Episode Summary
Episode 19 sees Liu Ziming's personal life unravel as a disastrous wedding anniversary culminates in a fight with Fang Tingting, his collapse, and her leaving him. Professionally, the investigation into Huzi intensifies. Xia Yu and Li Yugang discover Huzi is more sophisticated than initially believed and linked to a woman named Guo Rui and the Sailiya Club. It's revealed Dong Chunni hired Huzi to confront Yang Kaixin (who was later murdered), but Huzi vanished. Xia Yu and Li Yugang go undercover at the Sailiya Club, where Xia Yu spots Huzi. A police raid leads to Huzi's arrest, but he remains uncooperative during interrogation, and a seemingly incriminating bloody knife found at his residence turns out to be a false lead (chicken blood). Liu Ziming struggles to cope with his personal and professional pressures throughout the episode.
Spoiler Alert
"Into the Heat" Episode 19: Anniversaries, Undercover Ops, and a Whole Lot of Drama
So, picture this: it's Liu Ziming and Fang Tingting's wedding anniversary. Our guy Liu Ziming, bless his heart, actually remembered! He even bought flowers and ducked out of work early, probably dreaming of a nice, quiet celebration. But nope, Fang Tingting is MIA. And when she finally surfaces, she spins a yarn that Liu Ziming sees right through. This, understandably, lights his fuse. But Fang Tingting? She's had enough, and a dam of pent-up frustration just bursts. She unloads all her grievances and storms off, leaving Liu Ziming fuming. The stress of it all – the job, the fight, everything – proves too much, and poor Liu Ziming collapses. Talk about a bad anniversary.
Meanwhile, the investigation into this mysterious "Huzi" character is heating up. Xia Yu and Li Yugang are on the case. Li Yugang tries the digital route, looking for Huzi's QQ account (think Chinese MSN or ICQ for those of us of a certain vintage), but it's been deleted. He manages to recover some chat logs, and surprise, surprise! Huzi isn't the rough-around-the-edges thug Dong Chunni made him out to be. Nope, this guy is apparently quite the fashion plate, described as looking like a "Korean pretty boy" – a "Xiao Xian Rou" as they say. Turns out, Huzi also dated a woman named Guo Rui and was seen cruising around in her Porsche Cayenne. Guo Rui initially reported the car stolen but then mysteriously dropped the case. Liu Ziming, before his dramatic collapse, had tasked Xia Yu and Li Yugang with staking out Huzi's favorite bar and having a good ol' chat with Guo Rui.
The plot thickens around Yang Kaixin, the creep who assaulted multiple female students, including Dong Chunni's best friend, Zheng Xiaomeng. It comes out that Dong Chunni actually hired Huzi to teach Yang Kaixin a lesson. The only problem? Yang Kaixin ended up perfectly fine, and Huzi vanished into thin air. When Liu Ziming shows Huzi's photo to Yang Kaixin's wife, she doesn't recognize him. In a casual aside, Liu Ziming asks when her son, Yang Mo, is due back from a business trip. The wife is clearly hiding the fact that Yang Kaixin was murdered, trying to shield her son from the news.
Back to Huzi's trail: Xia Yu calls Dong Chunni and learns that Huzi also borrowed money from her, never paid it back, and then blocked her. Classic. Xia Yu and Li Yugang then track down Guo Rui. She confirms they met at a place called the Sailiya Club, but she has no clue where Huzi is now. As if Liu Ziming's day wasn't bad enough, he gets home to find Fang Tingting alone. She’s sent their kid, Diandian, to her parents' place because she wants a divorce. She's completely over Liu Ziming prioritizing his job over their family. He doesn't want to split, but Fang Tingting's mind is made up. That very night, she packs her bags and walks out, leaving Liu Ziming with a whole mess of complicated feelings.
Still reeling, Liu Ziming visits his dad, Liu Jianlin, in the hospital. Thankfully, his father's condition is improving, largely thanks to Liu Ziqing's dedicated care (though she's too busy to visit at the moment). When Liu Ziming gets back to the station, Xia Yu and Li Yugang are buzzing, ready to spill the tea on the Sailiya Club. But Liu Ziming is just... not there. He's so out of it, he basically tells them to figure it out themselves.
So, Xia Yu and Li Yugang decide to go undercover at the Sailiya Club. Li Yugang quickly finds a job posting. Liu Ziming, in a moment of lucidity perhaps, greenlights the op but tells them to aim higher than waiters – they need to be supervisors to get any real intel on Huzi. They ace the interview, get some quick training, and boom, they're on the inside.
Li Yugang gets assigned to a private room, but it's the dashing Xia Yu who catches the eye of the boss, Kai Ge. Kai Ge sees potential (and probably dollar signs) and wants Xia Yu under his wing, promising him a fast track to the good life. He starts grooming Xia Yu to be the club's "promotional ambassador," complete with a portfolio of photos. Kai Ge then parades Xia Yu in front of some wealthy female clients looking to unwind. They're all over Xia Yu, trying to get him to drink. Thinking on his feet and not wanting to blow his cover, Xia Yu impresses them with some "special skills" instead. Kai Ge is thrilled and showers Xia Yu with a hefty tip.
To really wow the clientele, Kai Ge brings in a guy named Xi Ge from a training agency to give Xia Yu some "professional" polish. Xi Ge says he'll bring a few of his "brothers" to help Xia Yu make a splash. And who does Xia Yu spot among Xi Ge's crew? Ding, ding, ding! It's Huzi! Xia Yu immediately calls Liu Ziming, but Liu Ziming is at home, drowning his sorrows in booze and completely out of commission. Xia Yu ends up having to clean Liu Ziming's place. Despite his state, Liu Ziming decides they'll arrest Huzi the next day.
The next day, Li Yugang and Xia Yu give Captain Huang the lowdown on the Sailiya Club's shady operations – they take application fees from job seekers but don't give receipts or even register them properly. Captain Huang gets the go-ahead from higher-ups for a raid and tells the duo to keep Huzi in their sights. When Captain Huang asks where Liu Ziming is, Xia Yu and Li Yugang do their best to cover for him, even turning in the "earnings" from their undercover gig. They try calling Liu Ziming to get him involved in the arrest, but he's still not feeling it. So, Captain Huang leads the raid, and with Xia Yu and Li Yugang working from the inside, they nab Huzi on the spot.
Xia Yu and Li Yugang volunteer to interrogate Huzi. Captain Huang tells them to get Liu Ziming to the station ASAP for a debrief. They try calling Liu Ziming again and again, but he’s not picking up. Huzi, meanwhile, is playing dumb, denying everything. Li Yugang lays out the potential consequences, but Huzi isn't cracking. A search of Huzi's place turns up a bloody knife, but forensics reveals the blood is just from a chicken. Finally, Liu Ziming drags himself to the station and tells Xia Yu and Li Yugang to keep at Huzi. But Huzi isn't just denying the charges; he's arguing back, defiant as ever.
