Episode Summary
In this episode, Officer Ho Ho-fai begins his new role leading a front-line Emergency Unit, where he must contend with a hostile team that holds his past against him. His leadership is immediately tested when the unit is drawn into a city-wide manhunt for a mysterious hacker on the run from both the triads and a shadowy organization. As Ho-fai's team pursues the fugitive, the situation escalates dramatically, leading to a dangerous public confrontation and a massive explosion that raises the stakes for everyone involved. Meanwhile, Ho-fai's professional rivalry with a former colleague intensifies as their separate investigations into the complex case begin to overlap.
Spoiler Alert
Homeland Guardian: Episode 2 Spoiler Recap
Ho Ho-fai, now transferred to the front-line Emergency Unit, must lead a new team that openly despises him.His reputation is in tatters, and the team, which includes his mentor's son, Shiu Tsz-chun, sees him as a disgrace. Shiu Tsz-chun is particularly hostile, believing his father unfairly protected Ho-fai. Despite the friction, Ho-fai knows he has to earn their trust over time.
Meanwhile, the criminal underworld is in turmoil. After informant Chung Chi-wah is murdered in retaliation by the ruthless Chow Hung, his orphaned granddaughter, Chung Lan-kwun, is taken in by the influential Chiang Kwun.
A new player enters the scene: a hacker named Gordon. After breaching a hotel's security system, he realizes he's being hunted and that it's connected to his girlfriend's death. He makes a run for it, but his escape is quickly discovered. The Lung Hing Triad is also after him, and Ho-fai's Emergency Unit van is dispatched to the scene. On a rooftop, they intervene in the chase, saving a triad member from falling but failing to capture Gordon.
The investigation intensifies as Ho-fai asks his former colleague, Chan Yiu-yeung, for help in identifying Gordon. Chan, however, is warned to stay away from the case. The Lung Hing Triad manages to recover Gordon's phone, but the data has been wiped, leaving only one clue: search history for a place called Sau Shan Village.
Gordon heads to Sau Shan Village, searching for a hidden USB drive. Tracked by Chung Lan-kwun, assassins are sent by a woman named Anna to intercept him before the police can. Ho-fai's team is coincidentally dispatched to the same village to handle a local dispute. Amid the chaos, Gordon tries to retrieve the drive from a specific house but runs into the triad. After a fierce fight, he escapes, only to taser a reporter, Lam Wai-yin, and steal her car.
The situation escalates dramatically when an assassin tries to shoot Gordon but hits a gas canister, causing a massive explosion that severely injures a police officer. Ho-fai, whose command is questioned, is publicly berated by his superior but silently takes the blame.
The investigation is handed over to the O Kee (Organized Crime and Triad Bureau).Chan Yiu-yeung discovers the explosion was no accident but was caused by a gunshot, indicating a planned ambush. He also uncovers Gordon's true identity: he is an international fugitive wanted by M-Country and Interpol for the murder of a woman named Lee Ho-yi.
Back at the station, officer Leung Yuen-ting's mother, terrified by the news of the explosion, begs her to quit and take a desk job, a plea Leung refuses.
The episode closes with Ho-fai returning to the crime scene, correctly deducing the explosion was a failed assassination attempt on Gordon. Chan Yiu-yeung confronts him there, reminding him of his diminished authority, as the two rivals share a tense exchange about their separate findings.
