Psych-Hunter Episode 29 Recap
> Psych-Hunter Recap
Based on Sun Zhi Liang’s testimony, Qin Yiheng deduced that Liu Zhi’s method involves first finding perpetrators, then orchestrating cases for Jiang Shuo and his team to solve, essentially treating them as his prey. Jiang Shuo elaborated that Liu Zhi intends for him to solve a Rubik’s Cube within the Psych, with each solved puzzle bringing them closer to the clues about the Yin River.
Sun Zhi Liang confirmed that while he never saw Liu Zhi’s face, his voice suggested he was a man in his 50s or 60s. With this, the team could at least confirm Liu Zhi’s general age and gender, though his ultimate motive remained a mystery. They resigned themselves to waiting for Liu Zhi to make his next move to find a weakness. The situation in Changshan was becoming increasingly dire, with war looming, prices soaring, and resources dwindling.
General Yuan, aiming to conserve military strength, decided against deploying his army to deal with bandits who had robbed a supply truck. Instead, he dispatched the Peace Preservation Corps, threatening their dismissal if they failed. The unstable climate instilled panic among the populace, who desperately sought refuge in the concession. However, they were barred from entering. Yuan Muqing, also attempting to enter, found herself trapped outside with the surging crowd.
Learning of Yuan Muqing's precarious situation, Jiang Shuo immediately rushed to the concession, fearing for her safety. Amidst the escalating unrest and pushing between the crowd and the guards, Jiang Shuo was hit and rendered unconscious by an assailant in black. Jiang Shuo regained consciousness to find himself in the Psych, face to face with Liu Zhi.
Liu Zhi declared that Jiang Shuo’s fate was intertwined with Changshan and everyone in it, and to uncover the truth, he must successfully complete Liu Zhi’s challenges. As a clue, Liu Zhi showed Jiang Shuo a house marked with "Year 1912." Upon waking and sharing this with Qin Yiheng and Yuan Muqing, Yuan Muqing suddenly remembered a newspaper she had seen earlier that day.
It advertised an auction for a "house of murder" that had been deserted for eight years, precisely aligning with Jiang Shuo’s "Year 1912" clue. Qin Yiheng commented that this move was typical of Liu Zhi’s unpredictable style and proposed sending someone to investigate the house. Qin Yiheng used his free time to visit his father, Mr Qin, in the hospital.
Mr Qin, engrossed in organizing family reports, claimed to have recovered and intended to resume his duties at the Qin family, denying that he was insane, despite what others believed. Qin Yiheng, troubled by his father’s erratic behavior, consulted Dr Shen Tian, the attending physician, about his father's recent condition. Dr Shen Tian confirmed that Mr Qin consistently received his prescribed medication, Antiafe, and showed Qin Yiheng the correct prescription.
However, Qin Yiheng found it perplexing that his father’s condition showed no improvement, especially since Antiafe is a known sedative. Dr Shen Tian also mentioned that Mr Qin rarely napped, attributing it to his seemingly energetic state. The following day, the auction for the haunted house commenced. Xiao Quan, present with Sergeant Bai and his men, relayed information obtained by Yuan Muqing: the house's original owner was Jiang Ye, a once-respected philanthropist.
Eight years prior, his entire family met a sudden, unexplained death. Subsequently, Jiang Ye was implicated in collaborating with the Japanese by selling them mineral resources, leading to the military government to confiscate his property. The house had since been plagued by rumors of haunting, preventing its auction until now. Zhen Jiang Yan, the vice president of Xintai Auctioneers and the event's head, began the bidding.
Despite the house's infamous history, many people, desperate to secure a foothold within the concession, eagerly participated. Qin Yi Chi and Yuan Muqing's steward engaged in a heated bidding war, quickly escalating the price to 5,000 flat silver. However, just as Qin Yi Chi's bid was about to be confirmed, a masked woman dramatically intervened with a bid of 10,000 flat silver.
She then loudly accused Qin Yi Chi and the auction house of orchestrating a fraudulent scheme, claiming to possess irrefutable evidence of a pre-arranged deal, and scattered photographs as proof. The masked woman's accusations plunged the auction room into chaos as the lights suddenly cut out. Zhen Jiang Yan, the auction's head, used the confusion to retreat to her office. Qin Yiheng, who had been observing from outside, saw Zhen Jiang Yan's husband, Sun Zhilong, rummaging through her ledgers.
When Zhen Jiang Yan returned, her husband, having been instructed by Qin Yi Chi, explained his actions. Zhen Jiang Yan then warned her husband to stay out of the Qin family's affairs. The auction was deemed a failure, but Qin Yi Chi was granted access to view the house at any time. Qin Yiheng, meanwhile, deduced that the masked woman's thrown cup was a signal for the blackout.
