Psych-Hunter Episode 21 Recap
> Psych-Hunter Recap
Shang Yu, brought back to the courtyard by Jiang Shuo, woke up disoriented and did not recognize her surroundings or the people there. When Master Bu Yan tried to greet her as "Ling'er," she initially seemed to acknowledge him as "father" before denying any knowledge of him or anyone else. Distraught, Master Bu Yan insisted that she was his daughter, pointing to the lily necklace she wore, which he had personally crafted and was unique in Changshanzhou.
He was heartbroken by her amnesia, asking what had happened to her. Meanwhile, Sergeant Bai and Qin Yiheng were puzzled by newspaper reports announcing "Terror strikes Changshanzhou as murderer Liu Zhi is sighted." They questioned how this top-secret information could have been leaked, even speculating if Liu Zhi himself was responsible. As they discussed this, another headline caught their attention: "Superstar Shang Yu." Qin Yiheng wondered if the two pieces of news were connected.
At the film set, the residents of the courtyard had become extras. While some complained about their roles as "villains" and "demons," Jiang Shuo, assigned to play Liu Zhi, expressed his reluctance, wishing for a role where his face wasn't covered. Other extras sympathized, noting how hard it must be to play one's own nemesis. Master Bu Yan observed Shang Yu, who seemed dispirited, and the director reprimanded her for her poor performance, threatening overtime for the entire crew.
Shang Yu, visibly upset, went to wash her face, with Master Bu Yan offering her a towel. Later, her manager scolded her for her lack of focus, to which Shang Yu responded that she was being constantly stalked and her house had been intruded upon. The manager, apologizing, offered to hire a butler and a driver for her, an offer overheard by Master Bu Yan.
At the premiere of "The Mystery of Liu Zhi," the director introduced Qin Dan and Jin Feng as the male and female leads. The audience reacted angrily, questioning why Shang Yu's scenes were cut and why Jin Feng, not Shang Yu, was the movie queen. Jiang Shuo was among the crowd, observing Shang Yu with concern.
Two courtyard residents watching the premiere lamented their "clown" roles, while another remarked that Jiang Shuo perfectly embodied Liu Zhi, knowing the character better than anyone. The director then invited only the "supporting actors" on stage, further disappointing the courtyard residents who had hoped for more recognition. The scene quickly devolved into chaos as reporters pressed the director about the Liu Zhi rumors and Shang Yu's fans protested the change in lead actresses, accusing the production of fraud.
In the chaotic aftermath, Jin Feng confronted Shang Yu in the dressing room, accusing her of orchestrating the fan protest and hiring people to sabotage her. Shang Yu vehemently denied it, insinuating that Jin Feng acquired her lead role through "shameless" means. Others present tried to calm the situation, urging Shang Yu to apologize, but she stubbornly refused, maintaining her innocence and leaving with feigned arrogance, observed by a lurking figure.
Qin Yiheng and Yuan Muqing investigated Shang Yu, discovering that she had no records in Changshanzhou and mysteriously appeared a year ago as an amnesiac singer. Yuan Muqing strongly suspected Shang Yu was Zhao Ling, noting that Zhao Ling disappeared around the time Shang Yu emerged and Shang Yu's consistent habit of covering her face. Jiang Shuo recalled Liu Zhi's hint that Zhao Ling was linked to the underground river, and they decided to proceed with caution.
Yuan Muqing insisted on joining their investigation. Later, Shang Yu returned home to find Master Bu Yan, who had, unbeknownst to her, applied and been hired as her butler for free after overhearing her manager discuss hiring one. He greeted her warmly and offered meticulous care, bringing her a towel, preparing her favorite dishes, and even buying fruit. However, Shang Yu remained distant and irritable.
When she asked for persimmons, which Bu Yan noted Zhao Ling never liked, Shang Yu abruptly declared, "I am not Zhao Ling," before retreating to her room, leaving Master Bu Yan heartbroken. The following day, chaos erupted on the film set when Jin Feng's body was discovered. Initially, the director was looking for Jin Feng for an audition for an upcoming movie, but her assistant reported she hadn't been seen since the previous night.
A crew member then screamed that Jin Feng was dead and that Liu Zhi had killed her, pointing to a familiar six-fingered mark. Jiang Shuo immediately recognized it as the prop fingerprint used in the movie, not an actual one. Qin Yiheng, examining the body, confirmed that Jin Feng's "seven-orifice bleeding" was merely blood smeared on her face to mimic a scene; her actual cause of death was blunt force trauma.
They realized someone was meticulously recreating scenes from the film, but heavy rain the previous night had unfortunately washed away most of the clues. Sergeant Bai, Qin Yiheng, and Jiang Shuo proceeded to the dressing room where bloodstains were reported. They noted that the crime scene had been disturbed, making it difficult to ascertain if it was the primary murder site.
However, Jiang Shuo observed dried blood on a disturbed flower bouquet, leading him to conclude that the body had been dragged and that the dressing room was indeed the initial crime scene. They deduced that the killer must be intimately familiar with the movie's details. Outside, a throng of reporters besieged the studio, demanding answers from Sergeant Bai about Jin Feng's death and whether Shang Yu was the prime suspect, speculating a connection to Liu Zhi.
Sergeant Bai stated the case was confidential but under control, suspecting an internal leak. Jiang Shuo spotted Yuan Muqing struggling in the crowd. Rushing to her aid, he caught her before she fell, admonishing her for her recklessness. Yuan Muqing admitted she had sprained her ankle while trying to find him. Jiang Shuo then piggybacked her back to the dressing room, gently massaging her ankle and explaining a technique Master Bu Yan had taught him.
