[Alternate History Spy Thriller | Strong Female Lead | Battle of Wits | Everyone Is a Mystery | Subtle Special Abilities | Suspense and Political Intrigue]
In the nation of Cangping, Pei Zhenge, a border defense operative missing for seven years, is redeemed from the Western Wastes and hailed across the country as a returning hero. Only Su Jianwei, an analyst at the Mirror Abyss Bureau, refuses to believe him. She possesses an empathic overload that ordinary people cannot understand, allowing her to piece together the truth from microexpressions, flaws in people's stories, and abnormalities in the environment. But it also leaves her suffering from dizziness, auditory hallucinations, and disordered perception. She is convinced that Pei Zhenge was turned by the Red Ember Society long ago, yet every piece of evidence points to her being the mad one.
Surveillance, lie detection, political maneuvering, and letters from Ember City appear one after another. Su discovers that every strange thing Pei does is connected to a covert network inside the Mirror Abyss Bureau. After the explosion at the Sunken Vessel Building, Pei becomes a public enemy. Su can only create a false identity for him and help him cross the border, while investigating the real mastermind behind it all.
When news of Pei's death and his faked death both prove true, Su finally understands that loyalty has never had just one answer. Branded a traitor, she infiltrates the heart of Lanzhou's intelligence service, trading self-exile for her homeland, her mentor, and a peace that comes too late.
The Cunning Daughter of a Powerful Family
A Marriage at Any Price
No Forgiveness, No Divorce: The Reborn Princess Consort Goes on a Rampage
He Said He Didn’t Love Me, Yet Fell for Me After We Married
The Second Wife of the Noble House
I Transmigrated Into the Marquess’s Household and Led the Whole Family to an Easy Life