A hyperthymnesic boy and his phantasmal brother solve spooky cases
Notable Actors/Actresses
Chinese Title
Rising From the Ashes
Network: Tencent Video
Cast
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| Wang Zi Qi: Liao Si Yuan |
Sun Yang: Liao Zhi Bai |
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| Sun Yi: Qi Xia |
Liu Min Tao: Qi Mei Hua |
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| Zhang Yu Jian: Shu He |
Ding Xiao Ying: Li Zhi |
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| Huang Wei De: Na Wei |
Chen Ruo Xuan: Gai De |
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| Zhan Xin: Ma Luo |
Mini Recaps
2019. Buhe City, Overseas. Scene is SET. Moody, colorful city, nebulous country, expansive river, rowdy and chaotic gemstone market. A jade stone is cut revealing a decapitated head! 😱
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| How to avoid censorship? Fictional city in fictional country before 2020 |
Credits: Child watching his home in flames. Newspaper. Glasses. Bullet. Gun. Bunk bed. Fiery doors circle to be a clock. Pen as the pointer. Jade pendant falls into the water. Art piece. Brain. Gift Box. House ruins. "Embers"
Chapter 1: Brother
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| Each chapter has an artistic title card |
Music is uplifting. Check out this warm home scene. The details are all here.
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| "Liao Si Yuan, Memory Champion" Award is behind that photo |
Liao Si Yuan (Wang Zi Qi) is woken up by his annoying big brother, Liao Zhi Bai (Sun Yang). Zhi Bai teases him that he must be dreaming of being kissed by Lai La (Wang Ruo Shan). I don't want to recap the pubescent joke. You're welcome. They are speaking Cantonese, I believe. Bits of the Buhe language is spoken throughout the drama.
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| Just regular dreaming, ok? |
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| 13 year old Zhi Bai |
In a voice over, Liao Si Yuan introduces us to his life. They live in Buhe, a city in a tropical country with a large Chinese population. He is a senior college student. His brother and he have been inseparable after a fire 10 years ago.
Ma Luo (Zhan Xin), a fellow classmate, threatens him for "taking his girl". Brother Zhi Bai isn't hanging around for this. No worries, police comes to take Si Yuan away.
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| Si Yuan: ??? |
Ni Ke (Wang Hong), the police deputy chief, is surprised at Si Yuan's lack of reaction when he watches a video of the jade stone revealing the decapitated head. Si Yuan is unimpressed since he's seen corpses for years because of his brother. What's this got to do with him? The victim is Lai La. Dun, dun dun!
Lai La has a bad rep. People gossip that she is a call girl. No one wants to associate with her.
New chief comes in to take over the case. Shu He (Zhang Yu Jain) recognizes Liao Si Yuan immediately. Si Yuan looks at Shu He with daggers in his eyes, but reluctantly talks to them about Lai La. They were just classmates. Ni Ke, "Oh, reallllllly?"
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| Shu He means "Robot" in Buhe 🙃 |
Flashback to 3 days ago when he last saw her. She is quietly putting together a puzzle when some jerks are taking pictures of her and sexually harassing her. Si Yuan tricks them into sending the icky text messages to a teacher instead, getting them punished.
Lai La shocks him by kissing him. "Liao Si Yuan. I like you". Then she just walks away.
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| A kiss in the 1st episode? |
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| I want to go to this school and have class outside like this |
Back to interrogation. Shu He shows him a receipt for Qi Pharmacy, his family's pharmacy. Lai La purchased meds and Si Yuan delivered it. She refused his offer to take her to the hospital and asked if he want to come inside. He declined and that was the last time he saw her. She looks after him reluctantly.
Shu He concludes that Lai La died right after seeing Si Yuan. Ni Ke ponders why didn't she just go downstairs to the nearby clinic to buy meds but have him deliver it? Si Yuan deduces maybe there was someone she didn't want to see. Shu He looks a bit impressed. He later tells Ni Ke to look into this clue. He is perplexed why the head was found first. Usually in dismemberment cases, this is last to prevent identification of the victim.
Interrogation room. Si Yuan watches the video again when Liao Zhi Bai whooshes in to review the case. Si Yuan is hypermnesic, able to vividly recall memories. His world earthquakes as he recalls the memory of his last meeting with her. Big brother Sherlock Holmes. She looked nervous, like trying to hide something from him. She doesn't usually dress this way, but is wearing a white dress and light make up. She seems to know she may die, but may be protecting him. The murderer may have been in her house.
Liao Zhi Bai tells Si Yuan to leave this case to the police, he's just a student. But Si Yuan doesn't trust police like Shu He because of how he slandered Zhi Bai.
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| This police station is going to be the hottest place to hang out |
Flashback to 10 years ago. Young Si Yuan is at a press conference where Shu He announces the cause of the Yong'an Village Liao Family Fire. Murderer was Liao Zhi Bai, a police academy student, who caused the fire under a drug addicted haze. Young Si Yuan goes ballistic at this false accusation, attacks Shu He, biting his forearm bleeding.
Present day. Do they hear someone crying? It's Ma Luo. Si Yuan lets him drink away his sorrows while our male lead drinks milk. Ma Luo cries and rants. Why is Si Yuan so emotionless? He wasn't always this way. Flash to inside his memory palace. The floor has a layer of water. The walls are like a library card catalog (remember those?), each box contains a date. 2009/05/29 contains the fire. He is unable to open this one.
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| Milk. It does a body good. |
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| Si Yuan's Memory Palace. Mine is more like a shack these days. |
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| TBH, only made a GIF because I couldn't screenshot the flames correctly Netizens call these Chinese medicine boxes which is hilarious for the later themes, but Si Yuan may have been Westernize somehow. These are library card catalogs which holds his memory database. |
Unable to remember that day. The fire took away everything from him, his mom, his dad.... Except....
From that day, he was able to see the dead. Cuts to previous scenes in case the audiences hasn't realized it yet. Si Yuan was alone in all those interactions with his brother. On re-watch, I realize that his room only has 1 toothbrush, 1 pair of slippers, and no bedding on the top bunk. Details 😍
Song En Medical Clinic which is under Lai La's apartment. Super sus Dr. Song En (Zhou Tie) tells a female student about his special study abroad program. He's only here to contribute to society. He was also the buyer of the jade stone. He denies knowing Lai La. After the earlier questioning, Shu He comes to this clinic to investigate further. His nurse provides a fake alibi for him. After Shu He left, Song En tells his nurse to check out Si Yuan. Song En obviously knows Lai La but seems confused about why her head was in the stone.
At school, Li Zhi (Ding Xiao Ying) is ready to kick school jerk's arse for slandering her friend. Ghost Zhi Bai reminds Si Yuan of School Code #1043408 which he uses to scare the bullies away. This is their dynamics. Ghost Zhi Bai pops in here and there to help Si Yuan and be cute.
Lai La's parents are terrible. They only care about how much money they can get from her death. Si Yuan is incensed by he injustice.
"When alive, she was your ATM. When dead, she is your flesh and blood."
Recalling more of that last meeting, she smiles as she thanked him for including her in his social practice activity. Before leaving, he pauses again, waving bye to her.
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| Beautiful |
Si Yuan blames himself for not realizing something was off. Talking to Zhi Bai, he wants him to teach how to investigate.
Si Yuan: I want Lai La to know that even though she is no longer alive, at least someone in this world cares about what she went through. I care what others don't. I demand justice for her when no one else does.
Zhi Bai: But Si Yuan, once you make this decision, you'll see a completely different world under this broad daylight. You'll witness the cruelest side of humanity, and you might lose trust in people forever. There's no turning back.
Brother asks him if he is ready to be a sleuth. Needlescratch. "What's a sleuth?" 🤣 Bro. Bickering cuteness. "Sleuth" is a more poetic word than "detective"...
Dr. Song En learns Liao Si Yuan's name. Oh, Si Yuan must be after him. A blood feud.
A week ago, during the social practice session, Lai La is listening to music on her headphones. The melancholic song is beautiful. Si Yuan says something to her but she didn't hear him mostly due to the shock that he's talking to her. Music stops. Will she dance with him? The kids need a demo.
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| Black and white world, slowly color seeps in |
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| Her eyes... |
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| If they were in another drama where she doesn't die in the 1st ep, I could ship them. |
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| Fans say his hands are small. ? |
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| I really like her vibe |
The Liao brothers talk about the case. They go to Dr. Song's clinic. Dr. Song stops Si Yuan from leaving. He acts chummy reminding Si Yuan that he used to have a clinic at his village. Si Yuan doesn't remember the creepy guy.
Shu He asks the medical examiner, Qi Xia (Sun Yi), about her findings. Lai La's body will likely in a river water near incense plaster factory.
Scenery is beautiful. Liao Si Yuan and Liao Zhi Bai are already at the suspected river site. Zhi Bai noticed Song En's muddy shoes and tires. There was also a scratch on his new car. Big bro teaches Si Yuan criminology theories.
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| Look Ma, no shadow! Also, only 1 helmet for the motorbike. |
Song En is hiding in the forest about to shoot Si Yuan. Police arrive and he retreats without anyone being aware of his presence.
Police station. Shu He asks Si Yuan how he figured out Song En had probably dump the body at that river. Si Yuan ignores him, likely cataloging all the curse words in all the languages for him. Oh, Shu He and Liao Zhi Bai used to be friends.
