong asked Xiao Wang to record a video in which he would admit Dongbei used prepared dishes and lied, accept blame for mismanaging the company, resign, and apologize.

Zheng Dong posted a public apology, resigned from Dongbei Catering, and the company announced it would leave S Province and begin nationwide rectification. Lin Feng judged the apology to be a calculated response to defeat, then agreed to meet Zheng Dong for one meal.

• Zheng Dong admitted Dongbei had deceived customers about premade dishes and neglected food safety, then resigned and bowed to the camera for ten seconds.
• The apology spread across Weibo, where public opinion shifted from anger toward debate about Zheng Dong's responsibility and the restaurant industry.
• Dongbei accepted Zheng Dong's resignation, announced its withdrawal from S Province, and appointed Mr. Qian xx acting chairman while launching nationwide rectification.
• Lü Yi showed Lin Feng speculation that he had orchestrated Dongbei's downfall, but Lin Feng dismissed it and said Zheng Dong knew he had lost rather than truly understood his wrongdoing.
• After receiving Zhou Wenyuan's message that Zheng Dong wanted to meet, Lin Feng agreed to one meeting over a meal.

Lin Feng rejected Zheng Dong’s money and properties, demanding that Dongbei leave S Province, settle its tax obligations, and publicly apologize to the people it had pressured. He left after warning Zheng Dong not to appear in S Province again, while Zheng Dong was left shaken and questioning his life.

• Zheng Dong stood with difficulty and bowed deeply to Lin Feng, apologizing in person.
• Zheng Dong offered Lin Feng a five-million cashier’s check and three properties, but Lin Feng refused them.
• Lin Feng demanded that Dongbei withdraw completely from S Province, disclose its accounts and pay all back taxes and fines, and publicly apologize to Yang Xiaoming and others it had harassed.
• Zheng Dong accepted all three conditions and promised to handle the public apology and compensation personally.
• Lin Feng left the meal and told Zheng Dong not to let him see him again in S Province.
• Zheng Dong suffered chest pain after Lin Feng left, then watched Lin Feng disappear into the city and questioned what he had spent his life doing.

One month after Dongbei rebranded as the more affordable, openly premade-food chain Xibei, Lin Feng hired former military scout Liu Zhenjun for protection. Lin Feng’s daily summoning then succeeded in calling a mysterious, highly significant person whose identity was classified, leaving him with a powerful but unpredictable new ally.

• Dongbei reopened as Xibei, lowering prices, disclosing its central-kitchen production and earning a calmer public response.
• Lü Yi introduced Liu Zhenjun, a former army reconnaissance specialist, as Lin Feng’s new security professional.
• Liu Zhenjun agreed to assess Lin Feng’s home and routine, while Lin Feng accepted his protection.
• Lin Feng used Daily Random Summoning and received a successful result identifying the summoned daredevil as mysterious, with absolute loyalty and a classified identity.
• Lin Feng concealed his reaction from Lü Yi and Liu Zhenjun as he realized the summon had changed the stakes of his future.

Lin Feng learned that K had gained a key role in a Northern Myanmar scam compound but was under surveillance and unable to leave. Lin Feng asked Golden Sun to arrange a covert rescue, with operatives expected to begin infiltrating within seventy-two hours.

• K reported that he had earned the general’s trust and now oversaw much of the compound’s money and laundering routes.
• K told Lin Feng that he was confined and feared the general might make him disappear once he was no longer useful.
• Lin Feng told K to keep acting normally and wait for further instructions.
• Lin Feng contacted Golden Sun and sent him K’s location and information about the compound’s guards.
• Golden Sun agreed to assemble operatives, reach the target area within seventy-two hours, and provide Lin Feng with an identity code and verification procedure.

Golden Sun ordered a covert operation to rescue the technical specialist K from Northern Myanmar, prioritizing his safe extraction. The Spark mission was authorized and secretly set in motion.

• Golden Sun reviewed intelligence on K’s suspected location and the compound in Northern Myanmar.
• Golden Sun activated the Spark emergency protocol and ordered an infiltration, contact with K, and his safe extraction.
• Golden Sun directed intelligence officers to select elite sleeper agents and create flawless cover identities within seventy-two hours.
• Golden Sun gave the first infiltration team’s leader authority to make decisions in the field and ordered the rear to provide support.
• The three generals confirmed their directives, began deployment, and destroyed the written orders and digital traces.

