[She thought her battlefield was among dusty old books, until he dragged her into a real hail of bullets]
Lin Wei, an ancient-text restorer at the National Library, has a little-known talent: she is fluent in obscure languages. She was used to poring over old manuscripts and deciphering Sanskrit codes from a thousand years ago, but when an unexpected overseas crisis erupted, she was urgently called in. At the negotiating table, she is the only interpreter the armed leader on the other side will accept. With guns pointed at them, every translated sentence could mean life or death. At her side is diplomat Qin Xiao, renowned for his icy ruthlessness and deeply skeptical of her abilities. “One mistranslated word, and we might never make it back.” His voice is frost-cold as he puts her under immense pressure. Lin Wei holds her breath and concentrates, but while translating with precision, she unexpectedly recognizes a familiar pattern in the other side’s words. It matches the codes in the ancient scrolls she has been studying!
Meanwhile, a secondary storyline unfolds: war correspondent Su Qing goes missing amid the conflict, leaving behind a final clue that points straight to the heart of the negotiations. To find her, diplomat Chen Mo defies orders and ventures into danger, only to discover that the arms-trafficking conspiracy she was investigating is startlingly entwined with the clashes at the negotiating table.
When the ancient scroll’s code becomes the key to breaking the deadlock, and every translated word carries the weight of life and death, Lin Wei and Qin Xiao must learn to trust each other completely amid suspicion and testing. But more dangerous than guns and artillery are the traps hidden beneath laughter, and the shocking conspiracy lurking behind a mistranslation…
A power couple of professionals: an expert in obscure languages x a cold-blooded diplomat. A battle of wits and crackling tension. The secondary couple is even more compelling! A war correspondent x a diplomat, on opposite sides, with a desperate pursuit and a sense of fate that hits hard. A thrilling, satisfying story.