Qi Xia examines Lai La's body. She is shocked by what she finds. No water in the lungs, Lai La died on land, body dumped in water after. She died before being beheaded. Needle mark on arm, unknown substance was injected. And one more thing... She was pregnant. What duh...
Ma Luo doesn't believe it. Si Yuan recalls fellow students gossiping that Lai La got into someone's car. Someone who owns a clinic. Yep, likely Song En.
Drama has GREAT artists. Ma Luo is Michelangelo reborn. His drawing of Si Yuan. Very "vivid and lifelike".
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| Kinda looks like Nezha |
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| Si Yuan has no appreciation of art. |
Si Yuan borrowed some evidence from the police station. A lighter from a "love hotel" was found in Lai La's pocket. Maybe this is the original murder scene?
Si Yuan questions the clerk. Privacy, no can tell. Zhi Bai tells him to bribe the guy. Si Yuan nods and threatens the guy with the law book. 🤣 Lai La and Song En were here on the night that she was murdered.
Si Yuan sprays down the the room with luminol. The entire place lights up. Eek. They conjecture how Lai La was beaten and killed here. As Si Yuan is about to call the police with this evidence, a masked man locks him in and sets a huge fire.
Panicking, Si Yuan calls for his ge. Cough, choking on the fumes, helplessly calling for Zhi Bai to help him. Flashing to his childhood with Zhi Bai telling him to run. Zhi Bai pulls him up. Si Yuan dramatically opens his eyes.
A confident voice firmly declares: I won't let you die.
He breaks the window and jumps off the balcony, falling several stories down, fortunately caught by an awning, but landing unconsciously.
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| This is a very bad, no good, horrible day. |
Qi Xia rushes to the hospital. Before Si Yuan can greet his sister, she almost beats him for being so reckless. He won't be in 1 piece for long.
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| I like watching him get beat up. |
She wants him to explain why he was such an idiot to jump down from 5 stories.
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| Zhi Bai: What? It was only 5 stories |
Qi Xia: You almost died in a fire for someone you barely knew, is it worth it.Zhi Bai to Si Yuan: Word to the wise. Stop talking. She's about to blow up.
Si Yuan isn't wise. XD
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| Zhi Bai: I can't take this kid anywhere. |
Qi Xia, teary eyes, broken voice: I want to thank you for living, because only if you live can I live.
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| Si Yuan saved Qi Xia too |
Present day doctor tells her that Si Yuan is at risk for Dissociative Identity Disorder (DID). Si Yuan took medicine for it years before. He might relapse. We'll ignore the medical inaccuracies.
A flighty beautiful lady who is struggling with her shoes calls Si Yuan's name loudly in the hospital halls. This is Qi Mei Hua (Liu Min Tao), his adoptive mother, who doesn't like him calling her "mom". She's Mei Hua Jie instead. She hands him her liquor bottle and glitter pumps so that she can make sure he's still in 1 piece. What time is it?
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| Bare foot in a hospital?!? This is the 2nd scariest scene in this drama. |
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| A good son caries his mom's shoes and XO bottle |
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| Ostrich siblings |
Their home is so warm.
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| Family photo is very meaningful |
"Xiao Yuan, I want to eat steamed pork ribs tonight" - Working hard overtime, Project worker
"Pretty girl, I am not coming home tonight" - A beautiful woman
Si Yuan looks at old news papers. This setting is another world. Newspapers exist?!? "Genius detective sets fire to his home during drug induced hallucinations"
Ghost Zhi Bai pops in: What if I told you everything they said is true? I, alone, was responsible for the fire.
Warning: horror movie scene. The pretty girl (Mei) that was talking to Dr. Creepy from last episode about his "scholarship program" is at his clinic to apply. These instruments don't look necessary for an interview. She overhears "egg harvesting" and "video record Mei's procedure for the clients". Aaaaaaaaaah. That's hers and my silent 😱 😱😱. She tries to run but is captured.
Shu He looks at his scar from young Si Yuan's bite. His watch hides it. Ni Ke and he go to Dr. Creepy's house for further questioning. Dr. Creepy's guilty look tells us he was the masked man who caused the hotel fire. Shu He gets him to admit to knowing Lai La. Lai La had came to this hotel room, an hour later Creepy came out with a large suitcase. Creepy claims someone must be framing him. He's "honest" with them Lai La invited to the hotel, gave him a drink and drugged him. He woke up, she was gone, and he just went home. His suitcase had icky fetish toys. Shu He is silently enraged by how Dr. Creepy talks about Lai La and warns him that he is watching him.
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| Rugged hawt. |
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| There's a popular video of these "non-existent" curves HERE. |
Ghost Zhi Bai coaxes his little bro. He was just kidding, he's trying to get him to use the fundamental principles of deduction. Cute bickering.
Zhi Bai: Yes, Si Yuan. Deduction requires logic and precision. But we can't let our emotions cloud our judgment. Because we will twist the facts to fit our theories. So if you are not mentally prepared to face the worse possible outcome, then we might as well stop investigating now.Si Yuan: And what could be the worst possible outcome?
Mei Hua Jie comes in with yummy fruit. Rambutans! She sweetly checks Si Yuan's forehead Mei Hua Jie, you are sitting on Ghost Zhi Bai! 🤣 Mei Hua Jie would dominate charades.
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| "Were you in love with the dead girl?" |
His mom tells him to stop risking his life over this.
Mei Hua Jie: Truth, justice, I don't know about this. I don't care. All I want is for our family to be happy and live in peace.
Zhi Bai notes that Mei Hua Jie is careless most times but she really cares about Si Yuan.
Si Yuan breaks into Dr. Creepy's clinic. He finds Lai La's files. Is Song En forcing these women into prostitution? He finds a picture of Lai La and another girl, Cai Na. Cai Na is dead, she jumped off the school building not long ago.
Doctor returns, he has a gun!
Song En: Does your mom and sister know you are here alone?
Si Yuan: No. They don't know I'm here. But the 300 viewers in my livestream do. Oh. There's 350 now.
"A university student takes you into the home of a deranged killer!" Si Yuan has a 3rd career! XD
Song En: Kid. Never joke just for views.
Show is trying to convey a social message here. 😂😂
Song En burns the files. He uses the most advanced cellular technology of 1998 to call Xun Ge to help him. Mysterious Lai Hai Xun becomes interested when Liao Si Yuan's name is mentioned. He speaks to his even more shady boss, who is fishing in a swimming pool? Oh, it's just a pretty small stream.
Boss man: Keeping the bait (Si Yuan) alive is finally useful. The one that should have died will come out again.
Si Yuan talks to Cai Na's ex-boyfriend Mike. Cai Na kept asking him for money so they broke up. This brothers are alike. Their "I don't believe your sh*t" 💩 looks are exactly the same.
Si Yuan visits Cai Na's home and meets her mom. Lai La had also lived with them. Lai La escaped an arrange marriage in high school and they took her in. These girls are so beautifully supportive.
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| Color comes back with hope |
This is a realistic tragedy. Lai La's mom said, "You were born here. In this town, when the time comes, all girls have to do this!" She was probably forced into marriage herself, now she is forcing her own daughter. Evil bit part actress has tears in her eyes for this scene. Casting. 👏
Lai La carries a butcher knife with her to protect Cai Na.
Cai Na's mom, regarding Lai La: She came into this world only to suffer.
She gives Si Yuan Lai La's last belongings, a box with puzzle pieces, and Cai Na's egg retrieval records (She didn't have the means to investigate, so didn't give them to police.) Poor mom cries, she doesn't understand why Cai Na would do this, they never put financial pressure on her. Again, just a small role, but the actress was very moving. 😢
Brothers deduce that Song En tricked Cai Na into selling her eggs and Lai La's pregnancy may be a surrogate pregnancy. Illegal exploitation. Si Yuan calls Qi Xia who confirms that that Lai La's fetus had no biological relationship to her. Shu He rushes to arrest Song En.
At Song En's clinic, the minions trap Shu He in a room. A bunch of guys attack him. Ni Ke and the other cops are frantically trying to break down the door to save him. Shu He discovers tons of kidnapped women here. He recognizes Mei. It's so terrible, these poor girls. He gets a second strength, likely telling himself that he must save them, whips out his baton. It's a pretty chaotic and cool fight scene. 💪🏼
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| Microwavable Ramen Credit Amy for the awesome GIF and not the bad pun. 😆 |
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| Free tooth extraction |
Ni Ke finally gets in, but our chief has awesomely handled everything. Minion confesses that Song En is out to kill Liao Si Yuan!
Cai Na and Lai La hanging out and taking that fateful Polaroid picture. Bad girls. Cai Na has never left the house after 10 pm. This is Lai La's first beer. Yeah, it's overrated. They cross out the yucky beverage off their bucket list. They are so cute and wholesome. They promise each other to go see snow after college.
Meat packaging plant. An essential setting of all horror shows. Oh, no! Bloody and bruised Ma Luo has been kidnapped by Song En. His idiots caught the wrong guy because Ma Luo was riding Si Yuan's motorbike. Sad and kinda funny.
Oh, there's Si Yuan wearing an apron! But it looks like overalls. The cute deleted home scene where Qi Xia pulls his ear must have been here. Anyways.... Song En calls Si Yuan, tells him to meet on top of Jialan Tower. Si Yuan rushes there, Shu He and police are monitoring downstairs.
There's a cell phone at the top. Song En tells him to jump off the building and he will let Ma Luo live. Song En mutters about the Liao fire and says Liao Zhi Bai offended people and deserved to die. Si Yuan's face is sweaty as he goes to the edge. He takes one step up, ready to jump. Song En stops him. "Don't take me as a fool. The police have set up safety devices. I want you to jump from the north side. 5, 4......"
