"Lost City" takes the first decade of the new century as the narrative span, and uses a southern county with a history of more than 2,500 years as a specimen. It attempts to interpret grassroots political culture from both the official and private perspectives, and at the same time presents the positive role and limitations of traditional culture in the period of social transformation.
The whole novel adopts two-line parallel narrative method. One line tells the story of Lu Leshan, a member of the Standing Committee of Lost City, who suddenly fell from a building and died. Although it aroused suspicion from all parties, it was ultimately determined that he committed suicide by jumping off a building due to severe depression. Du Huazhang, a member of the No. 8 Standing Committee who had a close personal relationship with Lu Leshan, gradually approached the truth intentionally or unintentionally after taking over Lu Leshan's position, and finally realized that he was also in danger; a line narrates that Du Huazhang, deputy director of the Municipal Research Office, parachuted into Lost City and became a member of the No. 8 Standing Committee, in charge of publicity and tourism.
