where does criminal minds take place

Alexander makes a deal with the commander to protect Jessica's family, trading a severe injury that leaves him with an amputation,shrapnel in his brain, and little time to live for their safety. Six years later, he runs into his daughter Alice, who doesn't know he's her father, and shares his past with her. When he saves Jessica at a lion dance event, his identity is exposed. Jessica presses him for the truth about the past, but Alexander, aware his days are numbered, resolves to hide it, breaking her heart. To end their bond, Jessica forces him to perform the lion dance again. Alexander pushes through to take the stage, but his prosthetic limb malfunctions, shrapnel shifts, and he is on the brink of death.

Eve, the nation’s top doctor, saved Dante from a gunshot five years ago, but the severity of her injuries left her infertile. Then Lilith pretended to be the one who saved Dante to try and steal him from Eve. She even faked having cancer so she could artificially inseminate herself with Dante’s child. The night before her wedding to Dante, Eve discovered that Lilith was pregnant. Despite Lilith’s lies, Dante sided with her over Eve. Heartbroken, Eve left for Italy to pursue her career in medicine. Only once she was gone did Dante realize Eve was the one who actually saved him. Now, he’ll do anything to win her back and won’t take “no” for an answer.

Five years ago, Christina accidentally spent a night with Ethan at a hotel, which resulted in the birth of quadruplets. Now, five years later, Christina took her four children and left the mountain where they had been living. Meanwhile, Ethan had been searching for her ever since she left her mark on him five years ago. Fate brought them together once again, leading to an unexpected reunion.

After losing his parents, Conrad Nord is taken in by the three Lowe sisters—each with her own charm and growing affection for him. They make him promise to marry one of them when he grows up. But their peaceful life unravels with the arrival of Harvey Scott, whose innocent facade wins the sisters' trust.Consumed by jealousy, Harvey frames and endangers Conrad,forcing him to face the painful truth of where their hearts truly lie.

Maid Hailey devotes her life to noble lady Natalie from childhood. The pair stand side by side through every hardship.Natalie rises to become empress of the Cafaro Empire, and Hailey becomes a high-ranking concubine who helps her rule the harem. At 60, Hailey suddenly travels to another era and becomes the Smith family's nanny's daughter.To her shock, Natalie Smith here, just brought home from the countryside, looks exactly like the empress she once served. Adopted girl Mila bullies Natalie cruelly, but Natalie cowers in fear, too timid to fight back. Hailey vows to help Natalie, take revenge on Mila and her unfair parents, and walk beside her into a new, bright life.

They were once the perfect couple, inseparable from their beloved dog, Lacy. But what she never knew was that he was allergic to dogs — enduring medication just to stay by her side. His jealous stepsister twisted the truth: if she truly loved him, she should take Lacy and leave before his rising career was ruined. Heartbroken, she walked away without a word. Believing he'd been betrayed, he buried his pain and became a football superstar and the founder of a biotech company that later developed a "miracle drug" for canine heart disease. Years later, fate brings them — and Lacy — together again. The dog that once tore them apart now stands between them once more. Will Lacy end their love, or finally witness its healing?

This story follows a naive yet kind-hearted American girl who travels to Russia in search of her husband, only to discover he is a notorious playboy. Stranded and endangered in a foreign land, she is rescued by a Russian general. Through their growing interactions, her fear of him gradually transforms into admiration and affection. However, in an unexpected twist, the Russian general she falls for turns out to be the father of her deceitful ex-husband. Where will their forbidden love lead them?

Rihanna injures Gael, CEO of Doyle Group, and mistakenly believes she has caused him to lose his ability to have children. Out of responsibility, she chooses to marry him. But Gael has secretly loved her for many years. He decides to conceal his "medical condition," seizing the opportunity to be close to her, and begins a sweet love story with Rihanna where marriage comes before love.

I'm Felix Levy, a transmigrator in an era where everyone can awaken talents. But I have the worst SSS-tier talent, forced to risk my life just to summon troops. My ex sneers, the dean kicks me out, and everyone despises me—yet my talent evolves into the Supreme Netherlord. Bone Dragons, Mourning Angels, and Demigod Liches bow to me. While they struggle, I become the Abyssal King!