Si Yuan sprints to the other side. Police says "target located". Shu He commands them to go into rescue Ma Luo
"3" Si Yuan continues running.
"2" Ma Luo faces the meat cutter
"1!" Si Yuan jumps!!!
Body lands. Screen blackens. News Story reports "a college student, who was studying early childhood education, fell off Jialan Tower".
Song En escaped. Poor Ma Luo. He breaks down and blames himself for causing Si Yuan's death.
Song En calls Boss Man's minion to tell him Si Yuan is dead but the one he expected never showed up. Song En was a small part of the fire. Looks like they won't silence him. Bam!!! A truck rams into Song En's car. Oof.
A masked man, not to be confused with Song En being a masked man causing the hotel fire, with a "Darker" voice shows Song En his sewing work. While unconscious, masked guy had cut open Song En's abdomen and left him a gift. Totally medically possible that he didn't bleed out and die...
Police leave Ma Luo alone at the station as they go hunt Song En down. Well, he's not totally alone....
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| This is why Si Yuan only has imaginary friends |
The helmet is real. Oh, Si Yuan is alive. Show doesn't have 2 ghosts as leads.
Fish lady, Song En's assistant, confesses that they posed as a charity organization to trick girls into prostitution, harvesting their eggs, and surrogacy pregnancy. They video taped the procedure as blackmail so that the girls don't report to police. She's the most despicable in this drama. How does a woman do this to other women?
Lai La came there to work part time but accidentally introduced Cai Na to them. Song En implanted Cai Na's embryo in Lai La. Freaky scene where she was strapped down to the exam table. Fish Lady doesn't think Song En killed Lai La because he was legit surprised by her death.
Ghost Zhi Bai is upset that Si Yuan risked his life and faked his death.
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| LZB is like a moody Buddha |
Si Yuan: I have you to back me up.Zhi Bai: What if one day I'm gone?Si Yuan: That day will never come.
Back and forth they argue.
Zhi Bai: Fine, live long and prosper.Si Yuan: Thank you.
This bickering is cute but I'm scared. Don't separate. Zhi Bai just wants Si Yuan to keep himself safe. When he's gone, he would be worried about Si Yuan.
Li Zhi and Ma Luo come. I owe you a cute photo of Li Zhi.
The video clearly showed that Si Yuan jumped, how did he survive? He had coordinated with Shu He. Police controlled the surveillance feed. At the right time, they cut it off and spliced in a fake jump video. Onlookers were their people so no cell phone recordings were leaked out.
Si Yuan doesn't understand why Song En had clearly killed the girls but Song En insists that he was set up by Si Yuan. Si Yuan wants Qi Xia to examine Lai La's body again. Sister is like, "is this necessary?" Si Yuan needs the truth. Lai La's real killer might be out there.
Si Yuan: The living can lie, but not the dead.
Qi Xia flashes back to living Liao Zhi Bai saying something similar
Qi Xia: My scalpel can make them talk.
Qi Xia found an injector that had Song En's and Lai La's DNA with Song En's fingerprints. More evidence that points to Song En. Convenient. But why didn't Song En destroy the needle he used to inject drugs into Lai La? That seems careless and unlike his psychological profile.
Qi Xia notices that Lai La's house is missing a rug. Was the body dismembered on this rug and then thrown away? They found traces of blood under the couch. Bingo! This is the original crime scene. What are the possible reasons for the beheading? Provoke the police? Killer with weird fetish? Lai La asked for it????? She took her own life.
Song En wakes up alone on the street. Not completely alone. He hears Lai La's voice listing his crimes and cursing him. Her voice is in excruciating pain. She's dead. She will never stop haunting him. She's inside his abdomen.
Song En turns himself in. He tried to vivisect himself. He dug out a cell phone with Lai La's voice. Shu He almost lost his robot face over this weirdness.
Song En is being wheelchaired outside by police. Mei Hua Jie and Qi Xia are passing by. Song En calls out to Mei Hua Jie. "Ms Qi! Do you recognize me?". She recognizes him as the one who hurt her Si Yuan. She kicks his arse. How can he be insane? He must be faking it. Will he get a lighter sentence for it?
Back home, we see the Liao/Qi old family portrait again. It's surrounded by photos of young Qi Xia but no young Si Yuan. Did he not like to take photos as a kid? Zhi Bai laughs that Mei Hua Ji beat Song En so badly he could hardly speak.
Si Yuan completes the puzzle that Lai La left. It is a painting, "Susana and the Elders". The story is Susana, the wife of a wealthy merchant, was very beautiful. 2 men tried to rape her when she was bathing. She refused and they accused her of adultery. People make moral judgments based on the way she dresses or acts. She was unable to explain herself and was sentenced to death. Daniel defended her and the truth was revealed. Story highlights the absurdity that a victim must be "blameless/perfect" in order to prove her innocence.
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| Cdrama didn't censor this. Impressive. |
Si Yuan flips over the puzzle. Lai La had drawn everything that happened.
Si Yuan visualizes this truth in his memory palace, each puzzle piece showing Lai La and Cai Na's friendship and hardship. Cai Na tells Lai La to repeat after her.
Cai Na: I am brave.Lai La: I am braveCai Na: I am not what they think I am.Pausing, Lai La: I am not what they think I am.Cai Na: We can realize our dreams.Lai La: Really?
Scumbag Mike begged Cai Na to get money for him to study abroad. Lai La unknowingly gave Song En's "scholarship" program info to her. During the egg harvest, Cai Na became infertile. If she calls the police, he will post the videos online. Chilling. Lai La blames herself. Scumbag Mike threatens Cai Na with the harvest photos that Song En sent him. He was working with Song En and set her up. She threatened to jump off the building, they struggle and she was pushed off. Lai La was implanted. Lai La injects herself with AH7.
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| There is a recurring theme with his eyes closing and opening He sees with his heart and mind |
Si Yuan confronts Scumbag Mike at a club. Asshole shows no remorse. Si Yuan kicks his arse. The Chu Yi Han training comes in handy.
3 people try to pull him off. Zhi Bai sits quietly. Later, Si Yuan drives his motorbike home. Zhi Bai embraces him.
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| 😢 |
Lai La voiceover: Before I die. I want to see him again. With my real face.
Si Yuan wonders if there were other accomplices in Lai La's suicide.
Zhi Bai: Why would there be accomplices? If there were, it wouldn't be a suicide.
Si Yuan: Your voice changes when you lie.
Zhi Bai: I'm not lying to you. I don't want you to lose yourself. The mastermind put her head in the stone in order to maximize attention to the murder, to catch Song En.
Si Yuan takes a walk. In the distance, he hears Cai Na's and Lai La's promise to see snow together. He looks at their Polaroid picture. It starts to snow in this tropical country. On the stairs, Cai Na and Lai La dance. The song is the one that Lai La danced with Si Yuan. 🎶 Cai Na had taught her this dance back then. Si Yuan smiles. The girls, holding hands, skip away. Si Yuan burns the picture.
Lai La: Liao Si Yuan. Thank you.
A masked man put a white flower on Lai La's locker. She was about to jump from building, but he stops her. She needs to make her death bring down Song En and the surrogate ring. She did drug Song En, then made the hotel room look like a crime scene. She recorded the phone message with her dying breath. Masked man completed the beheading and set up Song En's car to look guilty.
Darth Vader voice: I guarantee they will all face retribution. All of them.
Scumbag Mike partying club. He mixes drugs and alcohol. He dies. Good riddance.
This chapter ends. Goodbye, Lai La and Cai Na. 😢
February 9, 2008, Yong'an Village. Qi Xia gives Liao Zhi Bai a coupon for his birthday. He acts unimpressed. She coaxes him, this coupon can make his wishes come true, no matter what he wishes for. Okay, he wishes for her to marry him. She refuses. Dude, that was a lame proposal.
Young Si Yuan, he was sitting 6 feet away, waiting for his bro to play Tetris with him, agrees. Si Yuan kicks Zhi Bai's butt in the game and wins all his Agatha Christie books. "Death on the Nile", "The Murder of the Orient Express", "And Then There Were None". That's a great haul! And subtle foreshadowing. Don't read the synopsis if you don't remember or know the books. Zhi Bai has no more collateral, Si Yuan wants to take the coupon to get books from Qi Xia. No way.
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| Spoiler alert: This game will come back |
Chapter 2: Wish
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| Wedding dress in title card "Desire" |
Present day, police station. Shu He wants to continue more investigation into the Song En case, but his Director says they can't do much. The law doesn't consider buying from Song En illegal. Yeah, WTF. Director is more interested in Liao Si Yuan. He tells Shu He to let this student investigate cases. I hope they pay Si Yuan an internship fee. Folks, know your worth. Don't work charity even in Cdramas. Especially since this Director is using Si Yuan as bait. Shu He leaves without cleaning up his coffee cup. Not an important detail, just noting that Shu He is a slob when he doesn't agree but feels forced to do something.
Psych Hospital. Si Yuan watches Song En be looney. Frustrated by the dead end, Si Yuan's brain goes into hyperdrive because he is unable to open the memory box of the fire. Ghost Zhi Bai explains Si Yuan's hyperthymesia abilities. If there's a catalyst, he will remember. If no catalyst, if he tries to force it, he will get sick and may even die.
Zhi Bai: Humans forget to protect themselves.... That's your memory palace, not your prison.