“Bai Shan” and seven fellow infiltrators crossed from Yunnan into Northern Myanmar disguised as smuggled recruits and entered a guarded compound. Once inside, Bai Shan activated a locator and began mapping the compound as the team prepared to observe and wait for the moment to act.

• Bai Shan watched the recruits gathered by Yan Bao and silently confirmed that seven other infiltrators were among them.
• Bai Shan and the group followed Yan Bao through the forest, exchanged covert signals, and crossed the border river on a makeshift raft.
• Yan Bao handed the recruits over to Northern Myanmar militia, who escorted them to a guarded compound.
• Brother Bo ordered the newcomers to squat, then assigned them to different work and training groups; Bai Shan and Qingsong were separated.
• Bai Shan activated a concealed locator, surveyed the compound, and feigned sleep while planning possible routes and evacuation plans.

A Bin endured another day in a compound where trafficked workers were forced to scam people online, while a tall newcomer’s unusual reactions caught his attention. The chapter left A Bin suppressing his suspicions and continuing to deceive his targets.

• A Bin recalled how his cousin lured him away from his factory job and how he was beaten into submission after arriving at the guarded compound.
• A Bin ate a meager breakfast and noticed a tall newcomer quietly assessing the security guard.
• Brother Qiang warned A Bin that he would lose dinner unless he made a sale, and A Bin resumed his scripted investment scam.
• Brother Bo beat a young newcomer for standing in the aisle while the workers kept their heads down.
• A Bin noticed the tall newcomer tense briefly during the beating, then dismissed his suspicions and returned to typing lies.

K managed the compound’s money laundering while secretly mapping its layout, security routines, and personnel. After a suspicious new group of arrivals appeared, he sent Lin Feng a covert signal that he was stable and waiting.

• K processed the compound’s illicit funds under the constant watch of A Long and A Hu.
• K used a hidden communication channel to review his intelligence on the compound’s layout, security blind spots, and weak patrol period between three and four in the morning.
• K noticed that seven or eight of the day’s new arrivals had unusual remarks in their records, including assignments to the kitchen and maintenance team.
• K linked the arrivals to Lin Feng’s promise to send a message and raised his estimate that outside intervention had begun to infiltrate the compound.
• K sent a covert signal reporting that everything was normal and that he was waiting, then returned to work as A Long watched him.

Qingsong, posing as the electrician A Mu, surveyed the compound’s security while making repairs and secretly gathered intelligence with fellow agent Black Stone. They exchanged details about weak points and guard routines, leaving the infiltrators to continue observing and wait for an opportunity.

• Qingsong used his repair work to map the compound’s walls, towers, weapons, buildings, cameras, and guards’ routines.
• While fixing a toilet light in Zone A, Qingsong planted a hidden camera above the ceiling hatch.
• Qingsong photographed nearby security details while adjusting a camera in Zone B and gathered more information during his repairs.
• At lunch, Qingsong exchanged intelligence with Black Stone, who had infiltrated the kitchen as Old Shi.
• Black Stone revealed a kitchen back door and a route near a damaged electric fence, while Qingsong shared information about blind spots, a corroded ladder, and lax patrols.

Brother Bo reported to the general that K’s cryptocurrency cash-out was nearly complete, and the general ordered K killed once the money was secured. After warning Brother Bo to watch the newcomers, the general’s suspicion briefly settled on A Mu, who was secretly Qingsong.

• Brother Bo told the general that K was behaving normally and that the cryptocurrency transfer would be completed in three to five days.
• The general ordered Brother Bo to get rid of K after the money reached the clean accounts and to make the death look accidental.
• The general told Brother Bo to keep a close eye on the newcomers, and Brother Bo agreed to arrange surveillance.
• Brother Bo noticed that A Mu moved with unusual steadiness and seemed familiar with the compound, but dismissed his suspicion.
• Qingsong, posing as A Mu, returned to work without reacting to Brother Bo’s scrutiny.

Lin Feng confirmed that the infiltration team was in position, while K and Bai Shan prepared the compound for a coordinated assault at 3:30 a.m. As the operation drew near, A Bin sensed that something was wrong but did not know what was coming.

