Love Me If You Dare Episode 11 Recap
> Love Me If You Dare Recap
Following their successful resolution of the Red Leaf Villa case and establishment as a team, Li Xunran arranged an exclusive office for Bo Jinyan and Jian Yao. Just as Jian Yao inquired about new cases, her best friend, Han Juan, called in distress, explaining that Han Juan's sister, Xiao Ran, who was Ruan Ming Huai's dormitory roommate, was terrified.
A female body had been discovered on the school's back hill, and the victim was identified as Ruan Ming Huai, a 19-year-old first-year student in the Economics and Management Department. Bo Jinyan, Li Xunran, and Jian Yao arrived at the crime scene. A dagger, identified as the lethal weapon, lay two meters from the body. Bo Jinyan assessed it as a hasty, immature murder.
He noted the killer continued to stab Ruan Ming Huai even after a fatal cut to the throat and lingered at the scene, showing no fear. He deduced that the excessive violence, fueled by hatred, also brought the killer pleasure, suggesting a nascent antisocial personality that would likely lead to more murders if not stopped. The police notified Ruan Ming Huai's parents, who were ordinary textile factory workers and had already struggled to send her to Jiangzhou University.
Ruan Ming Huai's death occurred between 9 and 11 PM the previous night. Her backpack contained meal cards, some money, makeup, tissues, and keys, but her phone was missing, which was unusual for a girl her age. Jian Yao immediately concluded the murderer was from within the university, as coercing someone on campus would be difficult, and there were no signs of a struggle on the path leading to the crime scene.
She deduced that Ruan Ming Huai came to the secluded spot willingly, likely for a date, a common meeting place for young couples. Bo Jinyan agreed, labeling it a "date of death." Li Xunran was tasked with tracking Ruan Ming Huai's missing phone and checking her communication records. The police then interviewed Ruan Ming Huai's three roommates: Xie Xiao Ran, Huo Xiao Lu, and Zhao Ying Zi.
They revealed that Ruan Ming Huai frequently stayed out overnight, and they had covered for her the previous night. Huo Xiao Lu recounted meeting Ruan Ming Huai and Xie Xiao Ran at 7 PM outside the administrative building, where Ruan Ming Huai intended to deposit the class's meal fees, amounting to over 40,000 yuan, but the office was closed.
Huo Xiao Lu then returned to the dorm, went to sleep around 8 PM, and woke up around 9 PM to find her roommates gone. Ruan Ming Huai had received a text message around 9 PM and left the dorm. Xie Xiao Ran and Zhao Ying Zi returned separately around 11 PM. At 11:30 PM, they covered for Ruan Ming Huai during a dorm check.
The roommates shared that Ruan Ming Huai had fallen in love with Su Bei upon entering school. While Su Bei initially seemed uninterested, his attitude shifted, and they began dating, though the roommates were unsure of the exact nature of their relationship. The 40,000 yuan in meal fees was confirmed to be missing from Ruan Ming Huai's cabinet. The investigation shifted to Su Bei, whom Jian Yao acknowledged as handsome, though Bo Jinyan dismissed his looks as superficial.
Su Bei claimed he was watching a soccer game alone in his dorm at the time of the murder. He admitted Ruan Ming Huai had texted him, "I'm here. Where are you?" to which he replied asking what she meant and stating his location in the dorm. She never replied. Su Bei expressed regret for not calling her back, acknowledging she could be "a little bothersome" but he never anticipated such a tragedy.
When asked about potential suspects, Su Bei mentioned Ruan Ming Huai's high school classmate, Wei Si Yuan, who had always liked her and even followed her to Jiangzhou University. Su Bei observed Wei Si Yuan watching him play basketball with what he described as "murderous" eyes. Li Xunran's team confirmed Ruan Ming Huai sent only one text and made no calls during the time of the incident, and her phone was still located within Jiangzhou University.
