Episode Summary
With their mentor Wei Jie temporarily reassigned, young detectives Liu Ziming, Liu Yang, and Cao Lei investigate the murder of Wang Yun. The initial focus falls on Wang Yun's adopted son, Lu Bing, who she was intensely devoted to. As the investigation unfolds, Lu Bing's affair with a married colleague, Luo Meihua, comes to light, a relationship Wang Yun vehemently opposed. Mounting inconsistencies in Lu Bing's story and his attempts to create a false alibi lead Liu Ziming to suspect him. Lu Bing eventually confesses to killing Wang Yun in a drunken rage, driven by her suffocating control and her threats to ruin Luo Meihua's reputation. He is arrested while attempting to flee with Luo Meihua and her daughter. The episode concludes with Liu Ziming getting injured while apprehending two pickpockets during a date.
Spoiler Alert
So, their mentor, Wei Jie, has been temporarily seconded to a special task force at the city bureau. This leaves his three apprentices – Liu Ziming, Liu Yang, and Cao Lei – feeling a bit like kids whose parents have left them home alone for the first time. Naturally, that's exactly when a homicide call comes in. They rush to the scene where the forensic examiner, Old Zhang, and local precinct officers are already deep in their preliminary investigation. The victim, Wang Yun, has multiple stab wounds and, chillingly, ligature marks around her neck. Liu Ziming learns that a witness, Lu Bing, lives right upstairs. He takes Cao Lei to interview Lu Bing, while Liu Yang starts canvassing the neighbors.
Now, here’s where it gets personal. Lu Bing, it turns out, was adopted by Wang Yun. He was orphaned at eight, and Wang Yun, a colleague of his parents who had no children of her own, took him in. Fast forward a couple of decades: Lu Bing bought the apartment upstairs two years ago but Wang Yun, ever the doting mother, still insisted on bringing him breakfast every single day. The night before, Lu Bing had just returned from a business trip, and Wang Yun had prepared a huge welcome-home feast for him. He says he left her place around 10 PM. He’s clearly distraught and even mentions wanting to change Wang Yun's clothes because she was always so meticulous about her appearance. Liu Ziming, ever the professional, gently advises him against disturbing the scene, as it could compromise forensic evidence.
Liu Yang’s chats with the neighbors paint a picture of Wang Yun as a wonderful person and Lu Bing as a very filial son. Liu Ziming then digs a bit deeper by talking to Wang Yun's former colleagues. They confirm her intense devotion: she apparently distrusted store-bought breakfasts and would wake up at 4 AM every day to prepare food for Lu Bing. They also mentioned how Wang Yun made Lu Bing chew each mouthful of food 21 times because he had a sensitive stomach as a child.
Then, a tragic piece of history surfaces. Years ago, Wang Yun's husband, Chen Tongsheng, borrowed a car and took Lu Bing and his biological parents on a spring outing to a reservoir. Chen Tongsheng, driving under the influence, crashed the car into the water. Wang Yun (who was pregnant at the time) and young Lu Bing were the only survivors. Lu Bing’s parents and Chen Tongsheng drowned, and Wang Yun tragically miscarried. Liu Ziming heads to the traffic department and pulls the old case files, confirming the colleagues' story.
Despite the seemingly harmonious picture, Liu Ziming feels something is off about Lu Bing. For someone whose adoptive mother, who practically worshipped him, was just brutally murdered, Lu Bing is answering questions with an almost unnerving composure. Cao Lei suggests it might be a robbery-homicide, but Liu Ziming isn't convinced. The trio then visits Lu Bing's workplace and uncovers another wrinkle: shortly after starting his job, Lu Bing became involved with a married colleague, Luo Meihua. Wang Yun had found out and pressured Lu Bing to end the affair, which he supposedly promised to do. Liu Ziming questions Luo Meihua, who acts shocked by Wang Yun's murder and tries to distance herself from Lu Bing, quickly making an excuse about needing to pick up her child from kindergarten.
That night, Liu Ziming and Cao Lei pay a visit to Luo Meihua's home. Her daughter, Tian Tian, innocently keeps referring to Lu Bing as "Brother Bing," making it clear he's a frequent guest. Cornered, Luo Meihua confesses to the affair with Lu Bing, explaining her husband is often away for work. Wang Yun was vehemently opposed to the relationship and would even show up unannounced at Lu Bing's apartment to check on him. In one particularly humiliating incident, Lu Bing had made Luo Meihua hide on the narrow iron grating outside his window to avoid being caught by Wang Yun. Shaken by this, Luo Meihua had resolved to break up with Lu Bing. However, just the previous Friday, Lu Bing had called her, vowing to convince Wang Yun to accept their relationship.
Liu Ziming starts connecting the dots, and Lu Bing is looking increasingly suspicious. Later that night, Captain Captain Huang calls Liu Ziming in. They reconstruct the crime in the office, and Captain Huang agrees that Lu Bing is the likely perpetrator, but they lack concrete proof. He tasks Liu Ziming with talking to Lu Bing again, hoping to find cracks in his story.
During this follow-up interview, Liu Ziming meticulously questions Lu Bing about his whereabouts and actions on the night of the murder. Lu Bing's answers are full of holes, and he even tries to use a former classmate from Tianhe Securities, Han Xiaowei, as an alibi. But when Liu Ziming and Liu Yang track down Han Xiaowei, he clearly states that his last contact with Lu Bing was six months prior. Lu Bing was definitely lying.
Suddenly, Liu Ziming receives a desperate call from Luo Meihua. Through the receiver, he can hear a conversation between her, her daughter, and Lu Bing. Luo Meihua subtly manages to signal that Lu Bing is driving them towards Yunqing. Fearing for their safety, Liu Ziming and his team immediately give chase. Lu Bing, driving recklessly fast, is pulled over by traffic police just as Liu Ziming's unit arrives. He's apprehended on the spot.
Under interrogation, Lu Bing confesses everything. He describes Wang Yun's overbearing control, which dictated every aspect of his studies and life – she even rented an apartment near his university to keep a constant watch over him. Lu Bing felt suffocated. Meeting Luo Meihua had been a breath of fresh air, a taste of freedom he'd never experienced. When Wang Yun demanded he end the relationship and threatened to destroy Luo Meihua's reputation by distributing flyers at her workplace and residential complex, Lu Bing snapped. On the night of the murder, fueled by alcohol, he went to Wang Yun's apartment in a drunken rage and killed her. His plan was to take Luo Meihua and her daughter and start a new life. That plan, obviously, didn't pan out.
With the case wrapped up, Liu Ziming finally gets some personal time and goes on a date with Fang Tingting. They're enjoying some street barbecue when Liu Ziming gets into an altercation with two known pickpockets. Things escalate quickly into a physical fight, with Fang Tingting shouting for bystanders to call the police. Liu Ziming, being a trained officer, manages to subdue them but gets his arm stabbed in the scuffle. The police arrive promptly, arrest the two thieves, and recover a large bag of stolen goods, including phones and pagers. Fang Tingting takes Liu Ziming to the hospital to get his wound treated, and who should be on duty but his ex-girlfriend. True to form, she greets him with a barrage of sarcastic comments. Talk about a rough end to a rough case!
