Detective L Episode 1 Recap
> Detective L Recap
Ma Boyuan was about to drive his car to Paramount for entertainment, but his wife, Ruan Mengzhu, blocked his path. When he threatened to run her over, she challenged him to do so. Meanwhile, Qin Xiaoman, a recent top graduate from Hua Dong Police Academy, arrived in Shanghai. After finding a rented room at Sullivan Apartment, the landlady, Mrs. Wang, showed her around.
Mrs. Wang mentioned the apartment was a gift from her husband, Sullivan, and even Dou Ma Li, Chairman of the China-Western Chamber of Commerce, enjoyed visiting. Qin Xiaoman discovered a body outline under the carpet and a bullet hole in the window, excitedly deducing that a murder had occurred. Despite Mrs. Wang's attempts to downplay it, Qin Xiaoman, thrilled by the prospect, immediately signed the lease.
That night, Qin Xiaoman, while writing a letter to her aunt (with whom she had a close relationship, as her parents were deceased), heard gunshots from the adjacent room. She knocked on the door, but a disheveled man curtly dismissed her, claiming she was mistaken. Suspicious, Qin Xiaoman attempted to climb onto his balcony from hers, almost falling. The next day, Qin Xiaoman reported for duty at the police station.
Impressed by her academic achievements, Detective Superintendent Savoy listened as she requested a search warrant for her suspicious neighbor, whom she described as a Chinese male, around 1. 8m tall and 30 years old. She specified hearing three gunshots from a modified Colt M1911. Unexpectedly, the very neighbor, Luo Fei, appeared in the station and fired a gun towards Detective Superintendent Savoy. Qin Xiaoman instinctively pushed Savoy to safety and tackled Luo Fei.
It was then revealed that Luo Fei was actually a special consultant to the police station, known for his extraordinary investigative skills. He explained he was demonstrating how to create "ghost bullets" using warheads made of materials matching the target, such as sawdust for wood, which was why he had shot the wooden board behind Savoy. He also confirmed that the gunshots Qin Xiaoman heard the previous night were part of his experiments.
Luo Fei, through observation of a letter Qin Xiaoman had mailed to her aunt, accurately deduced details about her family background and character, much to her astonishment. Luo Fei reviewed recent case files and found the disappearance of Ruan Mengzhu, reported by her husband, Ma Boyuan.
Luo Fei found Ma Boyuan's overly detailed description of his wife's attire on the day she vanished (a ginger-yellow Duoyun crepe cheongsam, golden heels, pearl earrings, a jade bracelet, and Ricou red nail polish) highly suspicious. He concluded Ma Boyuan was either a genius or lying, especially when Qin Xiaoman mistakenly recalled the landlady's nail polish as brown, when it was in fact wine-red.
Luo Fei chose Qin Xiaoman as his partner, as Detective Superintendent Savoy insisted he work with a detective. At the Ma mansion, Luo Fei noted signs of the family's decline, such as patches of cheap sand on the pathway, only one elderly servant, and repetitive antique vases used merely for display.
Ma Boyuan’s mother claimed her son was heartbroken, but Luo Fei observed evidence of expensive meals from Richard Restaurant, and the mother constantly interrupted Ma Boyuan when he tried to speak. Luo Fei asked to see Ruan Mengzhu's farewell letter. While Ma Boyuan went upstairs to retrieve it, Luo Fei quickly searched the room. He spotted sweepstake tickets and freshly polished dancing shoes, suggesting Ma Boyuan was planning to go dancing at Paramount.
Luo Fei examined the letter and deduced it was a year old, using the paper, ink, and a reference to the film "New Woman," which was released a year prior. He confronted Ma Boyuan about presenting false evidence. Ma Boyuan, agitated and drinking, began to confess about his wife's controlling behavior and impulsively spoke of wanting to kill her.
Just as he was on the verge of revealing more, the family lawyer, Wu Qing Feng, arrived, having been called by Mrs. Ma. Wu Qing Feng challenged Luo Fei and Qin Xiaoman's presence without a search warrant and forced them to leave. Before departing, Luo Fei whispered something to Ma Boyuan, leaving him visibly shaken. Luo Fei noticed Ma Boyuan's car in the courtyard and decided to return that night.
Later that night, Qin Xiaoman followed Luo Fei to the Ma mansion. Although she claimed to be investigating a suspicious person rather than trespassing, she joined Luo Fei in sneaking in. Luo Fei inspected Ma Boyuan’s car, noting its recent polish despite the overall neglected state of the house, which suggested an attempt to cover something up. Inside a scratch on the car, he found a broken fingernail with red polish, and a piece of ginger-yellow Duoyun crepe cheongsam fabric.
Luo Fei reconstructed the event: Ruan Mengzhu had clung to the car window to prevent Ma Boyuan from driving off to seek entertainment. As the car sped up, her grip failed, her nail broke, and she was struck. Luo Fei also discovered replaced sand on the driveway and the scent of gasoline, confirming a car accident. He theorized that Ma Boyuan had faked the disappearance report to divert attention.
Qin Xiaoman asked about the body, and Luo Fei initially suspected it was buried in the garden, having noticed disturbed earth near the doghouse earlier. However, he quickly changed his mind, realizing Ma Boyuan's unusual visit to his father's remote grave, rather than searching for his wife, meant the body had been moved there. As if on cue, Ma Boyuan drove out, and Luo Fei and Qin Xiaoman swiftly hid in the trunk.
Ma Boyuan drove to a cemetery, shovel in hand. They secretly emerged from the trunk and followed him into the graveyard. Luo Fei found fresh soil and what appeared to be Ruan Mengzhu's hair. However, Luo Fei then questioned whether Ma Boyuan was truly the murderer or merely a victim, considering that Ma Boyuan’s emotional confession might have been based on his perceived reality, not the actual truth.