A beautiful lady is secretly watching Si Yuan. Nu Na (Xia Nan) has Stage 3 melanoma.
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| Nu Na is gorgeous. I confess to taking extra screenshots of her. |
She flashes back to 2009, Yong'an Village. She's treating young Si Yuan's scrape that he got for fighting other kids who were bullying Su Pa. Nu Na smiles at Si Yuan's sense of justice at such a young age. Si Yuan promises to help Nu Na if she were bullied when he grows up. Kid got more game than his bro. He gives her a Wishes Coupon that he stole. 🤣
Nu Na remembers seeing young Si Yuan calling for his parents as his house burns down. She tries to come to him, but Song En restrains her. She is unable to sleep with these memories. She digs out a picture of the fire.
Qi Xia re-watches Si Yuan jumping from the 5 story hotel. She remembers Zhi Bai doing the same. Qi Xia is very worried that Si Yuan's DID has returned.
Si Yuan shows up at the station to report for duty. He still hates Shu He. LOL. Qi Xia lectures Shu He. Si Yuan happy. Qi Xia lectures Si Yuan. Si Yuan not happy. "Who's side are you on?"
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| "Attention!" |
Ghost Zhi Bai reminisces about his glory days at this police station.
Si Yuan: Ge, you are old.Zhi Bai: Why?Si Yuan: When a person is always reminiscing the good old days, it means they're old.
What a brat. XD. Is that a hint of optimism? He is much happier working for the police station.
Zhi Bai: Little bro, little bro. I'm not old. I'm dead.
Si Yuan needs to read a large stack of files.
Si Yuan: A good police officer must have empathy. Not everyone is a robot like Shu He.
Zhi Bai: A real good cop needs to be ruthless and efficient to solve cases. Excessive empathy clouds judgment.
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| Whatever, ge |
Ah, this is why Si Yuan is a kindergarten education major and not a cop. Ghost Zhi Bai is bored and wishes there were a new case. Si Yuan wishes no more murderers or victims, of course. Si Yuan is idealism. Zhi Bai is realism. Ghost Zhi Bai is a part of him.
They recognize Nu Na as one of Song En's victim. Song En is her uncle, but he sold her to a rapist. Zhi Bai suggests questioning her.
Si Yuan: But she's doing fine now. Wouldn't this reopen her wounds?
Zhi Bai: What's more important? Her wounds or the truth about our family's fire?
Ooh. I don't remember another drama asking this. When empathy and truth conflict. Nu Na's old wounds are already being re-opened by the news of Song En's arrest. All her flashbacks are still in black and white, btw. She may never have had love or hope 😢. She's also getting threatening text messages.
Si Yuan goes to Nu Na's bridal shop to find her. The assistant tells him she isn't here.
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| Lady was mean. She talked to him like a kindergartener. |
Zhi Bai tells Si Yuan to hide when he hears a familiar voice. It's Qi Xia, she's here to try on wedding dresses. "Nothing too flashy. Something easy to move in." She's alone but there is a guy downstairs waiting to pick her up. guy is Ou Wen, a new police transfer. Ghost Zhi Bai is totally not jealous. Si Yuan rubs it in. This "Oh" that he agrees that Ou Wen isn't Qi Xia's type is totally not agreeing. LOL.
Nu Na visits Si Yuan at Qi's Pharmacy. She tries to rub his hair as she tells him he's grown taller. He jumps back and doesn't want to be left alone with her. Si Yuan is totally Tang Monk. XD.
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| Look at the lady in the back side-eyeing them 🤣 |
He tells her he learned about what happened to her, he apologizes. She thanks him for catching Song En.
Si Yuan: I promised to protect you. To keep you from getting hurt. But I failed.
Nu Na is touched. She shows the old Wish Coupon: Don't be sad. You still have a chance to protect me.
She thinks someone is follow her. Meet her at Meet Bar 🙄 tonight and she will tell him about the fire.
Meet Bar. Whether in dramas or real life, he always looks out of place at clubs. He's being hit on. Tang Monk. Nu Na never showed up.
At Nu Na's bridal shop, the assistant found her. Hmm... Debating about screen shot. Cinematography is great, but I will save us the nightmares.
Nu Na's dead. Her husband, Cha Peng, is heartbroken. She was his 2nd wife. His 1st died in a car accident. Forensics sent over a report.
Shu He: Him again?
Is Si Yuan going to be a suspect in every case?
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| Si Yuan's view. There's a clue here. Have you spot it? |
Nu Na's corpse was posed as a mannequin wearing a wedding dress. Surveillance footage caught Si Yuan chasing after in the street at night. Si Yuan explains that they were supposed to meet and when he passed by her shop, he saw her walk out. He ran after her but didn't catch her. Those long legs are useless.
Qi Xia autopsy. Nu Na has the same death smile as Lai La, but she doesn't have any injection marks. I neglected to describe Lai La's dismembered head had creepy smile. Whoops. My eyes were averted each time it was shown. Cause of death is poisoning, results pending. No wounds. Ni Ke wonders if the murderer is a vengeful ghost. Shu He and Qi Xia wonder how he became a cop. Ha!
Si Yuan is most worried about getting home before Mei Hua Jie finds out. Afraid of mama. Si Yuan and Zhi Bai review. Si Yuan's super memory figures out that Nu Na must have been dead before 10:54 pm and the person he was chasing at 11 wasn't Nu Na and was likely the murderer.
2011. 4 tipsy girls leave Meet Bar, fighting over who should be the driver. No one should. Build a time machine. Come to the present. Get a Lyft. Or just call a taxi. They hit another car, causing it to go up in flames, and it looks fatal for the driver. Wedding dress in the car goes up in flames.
Present day, police station. Li Zhi and a nervous Ma Luo are here to give Si Yuan an alibi. Ni Ke is not impressed with this quacky video.
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| Serial Killer Outfit |
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| Like Scooby Doo: It's YOUUUUUUU! |
I am! There's a whole fun BTS just for this.
Oops. Ma Luo's natural coordination only helps confirm that Wang Zi Qi Si Yuan is an average dancer. Oh, that's not all! It confirms that he left at 8:30 pm and had plenty of time to go murdering. Ma Luo tries Elle Woods reasoning to no avail.
"Exercise gives you endorphins. Endorphins make you happy. Happy people don't kill...."
"Such cute dancing purifies minds. How can he kill anyone?"
Si Yuan tells Shu He his memory deduction that Nu Na must have died before 10:54 pm and not after 11:00 pm. Surveillance cam runner wasn't Nu Na but likely the murderer. Qi Xia shows Shu He photos confirming Si Yuan's theories. Si Yuan is free! Oops. Not yet. Big sister said to let him marinate. Deadpan Shu He obliges. XD
Mei Hua Jie beats the bad luck away from Si Yuan and told him to shave his head for good measure.
Our lead now looks like this.
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| Chu Chu: I think the Prince should have a very nice skull |
Spud lies. Mei Hua Jie failed. Si Yuan isn't that obedient.
Si Yuan can't sleep. He can't reconcile the old Nu Na in his childhood memory with the Nu Na that saw him the other day.
Zhi Bai: Some people change, some don't. Like me. I haven't changed a bit in the past decade.
Si Yuan: No, you have. You've become more shameless.
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| Fountain of Youth |
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| I wonder if this painting has any significance If anyone knows, give me a shout out |
Si Yuan worries that Nu Na may have been killed to silence her about the fire. Using his super memory, he recalls the killer had feet bigger than Nu Na, rough hands likely from lots of washing, no nail polish, ears pierced but the holes have closed, and.... the hairpin! Same hairpin as the wedding shop assistant! Clue from last episode. I didn't screenshot the back of her head just because I wanted to look at Si Yuan.
Looking for the assistant, they caught her with Nu Na's husband. Ick. 🤮 He bought the same hair pin for his wife and his mistress. Dude is not only a cheater, but has no creativity. But assistant doesn't fit the killer. After whooping it up, Zhi Bai tells Si Yuan to use this opportunity to grill them for clues. Burden of proof trap.
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| The side eye... 👀 |
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| Cheater doesn't know that Zhi Bai was going to hustle him for $5 million Si Yuan's microscopic smirk 😏 |
They were at the shop together and found Nu Na's body. Nu Na was an escort at a bar and met cheater. Cheater's 1st wife died in the fiery wedding dress car accident. How coincidental, the driver was Nu Na's friend. But cheater doesn't remember the name of his wife's killer. Background Zhi Bai is being cutely hilarious throughout all this while Si Yuan has the best expression management.
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| Corpse dance |
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| Liao Bros: We can't handle this guy's stupidity |
A couple wedding gowns are missing. An actress, Man Ni, had come by to borrow them for a performance but hasn't returned them yet. Cheater doesn't think Man Ni is that pretty (insert epic Zhi Bai 🙄), but finally remembers something useful. He came home drunk and overheard Nu Na talking to Man Ni and another friend. Nu Na was feeling guilty for what happened to Si Yuan's family and not doing anything. If Cheater finds what Nu Na left for Si Yuan, he will tell him as long as Si Yuan stays quiet about the affair.
Night time at Jinhu Tower. Oh, there's Man Ni. Drama's cinematography of victims is hauntingly beautiful. Maybe I will put a compilation at the end. Dead Man Ni is visible on top of the glass ceiling of the elevator (that's not the way to break through a glass ceiling). She's wearing a wedding veil and a creepy smile. Money is strewn all over.