• Lin Feng received confirmation from the Golden Sun that the agents had infiltrated and ordered them to proceed while keeping K safe.
• K planted a hidden trigger in the compound server, mapped his escape route, and arranged to send Bai Shan the final operational details.
• Bai Shan received K’s route information and mentally rehearsed the 3:30 a.m. assault, including the teams’ targets and escape plans.
• A Bin grew uneasy about A Mu and Old Shi and struggled to sleep as the compound fell into an ominous silence.

At 3 a.m., Qingsong, disguised as electrician A Mu, sabotaged the compound’s power and communications systems while A Qiang neglected his watchtower duty. The first device was set to trigger at 3:30 a.m., as the wider operation waited in sync.

• A Qiang struggled to stay awake during his watch and swept the compound with his night-vision device.
• A Qiang spotted A Mu working at a distribution box but dismissed his suspicions and started reading a novel.
• Qingsong mapped the electrical system and secretly attached a delayed short-circuit device and a current-fluctuation simulator.
• Qingsong added magnetic interference units to a cable supplying the communications base station’s backup power, then closed the box and left.
• A Qiang continued reading, unaware that the sabotage countdown was synchronized with the operation’s other participants.

At 3:25 a.m., a coordinated power outage plunged most of the compound into darkness and disrupted communications, throwing its guards and captive workers into panic. Bai Shan and the agents began their operation as the general ordered a lockdown, leaving the compound poised for a violent seizure of control.

• The power failed across most of the compound, and the blackout triggered panic and chaos among the dormitory occupants and guards.
• The general woke, ordered the compound placed on highest alert, and sent guards to inspect the generator, lines, and access points.
• Brother Bo tried unsuccessfully to contact patrols and watchtowers, then sent guards toward the finance room and led others to the main building.
• Bai Shan armed himself, blew the agents’ preparatory signal, and slipped into the darkness toward the main building.
• K reassured A Long and A Hu that the backup power protected core operations, then secretly signaled the agents to prepare to withdraw.
• Qingsong removed the devices he had planted near the east watchtower and headed toward the kitchen and garbage area to secure the evacuation route.

At 3:30 a.m., Black Stone and the other infiltrating agents exploited a power outage to eliminate guards, seize the watchtowers, and gather weapons and explosives. By 3:35 a.m., the compound’s defenses had been dismantled, and Captain Bai Shan’s four elite agents were positioned to assault the main building.

• Black Stone, disguised as Old Shi, killed Brother Bo and three internal security guards near the kitchen, then armed himself and headed for the guards’ dormitory.
• Three agents silently killed the dormitory guards, unlocked the gun cabinets, and upgraded their weapons before moving toward the main building.
• Two agents entered the armory through a concealed ventilation hatch, killed its guard, and took explosives and detonators without opening the main door.
• Agents killed the sentries in the eastern and western watchtowers, then took control of the towers and watched the compound.
• By 3:35 a.m., the agents had cleared key defenses, and Captain Bai Shan’s four elite agents gathered in the main building’s shadows for the coming assault.

Bai Shan and his agents launched a coordinated assault on the main building, killed the general, and seized documents and electronic intelligence. With K being escorted toward extraction and the compound under control, Bai Shan ordered the evacuation to begin.

• At 3:35 a.m., Bai Shan’s team confirmed control of the watchtowers and key areas before beginning the assault on the main building.
• Bai Shan killed the two guards at the entrance, entered the building, and fought his way upstairs as Team A broke through the side windows.
• Bai Shan and the agents used a flashbang to eliminate the remaining guards outside the general’s room, then blew open its door with C4.
• Bai Shan shot the general and recovered a document case containing account books, names, records, and maps; the agents also found a key and encrypted USB drive.
• Bai Shan learned that K had been picked up and was heading to the extraction point, then ordered the agents to send the full-control signal and begin evacuation procedures.

Bai Shan and his team seized the telecom fraud compound, subdued its guards, and freed the captives. As the rescued workers began registering for help, Brother Bo and the other underbosses were taken away and killed.

• Bai Shan announced over the security channel that the compound had been taken over and ordered everyone to surrender.
• Bai Shan’s forces disarmed the guards, secured the buildings and watchtowers, and gathered the captives in the central square.
• Bai Shan ordered Brother Bo and the subdued underbosses bound and held while the captives were told they were free.
• The freed captives formed lines to register for travel money and directions to safety.
• Guards marched Brother Bo and the other underbosses toward the perimeter, where muffled gunshots killed them.