Ah, this book was so good. Once you get used to Er Gen's writing (or maybe it's just the translation), you can start to ignore the stuff you don't necessarily like and just focus on the story. And that is where this book shines. So many things that were set up in the past come to fruition and more things are set up for the future. There are so many payoffs for readers who pay attention to the details. In addition to all of that, Wang Lin grows as a person. The way things happen, the reasons for why things happen, and the eventual changes are well done. I didn't exactly like the Wang Lin of the second and third books, but I like the Wang Lin that emerges by the end of this one.