Episode Summary
The Japanese army takes Nanjing after the Nationalist forces retreat. Ren Suning survives the city's fall when her parents hide her, but she is left an orphan. She escapes as a refugee and begins writing a book about the atrocities she witnesses. Meanwhile, cultural and political figures like Xia Yan and Zhou Enlai work to evacuate personnel and establish a new resistance front in Guilin.
Spoiler Alert
The Fall of Nanjing
The Japanese army is closing in on Nanjing. Ren Suning's family thinks they've found a safe spot. They move into the international settlement. She hopes it’s a protected zone. Her father knows better. He's been to Japan before. He says a few flags and signs won't stop a military that's completely lost its mind. He is right to be worried.
The Nationalist army tries its best to hold the line. They fight hard for several days. But the Japanese forces are just better equipped. The Nationalists can't win this fight. Their commanders make a difficult call. They order a full retreat to save what's left of their army. The soldiers have to watch as the enemy tramples over their city.
A City Under Siege
Ren Suning's father reads the newspaper and is absolutely furious. It's filled with Japanese propaganda. The articles claim they are in China to "save" it. He calls them what they are. They are thieves pretending to be saviors. He knows Nanjing is now a death trap. The Nationalist government has already fled to Chongqing. He tries to get his family out of the city one more time.
It is too late. The roads are pure chaos. The bombing is relentless and heavy. They can see Japanese troops getting closer. Explosions are going off all around them. Her father realizes they are not going to make it out. He has to take his wife and children back to their house.
Ren Suning's Survival
Japanese soldiers storm their neighborhood. It gets ugly immediately. Ren Suning's parents do the only thing they can think of. They hide her under the bed. This single act saves her life. You can probably guess what happens to them.
The next few days are a complete nightmare for the people of Nanjing. The show does not pull any punches here. The soldiers murder unarmed men without a second thought. They assault women and treat them like spoils of war. The streets are stained with blood. It is a brutal, shameful period for the entire city.
Voices of Resistance
While Nanjing burns, other people are trying to survive and fight back in their own way. Over in Shanghai, Xia Yan gets an urgent message. His publication is being shut down. The political climate has become too dangerous. He needs to evacuate his staff right away to "preserve the spark." His own home is bombed during the evacuation. He doesn't even have a moment to process it. He just focuses on getting his people and their important journals into vehicles and out of the city.
The Communist Party leadership is also reacting to the news. Deng Yingchao reads the official papers and is disgusted by the hypocritical lies being printed. The Party knows it needs its own voice. It needs propagandists to tell people the truth. A writer named Guo Moruo steps up. He asks to have his Party membership officially restored. But Zhou Enlai has a different strategy in mind. He analyzes the political landscape. He decides Guo is actually more useful as an independent ally. This position allows him to represent the people and cast a crucial vote when it really matters.
A Story That Must Be Told
Ren Suning manages to escape the fallen city. She falls in with a group of refugees and retreating soldiers. The journey is horrific. She sees the full scope of what the Japanese army is doing across the countryside. The violence and destruction are everywhere.
She makes a decision. She takes all the money she has left and uses it to buy paper. She spends every free moment writing. She documents everything she has seen. It becomes a raw, first-person account of the war crimes. She finds a newspaper editor and begs him to publish her manuscript. He reads it. He is deeply moved by her words. But he tells her it's impossible. In the middle of a war, his paper simply isn't publishing books.
She doesn't give up. She continues traveling with the other refugees. They live under the constant threat of air raids. During one bombing, a little girl is hit by shrapnel. Ren Suning holds the child in her arms as she dies. The life just drains out of this small, innocent person right in front of her. It's a devastating moment. The other refugees can only look on in despair at their dead and wounded countrymen.
The episode ends with Zhou Enlai and Xia Yan making a new plan. The war situation is getting worse. They decide to move the entire staff of the Salvation Daily to Guilin. That city has better transportation. The Japanese control there isn't as tight. It's the perfect place to set up a new base for their cultural resistance.
