The Wind Rises in Tianjin: 1949

Story Outline:

Tianjin, January 1949, under siege by the Northeast Field Army.

The Communist Party's ace operative codenamed "Yellow Sparrow," who had infiltrated Tianjin's Garrison Command, has been exposed. Before sacrificing himself, he sends one final, fragmentary coded message: "Alert... purge list... danger!"

At the same time, his contact, Shopkeeper Xie of Huitong Exchange, is also murdered. With his dying breath, he stuffs a "blank ledger" concerning a plan to plunder the nation's gold into his apprentice Li Mingyuan's hands, urging him: "Develop it... the radio is at... deliver it to our people...!"

Enemy agents are piecing together a "purge list" targeting the underground organization based on the clues leaked by "Yellow Sparrow." A citywide manhunt is about to begin.

The ledger Li Mingyuan has stumbled upon is not only key to the gold scheme, but may also be directly connected to the list's code.

He carries a double-edged spark that could turn the tide or cost him his life, yet he knows nothing of it. The enemy's interrogation vehicle is already closing in on his trail.

The underground party's leader, "Mr. Chen," must race against time to decipher the warning and deal with the crisis surrounding the list. Meanwhile, apprentice Li Mingyuan must solve his master's riddle while evading capture, find the radio, and deliver the ledger to "our people."

A deadly contest over the coded message, the list, the ledger of gold, and the cause unfolds in the depths of winter in besieged Tianjin.