Nanding, an ancient kingdom centered on Kainan County, was once one of the eight mysterious ancient kingdoms in the southern reaches of ancient Huaguo, as renowned as the ancient Nanjing Kingdom and the ancient Yulang Kingdom.
By the 1980s and 1990s, everything in Kainan revolved around economic gain. Some, ignorant and uneducated, began engaging in all manner of illegal activities along the border. Where there is crime, there are guardians of justice who uphold what is right and banish evil, such as Xue Yiren, captain of the Kainan Criminal Investigation Team.
The story takes place during a special period in Kainan, from the end of the last century through roughly the first decade of this one. It follows Officer Xue and his team as they crack one major case after another. The book is divided into several story arcs, including "The Poverty Alleviation Chronicle" and "The Snowlands Chronicle." Through the casework of Officer Xue Yiren over half a lifetime, it aims to create a border-police version of The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes.
Continuing the story of the previous book, after 2015, veteran detective Xue Yiren leaves his official position with the police force and volunteers to take up residence in a remote mountain village to lead the fight against poverty. In the eyes of outsiders, he's just an ordinary old cop rooted in the wilderness. Few among the younger generation know that, before joining the police, Xue Yiren was a young soldier caught up in a crisis in the snowlands, setting in motion the events that would later send him thousands of miles north to save his wife and search for a friend.
Upon returning to the country, Xue Yiren leaves the police force, and everything is handled discreetly by the authorities. When a newly formed special investigation team sets out again, Officer Xue, outwardly trying to stay calm, rushes after the convoy heading out of the mountains until he collapses from exhaustion. The older generation of police officers put aside their edge and return to quiet lives in the countryside, while the new generation takes up the mission and heads for the front lines and the battlefield. The heartfelt devotion and integrity of border police are passed down from generation to generation.