In my previous life, my parents doted on my frail, sickly younger sister.For her sake, they chose a hawk beastman willing to settle in a human city as her husband.Me? They cast me into the deep sea,marrying me off to a giant shark beastman.When the apocalypse came and torrential rains drowned every human city, my parents and sister were left clinging to a rotting plank, adrift on the endless ocean.I couldn't bear to watch them die. With my giant shark husband, I dragged them down into the deep sea to safety.But resentment festered. Seeing me live comfortably while my shark beastman hunted day after day, my parents grew furious that my sister's life paled in comparison to mine. In their jealousy, they laced the fish we ate with poison and killed me.Now, given another chance at life,they've decided my sister should marry the giant shark beastman instead.My biased parents believe she will finally enjoy the blessings they once denied her.But what they don't know is this: after the cataclysm, fish become scarce. And a giant shark… does not survive on scraps. He needs flesh.

Modern-day gamer Leo Kane dies suddenly after an all-night gaming session and wakes up in another world as Grecan's most feared assassin, Cipher. Upon awakening, he's hired by Imperial Guard officer Hugo Spence to kill a woman named Lady Brooks. Intending to take the money and slack off, Leo's plan collapses when he's captured by his target, Poppy Brooks, who discovers his assassination mission. After Leo bravely drives off a group of bandits, Poppy's view of him changes. When she later learns that Leo once saved her life, their relationship begins to thaw, sparking a bond neither expected in a world built on blades and secrets...

The wealthy and independent beauty, Jessie Zacker, unexpectedly travels back to the 1980s and becomes the "public nuisance" everyone in the compound dislikes. Her husband, the top researcher Harkins Lauren, is determined to divorce her. Resolving to focus on her career and wealth, she unexpectedly transforms into a skilled homemaker and a leader in prosperity. Just when she is set on divorce, her husband, holding her tightly, pleads with her with a hint of grievance: "If we divorce, where will I find someone as wonderful as you?"

Ethan mistakenly believed that Scarlett's father had killed his own father, leading him to confine Scarlett in a mental hospital, where she endured torment for two years. Later, Ethan, in an effort to thwart his stepmother Evelyn's scheme, chose to enter into a fake marriage with Scarlett, with a three-month deadline. However, just as Ethan and Scarlett received their marriage license, Ethan discovered the mysterious woman he had slept with, Sophia.

As the only daughter of the Merrick family, Kirsty Merrick bears the responsibility of marrying into the prestigious Bartley family to lead the Merrick family to new heights, as carefully orchestrated by her mother Evanna Taylor. Kirsty successfully secures a betrothal with Morgan Bartley, the playboy son of the Bartley family's second heir. Unknown to Kirsty, Morgan has been secretly involved with Jess Merrick, Kirsty's only friend who grew up with her in an orphanage. Years later, when brought back to the Merrick family, the kindhearted Kirsty could not bear to abandon Jess, and thus pleaded with her parents to take Jess in as well. Now, Jess has begun an affair with Kirsty's fiance Morgan. To get back at Morgan, Kirsty designs a plan to seduce and intoxicate Nicolai Bartley, the young CEO of the Bartley Group, leading to the start of a dangerous "underground affair."

Mark Cowell, an ordinary office worker, was lured into an underground billiards scam and lost his entire fortune, even mortgaging their home. His wife Celine discovered the setup and decided to take revenge herself. Posing as a beginner,she returned to the den, winning game after game with ""beginner's luck""—until the stakes soared.Celine then revealed her true skills, attracting the attention of the mastermind—Lucy, her own younger sister and the underground billiards queen. Fueled by jealousy over Celine's past as a three-time world champion, Lucy had set the trap to drag her back into the game.A high-stakes showdown began, with life-altering wagers. At the climax, Mark revealed he was an undercover cop. Celine defeated Lucy with her blindfolded technique, and police raided the den. The couple reclaimed their home and peace, while Lucy was brought to justice.

Shelley Radcliffe is framed by her stepmother and runs away in anger, where she encounters Heron Fenwick, who is being kidnapped. In an effort to help Heron retrieve his amulet, Shelley loses the use of her hand for playing the piano and the cello. However, Heron mistakenly identifies Elysia Radcliffe as Shelley. Five years later, when Heron returns to the country, he pursues Elysia wholeheartedly, only to once again find himself in a series of misunderstandings…

In a world where spiritual energy has revived, every being is born with a true name engraved in their soul, never revealed to others. To expose it is to reveal one’s fatal weakness. Yet Max Carter, a lazy, ordinary antique street security guard, is a glitch in this world. His left eye sees through all illusions and reveals true names. With a glance he sees past and future, and with a word, he decides life, death, and even reincarnation.

In a world where humans awaken their talents to become beast tamers and form contracts with magical beasts, Crane, stripped of his powers by his family, awakens a mysterious system. He excels in the Beast Contract Ceremony and Hunter Tower Trials, and uses rare resources to grow both himself and his beasts. Driven by the search for his parents, he embarks on a journey through dangerous realms,facing fierce competition and trials to become a true beast master.