Episode Summary
Qin Feng discovers his old friend Peng Hanzhang is spying on him, leading him to set up a decoy investigation to work in secret. While Zhao Peng refuses to be the scapegoat for the construction accident, the villainous alliance between Liu Tianye and Zhang Xin fractures completely.
Spoiler Alert
Noodles and Nostalgia
We start with a trip down memory lane to a cold night in 2008. Wang Tao is ready to feed Qin Feng some sad instant noodles. Peng Hanzhang sees this and steps in. He drags the guys upstairs and cooks up a proper pot of steaming egg noodles instead. The three of them sit around, eating and talking shop about difficult cases. Peng Hanzhang tells them to slow down. He says patience brings breakthroughs. It is a warm, brotherly scene. It also makes what happens in the present day hurt a lot more.
The Hospital Silence
Back in the present, things are grim. Zhao Wenxuan is in a coma with a brain hemorrhage. He got into a brutal fight with Feng Jiang because he insisted his father, Zhao Peng, wasn't responsible for that construction accident. The doctors saved his life, but he isn't waking up anytime soon.
Here is the kicker. Wenxuan didn't report the beating. Qin Feng smells a rat immediately. There is a cover-up happening. Wenbo gets creative and poses as one of Liu Tianye's guys to grill Wenxuan's friend. The friend cracks when he sees a photo of Feng Jiang. He admits the fight was about the engineering accident.
Qin Feng visits the hospital to pressure the father. He tells Zhao Peng to stop protecting people because his family is paying the price. But then Wen Qin shows up. She pushes Qin Feng out and plays the emotional card. She feeds Zhao Peng soup and talks about how hard it was raising three kids. She regrets her parenting but tells him to keep hope alive for their son.
The Tail Becomes the Target
Qin Feng suspects Feng Jiang knows the real story behind the accident. He tells Captain Zhong he wants to investigate this informant. Peng Hanzhang finds out about this lead and gets suspicious. He borrows Zhong's car to tail Qin Feng.
Qin Feng isn't an amateur. He spots the tail halfway through the drive. He pulls into a parking lot to confirm. Ye Tianyou spots the driver from a distance. It is Peng Hanzhang. The betrayal is real.
Qin Feng realizes he needs a distraction. He proposes a new strategy to Ye Tianyou and Director Chu. The special task force will make a big, loud show of investigating to draw attention. This lets Qin Feng go underground and work the real leads in the shadows. Peng Hanzhang falls for it. He reports the task force's arrival to Hong Mushou. Hong plays Peng like a fiddle, praising his "ability" to keep him motivated against his old friends.
Cracks in the Alliance
Qin Feng watches Ye Tianyou cook noodles later that night. It triggers a memory of Peng Hanzhang's cooking. He feels the loss of that friendship.
Meanwhile, the official investigation heats up. Director Chu brings his team to Hanzhou. Hong Mushou puts on a fake smile to welcome them. Secretary Li suggests starting the probe internally. Hong pretends to reflect on his mistakes. Then the scapegoating begins. Secretary Li rips into Director Yan for the accident. Hong Mushou conveniently sends Yan away on a two-month "study trip" to get him out of the picture.
The bad guys are turning on each other too. Director Chen yells at Liu Tianye for not cleaning up the mess. Zhang Xin wants a fall guy and points the finger at Zhao Peng.
Zhao Peng is drunk and miserable about his son. When Zhang Xin tries to force him to take the blame, Zhao Peng refuses to budge. Liu Tianye actually steps up. He has his people protect Zhao Peng and breaks his alliance with Zhang Xin. He is done cleaning up their messes. Zhang Xin panics and runs to the boss with Director Chen to try and get rid of Liu Tianye.
