Episode Summary
In this episode, He Bi confesses to drugging his wife, Wei Jia, and forcing her into prostitution, leading to her insanity. Wei Tao's motive for murder is revealed to be revenge for his sister. Despite their personal sympathies, the Emperor and Princess sentence Wei Tao and Du Yu to death to uphold the law, while He Bi receives an even more brutal execution. The episode ends with Wei Tao's family trying to protect the recovering Wei Jia from the truth, and Su Wuming beginning his new post with a fresh murder case.
Spoiler Alert
The Confession
How to Break a Monster
So, how do you get a confession from a guy like He Bi? You don't just ask nicely. Our team dresses up as ox-headed and horse-faced demons from the underworld. They put on a whole show. He Bi is so terrified he spills everything. He confesses to the entire disgusting scheme right then and there.
The Whole Ugly Story
We finally get the full backstory. He Bi was the son of a merchant. He felt his social status was too low. He wanted to use marriage to get a foothold in Chang'an society. That's why he went after Wei Jia.
At first, Wei Jia was arrogant. Her brother, Wei Tao, also tried to block the marriage at every turn. But He Bi is a smooth talker. He eventually won Wei Jia over. She fell so hard she was willing to break with her family to marry him.
Wei Tao, however, always saw through He Bi's act. He knew the guy was crooked. So instead of helping his brother-in-law's career, he obstructed it. This made He Bi grow to hate him.
Later, He Bi's business failed. He was in debt for hundreds of thousands of coins. A man named Shi Qiansui offered to help him out. But Shi Qiansui had a condition. He wanted to spend a night with a woman from the aristocracy.
So He Bi drugged his own wife. He served Wei Jia up to Shi Qiansui to be assaulted. The plan went wrong, though. The drug dose wasn't strong enough. Wei Jia woke up just before dawn. She saw Shi Qiansui and was so horrified she tried to kill herself.
To keep Wei Tao from finding out, He Bi locked Wei Jia up. He beat her repeatedly until she went insane. During this time, He Bi's brother, He Qian, was staying with them. He had insomnia and once tried to suffocate Wei Jia with a wet paper over her face. He Bi stopped him. He figured Wei Jia could still be useful.
Shi Qiansui had already started spreading rumors about what happened. So He Bi decided to just lean into it. He turned his own home into a brothel. He pimped out his wife to the merchants of the Jinguang Association for a high price.
The Fallout
Justice and Politics
After hearing all this, everyone in the room is furious. Pei Xijun just loses it. She runs up and slaps He Bi again and again. Lu Lingfeng has to step in and stop her.
Lu Lingfeng grabs He Bi and demands more answers. We learn that Wei Jia actually escaped once. He Bi went to the Wei family home to get her back, but they refused. Wei Tao threatened to kill him. After that, the Jinguang guild hall was built, and the family monuments were dug up.
Su Wuming puts the pieces together. Wei Jia's insanity wasn't constant. It came and went. This means Wei Tao must have found out what happened to his sister. That explains why he was so incredibly brutal when he killed He Qian. Lu Lingfeng is disgusted. Even as an official, he thinks a scumbag like He Bi deserves to die.
The case gets political. Prime Minister Cui goes to the Princess. He argues that Wei Tao is a talented man. He says the people Wei Tao killed were criminals who deserved it. The Princess values the aristocracy. She wasn't paying much attention to Wei Tao before. But now, hearing he acted for his sister and his family's honor, she's impressed. Still, you can't run a country on emotion. She decides to wait and see how the Emperor handles it.
The Emperor feels the same way. He hates men like He Bi. His advisor, Yang Xun, speaks up for Du Yu. He says Du Yu's actions were understandable. He also points out that the man is skilled in both literature and combat. The Emperor wants to spare them. But he's worried. Wei Tao and Du Yu killed multiple people. If he pardons them, people will say he's favoring the aristocracy. So he also waits to see what the Princess will do.
The Sentence
An Eye for an Eye
With the Emperor and Princess both silent, Lu Lingfeng wants to plead for Wei Tao and Du Yu. But Wei Tao refuses. He says he was a county official. He knew the law and he broke it. He must accept the punishment.
Finally, the Princess makes her decision. It's a brutal one. If Wei Tao and Du Yu are beheaded, then He Bi will be cut in half at the waist. If Wei Tao and Du Yu are cut in half at the waist, then He Bi will be torn apart by chariots. As for Shi Qiansui, he is banished from the Tang territory forever.
The Emperor approves the sentence. He also promotes a few people and makes Su Wuming the new County Magistrate of Wannian County.
The Execution
The execution day is grim. He Bi is brought out first. He is cut in half at the waist. The crowd cheers.
Then Wei Tao and Du Yu are brought to the platform. The crowd goes silent. Their families are all there, dressed in white mourning clothes. Wei Tao's wife, Jūniáng, stands at the front with their two sons. She vows to raise them to be honorable men who will serve the country.
The sons try to kneel. Wei Tao and Du Yu stop them. They tell their boys to uphold the family's legacy through study and loyalty. They say the spirit of the aristocracy isn't in blood. It's in a tradition of literature and character.
The executioner gives the signal. "The time has come." Lu Lingfeng bows deeply, tears in his eyes. The swords fall.
Afterward, Jūniáng holds back her grief. She orders that no memorial hall be set up. She tells her sons to lie to Wei Jia. They will say their father went away to fight at the border. The entire household must keep this secret forever. Wei Tao's greatest wish was to protect the women of his family. Wei Jia is slowly recovering. She deserves to live the rest of her life in peace.
The episode closes with Jūniáng watching a recovering Wei Jia play in a field.
A New Case Begins
In the final moments, we get a new thread. The Emperor realizes the law preventing coroners from taking civil service exams is unfair. He decides to change it.
Then we cut to a mortuary cosmetician named Yin Yao. She's preparing the body of a young girl. She quickly realizes the girl didn't hang herself. It was murder. She explains the evidence to the girl's father. Just then, Su Wuming arrives at Wannian County to start his new job. His very first case is this murder disguised as a suicide.
