The Dark Forest

It is Year 3 of the Crisis Era. This began with the discovery of the impending Trisolar invasion.

Wu Yue and Zhang Beihai are in command of the Chinese battleship Tang. They are friendly colleagues but their working relationship is currently strained because of a fundamental difference in their beliefs. Zhang Beihai is a “triumphalist,” someone who believes in the ultimate victory of mankind at all costs. Anyone who thinks more moderately than himself, such as Wu Yue, Zhang Beihai labels a “defeatist.” With the coming crisis shifting the attention of the military toward space, the two are called to General Staff. There, Chang Weisi announces the formation of a Chinese Space Force. Both Wu Yue and Zhang Beihai are to leave the Tang for this new division.

Elsewhere, Zhang Yuanchao retires from his job at a local Beijing chemical plant and begins spending more time in his apartment building with his neighbor and friend, Yang Jinwen. They spend their days watching the news with their other neighbor, Miao Fuquan, a former mine boss from Shanxi.

A key member of the ETO communicates with Trisolaris and expresses disappointment that they abandoned the ETO, the pro-Trisolaris faction on Earth. The Trisolarans explain that they are afraid of humans and their communication capabilities, pushing them to reconsider their strategy. They direct the man to an encrypted letter that was sent to ETO leader Mike Evans, who is now dead. They help him to decrypt it and task him with finishing the directive once entrusted to Evans.

In Three Body, the virtual-reality world of the ETO, King Wen of Zhou returns to find nothing and no one. As the sun rises, he burns in its intense heat.

Miao Fuquan invites Yang Jinwen and Zhang Yuanchao over to his apartment for drinks and they watch the news. There is a report about “Escapism,” as well as one explaining the United States’ failure to cooperate in international information sharing. Their conversating turns to Escapism and humanity’s hopes of surviving elsewhere in the universe. Escapism is the controversial idea that some fortunate humans can escape Earth before its destruction for the survival of the species. Miao Fuquan belongs to the Escape Fund, a subscription that will supposedly ensure his descendants’ survival. The conversation sours, however, as the three argue over who is worthy of escaping and whether it should depend on wealth or skill. After their discussion, Zhang Yuanchao finds the fund and speaks with Shi Xiaoming about joining it.

King Wen of Zhou returns to Three Body but does not come alone. He is joined by members of the ETO who take on aliases of famous historical figures and scientists. These members have received messages from Trisolaris, and each is committed to helping reorganize the ETO.

Luo Ji and his casual lover watch the news in a hotel and eat breakfast in a nearby restaurant. He cannot remember her name and they agree not to meet again. Luo Ji is used to this; neither have an interest in starting a relationship that will lead to what they believe is the hopeless extension of their family lines. With the future so uncertain, romantic relationships are a challenge. They leave the restaurant together. By chance, Luo Ji falls in the street which saves him from being killed by an oncoming car that strikes and kills the woman. As this happens, he remembers her name.

Escapism is declared illegal, and Zhang Yuanchao loses the 400,000 yen he invested in the Escape Fund. The pain of this loss is blunted by the birth of his grandson.

Waking from the accident, Luo Ji finds himself in a basement with detective Shi Qiang. He does not know why he has been captured but suspects that his arrest hinges upon the death of his lover. He protests his innocence. Shi Qiang only tells him to prepare for departure: together board a military plane and Lou Ji is told to expect evasive maneuvers in flight. The two men converse and Shi Qiang reveals that he is sick and putting off hibernation (a form of stasis). Before he falls asleep, Lou Ji realizes that their plane is surrounded by fighter jets.

Zhang Beihai visits his father, another military man, in the hospital. His father tells him to think hard about what he should do in his new position. Later, Wu Yue and Zhang Beihai inspect the Tang one last time and Zhang Beihai insists that they must have confidence in being able to win the coming war. At a meeting for the Space Force, Zhang Beihai addresses what he sees as the crushing defeatism present in the ranks of their division. He goes so far as to recommend that his friend and colleague Wu Yue be removed from his duties because of severe defeatism. Wu Yue, aware of his own beliefs, agrees and steps down.

On the plane, Luo Ji reminisces about his one real love, Bai Rong, a young adult author and incredibly influential person in his life. She once asked him to write a novel for her birthday present and he obliged, imagining a beautiful girl she tasked him with making up. This fantasy girl became a part of Luo Ji’s inner life, almost as if she were real. When Bai Rong realized she allowed him to go on a road trip with his imaginary girl, Bai Rong calls him later to admit that she has her own imaginary boy, leading them to amicably separate. Luo Ji becomes concerned with the strength of his imagination in relation to the fantasy girl and seeks out a psychiatrist who insists that he is fine. He believes that Luo Ji has a literary talent and nothing more. As Luo Ji gets older, the girl’s influence wanes and her appearances become infrequent. He is shaken from his reverie by intense turbulence caused by the fighter jets.

Luo Ji and Shi Qiang finally arrive at their destination, the UN headquarters, and meet Mr. Kent, Luo Ji’s new handler. Neither Sha Qiang or Luo Ji know why they are. Luo Ji is seated in a meeting. The UN announces the Wallfacer Project, a program that tasks four individuals (called the Wallfacers) with making secret strategic defense plans against the Trisolarans’ invasion, projected to happen in 400 years. This invasion is known as the Doomsday Battle. The Wallfacers will need to hold their separate plans in their minds to keep them from the surveillance of the Trisolar sophons, while creating other plans as a ruse for the sophons. The real plans will be set in motion and the Wallfacers will hibernate until the invasion. The first Wallfacer is Frederick Tyler, a former US secretary of defense with a background in technological power imbalances. The second is Manuel Rey Diaz, the former president of Venezuela who successfully resists an American invasion using guerilla warfare. Bill Hines, the third Wallfacer, is an English neuroscientist and former EU president. These three men are famous and renowned for their strategic and scientific minds. The fourth Wallbreaker is an obscure person: Luo Ji.