Psych-Hunter Episode 27 Recap
> Psych-Hunter Recap
Police officers investigated the backgrounds of several women who had ordered cheongsams from the boutique, gathering information from their acquaintances. After reviewing the gathered clues, Jiang Shuo, Yuan Muqing, and Qin Yiheng analyzed the most likely perpetrator, focusing on Cao Yun Yi, a man with a history of violence. They hypothesized that his violent tendencies, once satisfied by harming Chun Na, would escalate and lead him to target other women. The team immediately split up.
Jiang Shuo, Yuan Muqing, and Qin Yiheng went to the department store to find Cao Yun Yi, while Chief Bai and his men searched for Pan Heng and Chen Gui. Strangely, Cao Yun Yi had not been to work for several days. Meanwhile, both Pan Heng and Chen Gui knew Zhou Lan from the Lan Xin Cheongsam Boutique.
Chen Gui's concubine, when questioned, initially suggested his wife was staying with friends, but Chen Gui himself was dismissive of his missing wife, stating that she was enjoying her freedom and he felt better without her around. Chen Gui showed no concern, playing mahjong and claiming he wouldn't shed a tear even if his wife was killed. He revealed he suffered from a terminal illness, which he used as an alibi.
Another associate of Chun Na described how Cao Yun Yi initially treated Chun Na well, even redeeming her, but later, after getting drunk, he would beat her, leaving bruises on her body. Chun Na's friend mentioned that Chun Na believed "love should last a lifetime," despite the abuse. Cao Yun Yi’s full name was identified. Chun Na had been missing for three weeks.
Liu Yin Yin's friend explained that Yin Yin became pregnant by her university boyfriend, Pan Heng, who then wanted to break up and force an abortion. Yin Yin, distraught, declared she would rather die than abort the child, and then disappeared. Pan Heng, when questioned, claimed his parents disapproved of their relationship due to differing backgrounds. He confessed that Yin Yin got upset and fought with him after he praised Zhou Lan’s beauty, leading her to visit the boutique herself.
He denied harming Yin Yin, stating he had been in Rongcheng for business when she disappeared, and only returned a few days prior. Back at the police station, Jiang Shuo deduced that the initial reports about missing clinic nurses were likely a collective protest against poor treatment rather than actual disappearances. He then focused on Liu Yin Yin, Wang Gui Fen, and Chun Na, whose cases suggested a pattern.
Jiang Shuo believed that Cao Yun Yi, with his violent tendencies, was the most suspicious, predicting that his aggression would intensify and spread to more women after Chun Na's disappearance. He organized the timeline: Chun Na first, followed by Liu Yin Yin, Wang Gui Fen, and then Zhou Lan and Qin Yan. Jiang Shuo, Yuan Muqing, and Qin Yiheng learned from the department store that Cao Yun Yi had been absent for days and obtained his home address.
At Cao Yun Yi's messy house, they found a defaced magazine cover depicting a woman and a blood-stained earring on an altar. The blood had solidified, indicating the owner's death occurred some time ago. Following a sound, they discovered Cao Yun Yi's mother tied to a bed, covered in injuries.
She tearfully pleaded with them not to arrest her son, blaming herself for his violence, revealing that his father passed away shortly after he was born, and she would frequently whip him and lock him in a dark room. She confessed her son now viewed all women as evil and that he had beaten both Chun Na and herself with a whip. Despite her son’s actions, she maintained he wouldn't commit kidnapping.
When pressed about Cao Yun Yi's whereabouts, she hesitated but eventually mentioned he had been mumbling about going to Taihua Road. They located Cao Yun Yi at Taihua Road, where he was burning offerings. He remorsefully spoke of Chun Na, admitting he had been blinded by rage, and expressing regret that their argument might have led to her death.
He admitted to finding the earring after their argument, which occurred when Chun Na threw money she earned from working at Paramount to pay off his gambling debts, then stormed off. He tried to find her the next day, assuming she was at a hotel on Taihua Road. He stated he placed the earring on the altar for atonement, as it was Chun Na's 21-day memorial.
He explained that he did not report Chun Na's death because he feared being blamed due to his known violent tendencies. When shown photos of the other missing women, he denied knowing them, except for Zhou Lan, whose beauty he admitted to coveting, and he attempted to approach her for a cheongsam for Chun Na.
He swore he was not involved in the women’s disappearances, claiming an alibi of being at a casino where he lost money and was beaten on the night Chun Na disappeared, leaving his legs injured. Back at the police station, the investigation hit a snag. Chen Gui's terminal illness, Pan Heng's alibi of being out of town, and Cao Yun Yi's alibi of being at the casino meant all primary suspects had alibis.
Furthermore, these three men did not know the other two missing women. Jiang Shuo then proposed that Qin Yan might have discovered the real killer during her interviews and deliberately left clues for them. Yuan Muqing, upon hearing "Taihua Road," recalled visiting a temple there in her childhood with her father, where a stone showed erosion from dripping water, just like in a photo Qin Yan left. The three detectives went to the temple on Taihua Road.
Inside, they found blood-stained items and several memorial tablets covered by white cloths, representing the missing women. Jiang Shuo discovered a red string, which, when pulled, revealed the women's cheongsams hanging from the rafters. Qin Yiheng noticed that the handwriting on the memorial tablets was identical to Qin Yan's, suggesting a connection between her and the missing women, or that she erected the tablets. Later, at the police station, relatives of the missing women came to collect their belongings.
Sun Zhi Liang, an employee of the Lan Xin Cheongsam Boutique, expressed his grief, remarking that Zhou Lan had spent her life caring for others but never for herself. He revealed his unspoken affection for her, describing how he would quietly support and protect her. He then asked Yuan Muqing, whose figure was similar to Zhou Lan's, to model for a cheongsam he wished to make in Zhou Lan’s honor, hoping she would return safely.
Meanwhile, Jiang Shuo and Qin Yiheng decided to investigate the Rongke Cafe, frequently mentioned in Qin Yan's reports, located in the eastern outskirts of the city, thinking it a plausible hiding spot or escape route for the killer. As they prepared to leave, a police officer delivered the results of Yuan Muqing's requested comparison: the marks on the memorial tablets were made with a tailor's crayon.
Jiang Shuo and Qin Yiheng immediately realized the danger Yuan Muqing was in at the cheongsam shop and rushed there. At the cheongsam shop, Yuan Muqing was modeling the cheongsam for Master Sun. While he was measuring her, she noticed the red marks left by the crayon on her hand and remembered seeing similar marks on the memorial tablets. This realization sent a chill down her spine.
Master Sun, sensing her shift, tried to strangle her with the measuring tape around her neck. However, Yuan Muqing, skilled in self-defense, quickly overpowered and subdued him just as Jiang Shuo and Qin Yiheng burst through the door. At the police station, Sun Zhi Liang remained defiant, staring at Zhou Lan's memorial tablet. He refused to disclose the whereabouts of the missing women, declaring that he would make "those who harmed" Zhou Lan suffer a fate worse than death. Unable to get a confession, Jiang Shuo entered Sun Zhi Liang's mind palace to uncover the truth.
