Psych-Hunter Episode 33 Recap
> Psych-Hunter Recap
After their investigation at the bathhouse, Jiang Shuo, Qin Yiheng, and Yuan Muqing returned to the police station to analyze the details of the murders of Mr. Tang and Gui. Patrol officers had found no suspicious individuals near the bathhouse, and Yuan Muqing herself had searched Sakurako’s room without finding any clues. Qin Yiheng deduced that Gui had gone straight to the bathhouse after leaving the port and was killed shortly after arriving.
Jiang Shuo then suspected that the murderer must have known Gui would be there and waited for him. They connected Gui’s acceptance of Mr. Tang’s suspicious cargo to the previously discovered firearms. Yuan Muqing then focused her attention on Qin Yiheng, who, feeling conflicted due to his family’s potential involvement, removed his family ring and entrusted it to Jiang Shuo, hoping it wouldn't influence his judgment while seeking the truth.
Yuan Muqing, regretting her earlier comments, left to try and elicit information from the rescued children, but they remained unresponsive. Meanwhile, her aunt, Mrs. Wan, confided in Yuan Muqing about her husband’s recent odd behavior—being distracted and frequently absent from home. Despite her concerns, Mrs. Wan asked Yuan Muqing not to confront him directly, a request Yuan Muqing reluctantly honored.
Qin Yiheng then went to question his brother, Qin Yichi, about the family’s involvement in arms smuggling and its connection to the murder case. Qin Yichi refused to cooperate, insisting it was a matter of the Qin family’s credibility and accusing his brother of underestimating him and for abandoning their family by removing his ring. Qin Yiheng argued that his brother's actions would only bring ruin upon their family, especially with the police now focusing on the smuggling.
Qin Yichi denied direct involvement in any murder. Ignoring his brother's defiance, Qin Yiheng returned to the courtyard to join Jiang Shuo. They learned that Master Bu Yan, the tattoo artist, had gone into hiding, suggesting the killer was a powerful figure. Jiang Shuo had collected various persimmons, hoping they might trigger some insight into the "persimmon" clue Master Bu Yan had left. Yuan Muqing suddenly recalled that the driver A'si’s daughter, Nan Nan, was also Sakurako's daughter.
Given that Sakurako frequented South Street, where A'si lived, Yuan Muqing decided to arrest A'si for interrogation. While on patrol, Officer Zhu deliberately separated from his partner to secretly meet with a “Group Leader.” Zhu claimed A'si had betrayed them and killed Tang Ming and Gui, vowing to kill A'si in revenge. However, the Group Leader instructed Zhu not to kill A'si yet, as A'si still possessed a vital map. He ordered Zhu to leverage A'si's family to control him.
Elsewhere, Mrs. Wan, growing increasingly suspicious of her husband's activities after noticing mud on his shoes, secretly followed him when he left home again. A'si, along with Sakurako and Nan Nan, was hiding in a residence. He knew the map was their ultimate bargaining chip and believed he had to eliminate Officer Zhu and the Group Leader, the only ones aware of his true identity.
Despite Sakurako’s desperate pleas to abandon the plan and give up the map, A'si insisted it was the only way to ensure their safety. He departed, promising they would escape once his task was complete. After A'si left, Sakurako discovered Nan Nan missing. Remembering her daughter’s cherished doll, she suspected Nan Nan had returned for it and rushed out to search, finding only one of her daughter's shoes.
Shortly after, Officer Zhu appeared, revealing he had Nan Nan and forcing Sakurako to accompany him to ensure her daughter’s safety. At A'si’s house, Jiang Shuo, Qin Yiheng, and Yuan Muqing found a persimmon leaf in the backyard, its pattern matching the mysterious tattoo. They took the leaf to Master Bu Yan, who identified it as from a Japanese Kaki tree, an expensive and difficult-to-grow species, hinting at a Japanese connection.
Yuan Muqing still believed it could be a crime of passion involving Sakurako and her suitors, but Jiang Shuo argued for a more profound secret linking the tree and the individuals. Soon after, an officer reported Master Bu Yan’s death, seemingly by the same method as Mr. Tang and Gui. At the scene, Jiang Shuo and Qin Yiheng found a button clutched in Master Bu Yan’s hand, which matched a missing button on Officer Zhu’s uniform.
This discovery led them to discreetly follow Zhu back to A'si’s house. Hearing a struggle inside, they burst in to find Zhu fighting with A'si. A'si ultimately killed Zhu, but Jiang Shuo and Qin Yiheng managed to subdue A'si. A'si was brought back to the police station but refused to answer any questions. Suddenly, the devastating news of Mrs. Wan’s death arrived.
She had been found by the bathhouse hot springs, her neck broken, with a persimmon leaf and Sakurako’s hairpin found nearby. Overwhelmed with grief, Yuan Muqing confronted A'si with the hairpin. A'si confessed to killing Mrs. Wan, claiming she had stumbled upon his murders and intended to alert the authorities, denying any involvement from Sakurako. Qin Yiheng immediately pointed out that A'si could not have committed the murder, as he had been with them when Mrs. Wan was killed.
Despite this, A'si maintained his confession. With the truth still shrouded in mystery, Jiang Shuo and Qin Yiheng entered A'si’s Psych, which appeared as an eerie, desolate forest. They hoped to find something related to the persimmon tree that would unlock the secrets of the case.
