Coroner's Diary Episode 2 Recap
> Coroner's Diary Recap
In the bride's carriage, the new bride, Song Rou, was found beheaded, causing widespread panic. As attendants escorted the distraught Grand Princess, Madam Qin, back to her mansion, Qin Wan took advantage of the chaos to stay behind and examine the scene. The bride's childhood friend, Vice Commandant Wei, accused the Yue family of murdering Song Rou out of dissatisfaction with the marriage and demanded to take her body back to the capital.
The Young Marshal of the Shuoxi Army, Yan Chi, arrived and secured the area, ordering that no one, especially the bride's escorts, be allowed to leave. He declared that since Song Rou's marriage to the Marquis of Anyang's heir was royally decreed, the matter was of great importance, and all escorts would be detained at the Marquis's mansion for investigation. Seeing an opportunity to prove her worth, Qin Wan hid nearby.
Yan Chi noticed her and, sensing her intent, cleverly ordered his Black Armor Guards to turn their backs to the carriage, creating an opening for her. Qin Wan approached and examined the interior, noting that the bloodstains were long cast-off patterns rather than the arterial spray expected from a beheading in a confined space. She concluded the carriage was not the primary murder scene and the evidence had been staged.
Prefect Huo's son, Huo Ning, arrived with officers to move the body, but Qin Wan intervened, warning that moving the evidence before examination could compromise it. Huo Ning scoffed at her, a "mere woman," questioning her decorum. Qin Wan retorted that his ignorance of forensic procedure, despite his long tutelage, suggested his father was "raising him like a daughter."
Humiliated, Huo Ning was sidelined when Yan Chi took command, ordering his guards to carefully transport the body and carriage, making it clear Huo Ning’s men were merely porters. Later, Qin Wan confided in her attendant, Fu Ling, that she intended to use this case to establish her reputation. Fu Ling worried about the risks, as a woman seeking a role as a criminal consultant was unheard of, and the case involved powerful families they couldn't afford to offend.
Qin Wan explained that her father's name had been unjustly slandered, and she needed more than just medical skills to clear it. Her goal was to make the Grand Princess trust her forensic abilities and recommend her to the court, allowing her to become the "foremost female coroner" and bring justice to her parents and uncle. Meanwhile, Yan Chi had his subordinate, Bai Feng, investigate Qin Wan's background.
The report confirmed she was the daughter of the respected "Dr. Virtue" Qin Liang, had spent years in the secluded Medicine King Valley for her health, and had recently returned. Yan Chi found her story suspicious, noting that a sheltered girl who could travel alone with her father's coffin and remain so composed while living under another's roof was unusual. He was particularly struck by her focused observation of the corpse.
Deciding to use her for his own investigation into the Prince Jin case but remaining wary, Yan Chi ordered Bai Feng to gather all books written by the disgraced official Shen Yi, hoping to understand the man who so clearly inspired Qin Wan's passion for forensics. At the Qin residence, Qin Shuang, prompted by her sister Qin Xiang, confronted Qin Wan, calling her a jinx for ruining Qin Xiang's potential match with Huo Ning.
Qin Wan calmly replied that sisters shouldn't talk of "stealing" fiances. Enraged, Qin Shuang cursed the Grand Princess, wishing for her death. Yue Ning, the Grand Princess's granddaughter, overheard the outburst and furiously intervened. Madam Qin (the elder of the Qin household) begged for mercy, and Yue Ning reduced the standard punishment from eighty strokes to twenty.
Yue Ning then brought Qin Wan to treat the Grand Princess, who was suffering from extreme anxiety over the murder and its potential political fallout for the Yue family. Qin Wan explained that medicine alone couldn't cure an illness rooted in emotional distress. Seizing the moment, she revealed her expertise in forensics, offering to solve the case quickly to ease the Grand Princess's mind.
Impressed by Qin Wan's philosophy that forensics, like medicine, is a way to heal—by purging evil from society—Yue Ning agreed to recommend her to Yan Chi. Before Yan Chi and Prefect Huo, Qin Wan confidently argued her case. She pointed out that the coroner's report lacked a proper body examination and that the victim's identity couldn't be confirmed solely by the testimony of a suspect like Vice Commandant Wei.
When Prefect Huo dismissed coroners as "lowly" and their work as unimportant, Qin Wan quoted Shen Yi's "The Washing Away of Wrongs" on the importance of thorough examination. Skeptical but pressured, Prefect Huo challenged her to first solve an unrelated murder at the morgue. At the morgue, Qin Wan was presented with the body of Lin Daxing, whose death was ruled an illness after the accused, Wei Wu, claimed they fought but delivered no fatal blows.
The coroner, Xu He, admitted he had never performed an autopsy. Qin Wan proceeded to conduct one, discovering a hidden bruise on the chest. While Prefect Huo and Xu He vomited outside, she found the cause of death: a ruptured heart from a powerful blow with a cloth-wrapped blunt object. Yan Chi, who had silently observed the entire process, agreed to her request to keep her skills secret.
With the cause of death proven, Yan Chi ordered secrecy to protect Qin Wan's reputation and assigned her to the bride's case, which Prefect Huo now eagerly accepted. Afterward, Qin Wan explained to Fu Ling that while she needed Yan Chi's support, she had to remain cautious, asserting that her skills were her own and that gaining powerful allies was crucial. However, despite her progress, the Grand Princess's anxiety over the scandal and potential repercussions from the Emperor worsened until the stress caused her to faint.