Yuan Muqing informed them that the news of Jin Feng's murder had spread, causing widespread panic and leading many to believe that Liu Zhi had literally emerged from the movie. Following a lead, Jiang Shuo, Qin Yiheng, and Yuan Muqing visited the newspaper office that first reported on Liu Zhi. The eager reporters there tried to barter information about Liu Zhi for details on Jin Feng's case.
Jiang Shuo and Qin Yiheng, however, threatened them with charges for spreading fake news and revealing private information, claiming their informant within the film studio had already been arrested. Under pressure, the reporters confessed that the film factory manager, Henry Zhang, was their source for the Liu Zhi story. Meanwhile, Henry Zhang, on a phone call with the director, flippantly dismissed concerns about Jin Feng's death, suggesting it might even boost the film's publicity.
Jiang Shuo and Qin Yiheng confronted Henry Zhang and the director. Henry Zhang claimed he had merely intended to generate buzz for the new film and was shocked by Jin Feng's murder. The director, initially hesitant, insisted that Liu Zhi was a character he had "randomly invented" from a dream and had no knowledge of such a person existing in reality.
Under pressure and implied threats about the real Liu Zhi, the director confessed that the script for "The Mystery of Liu Zhi" was actually written by a former screenwriter, Xiao Zhi, who had suddenly quit. When Shang Yu was questioned, she affirmed her alibi, stating that Master Bu Yan could confirm she was home on the night of the murder. She also revealed she had been stalked by a hunched man wearing a hat but couldn't clearly see his face.
However, the moment Yuan Muqing mentioned Liu Zhi, Shang Yu became agitated, claiming to feel unwell, and abruptly left the room. Outside, Shang Yu's fervent fans aggressively blocked the police, accusing them of harassment and baseless accusations, pointing out the police's inability to solve the case. Meanwhile, Qin Yiheng interviewed the film factory's gatekeeper, who, despite dozing off, vaguely remembered Jin Feng entering the dressing room with a hunched man on the night of her death.
This description aligned with Shang Yu's account of her stalker. Returning to the dressing room to join Jiang Shuo and Yuan Muqing, a scream pierced the air. Another victim had been murdered, his throat slit. This crime also mimicked a scene from the movie, but a subtle difference—an extra vertical line on the Liu Zhi mark—suggested it was a deliberate clue left by the victim.
Before they could fully process this, an officer arrived, reporting that suspects had been apprehended, identified by the theater manager. Jiang Shuo rushed to find his courtyard residents being arrested. They frantically explained that they had received an anonymous letter which stated "Zhao Ling is the killer," and instructed them to go to a specific location, which turned out to be the scene of the second murder.
The writing on the letter had vanished shortly after opening, leaving them without proof and believing they had been framed. Jiang Shuo vehemently argued with Sergeant Bai, asserting his friends' innocence, but Sergeant Bai, citing the public outrage and the need to follow protocol, insisted on taking them to the station, promising a thorough investigation. Despite their release due to insufficient evidence, the newspapers continued to sensationalize the events, branding the courtyard residents as "monsters."
The residents were subsequently harassed and pelted by an angry mob. Mantou blamed herself for wanting to be a star, but Bai She reassured her, emphasizing their innocence and condemning the mob's unjust accusations. They reflected on the mysterious letter, realizing "Zhao Ling" referred to Shang Yu, confirming the killer knew Shang Yu's true identity.
Despite the confirmation that Shang Yu was indeed Zhao Ling, Master Bu Yan lamented that his daughter, now Shang Yu, had changed completely, alternating between strange smiles and angry outbursts, unable to recognize him. Jiang Shuo and Qin Yiheng agreed that Yuan Muqing should stay with Shang Yu to care for her, especially since there was no immediate danger.
Qin Yiheng, reviewing the case, speculated that the mysterious letter, by intentionally using Zhao Ling's name, indicated the killer knew Shang Yu's secret. He considered the hunched man the primary suspect but felt stuck after the witness's death. At the police station, Yuan Muqing meticulously re-watched "The Mystery of Liu Zhi" for the third time.
She confirmed that since the film had only screened once at its premiere before being postponed, only the staff and audience would know its intricate plot and details. This led her to deduce that the murderer must have been among those who had seen the movie. She also questioned why Shang Yu, initially heavily promoted, had been replaced by Jin Feng as the female lead. Meanwhile, Jiang Shuo and Qin Yiheng returned to the director.
Fearing for his life after their previous conversation, the director finally confessed: the script was not his, but written by Xiao Zhi, a former screenwriter who had abruptly quit. The director explained that Henry Zhang had started a relationship with Jin Feng and then forced Xiao Zhi to rewrite the script to expand Jin Feng's role. Enraged by this "sullied" work, Xiao Zhi quit without collecting his pay, wanting no further association with the film.
The director also vaguely recalled Xiao Zhi being "a little hunched," a detail that immediately caught Jiang Shuo and Qin Yiheng's attention. They surmised that Xiao Zhi's resentment over his creative work being disrespected could be a strong motive for Jin Feng's murder, though the reason for implicating the courtyard residents remained unclear.
Confident in the director's given address for Xiao Zhi due to his fear, they set off to confront him, intending to ask him directly about his motives and for Jiang Shuo to potentially enter his mind palace.
