The story takes place in Huazhou Province, which governs Lingzhou City (the provincial capital, the political and economic core) and Canling City (an emerging industrial city, an area hardest hit by collusion between evil forces and official circles). The counties, districts, and towns under the province's jurisdiction all use original names without any reference to real place names, constructing a completely imaginary provincial-level administration and social ecology. The timeline spans thirty years, from the deepening period of reform and opening up, to the special campaign against gangs and evil, and the comprehensive advancement of the anti-corruption storm, showing the extreme pull of power, human nature, and desire under the tide of the times.