Si Yuan wants to talk to his sister about the case. Go home, baby bro.
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| Wordless communication XD |
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| Eyebrow! |
Shu He debriefs Police Director and the other higher ups. This is becoming a wedding dress serial killer case. Man Ni had a lot of cash in her bag, but none was stolen. Both Nu Na and Man Ni were escorts at a bar. One old officer recalls that he handled the car accident case 8 years ago. The 2 victims were in the car that killed Cheater's wife. The driver was Lan Xiao Tong, who went to jail and has been missing since here release.
Si Yuan is able to bribe Ni Ke with a bottle of wine for the surveillance footage. In the morning, he heads to the murder scene and poses as a potential apartment buyer. Man Ni was a hard working actress who gaining popularity but wanted to leave her abusive agency. Hmm... Seems like drama is making a commentary here....
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| Big bro is a bad influence but baby bro doesn't mind |
Ghost Zhi Bai deduces that a man, age 28-35, knows Nu Na and Man Ni, comes from an unhappy home, independent, introverted, and had serious emotional conflicts with the victims.
Si Yuan notices footprints. About size 36. Height should be about 1.62 m. This must be a woman.
Zhi Bai, dumbfounded: How can a woman commit murder, carry the body up 10 flights, dump it, all within 5 min and 9 seconds?
Si Yuan: Unless the body moved itself.
Murderer lured Man Ni upstairs, killed her, put the veil on, and threw her down the elevator shaft.
Zhi Bai: That's impossible. The profile can't be wrong.
Si Yuan: *Sigh...* Everyone makes mistakes.
What a brat! 😂 He snaps for his brother to leave. Si Yuan is lucky that Ghost Zhi Bai can't beat him up.
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| Look Ma! No reflection! |
They found a camera in the lobby that captured a glimpse of the killer. Killer is wearing a uniform form the nearby convenience store. There's only one person that works at the tower and the convenience store. An Ni.
Si Yuan runs to An Ni's home. She's a 55 year old lady. Doesn't really fit the murderer profile.... Si Yuan pretends to be here to conduct a survey and she invites him in. People are too trusting. Both Si Yuan and An Ni.
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| There's a clue here later.... |
An Ni has a son that is rarely home. She works nights and he works days.
An Ni: We live under one roof, but we're no different from online friends.
Si Yuan looks around. He is about to open this big wardrobe cabinet....
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| 😱 |
2011 Meet Bar. Nu Na, Man Ni and their friends (the other 2 girls from the car accident) are drinking with customers. One jerk wants extra services with this cute curly long-haired girl. She tries to get away but he keeps pulling her back. Another tough, badass lady comes to the rescue and holds her hand reassuringly.
Later, the jerk and his gang beat up badass lady. Suddenly, a van rams into jerk! Yeah! The driver comes out and continues beating him with a bat. Woo Hoo!!!
Oof. No woo hoo. That's An Ni about to give Si Yuan the same treatment. Luckily for Si Yuan, Shu He has been stalking protecting him. Qi Xia had told him the DNA under Man Ni's fingernails were from a woman (Si Yuan was right!) and that Si Yuan identified An Ni as a possible suspect.
An Ni's DNA doesn't match the one found on Man Ni. But why did she sign the guilty plea? Pitifully, she explains that she signed because Officer Ni Ke wouldn't believe an ex-felon like her.
Cheater found a bank slip where Nu Na withdrew a large sum of money from her bank before she died. He also found the fire photo. Whack! It was stolen by the masked man before Si Yuan could get there.
An Ni is released. Forensics also found surveillance video that she was working in the cafe on the night of the murder. Her son, Pei Ji, picks her up. Ni Ke had investigated him. He's adopted, also an ex-convict.
Ni Ke: It's just that one is without a mother and the other is without a child.
Si Yuan learns that there were 4 people in the stolen photo, Nu Na, Song En, and 2 others. They found an old catalog of Meet Bar's Escorts. Man Ni, Nu Na, and 1st page was torn off. 4 wedding dresses are missing. Will there be 2 more victims? Time to go to a bar!
The lady who was hitting on him last time has info. But more importantly, she sees that there's a man behind him! This guy has been following him for many years. How eerie!
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| Zhi Bai: I'm not imaginary?!? |
Do you want an exorcism? 20% off. Special price, only for today! Bwahahahahaha.... Si Yuan whips out his money. Finally, he will get some peace and quiet. Naw, he knows she is a fraud but needs to hear what she has to say about Nu Na after.
Zhi Bai: Why don't you burn this money and give it to me?
Nu Na hung out with Man Ni, A Lin, and Xu Man. A Lin was first to marry, but she lives the worst life. Xu Man has the best life. Wealthy heiress, her estranged father found her and picked her up. She left Buhe.
Must to run to A Lin. Si Yuan falls from his scooter and hurts his arm. Zhi Bai wants him to go to the hospital, but Si Yuan persists. He needs to save Nu Na's friends.
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| Zhi Bai isn't happy with this risk taker. |
Qi Xia finally receives results of the unknown substance injected in victims. AH7. Flashback, Zhi Bai explains to Qi Xia that this new hallucinogenic drug is marketed at so good, that even if you died, you will die happily with a mysterious smile. Hot product. People dumb.
Zhi Bai: If I run into criminals head-on, they should be the ones to worry, not me.
A Lin is the 3rd victim. Wearing a wedding dress and mysterious smile, her body is in a water reservoir. Si Yuan has failed.
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| Killer worked really hard to get up there |
Shu He tells Si Yuan that he is off the case. AH7. The drug that Liao Zhi Bai took. The sky breaks open. I wonder if this was the natural rain scene.
Shu He: You must not touch this case. I'll investigate it fully.
Si Yuan: You are the least qualified to say this
Shu He: These are the police rules. You must not break the rules like your brother!
Si Yuan: You'll never be as good as my brother! You only know how to be dogmatic!!!
Si Yuan leaves. Shu He stops him. They FIGHT!
Si Yuan is knocked out so hard he's in his memory palace. He tries to force open the fire memory. He fails again.
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| Almost fetal like |
Hospital. Si Yuan unconsciously calls out for his brother but wakes up to Dr. Bian Ming looking over his files. Dr. Ming treated Si Yuan as a child for his DID. He doesn't look like an exorcist. What's the medicine being injected into him? Oh, just the same sedative from when he was a child.
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| He will always look sus to me |
Dr. Ming: It temporarily blinds you to things that shouldn't exist.
This is heart-breaking.
Dr. Ming: Have you seen Liao Zhi Bai?
Si Yuan: No. I haven't seen him for a long time.
😢😭
Dr. Ming: The temptation of the virtual world must be hard for you to resist. But if there were a computer that's always turned on, running a game with large memory, then its CPU is likely to burn out. Same for your brain. Fantasy and reality. Red pill and blue pill. It's hard for you to choose. I hope your brain isn't fried the next time I see you.
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| 💓🗡💔 |
Shu He notices that Si Yuan seems more and more like Zhi Bai. He tells Qi Xia that he's sorry for hitting him. AH7 has been missing for 10 years, but is suddenly back. Ou Wen comes with dinner for Qi Xia. He is cute.
Si Yuan is laying in the hospital bed by himself. He's muttering to his "ge" about the case. There's no response back. He's so lonely. His voice is so pitiful and weak.
Mei Hua Jie drinks by herself at home and must hide her liquor when Qi Xia approaches. Busted! Mama wants Qi Xia to consider Ou Wen. No need to consider. They are getting married! Huh?
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| Totally not drinking alone |
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| How to stop being asked about marriage |
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| Whut?!? |
At the hospital, Mei Hua Jie is ready to kick Shu He's butt for hurting her son. She's calling someone to "fxxk him up". Si Yuan needs to calm her down by using all his kindergarten education skills. If she beats up Shu He, how will he graduate? Hahaha. That worked.
Mei Hua Jie: Once you graduate, I will find someone to beat him up.Si Yuan: Once I graduate, 干他 (Gàn tā)!Mei Hua Jie: 干他 (Gàn tā)!!Si Yuan: 干他 (Gàn tā)!!!Spud: 干他 (Gàn tā)!!!!!
This is fun. Si Yuan's secret sly smile about appeasing his mom is so cute.
After she made she he didn't have prostate problems and should empty his bladder completely, she finally leaves him so that Li Zhi and Ma Luo, who were hiding in the bathroom, can tell him about Xu Man being back in town.
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| If your mother doesn't cause social death, is she still your mother? |
Si Yuan pretends to be Xu Man's driver. (Where did he get that load of cash? Li Zhi?). Xu Man has been in Buhe for 10 days, she hasn't received any wedding dress packages. Phew, not a victim. Therefore, the murderer? When Si Yuan apologizes for being nosy, she says it's okay, "I quite like you".
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| She's quite captivating |
He drops her off at her villa. She's flirts with him before going in. Li Zhi is here, she has broken Xu Man's water pipe. It will burst. Si Yuan is ready at the door with tools to fix it. Eek. Xu Man isn't dumb. This isn't suspicious to her at alllllll.....
2011 Meet Bar. Xu Man is crowned "Courtesan of the Year". Nu Na hugs her happily. Man Ni's and A Lin's smiles fade. Xu Man approaches a "handsome" lady, who is our heroine who kicked butt last episode. She wishes her a happy birthday and gives her a flower necklace.
