When the Dragon Pool Weeps

In the hot, humid southern city of Minglong, an urban legend about a flood dragon’s emergence stirs public unease alongside relentless rain. No one knows that in Cuilong Pool outside the city, an injured flood dragon that has lain dormant for a thousand years is awaiting a victim’s blood to fulfill an ancient pact and bring it back to life. While researching a dissertation on water management during the Northern Song dynasty, history PhD Lin Zhe accidentally uncovers ancient texts about Cuilong Pool and the flood dragon. Meanwhile, in modern-day Minglong, Huang Wolong, newly hired by the city’s Commerce Bureau, shoots to fame with a livestream project for Xueming Tea, and his career and love life both seem to be looking up. But a sudden scandal involving counterfeit labels drags him from the heights into the abyss. His close friend’s company teeters on the brink of bankruptcy, while an official investigation is obstructed at every turn, shrouded in mystery under the control of his nemesis, Deng Shuxin, and Deng’s uncle, Zheng Mingfang, a local power broker. His girlfriend is murdered for investigating the counterfeit-label scheme. Behind it all, there seems to be an even greater force at work.