The signal led them to a locker belonging to Wei Si Yuan, confirming Su Bei's suspicion. Wei Si Yuan, described by the roommates as introverted, had a close relationship with Ruan Ming Huai in high school, though not a "true" romance. When interrogated, Wei Si Yuan vehemently denied killing Ruan Ming Huai. He recounted seeing her leave her dorm dressed up just before 10 PM on the night of the murder, assuming she was meeting Su Bei.
He followed her to the foot of the hill but hesitated to go further, waiting about 30 minutes. When she didn't reappear, he returned to his dorm, only learning of her death at noon the next day. He claimed no knowledge of her phone.
Bo Jinyan, however, believed Wei Si Yuan was being framed, arguing that a murderer who carefully cleans a crime scene and uses larger shoes to disguise footprints wouldn't carelessly leave a blood-stained phone in their own easily accessible locker, especially since the phone contained no direct evidence against Wei Si Yuan. Bo Jinyan stated that the case's complexity was perfectly suited to develop Jian Yao's investigative skills, despite her inexperience and emotional nature, assuring her he would adjust his pace.
Jian Yao suggested checking surveillance footage for anyone else who might have accessed Wei Si Yuan's locker, but Bo Jinyan dismissed this, noting that school locker rooms do not have cameras. He redirected the focus to other admirers of Su Bei. Meanwhile, the roommates discussed Wei Si Yuan's release, having heard police found evidence proving his innocence and now suspected another girl. Guo Xiao Ling, a classmate of Su Bei and another fervent admirer, was then questioned.
She admitted to pursuing Su Bei and dismissed Ruan Ming Huai, claiming Su Bei was merely "playing around" with her and that Ruan Ming Huai had "nothing but money." For the night of the murder, Guo Xiao Ling stated she was in the study room until 9:30 PM, then took a walk, returning to her dorm alone at 10:30 PM.
Jian Yao found Guo Xiao Ling's comment about Ruan Ming Huai having "nothing but money" particularly suspicious, given Ruan Ming Huai's average family background. This raised the possibility that Ruan Ming Huai either falsely claimed wealth or was excessively generous with money towards Su Bei. Further forensic analysis revealed numerous wounds on Ruan Ming Huai's body, inflicted during the frenzied act of her throat being cut, and Su Bei's fingerprints were found on the zipper of Ruan Ming Huai's backpack.
Surveillance also showed Guo Xiao Ling confronting Su Bei, accusing him of being on the back hill and trying to use this as leverage to keep him, but Su Bei dismissed her, telling her to report him to the police if she wished. Later, Su Bei was observed meeting Brother San, a debt collector, to deliver blood-stained money. Police apprehended Su Bei and the others present. Su Bei confessed that Ruan Ming Huai had been consistently giving him money.
He admitted he had lost a bet on a soccer game that ended at 12:20 AM and could not repay his debt. His phone's built-in GPS function, which he had accidentally activated through an app, indicated his location on the back hill at 10:30 PM on the night of the murder, coinciding with a missed call from the gambling company demanding payment.
He confirmed that Ruan Ming Huai's text message earlier, combined with his knowledge that she was alone on the hill and had collected the 40,000 yuan in meal fees, prompted him to go there to take the money, leveraging her affection for him to approach her. However, he insisted he did not kill her, claiming she was already dead when he arrived at the hill.
He admitted only to taking the money, including the public funds, and denied planting the phone in Wei Si Yuan's locker. Jian Yao, despite the mounting evidence, believed Su Bei was telling the truth. She pointed to the nature of Ruan Ming Huai's wounds—her disfigured face and extensive skin damage—as unlikely actions for a male killer primarily motivated by robbery. She speculated such injuries indicated female jealousy.
Jian Yao also noted mud on Ruan Ming Huai's skirt, despite the hard ground, suggesting someone had deliberately brought mud from nearby and poured it on her, reinforcing her theory of a female perpetrator. Bo Jinyan concurred that the killer was female. Jian Yao then suspected Guo Xiao Ling, but questioned how she would have known Ruan Ming Huai's location on the hill without receiving a text. Bo Jinyan implied he knew the killer's identity but lacked the necessary legal evidence, suggesting they would need Jian Yao's friend to help.