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| This is a nice shot of them looking into them mirror |
Present day. Si Yuan snoops around Xu Man's bathroom, finds the flower necklace, suitcases full of cash, and a gun. He's also the loudest and clumsiest sleuth ever. He thought he was smart by dumping out the glass of water Xu Man gave him, but she is smarter. This new filming technique is just to record him passing out.
Big bro is back! Si Yuan is very careless without his protective force. Si Yuan wakes up like this. XD. Big bro is so amused. Si Yuan is funny when he's dumb. Xu Man had drugged him with amobarbital, truth serum.
Hospital (WZQ's 3rd home). Ma Luo had taken Si Yuan's place while he was out sleuthing. Ma Luo's turn to sleuth sniff. What's that nice smell? Li Zhi spills that Si Yuan slept with Xu Man 🤣and then Xu Man went to a coffee shop. Si Yuan found a wedding dress in Xu Man's closet.
Coffee shop. Si Yuan sweet talks Ni Ke for more help. Xu Man was at this coffee shop last night and filled out some survey. The Liao bros speculate that the other ladies may have blackmailed the rich Xu Man and that was her motive to kill them. Will she try to escape Buhe? Not yet, she calls Si Yuan to meet her.
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| This goofy smile gets every thing |
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| Matching clothes and positions, but also contrasting |
Based on the flower necklace clue ("tang" begonia flower), Ni Ke found out Lan Xiao Tang was friends with Xu Man. Lan Xiao Tang was the driver that went to jail for manslaughter.
Xu Man meets Si Yuan at a food stall. She tells him she's leaving soon. Some flirting to make him uncomfortable. LOL.
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| Xu Man: Stay overnight at my place again Si Yuan: Fresh coconut. No signal. |
They are candid with each other. He's not her driver. She knows he is working with the police to investigate her. He's been to her old workplace. What's up with her and her old friends
Xu Man: That's what friendship between women is like. Like plastic flowers. From afar they look beautiful, but when you get closer, it's all fake.
Si Yuan: All fake?
Xu Man: Happiness. What is happiness? Isn't life just a cycle of jumping from one fire pit to another?
She's really mesmerizing. Tragic, helpless but resilient vibe. Si Yuan zeroes in and asks about the necklace, about Lan Xiao Tang.
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| The symbolic Buddha statue in the background watches over them I love the feeling of this scene. The warm yellow tone, colorful lights and red table, the fresh coconuts... You can almost smell the food and feel the sticky air. It's vibrant, full of life, but Xu Man was suffocated in this world. She's eating happily and bitterly. |
Qi Xia investigates A Lin's house. A colleague comes late. Qi Xia teases him that his cute new girlfriend must have delayed him. Spud's facial confusion: Who is this guy? Qi Xia smells something unusual and unidentifiable.
Xu Man recalls how her father had abandoned her and her mother. Her mother died and she begged on the streets, these streets right around them here. These are Xiao Tang's favorite foods. Si Yuan relaxes a bit and eats with her as he listens empathetically. They used to wait till customers left and ate their left overs. She dreamed that when she grew up, she would make lots and lots and lots of money, to take Xiao Tang here to eat, to order whatever they wanted, to not have to wait till the restaurant closed and not be chased away.
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| Sweet, pitiful, discarded by society 😢 |
Si Yuan: Why didn't you ask her out to eat with you this time?
Xu Man: She's dead. Nu Na and her gang killed her.
Si Yuan: How do you know? Did you see them?
Xu Man, nods: It doesn't matter. I am not who I used to be. She is also no who she used to be. Time froze the most beautiful memory.
Xu Man folded a white flower. Reminds me of The Little Goldfish and the Eunuch. She dramatically sprays perfume all around her. She thanks Si Yuan for listening to her story and leaves. She doesn't know anything about the fire. Captivating conversation. The tragedy in her tone and eyes. She had drugged Si Yuan the night before. But he's kind, she needs to unburden herself, and she is also using him. There's still a cat and mouse vibe, but it's interesting how they can chat like confidants.
It's late at night, Si Yuan sneaks back home. Oof. Qi Xia is waiting for him with metaphorical and sound effects knife sharpened. Ha!
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| Daggers |
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| Big guy is always beaten up |
Si Yuan blinks when he lies to Qi Xia. Lucky for him, Qi Xia has keen olfactory nerves. The smell on him is Orlando's Wish perfume which is also the same as the one she found at A Lin's house. Production is so cool and clever. This Orlando's Wish is a reference to Virginia Woolf's Orlando: A Biography.
Shu He found that a number from Xu Man's villa called A Lin's house the day she died. Xu Man's perfume was also there. Xu Man packs cash and tears up an old photo of herself unconscious in the driver's seat.
2011 Outside Meet Bar. An Ni's abusive husband demands money from her. Lan Xiao Tang defended An Ni. This is why An Ni rammed into the jerk that was beating her. The abusive husband is lucky that An Ni's sense of saving others is greater than saving herself. It's both sad and admirable.
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| I wouldn't mind having her on my side |
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| Jerk deserved it |
This is going to be a special episode. We can tell by the music.🎶Beautiful, haunting, new OST plays. Xu Man looks over the balcony, calmly awaiting her fate. Police sirens advancing nearer. She throws a briefcase full of moolah in the wind. Money is worthless to her. Si Yuan comes. Wordless dialogue.
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| Shu He gets no holidays when he sees Roman Holiday |
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| Still not believing.... His frozen incredulous expression is hilarious. 🤣 |
Water scene! I need to add a 🦆, but it's too pretty the way it is.
Police arrest Xu Man. Interrogation room. She admits to being an escort and that the other ladies were blackmailing her. It's better that they were all dead because they were living miserable lives anyway. She laughs creepily but jokes on Shu He. She didn't admit to any murdering. There's no proof except the AH7 found at her place. She calls the lawyer, he reassures her that everything has been arranged.
Zhi Bai is giddy that he doesn't have to see any more cops since the case is over. Si Yuan isn't content. Why did Nu Na give money to Man Ni and A Lin? Why didn't Xu Man escape as soon as the killing was over? Why did she take him to the food stall? Is she trying to increase her Yelp reviewer score? Si Yuan feels like she was revealing everything to him on purpose. It's too easy.
Qi Xia comes home drunk, but not drunk enough not to catch that he was talking to Ghost Zhi Bai. 🤣🤣 She wants Si Yuan to tell Zhi Bai that she is getting married tomorrow. She tells Si Yuan a secret. When she first met Zhi Bai, she didn't like him at all. As kids, she was afraid of the dark. He offered to walk home from school with her everyday so that she isn't afraid. Awwww....
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| Baby Si Yuan had a big head |
Qi Xia: I felt like he had a light on him... I thought if I could be with him forever, I'd never be afraid again.
Flashbacks. Wishes ticket. He gives her a necklace pendant. That's in the opening theme! He promises to give her a whole garden of poppies.
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| There were a lot of BTS for filming these scenes that were cut |
She promised to wear a wedding gown for him, but he won't be able to see that anymore. 😢 She tells Si Yuan to come to her wedding tomorrow. Weird. This is like a shotgun wedding but isn't.
Liao Zhi Bai: I wish that she would forget me... but I was also afraid of when she would.... I didn't think I would become her shackle. She deserves a happy life.
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| Si Yuan: Love is icky |
Si Yuan: Philosopher Liao Zhi Bai
Si Yuan visits and apologizes to An Ni. She notices how nicely suited up he is for his sister's wedding.
An Ni: How nice. The right two people get together at last.
There's longing in her voice as she wonders when her son can be with the right person.
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| An Ni, your problem would have been solved if you had given him coffee. Coffee is important! |
An Ni lies that she doesn't have any coffee for him, but she has hidden it behind the picture frame. They check her room and found vials of androgen in the garbage. What??? Si Yuan pieces all the clues together. The pendant's name should belong to the receiver not the giver.
They leave us this hook and shifts completely to Si Yuan arriving at the wedding and looking for Shu He, the best man. Wedding starts. Where's Mei Hua Jie? Time to say, "I do", but Qi Xia pauses. Liao Zhi Bai's voice coming from Si Yuan's direction answers, "She won't". No one else, including Si Yuan, hears this. "Xia Xia" he calls her again.
He's here. Shows her the Wish ticket and tears it up. She's free, she doesn't have to fulfill it.
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| Inverse color of shirts underneath the suit jackets |
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| 😢 |
Gunshots! 💥 It is a shotgun wedding. Liao Zhi Bai takes Qi Xia's hand to run away to safety.
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| She's always safe with him |
They hide behind a pillar. She nervously asks, "Is.... is it you?"
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| This transition is cool, but not cool for Qi Xia |
Shu He and Ou Wen subdue the bad guys. Drill is over. Huh? That's an elaborate terrorist training exercise. The priest even acted "I've been shot in the head". That's why Mei Hua Jie wasn't invited. But civilian Si Yuan was allowed to participate? Okie dokie, moving on. Minor plot point.
Si Yuan raises all the inconsistencies of the case with Shu He. Why would someone as smart as Xu Man wear such strong perfume at A Lin's house and spray it in front of him? Why didn't she kill him when she knew he was working with the police? Why do her hands have no callouses like others who are trained on shooting a gun? Why fire pointlessly at him? Why is the missing wedding dress at Nu Na's shop similar but slightly different from the one in her closet? How does he know the names of different lace types? I'm impressed.
Wave after wave of reveals:
💥Xu Man purposely set herself up.
💥The real murderer is An Ni's son, Pei Ji!!!
💥Pei Ji couldn't be found in the male's prison roster because he was a woman. (Liao Zhi Bai's criminal profile was correct)
💥They kept the camera's on at Nu Na's wedding shop to mislead every one to thinking that the murderer was a woman.
