Episode Summary
A young poet named Yang Wenyuan becomes obsessed with club singer Qu Meng after she saves his life. He investigates her workplace and uncovers a prostitution ring disguised as a high-end club. Qu Meng stops him from going to the police, revealing her own tragic past and entrapment in the criminal organization. Yang refuses to stay silent and stages a public protest outside the club, getting beaten while urging Qu Meng to "wake up."
Spoiler Alert
The Poet and the Prisoner
We travel back to the early nineties for this one. We meet Li Hongyue, a manager at the Penglai International Club. She takes her deputy, Qu Meng, on a business trip. Qu Meng is twenty-three. She loves to sing. But her job at the Binchuan International Club is a cage. She feels trapped. Even her singing feels controlled.
They get off a train. Qu Meng spots a young man on the tracks. A train is coming. He looks like he wants to end it. She rips a gold ball necklace off her neck. She throws it and hits him. The train rushes past. He survives.
We learn his name is Yang Wenyuan. He wants to be a poet. He uses the necklace to track Qu Meng down at the club. He wants to understand her. He wants her to be the subject of his next poem. Qu Meng laughs at him. She thinks he is a fool.
A Dangerous Curiosity
This "fool" causes trouble immediately. Yang Wenyuan stands outside the club. He writes down license plates of the guests. This is a bad idea. Li Hongyue sees him. She sets a trap. She uses Qu Meng’s name to lure him onto the club’s cruise ship.
They rig a game. Yang wins the "Gold Prize." The prize is a duet with Qu Meng. He gets on stage. He doesn't sing. He reads a poem he wrote for her. It is awkward, but harmless. Later, the big boss Xu Peng is angry. Li Hongyue covers for the kid. She says he is just curious and doesn't know the rules.
The Ugly Truth
Yang doesn't leave the boat. He sneaks upstairs. He finds the woman who lured him onto the ship. She is lying on a bed. She wears a gold ball necklace just like Qu Meng’s. She tells him to run. She says it is too late. Then she faints.
Yang hides outside the door. A man walks in. The man starts taking off his clothes. Yang realizes what is happening. He looks away. The truth hits him. The International Club is not just about dining and dancing. It is a front for something much darker.
Qu Meng’s Confession
Yang assumes the worst about Qu Meng. She wears the gold ball too. He thinks she is part of this trade. He runs to the police station to report the club. Qu Meng intercepts him outside.
A man named Wu Guohao watches from a car nearby. He sees Qu Meng stop Yang. He drives away satisfied.
Yang is angry. He is disappointed. Qu Meng breaks down. She tells him her history. Her father sold her eldest sister. He took her second sister to the city, and she never came back. Qu Meng ran away to Binchuan. She worked as a waitress. Men framed her for theft. She went to prison. She had nowhere else to go.
The Wake Up Call
Qu Meng admits she is trapped. She thought the club was a shortcut. She thought she could escape poverty. Now she knows the truth. Once you get on this boat, you don't get off. She tells Yang these people are dangerous. They will kill him.
She tries to save him. She gives him money. She begs him to leave Binchuan and keep his mouth shut.
Yang refuses to take the hush money. He goes to the club entrance. He throws the cash into the air. A crowd gathers. Qu Meng watches from a car. Yang holds up a sign. It has two large words: "Wake Up."
The club security guards tackle him. They pin him to the ground. They beat him. Yang doesn't fight back. He just holds the sign higher. He wants Qu Meng to see it.
