In the end, Li Shuo proved more cunning, successfully exploiting Meng Zetian's competitive nature to lead him down a path of no return.
At the final moment, Meng Zetian still attempted to use his silver tongue to evoke Bai Mingchuan's sympathy, hoping to find an opportunity to counterattack and escape with his life, but his plan ultimately failed because Li Shuo arrived at the scene in time and shot him dead.
Thus, the young man who had just been covering up his actions with excuses and justifying his treason could only lie on the ground with unwillingness etched on his face.
Crimson blood continuously gushed out, while he merely looked mockingly at the two men before him, slightly opening his mouth to silently form a few words with his lips. Finally, his body twitched slightly, and under Li Shuo and Bai Mingchuan's complex gazes, he reached the end of his life...
Meng Zetian's death was something everyone had been hoping for.
Both within the storyline and among the audience outside the screen, people had been anticipating Meng Zetian's demise.
But when Meng Zetian was actually shot dead by Li Shuo, everyone felt somewhat melancholy.
This melancholy wasn't regret for Meng Zetian, but rather because they now stood at the end of that era, watching the people of that time write tragic and sorrowful stories on the heavy pages of history, treading the paths they believed were right, heading toward irreversible endings. Even though the villain had been punished, those who sacrificed could never return... The stories of that era were always filled with blood and regret.
Yet they also symbolized hope and rebirth—
With the death of the frequently appearing villain Meng Zetian, "Hidden Star Shine" gradually approached its grand finale.
The second male lead Bai Mingchuan ultimately had his identity exposed—it turned out Meng Zetian had prepared a backup plan in advance, intending to drag Bai Mingchuan down with him even in death!
Fortunately, Li Shuo had successfully been promoted and received advance warning, so Bai Mingchuan escaped ahead of time under the organization's arrangements.
However, he didn't continue hiding, but instead went to the front lines, truly becoming a war correspondent who faithfully recorded the crimes of the Japanese invaders. Following the example of the already sacrificed Old Mr. Shen, he picked up his pen, using all available resources to speak out nationally and even internationally, contributing his strength to the motherland and beliefs he passionately loved.
As for the female lead Qiu Rongyue, while transporting important intelligence, she risked being blown up by crossing a minefield on foot, braving the hail of bullets to cross the firing line between enemy and friendly forces. Eventually, she was caught in a small-scale battle and disappeared amidst the chaos of war.
When she reappeared, she no longer wore bright, beautiful, form-fitting qipaos, but rather dusty blue coarse military uniforms. Her formerly permed, slightly wavy fashionable long hair was now cut into practical short hair, and her face was always covered in dust, with only her eyes remaining bright.
During a certain battle, Bai Mingchuan and Qiu Rongyue briefly encountered each other. When they saw one another, surprise first appeared in their eyes, followed by acceptance. Though deep in their pupils remained the unspoken love from that year, deeper patriotic sentiments made them exchange a knowing smile before passing by each other, continuing toward their respective battlefields.
No one knew their ultimate fates, but it was certain that the cause they worked so hard for together grew into a towering tree a century later, lush and verdant, sheltering their future descendants...
The male lead Li Shuo successfully got promoted, moving closer to the higher echelons, which also meant the difficulty of his undercover work intensified. After completing his final assigned mission, Li Shuo entered a prolonged period of silent undercover work, cutting off all external communication. Until the organization issued new tasks, he would no longer perform specific missions.
What he needed to do was become a hidden blade, quietly awaiting future changes in the situation, and contribute his strength to the organization at the most critical moment in the future.
They were like twinkling stars, shining with their own brilliance at dark historical junctures. Though brief, their light was bright enough. Even after experiencing various hardships and disappearing again into the dark river of history, their deeds would not be forgotten.
At the story's end, just like the opening of the first episode, a subordinate drives a car to pick up his superior.
The only difference from back then was that the person with an obsequious smile plastered on his face had changed from Li Shuo of that time to a bespectacled man now, while Li Shuo emerged from his small western-style house.
"Director Li, good morning!"
The bespectacled man's face was full of smiles as he opened the car door behind him, his body unconsciously leaning forward in a subservient manner.
Li Shuo glanced at him, his face rarely showing smiles anymore, instead becoming particularly stern: "Let's go."
He got into the back seat, and the bespectacled man immediately diligently closed the door and took the driver's seat, then the car slowly moved forward.
No matter the era, this city always retained some degree of prosperity.
The car passed through crowds, driving by a newly opened song hall. Li Shuo lifted his eyes to look and noticed the song hall wasn't open for business yet. A fashionable stranger woman in a qipao was directing several workers to adjust her signboard.
The car continued forward, stopping at a traffic light, waiting for the tram to pass.
Coincidentally, a newspaper boy stood by the roadside, hawking the day's latest news.
Li Shuo noticed him and directly leaned out the car window: "Hey, over here—"
The newspaper boy looked toward Li Shuo at the sound and immediately jogged over: "Sir, would you like a copy of today's newspaper?"
The driving bespectacled man was very perceptive, immediately taking out money and handing it to the newspaper boy: "Yes."
"Thank you!"
The newspaper boy handed over the newspaper, respectfully bowing to express gratitude, then ran off with the money.
Li Shuo unfolded the newspaper, looking at the familiar newspaper name and unfamiliar reporter's name, slightly raising an eyebrow.
The bespectacled man saw this through the rearview mirror and tentatively suggested: "Director Li, there have been some issues with procurement recently. If you need it, I can place the latest newspapers on the upper right corner of your desk these next few days. What do you think?"
Li Shuo put away the newspaper without refusing, only casually uttering an "Mmm" sound.
The car continued forward, finally passing through tightly secured iron gates and entering the core of the puppet government.
Li Shuo's undercover work had perhaps only truly begun.
But he believed that dawn's arrival wasn't far away...
The gates slowly closed, accompanied by the crisp sound of metal colliding, and the screen completely darkened.
The melodious, sorrowful ending theme slowly began playing at this moment, and the characters from the past once again appeared before the audience's eyes...
-----------------
"Hidden Star Shine" finally concluded perfectly with a 6.7% finale ratings share.
Though there might have been many regrets along the way, seeing the endings of several important characters left everyone feeling satisfied.
[Flowers for the finale~]
[Wuwu, Bai Mingchuan and Qiu Rongyue actually didn't end up together! Seeing them calmly pass by each other after that look, I burst into tears—]
[That's just how that era was. If they could have been together, the story would have fallen into cliché. Them becoming spiritual comrades on each other's paths, fighting for shared beliefs, even dying for shared beliefs—how is that not the ultimate romance.]
["Hidden Star Shine" was really too good! Even someone like me who doesn't usually enjoy spy dramas watched it with great interest, especially that final mission with twists upon twists, multiple parties scheming against each other, life-and-death struggles... I held my breath the entire time watching. That Li Shuo actually managed to survive in the cracks, successfully clearing himself of suspicion—I truly admire him so much!]
[To be honest, the plot twists weren't particularly mind-bending, but they made you unable to stop watching! I think this really owes thanks to the several actors—their acting was truly excellent, making you fully immersed, genuinely sweating for the characters inside—oh right, except for that one guy. Every time I saw him, I really wanted Meng Zetian to just shoot him dead.]
[Haha, it's finally the finale, so don't blame me for speaking out!]