Episode Summary
Lu Shaohua successfully produces ten kilograms of methamphetamine with his partner Deng Jianli, despite a typhoon nearly ruining their batch. Two police teams, led by Lin Qiangfeng and Li An, are forced to merge their operations, focusing on a dealer named Zhao Shuangxi. After Zhao picks up the drugs from Lu Shaohua, he is betrayed by his superiors, who order Meng Hanchiu to kill him to prevent his capture by the police. The episode culminates in a deadly shootout at Tiger Beach, where Meng Hanchiu murders Zhao Shuangxi and his men before escaping. A separate tragedy strikes when Lu Tianci is accidentally electrocuted and killed.
Spoiler Alert
"The Narcotic Operation" Episode 12 Spoilers
The episode dives deep into a web of crime and consequence, where police operations, drug manufacturing, and personal tragedies intertwine under the shadow of a raging typhoon.
It all begins with a promise Lu Shaohua makes to a relative, who was sentenced to five months after customs found two kilograms of drugs in Xu Desheng's smuggled liquor shipment. Lu Shaohua agrees to look after the man's son, Lu Tianci, sell off an old house to settle debts, and most importantly, stay on the right side of the law. This promise is immediately broken.
Forced onto the night shift by a difficult supervisor, Chief Chen, Lu Shaohua sees an opportunity. He partners with a colleague, Deng Jianli, who desperately needs money for his wife's kidney transplant, to manufacture methamphetamine. They work tirelessly, but just as they reach the final crystallization stage, a massive typhoon hits Xigang. Their plans are thrown into chaos when Deng's son, Sensen, is hospitalized with a fever. Deng sends Lu Shaohua to the hospital, leaving him to finish the process alone. The storm worsens, and the dilapidated warehouse they use as a lab begins to leak, ruining their product. Desperate, Deng calls Lu Shaohua, who, despite having a high fever himself, rushes back to the factory to salvage what they can. They manage to produce ten kilograms of meth, but not without significant losses.
Meanwhile, two separate police operations are closing in. Captain Li An and his team have spent three months monitoring a trafficker named Meng Hanchiu and are finally ready to arrest him during a deal. However, the operation is abruptly cancelled. Another officer, Lin Qiangfeng, receives a tip from his informant, Tuzi, about a larger meth deal involving a man named Zhao Shuangxi. To avoid spooking Zhao, Lin's superior, Tan Qinglin, orders Li An to stand down. Li An is furious, but is told to cooperate with Lin's team for the sake of the bigger picture.
The deal goes into motion. Lu Shaohua instructs Zhao Shuangxi to retrieve the ten kilograms of meth from a river near Xu Desheng's house. Lin Qiangfeng's team watches as the pickup happens. The payment is arranged to be left in a locker at the Yaochi Bathhouse.
Tragically, as these events unfold, Lu Tianci is buying a birthday present for Huang Peiling. A live wire, downed by the typhoon, falls and electrocutes him, killing him instantly.
The situation escalates when Meng Hanchiu, after completing his own deal, reports to his boss, Jin Yongxiang, and mentions Zhao Shuangxi's transaction. Jin receives an order from his own superior, Luo Bingzhang: the police are aware of Zhao Shuangxi, and he must be eliminated before he can be arrested. Jin warns Zhao that he's being followed and tells him to flee to Laohutan (Tiger Beach), where Meng Hanchiu will "rescue" him. Panicked, Zhao Shuangxi speeds off with Lin Qiangfeng's team in hot pursuit.
At the same time, Li An has the bathhouse under surveillance. Lu Shaohua arrives to pick up the money but receives a phone call and leaves abruptly. Meng Hanchiu, tailed by Li An's officers, heads for Tiger Beach. The climax is a violent confrontation at the beach. As Lin Qiangfeng's team engages in a shootout with Zhao Shuangxi's crew, Meng Hanchiu arrives by speedboat. Instead of a rescue, he opens fire on Zhao and his men, silencing them permanently. Meng is wounded in the crossfire but manages to escape.
