Jack Thompson, an 80-year-old American "China expert," dies in a Beijing hutong and is reborn as Chuck Hansen, a young man in a small American town in 1980. Next door lives his father, Robert, who is suffering from PTSD from the Korean War and his alcoholism. All that remains in the family home is a divorce decree.

"This is typical 'bourgeois decadence'." Chuck quoted the golden quote from "On Protracted War" and started a plan to transform his father: using "thought reform" to help him quit drinking, using the stories of the Volunteer Army to heal the trauma of war, and even using the spirit of the "household contract responsibility system" to persuade his parents to remarry.

But redemption was only the beginning. Comparing this with China's development, Chuck saw the decay of American capitalism: Wall Street's greed surpassed Heshen's, and the political parties' struggles lacked the decency of Qing Dynasty dramas. He decided to apply Chinese wisdom to transform America: starting with building fences, using church fundraising for "land reform," building momentum through veterans' associations, and integrating Mao's works into street politics.

When the capitalists fought back and federal agents came to his door, Chuck made the decision: "Forget the election, our dad is fit to wear a crown." From Alcoholics Anonymous to the Capitol Hill coup, this American with Twenty-Four Histories in his pocket eventually cut the American flag into a dragon robe.

"Dad, when he ascended the throne, he wore a suit with a dragon-patterned tie - this is called 'Chinese learning as the basis, Western learning for practical use'." Chuck straightened his father's "crown". In the distance, the White House in the sunset looked like the Forbidden City waiting to change its owner.