Episode Summary
Wu Ximei confesses her past to Officer Meng Chao. We learn she was sold into an abusive marriage where she was beaten for being unable to conceive. Her husband conspired with another man to have her raped to produce an heir. This pushed Ximei to murder her husband. While trying to bury him, she found the skull of his first wife. She then dismembered the body, faked her own suicide, burned down her house as a distraction, and escaped to the city. There, she was tricked into working at a massage parlor, where her troubles continue.
Spoiler Alert
Wu Ximei Finally Tells Her Story
The episode opens with Wu Ximei putting her son to sleep. Her mind drifts back to her past. It’s not a happy trip down memory lane. She grew up in a family that heavily favored boys. She has this painful memory of her mother leaving. Her mom just took her little brother and walked away. Ximei was left behind in the village.
She spent her youth working for her remaining family. Her uncle wanted to marry her off to some guy. She refused. The guy was known to be violent with women. Her uncle’s logic was twisted. He needed the dowry money so his own son, Decai, could afford a wife. Ximei stood her ground, though. She said if she had to marry, it would be to an honest man like Fuchang, a simple guy who was always kind to her. Her grandmother supported her decision. But then her grandmother died, and Ximei lost her only real ally.
A Brutal Marriage
This is the part she finally confesses to Officer Meng Chao. The truth comes pouring out.
When she was just a teenager, her family forced her into a marriage. They sold her to an old man just because he had money. On their wedding night, he stumbled in completely drunk. That was the start of her life with him. It was a life full of beatings.
She thought having a child might make things better. A naive hope. But years went by, and she never got pregnant. We see a scene where she’s coming home from a doctor's visit. The villagers are all staring and whispering about her. She just ignores them and goes inside. She tries to comfort herself by eating candy. She thought if she just tried to please her husband, he'd stop hurting her. But he got humiliated by the village gossip about his "barren" wife. So he beat her again.
The Ultimate Betrayal
One night, things were different. Her husband was being strangely kind. There was a guest over, a man named A Wei. Her husband even let her eat at the table with them. He kept pushing her to drink more and more.
She didn't understand what was happening at first. Then her husband closed the door. A Wei grabbed her. The horror sinks in. Her own husband set her up to be raped. He was so desperate for an heir that he brought in another man to do the job.
The Night Everything Changed
A Wei was a fisherman. He told them he would be back after his next trip. That night, Ximei looked at her husband sleeping. He was completely defenseless. A new, firm idea took root in her mind. He had to go.
A Lie for the Cops
She didn't tell Meng Chao the whole truth right away. She lied. She told him her husband went out to sea with A Wei. She said there was a storm, and he was lost at sea.
That's not what happened. The real story is much darker. She waited until her husband was sound asleep. Then she took a knife and killed him.
A Horrifying Discovery
Her initial plan was to bury the body inside the house. She started digging a large hole in the floor. But she found something completely unexpected. She dug up a human skull. It was his first wife. The shock sent her reeling. She then went back to her husband's body with the knife. The implication is she had to dismember him.
Escape from Hell
Afterward, Ximei walked out of her village with a heavy bag. She was broken. She walked to a nearby lake carrying a large rock, planning to drown herself. But then she heard her grandmother's voice in her head. It gave her the strength to live.
She came up with a new plan. She went back and set her house on fire. While all the villagers were distracted, trying to put out the blaze, she just walked away. She left her old life to burn.
Out of the Frying Pan...
Ximei eventually made it to the city. She managed to find what she thought was a job as a nanny. It seemed like a fresh start.
A Deceptive Job Offer
It wasn't a nanny job. It was a lie. She was tricked and taken to a massage parlor. They showed her to a dorm room. She looked around the unfamiliar place, completely lost and helpless.
The next day, a roommate gave her a makeover. Then the roommate suddenly left, and Ximei's instincts kicked in. She knew something was wrong. She grabbed the nearest sharp object for protection. A man the others call "A Dao Ge" came in. He didn't try to hurt her, though. He just told her to wash his hair. She was so nervous she ended up splashing water all over him.