💥Pei Ji is the real Xu Man.
💥Current Xu Man is actually Lan Xiao Tang.
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| Mirror image is very nifty |
Si Yuan isn't done. He has more to tell Shu He at the police station.
An Ni is done with her massive spring cleaning. Come to my house, please! Without your bat. Ni Ke is unable to find any fingerprints or DNA of Pei Ji/Xu Man.
Real Xu Man left An Ni a bank card. Oh no, those fingerprints weren't wiped off yet.
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| 😢 |
Si Yuan has questions for Luo Si, the retiring detective that handled Lan Xiao Tang's drunk driving manslaughter case years ago. Details are missing.
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| The suit was for this cool interrogation scene |
Si Yuan, like a badass, firmly fires off:
1. Why did the road surveillance footage disappear?2. Was anyone else in the car?3. Was this an accident, or was it intentional?
Final question: What's your relationship with Ms. A Lin? Why does her phone have a compromising video of you?
Luo Si: That's impossible. We only slept together once years ago. There was no video at that time...
Oof. Trap set. Trap fallen into. Si Yuan is like, "Just kidding. It wasn't a video, I saw your name on her phone log" Hee hee. Photographic memory. Useful.
Retirement commences in the interrogation room for him. Lan Xiao Tang has already arranged for the real Xu Man to board a boat to escape Buhe. Flashback, lawyer's call and the answers on the café questionnaire were details of that arrangement. 20190604. The police station is silent in their defeat.
Si Yuan: But she's still here. She will definitely come back.
Camera pans to invisible Liao Zhi Bai and Qi Xia looking at each other. Love doesn't abandon each other.
Doors open. Suitcase in hand. Si Yuan already knows who it is.
Xu Man: I am Xu Man
"Suspect, Pei Ji, formerly Xu Man. Interrogation begins now."
2011 Floating Market. Our Plastic Flowers are hanging out, glowing full of optimism and vitality.
Man Ni: I want everyone to see me on TV! (✅ Breaking News! Elevator corpse bride.)
Nu Na: I want to open a bridal shop (✅ And stay there forever) and take care of all your wedding dresses (✅✅✅❌)
A Lin: I will marry a handsome guy like Leslie Chung (✅? We don't know because your story was deleted) and everyone drool over me (Enough to drown you? ✅)
Xu Man: I just want to be with the people I care about forever
Aww... She stopped my dark humor snark. Nu Na advises her not to take love too seriously, she will get hurt. Man Ni asks, "is it love if you don't get hurt?" I get it, but no. Love doesn't have to hurt. Maybe I'm optimistic/cynical.
Lan Xiao Tang: I want a home. A father, a mother. But since this wish can never come true. I will change it. I want lots of money! I will make lots, and lots, and lots of money! ✅
It is admirable that her wish is to make lots of money instead of getting lots of money.
Everyone: May our dreams come true!
Flashback to all the murdering. Except A Lin. No ☠ scene for you! Man Ni was extra dumb.
1998. Little was tortured with electroshock therapy. Father abandoned them and her mother. He doesn't want such an androgynous thing for a daughter. 😢 Xu Man begs on the streets, starving. Sweet little Lan Xiao Tang found little Xu Man and offered them food. Real Lan Xiao Tang's flashbacks when talking to Si Yuan at the food stall scene was correct in identifying the kids. They become sisters and Xu Man promises to always protect Lan Xiao Tang.
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| The large Buddha statue was always present in their story |
Xu Man/Pei Ji confesses in doing all these crimes by himself. In the car accident, Xu Man had rushed there to pull Lan Xiao Tang out of the driver's seat. The other 3 girls were just standing there watching. Small detail, Nu Na did try to come forward, but the other two pulled her back. Other driver dies.
*I hope I am not being disrespectful. I referred to them as "Xu Man" when flashbacks shown, and "Pei Ji" in the present.
Xu Man sent/tricked Lan Xiao Tang to Southeast Asia. Xu Man didn't tell her how she solved the problem, by taking her place. Xu Man gave Lan Xiao Tang his identity, his inheritance from the terrible father. Xu Man didn't let Lan Xiao Tang find him.
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| Badass |
But the other 3 blackmailed Lan Xiao Tang. So...👰💀👰💀👰💀
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| Notice body language. Nu Na isn't part of this trio |
Luo Si testifies. It was Man Ni who was the real driver. She staged Lan Xiao Tang as the driver. Man Ni prostituted A Lin for him to erase the surveillance footage. 🤮 Unwittingly, Xu Man called Luo Si to bribe him to take Lan Xiao Tang's place in jail. Why wasn't this dude dead in a veil?
When Lan Xiao Tang came back, Nu Na and Man Ni were already dead. She's too late to stop Xu Man from doing this for her.
Pei Ji completed his gender transition with plastic surgery. An Ni anxiously waits for him to come out of surgery. This parental bond is real. Pei Ji is "disfigured completely" but fully accepted unconditionally by An Ni.
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| Tender touch |
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| He's beautiful |
Pei Ji and Lan Xiao Tang meet. 😢 They slowly step forward. Case's OST plays. 🎶"Will we meet in our dreams?"🎶Tears slowly stream down their faces. It's quiet except their soft sobs at the end. Beautiful.
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| The parallels |
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| Hiding his face and facing her courageous. This strong head turn is the same person that Lan Xiao Tang knows |
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| Resilient reassuring smile 😢 |
Si Yuan asks to speak to Pei Ji.
Si Yuan: You shouldn't have killed Nu Na. It's not just you and Lan Xiao Tang who have kept their promise. She kept hers too.
Nu Na was dying of melanoma. She had 2 last wishes. One was Si Yuan. The other was for their group of girlfriends. She paid Man Ni and A Lin to stop harassing Lan Xiao Tang and Pei Ji and give them a future.
Si Yuan: You had a chance to live a peaceful life. But because of you, neither of her 2 wishes were fulfilled.
Ouch. Drama balanced a fine line magnificently. How to not stigmatize trans people as violent creatures, how to not be disingenuous and calculating to milk sympathy. No sensationalism. Tragic society vs human nature. Nu Na made poor choices, she didn't speak when she needed to, she tried to atone, she wasn't good or bad. Pei Ji was good, was dealt a horrible upbringing, fiercely protected the ones he loved, made terrible choices that destroyed guilty and innocent lives. Yet, he isn't evil either. Pei Ji loved, was loved, and deserved love.
Pei Ji laughs bitterly: How great would it be if the 5 of us could be the same as when we first met? If I had met you earlier, would the ending be different?
Ah. Lai La said the same. I don't know. It feels like society will still beat them down. This question foreshadows the rest of the drama. If they had met Si Yuan, this kind, empathetic sounding board, this calm perceptive justice fighter, will the ending be different? And it isn't Si Yuan, per se, if any of these characters had met a person like Si Yuan, will this tragedy still occur?
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| This makeup is awesome. It takes 5 hours each day to become Pei Ji. |
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| Cinematography 👍 Reflection |
Water Night Market. Si Yuan reminisces Nu Na. She wasn't good or bad. She suffered so much.
Liao Zhi Bai, somewhat coldly: Even though she changed her mind, it was her silence and inaction that our case has remained unsolved.
Si Yuan doesn't know if he can forgive her, but he ponders...
Si Yuan: How can we demand justice from a person when they're just trying to survive?
OST. 🎶 The episode's opening scene of the ladies on the boat replays.
Si Yuan: How nice it would be if it was like the first time we met?
This nostalgia is for Nu Na, for Liao Zhi Bai, for his mom, and for his dad. And for all the characters in the drama. I love the glow of this scenery.
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| LZB, your eyes are a little freaky |
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| Better |
Speaking of wishing to meet again, Qi Xia writes another "Wishes" card, and adds it to the pile that she has written annually for Liao Zhi Bai's birthday. February 9th.
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| Coincidentally, this drama aired on LZB's birthday |
Bad guy with glasses (Liu Hai Xun) meet bad guy with muscles (Tie Xin). Tie Xin (Wu Wen Jing) threatens Liu Hai Xun, why was AH7 leaked out on the market? Liu Hai Xun's factory is the only one that produces AH7 in Buhe, he will figure it out and report back to Tie Xin. While eating the yummy barbecue, 3 things:
- Liao Si Yuan isn't a threat right now. Killing is messy (said the hired killer), find another way to get rid of him.
- 5 days to find out the AH7 leak
- Find Liao Zhi Bai's old classmate, Bai Han, for him.
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| Did my knife that I forcefully put to your neck hurt you? Aww... Psychopath. |
Si Yuan visits Pei Ji in prison to ask him about AH7. He hits his weak spot.
Pei Ji: Lan Xiao Tang has nothing to do with this. She isn't the one who killed you.
Huh? I don't understand. Who then? Tricked, Pei Ji remembers meeting the Masked Man in an abandoned warehouse. Pei Ji doesn't know who he is.
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| Show wouldn't be that obvious with the glasses, right? |
He refuses to tell Si Yuan the location of the abandoned building.
Pei Ji: When I was most desperate, someone lit a lamp for me in the dark night. I know fully well that it's like a moth to a flame, but I have no choice.
Pei Ji trying to prevent Si Yuan from being consumed with revenge/hatred and going his path? The lamp that lights the way can also engulf you?
