Episode Summary
Gordon, a skilled hacker, obtains a USB drive containing a plan by the EGM Fund to trigger a financial crisis in Hong Kong. This makes him the target of a multi-pronged manhunt involving the police led by Ho Ho-fai, an unknown assassin, and a triad run by Chiang Kwun. Hiding out with an acquaintance, Lam Wai-yin, Gordon attempts to decrypt the drive to sell its contents for $100 million. The police, working under a 24-hour deadline, track him to Chungking Mansions. After a chaotic confrontation where Gordon briefly takes Lam Wai-yin hostage, Ho's team successfully rescues her and captures Gordon, using a decoy to escape the triad blockade.
Spoiler Alert
Homeland Guardian Episode 4: The Hunt for Gordon and the Billion-Dollar USB Drive
The action kicks off as Ho Ho-fai and Shiu Tsz-chun are figuring out their next move to find Lee Tai-nin. Their discussion is cut short by a speeding motorcycle, just as Chan Yiu-yeung and his police unit arrive on the scene.
Meanwhile, a man named Gordon confronts Lee Tai-nin in his residence, securing a USB drive from him and promising to fulfill a wish for Lee Ho-yi. But Gordon's exit is blocked by Chan Yiu-yeung's officers. Just as Gordon agrees to cooperate, chaos erupts. A hidden assassin opens fire, tragically killing one of the officers. Ho Ho-fai and Shiu Tsz-chun arrive right on time to join the firefight.
Seizing the opportunity in the confusion, Gordon makes a desperate escape. The assassin turns their aim on the fleeing Gordon, but covering fire from Ho and Siu allows him to get away.
A shaken Gordon makes it back to the labyrinthine Chungking Mansions and meets with Lam Wai-yin. He reveals the USB drive's explosive secret: it contains the EGM Fund's entire plan to launch a financial attack on Hong Kong, a plot that could trigger a devastating "financial tsunami." Gordon is unsure who is hunting him but has a lingering suspicion about the EGM Fund from years past. A skilled hacker, he rejects Lam Wai-yin's suggestion to call the police, insisting he needs time to crack the drive's password to prove his innocence. His plan, however, is not about justice. He asks Lam Wai-yin to find a buyer for the information, naming his price at a staggering one hundred million US dollars. He promises to prove the data's value within 24 hours, leaving Lam Wai-yin furious at his purely monetary motives.
At the police headquarters, Chan Yiu-yeung reports to his superior, Siu Fung, that Lee Tai-nin has confessed the details about the USB drive. Recognizing the immense threat, Siu Fung issues a strict 24-hour deadline to find Gordon. The pressure is on. Ho Ho-fai, Shiu Tsz-chun, and Chan Yiu-yeung analyze the case, and Ho suggests they monitor a man named Ah Ken, believing he might be the key to locating Gordon. In the shadows, the cunning Chiang Kwun instructs his subordinate, Chung Lan-kwun, to stop searching for Gordon and instead keep a close watch on the police, planning to snatch the prize at the last moment.
Taking a brief personal detour, Ho Ho-fai takes his son, Ho Lok-hin (Ah Hin), rock climbing. Motivated by the prize of a panda doll for his mother, the boy bravely scales the wall with his father's encouragement. He proudly gives the hard-won gift to his mother, but Ho's quick departure for work leaves his wife feeling a touch of disappointment. In a separate subplot, Leung Yuen-ting endures a blind date where she expertly apprehends a thief, an act of competence that unfortunately intimidates her potential suitor.
The antagonists are moving their pieces as well. Louis, an associate of the EGM Fund, remains confident that the USB drive's encryption is unbreakable and decides to proceed with the financial attack, unaware that Gordon is making progress. Working tirelessly, Gordon successfully breaks the first layer of encryption, uncovering a file named "Blue List," and immediately dives into cracking the second.
As the city-wide hunt continues, Ho Ho-fai meticulously reviews all surveillance footage leading up to Gordon's arrival at Lee Tai-nin's place, searching for any clue. Later, his colleague Tse Ting-wai invites the team for a meal at his family's restaurant near Chungking Mansions, where a lively curry-eating contest provides a moment of levity.
Gordon's compassion becomes his undoing. Worried about a stray cat he rescued, he risks leaving his safe house to buy medicine. His movement is immediately spotted by Chiang Kwun's men, who, instead of acting themselves, pass the information to a woman named Anna. She dispatches an assassin, setting a new threat in motion.
The situation escalates when Ho learns Gordon had been at Sau Shan Village with Lam Wai-yin. Panicked, Lam Wai-yin attempts to call the police, but Gordon stops her, taking her hostage. Chan Yiu-yeung tracks Lam Wai-yin's location to Chungking Mansions. Ho's team rushes to the scene, arriving just as Gordon is attempting to escape with his hostage. The building's entrance is a chaotic mess, with Chiang Kwun and his Lung Hing triad members causing a disturbance, providing cover for the assassin lurking nearby. In a tense standoff, Ho's team manages to rescue Lam Wai-yin, who confirms the USB drive's critical importance to Hong Kong's economic security.
From the surveillance room, officer Chiu Siu-tong spots Gordon's escape route and radios his position. The team quickly closes in and corners Gordon in a room. Defeated, he agrees to go with them. To navigate the triad members swarming the building, Ho devises a plan: Shiu Tsz-chun disguises himself as Gordon to act as a decoy, allowing Ho to escort the real Gordon away safely.