Soon after, Qin Yi Chi, accompanied by Zhen Jiang Yan and her husband, proceeded to the old Jiang family residence, followed discreetly by Sergeant Bai and his team. Inside the supposedly haunted house, Qin Yi Chi's party noticed the cold and a pervasive foul odor, rumored to be the smell of death, but Qin Yi Chi dismissed the ghost stories, ordering a thorough search of the property for any anomalies the following day.
When a mysterious sound was heard, Zhen Jiang Yan's husband, Sun Zhilong, insisted no one else could be there as he held the key. They split up to investigate. Qin Yi Chi then discovered an open door, where he was startled by a woman in black. He stumbled back, fell over a severed railing, and was nearly strangled by a rope that had been tied to an upstairs door handle.
Sergeant Bai and his men quickly intervened, rushing to send Qin Yi Chi to the hospital. At the hospital, after Qin Yi Chi's accident, Qin Yiheng found his father relieved that his brother's injuries were minor. Recalling that Qin Yi Chi had taken auction documents from his father's room during a previous visit, Qin Yiheng questioned Mr Qin about his brother's visit to the Jiang family's old house.
However, Mr Qin, citing his confused state, claimed no memory of it or the documents, dismissing it as his "nonsense." After ensuring his father was settled back in his room, Qin Yiheng later observed his father take his medication and complain about its bitter taste. This prompted Qin Yiheng to return to Dr Shen Tian, inquiring specifically about the white pill—Antiafe—that his father had been given.
Upon inspection, Qin Yiheng discovered the pill was sweet, not the tasteless Antiafe he expected. Coupled with his father’s unusual lack of drowsiness (Antiafe being a sedative), he realized his father had not been receiving the correct medication. Dr Shen Tian then disclosed that Qin Yi Chi himself had brought these "pills" from overseas. This discovery led Qin Yiheng to understand that the Qin family's affairs were far more complex than he had imagined.
He instructed Dr Shen Tian to maintain the pretense and not reveal their findings. Qin Yiheng attempted to confront his father, Mr Qin, for answers but found him missing from his room. After a frantic search by the hospital staff, Mr Qin was discovered outside, having purchased persimmons for Qin Yi Chi, whom he believed would enjoy them.
Qin Yiheng now suspected his father might not be genuinely insane, reasoning that Mr Qin's accurate complaint about the pill’s bitterness indicated awareness. To test Qin Yi Chi's involvement, Qin Yiheng gave Dr Shen Tian a new prescription for Barbital, a drug unsuitable for Mr Qin's actual condition, asking her to have Qin Yi Chi acquire it. He surmised that if his brother was complicit, he would deliberately fail to provide the correct medication.
Concurrently, late that night, Xiao Quan, Da Long, and Er Long from the courtyard secretly ventured to the old Jiang family residence to aid Jiang Shuo's investigation. Xiao Quan shared Jiang Shuo's findings: food scraps in the kitchen, a deliberately sawn-off banister, and a new rope at the scene of Qin Yi Chi's accident, all pointing to a premeditated incident. At the old house, they stumbled upon a group of individuals seeking shelter.
After scaring them off, Xiao Quan discovered a dropped pawn ticket, deeming it a valuable clue to bring back to Jiang Shuo. Jiang Shuo, Qin Yiheng, and Yuan Muqing gathered to discuss the clues. Sergeant Bai provided official details about the Jiang family: the father, Jiang Ye; mother, Kou Wen; daughters Jiang Yan and Jiang Mi; son, Jiang Shuo; and youngest daughter, Jiang Tian.
Yuan Muqing noted Jiang Ye’s background as a philanthropist and miner, but found it suspicious that the entire family died "suddenly overnight" after his treason conviction for selling minerals to the Japanese, rather than him facing a court-ordered execution. Sergeant Bai shared the common rumor that Jiang Ye had killed his family and himself to spare them future suffering, though police records officially listed their deaths as "details unknown."
The conversation then shifted to the pawn ticket, which bore the name Wan Jiang Shuo. Yuan Muqing pointed out the striking similarity between this name and Jiang Ye's son, Jiang Shuo, questioning if it was mere coincidence. Following this lead, Jiang Shuo, Qin Yiheng, and Yuan Muqing went to a pawnshop. The pawnbroker immediately recognized the jade pendant associated with the ticket, confirming it belonged to Wan Jiang Shuo, a notorious gambling addict who frequently pawned and redeemed the item.
The pawnbroker directed them to Wan Jiang Shuo's regular gambling establishment. Upon arrival, they found Wan Jiang Shuo, who had just lost all his money and was desperately trying to secure another loan, even offering his life as collateral, only to be refused. Jiang Shuo and his companions then confronted the gambler.
