Season 1 • Episode 48
LatestIn 1937, the Japanese imperialists launched a brutal war of aggression against China. Xu Tian was a color-blind accountant in Shanghai with military training who decided to stay close to his mother after the death of his father. After an accident involving a group of patriots led by a friend of his late father, he was touched by the patriotic spirit. He used his sharp mind to help the patriots transporting important materials, which also drew the attention of Japanese occupying the city to himself. During this period, he befriended Jin, a conman-turned-businessman and Tielin, a police officer working in the Shanghai French Concession. At the same time, pharmacist Tian Dan rented a room in Xu's house after losing her parents in an incident Xu was deeply involved. On the backdrop of the national crisis, people were living their intertwined lives with their own agenda, be it for revenge, for duty, for self-interest, or for ideology.
Acting
Zhang Luyi's understated transformation from nobody to patriot
Production
Painstaking 1930s Shanghai detail, French Concession atmosphere
Writing
Interwoven agendas, no pure heroes or villains
Trivia, insights & behind the scenes
The French Concession setting exploits historical Shanghai's bizarre colonial governance, where Chinese police answered to French authorities while Japanese occupiers controlled everything.
The 48-episode structure mirrors classic Chinese spy dramas like The Disguiser, prioritizing character entanglement over plot velocity—a format increasingly rare in streaming-era television.
CN
