Episode Summary
Episode 20 of "Into the Heat" sees Hu Zi confess to stealing Yang Kaixin's watch but deny murder. Detective Liu Ziming, grappling with marital issues with Fang Tingting and his estranged father, suspects Yang Kaixin's family. The investigation reveals Yang Kaixin was abusive, as described by his daughter Yang Wei. His son, Yang Mo, initially lies about their relationship. The tension peaks when Yang Kaixin's wife, Yang Qi, confesses to the murder and attempts suicide, only to be saved by Liu Ziming. The episode culminates with Yang Mo's intense interrogation; he breaks down when Liu Ziming presents his mother's suicide note, strongly pointing towards his guilt.
Spoiler Alert
So, the episode kicks off with our detectives, Xia Yu and Li Yugang, trying to crack a tough nut named Hu Zi. He's giving them nothing. Liu Ziming, who's been observing, finally loses his patience and steps in. He gives Hu Zi a serious dressing-down, basically scaring the confession (well, a confession) out of him. Hu Zi admits he tagged along with Dong Chunni to Yang Kaixin's place to rough him up a bit. But Yang Kaixin was apparently tougher than they expected, and Hu Zi got cold feet. However, he did spot a very expensive-looking watch.
Later, Hu Zi went back to Yang Kaixin's house, found the door wide open, and saw someone lying on the floor – he claims he didn't know if it was Yang Kaixin. He just snuck into the bedroom, swiped the watch, and bolted. Li Yugang keeps pressing him, but Hu Zi is adamant: he stole the watch, sure, but he didn't kill anyone.
Liu Ziming is only half-buying Hu Zi's story. He's also got a weird feeling about Yang Kaixin's wife and kids; they apparently had no idea Yang Kaixin had been dead for months, which is super sketchy. He asks his superior, Captain Huang, for permission to investigate the mother and her two children.
Meanwhile, Liu Ziming's personal life is a hot mess. He tries to find his wife, Fang Tingting, only to discover she's quit her job. He can't reach her by phone. His mother-in-law claims Fang Tingting has gone abroad to "get some air," but Liu Ziming isn't falling for it. He wants to take their son, Dian Dian, but the mother-in-law flat-out refuses and chews him out for being an irresponsible dad. His father-in-law tries to play peacemaker, suggesting Liu Ziming should just talk things through with Fang Tingting. Liu Ziming leaves, clearly frustrated.
Later, Liu Ziming is visiting his mother's grave with his sister, Liu Ziqing. She drops a bomb: Fang Tingting wants a divorce. Ziqing suggests he should move back home with their father, Liu Jianlin, and bring Dian Dian. Liu Ziming is still incredibly bitter towards his father, whom he sees as a hopeless alcoholic – he even recalls his father drinking on the day their mother passed away. But Liu Ziqing defends their dad, explaining that his boss had arranged a work meeting that day, and Liu Jianlin couldn't get out of it. This is news to Liu Ziming. Ziqing urges him to think about what's best for Dian Dian.
Understandably, Liu Ziming is stressed and distracted. He unloads on his friend, Zhao Dali, who advises him to try and smooth things over with Fang Tingting. Back at work, Liu Ziming is clearly not on his A-game, and Deputy Director Liu is not pleased, threatening to take him off the case for incompetence. Captain Huang goes to bat for Liu Ziming. Li Yugang, who was sneakily listening outside the door, gets shooed away by Captain Huang, probably as a way to change the subject.
The investigation into Yang Kaixin's death continues. His son, Yang Mo, returns from a business trip to Guangzhou. Xia Yu and Li Yugang immediately question him. Yang Mo claims he had a great relationship with his father and is devastated by his murder.
Yang Kaixin's daughter, Yang Wei, is at university in Jiangning, prepping for her grad school exams. Captain Huang sends Xia Yu and Li Yugang to talk to her. To avoid freaking her out, Li Yugang tells a white lie, saying they're just looking into a complaint made against her father. Yang Wei doesn't mince words. She reveals her father was a misogynist who constantly belittled women and that she personally witnessed him beating her mother. She had urged her mother to divorce him, but her mother wouldn't. Yang Wei also says her father was abusive towards both her and her brother, Yang Mo, and frankly, she wishes he'd been arrested ages ago.
Xia Yu and Li Yugang are now wondering why Yang Mo lied about his supposedly good relationship with his dad. They try to question Yang Mo again, but he gets super defensive and tells them to stay out of his family's business. Liu Ziming then questions Yang Kaixin's wife (let's call her Yang Qi, as her given name isn't specified, and "Qi" means wife). She admits that Yang Kaixin had been having an affair.
Xia Yu and Li Yugang decide to tail Yang Mo, who quickly realizes he's being followed. Xia Yu texts Liu Ziming an update, and Liu Ziming tells them to keep up the surveillance but not to make any sudden moves. Yang Mo buys two tickets for something and then spends the entire night in his office, with Xia Yu and Li Yugang patiently watching from downstairs.
Then comes the big shocker: Yang Qi goes to the riverside alone. She calls Liu Ziming and confesses – she killed Yang Kaixin. She's written a suicide note and is about to jump into the river. But plot twist! Liu Ziming has been following her! It turns out that after his initial conversation with Yang Qi a few days prior, Liu Ziming had a gut feeling something was off and had been secretly keeping tabs on her. Liu Ziming actually theorizes that Yang Mo is the real killer, but Yang Qi doesn't say a word.
Xia Yu and Li Yugang arrest Yang Mo and interrogate him through the night. He flatly denies killing his father. Li Yugang warns him that if he doesn't tell the truth, he'll drag his mother down with him. This hits a raw nerve. Yang Mo completely loses it, ranting about how his mother constantly put up with Yang Kaixin's abuse, how he never experienced any warmth in his family, and how his girlfriend even broke up with him because of all the family drama. He gets more and more agitated, eventually slamming his fist on the table.
And that's when Liu Ziming plays his ace: he presents Yang Mo with the suicide note his mother wrote. The implication is heavy – a mother's desperate act to protect her son.
