Coroner's Diary Episode 29 Recap
> Coroner's Diary Recap
Following a tip about Wang Xin's whereabouts, Yan Chi dispatched Yan Li, Bai Feng, and Constable Zhan to go undercover and search all the mills and wineries in the city's southeast, while the Patrol Battalion secured the area. Soon, a new victim was found in a grain mill. Based on calluses on his fingers, he was identified as a craftsman skilled in fine carving, and the disfigured corpse was presumed to be Wang Xin.
Princess Yongci summoned Ning Buyi to sketch the victim. Yan Chi deduced from the lack of struggle that the victim knew and trusted his killer. The murder weapon was a jade carver's toothless saw, and the rope used was pre-cut, suggesting the killer feared failing to sever it in one go. Ning Buyi arrived and feigned nausea before meticulously drawing a portrait from the victim's half-destroyed face.
Both Yan Chi and Princess Yongci noticed his act, observing that he only dry-heaved and his complexion remained normal, raising their suspicions. Princess Yongci revealed her conclusion that Ning Buyi was the real murderer. She presented a clay sculpture she had made from the victim's head, which perfectly matched the "first" portrait Ning Buyi had drawn of the missing carver, Wang Xin.
She reasoned that his intentionally inaccurate second drawing, combined with the use of a specialized saw, was a deliberate attempt to frame Wang Xin. Only someone who knew Wang Xin intimately could alter his portrait to have a similar structure but a different face, proving Ning Buyi knew the victim's identity and was trying to conceal it. To gather evidence, Yan Li and Yue Ning staged a public argument in front of Ning Buyi at his gallery.
Taking the bait, Ning Buyi offered Yan Li a dagger with a sheath inlaid with seven gems to appease Yue Ning, inviting him to his home later to retrieve it. Bai Feng offered to go in Yan Li's place due to the danger, but Yan Li insisted on going himself, telling the others to prepare for a swift rescue.
Princess Yongci gave him an antidote, wound medicine, and Yan Chi's eagle whistle for emergencies, promising she could heal any injury as long as he survived. Hiding her worry, Yue Ning insisted they were "good brothers for life." That night, Yan Li went to Ning Buyi's home. After drinking tea, Yan Li feigned unconsciousness. When the rescue team, led by Yan Chi, realized something was wrong, they found the house empty, with Ning Buyi and Yan Li gone.
Yan Li awoke bound in a hidden chamber, where Ning Buyi threatened to saw him in half slowly. Meanwhile, Princess Yongci discovered the true secret passage, which was submerged in water, distinguishing it from a decoy. Just as Ning Buyi was about to torture Yan Li, Yue Ning burst in and kicked him away, allowing Yan Li to break free. She furiously chased Ning Buyi, vowing to "chop him up."
Cornered by the group, Ning Buyi committed suicide by slitting his own throat. An examination of Ning Buyi’s body by Princess Yongci revealed he was already dying from a condition that depleted his Qi and blood. An "unrighteous flower" tattoo identified him as a member of the Heavenly Way Society, and a custom-made white mask found on him confirmed he was its leader.
Bai Feng’s investigation into his past revealed his father, Ning Shoude, had been a scapegoat for the Emperor’s uncle, Prince Yu, in a disaster relief fund scandal, which fueled Ning Buyi's quest for vengeance. Yan Chi clarified to a sympathetic Princess Yongci that while Ning Shoude was wronged, he was not entirely innocent like her own father.
The Emperor expressed his displeasure to Yan Chi over the unresolved military provision case, viewing it as a hidden danger within the Shuoxi Army. The situation escalated when Yan Chi learned his father had punished the men sent to secretly audit the army's accounts. Fearing the Emperor would use this as a pretext to seize control of the army, Yan Chi decided to return to Shuoxi immediately to confront his father.
He left Bai Feng in the capital to protect Princess Yongci. Separately, Li Muyun persuaded Prefect Zheng to close the murder case, despite the file noting that the Heavenly Way Society's deputy leader and other members were still at large. Li Muyun argued that leaving the case open would cause public panic and could endanger Yan Chi and Princess Yongci if the Emperor learned of their risky involvement.
Prefect Zheng reluctantly agreed to amend the report to mark the case as concluded. Meanwhile, Yue Ning brought Princess Yongci to the palace to meet Yan Ze, the Heir of Prince Xin and her childhood friend, whom she hadn't seen in a decade. Yan Ze, her gentle cousin, still wore a medicated cloth over his eyes due to a light sensitivity.
Princess Yongci diagnosed that his main ailment was cured but residual issues could be treated with acupuncture and a medicinal diet. Yan Ze quietly asked her not to alarm the Empress Dowager and invited her to his residence for a private consultation. Later, a distressed Yue Ning confessed to Princess Yongci that she felt responsible for Yan Ze's condition.
She recounted how, at age six, she got lost in a blizzard during a winter hunt, and a young Yan Ze carried her back to safety, an act that permanently damaged his eyes from the snow's glare. Filled with guilt, she declared her intention to marry and care for him for life, believing no other noblewoman would accept him.
Princess Yongci cautioned her against a marriage based on pity and asked about Yan Li, to which Yue Ning somberly replied that he might be happier without her. Upon hearing of Yue Ning's intentions, Yan Li, who was sick with a cold, reacted with fury. Bai Feng bluntly told him to take his medicine, warning that if he died, Yue Ning would simply move on.
During another consultation, Princess Yongci's examination of Yan Ze's pulse led her to believe he had been poisoned as a child. While impressed, Yan Ze chose not to discuss the past due to its connection to the imperial family. As Princess Yongci pondered this, Bai Feng arrived with news: there was "movement at Prince Jin's residence."