Guards take Pei Ji away. Uh, why are they going this way. It's not the way back to his cell. Medical parole? But he didn't apply. Why hasn't he seen this guard before? Eeek. Is someone wanting to silence Pei Ji?!?
There's 1 more episode in this Chapter, but here are some great pictures of the ladies in this unit. Plastic Flowers.
Yay, Pei Ji is still alive! But boo, he is tortured by Bad Guy with Glasses (BGWG). Sorry, I'm not going to remember his name. The diamond shaped glasses are a style choice. After BGWB threatens Pei Ji with Lan Xiao Tang's safety, he describes Mask Man's looks with the most non-descript features. Shen Yi draws this:
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| Better than Ma Luo |
Si Yuan is sunbathing. Sun screen! Reviewing the 2 cases, it's obvious the Masked Man wants to cover up the truth or prevent them from investigating. Liao Zhi Bai thinks they shouldn't investigate further because of the danger Si Yuan is in. Drug dealers cray.
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| Set designer 👏 |
Si Yuan: He might be helping us by using AH7 to open up the old fire case. Ah7 = head in jade stone. Nu Na and Song En, were they participants or witnesses?
Zhi Bai: Our home is gone. I'm already dead. The truth isn't as important as you staying safe and alive.
Si Yuan: But I don't want to live like this.
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| Protective bro |
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| Stubborn bro |
Si Yuan often dreamt that he died in the fire with Liao Zhi Bai, he must find out the truth for him.
Si Yuan: Besides, won't you always be with me? Don't foreshadow! Hypothetically, if you were alive, what would you do?
Zhi Bai: Lay low, hide, investigate secretly. When you need me, I would secretly protect you.
Zhi Bai is disappearing?
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| These scarves that LSY dresses his brother in are precious |
Si Yuan figures out the location of the abandoned building with the secret assist of Ni Ke giving him traffic citation info. LZB's snap to Memory Palace is much better than earthquake transport. Zhi Bai pranks teaches Si Yuan how to use his photographic memory to search and analyze countless hours of surveillance footage. Masked Man must have followed Pei Ji. Si Yuan is soooooo excited about this tedious task.
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| Bicker, bicker. Use that big brain of yours. |
Qi Xia confronts Shu He. Why is he investigating Si Yuan as a drug dealer? Remember Scumbag Mike, Cai Na's ex? Oh, Mike was supplied a large quantity of AH7 and murdered because he was too stupid to know his limits. In 2 weeks, why is Qi Xia's little brother so awesome? He not only finds the murderer before the police, but is also careful in solving cases at the scene (except Lan Xiao Tang's villa because Liao Zhi Bai was temporarily exorcisted) and could predict the enemy's moves. Shu He suspects someone is secretly teaching Si Yuan.
Qi Xia understands. She reluctantly shows him a video of young Si Yuan. She found 10 year old Si Yuan at an orphanage, suffering from PTSD, fantasizing about seeing his brother. 😢 Si Yuan was bullied. Creepily and coldly, he suddenly gets up, possessed by "Liao Zhi Bai" and defends himself.
Young Si Yuan: You are not allowed to bully my little brother! No. You're not allowed to bully me.
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| Those eyes don't look like big Si Yuan's |
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| Dumbstruck bot 🤣 |
Qi Xia explains to a bewildered Shu He how due to trauma, Si Yuan created a 2nd personality to protect himself. But in extreme cases, the 2nd personality can take over and become the primary. DID is dangerous to him and to us. He is in danger of losing himself.
Shu He: Will he become Liao Zhi Bai?
Qi Xia: The 2nd personality is imagined by the primary. If the primary is gone, the 2nd can't exist either.... He'll lose his mind. I will never watch my brother lose his mind.
Wow. I love how Qi Xia's priority is caring for Si Yuan. There's no soap opera illusion of getting Liao Zhi Bai back this way.
Doctor said drugs only provide some relief, not a cure. Treatment is psychotherapy. Qi Xia needs to help him connect the fragments of fire memory together and discover the truth in order to treat him. Her non-answer to Shu He's question of "will she always stand on Si Yuan's side if he investigates the old fire case" is an answer.
Big bro fell asleep accompanying Si Yuan. He is really always with him, he didn't disappear to DID Disney World. Si Yuan finds the Masked Man in the video. His eyes microscopically flicker with recognition. How does Wang Zi Qi have such control over his eye lids?
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| He also slightly gasped |
His world shakes. He's transported to a forest. He slowly approaches this figure. "Ge. Ge." Before Zhi Bai turns around, Si Yuan is thrown back physically and emotionally to the present. He looks over at his brother's sleeping back.
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| White and black contrast again |
Outside the suspected hideout of the Masked Man, Si Yuan is hesitates to go in.
Si Yuan: If.... Just if the real you is still alive, will the you in front of me still exist?
Ahh.... This vulnerability... 😧😧😧
Zhi Bai pauses for what seems forever. He smiles reassuringly. He reminds Si Yuan of the English text they learned when they were young. The story is about someone who climbed the highest mountain. Everyone asked them why they did that. He answered, "It's there". He knows Si Yuan already has an answer in his mind, he will go up there, but he is hesitating because he is afraid of the consequences. Si Yuan must move forward to see the truth.
Zhi Bai: Whether it's me or him staying or whether it's the one you wanted, you have nothing to worry about. At least he's real. And I will always be behind you, supporting you.
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| This transition. He is suddenly alone but always accompanied. |
Si Yuan enters building. It's a photography studio. This cool space was designed so well by the drama. It reflects the owner. He finds this person, who is holding Nu Na's fire photo and recognizes Liao Si Yuan immediately.
Liao Zhi Bai's old classmate from the police academy, Bai Han (Zhang Song). Ghost Zhi Bai doesn't know him since he's imaginary. 🤣 Reminds me of "Ratatouille" ("I'm a figment of your imagination. How am I supposed to know that I have a son?!?"). Si Yuan tries to grab the photo from Bai Han's pocket.
Bai Han: Why are you as impatient as your brother? I thought you were going to ask about Lai La or Pei Ji first.
Bai Han admits to being the Masked Man. Flashbacks confirm. Si Yuan responds with a hint of relief. His brother isn't responsible. And a tiny gulp of disappointment. His bro isn't alive.
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| His lips tightened too 🔬 |
That's all the info Bai Han is volunteering. He points a gun to Si Yuan's head. Phew! Police are here. Si Yuan is able to grab the photo. Shoot out with Shu He and Bai Han.
Bai Han: Old pal. It's been 10 years. Is your marksmanship still this bad?
A baddie with snark. And nice glasses. And a sexy voice. 🔥 Oh, wait. Need to defend our Shu He. Hey! Give him a baton and you won't need dental 🦷insurance! Take that Mr. "I look hawt parkouring away."
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| Fighting was conscious enough not ruin the nice décor. Buddha statue reflected. |
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| Back to back eye 🍬 |
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| Gu Yi Ran move |
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| Fun. Keeping our Disney theme, very "Aladdin" |
Shu He thanks Si Yuan for his cooperation and tells him to go back to rest. The air between them is subtly different. Shu He seems to treat Si Yuan with an even more delicate tone. Si Yuan is appreciative of how many times Shu He has saved him but he's too stubborn to get over the 10 years of hatred. He doesn't argue his brother's drug allegation. Oof. Shu He ruined their moment.
Shu He: I don't know who is helping you behind the scenes. But stay away from Bai Han. Don't follow in your brother's footsteps.
Si Yuan stares at the fire photo. Tai Shu, a rabbit torturer, is in it. They need to go back to Yong'an Village to investigate.
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| Look Ma! No reflection! |
Qi Xia already predicted that Si Yuan wants to go there. She knew Bai Han too. When she became a forensic doctor, she saw Liao Zhi Bai's and his friends' drug reports.
Qi Xia: (Liao Zhi Bai) was arrogant, impulsive, proud, and stubborn. He acts like there's nothing in the world that he can't solve... He will investigate till he finds the truth.
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| Her dreamy look when she talks about LZB... Qi Xia and Si Yuan aren't blood related, but they have the same dimpled chin. |
Hmm... sounds familiar. She refuses to believe that he was a drug addict, but that's the drug report. Science mind. She never told Si Yuan because she didn't want him to suffer what she did. She also wondered if LZB was an undercover cop or had some other reasons or was simply a scumbag. But she is certain the truth will come out. Si Yuan invites her to go investigate with him. Yay! I want to see the siblings fighting together.
Shu He is working late at the police station. He takes out Liao Zhi Bai's old files and looks at his picture. He laughs and sighs at himself.
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| A rare smile. Must GIF |
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| Frown is good looking too |
Shu He: How could it be you behind this? I was the one that archived the autopsy report.... If possible, it would be nice to see you again.
Drama's unsolved mystery. Shu He and Liao Zhi Bai. Where did Shu He get the scar on his left cheek from?
Qi Pharmacy. Si Yuan and Qi Xia must head off to Yong'an before Mei Hua Jie comes home. Too late, she's baaaaack. From drinking. It's bright out?! She isn't allowed to go on his "camping" trip because she's a parent and they don't allow drinking. What kind of crappy college is this? 🤣. Her burnt orange, midriff baring dress is more stylish than most young college students. She introduces her DD. Li Zhi! They're "sisters".
Si Yuan: Hello, Auntie Li Zhi.
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| This feels like WZQ deserved it 👢 |
He's just being respectful to elders! 🤣 Si Yuan signals Li Zhi to go along with his camping story and she helps them escape Mei Hua Jie's questioning. Mei Hua Jie knows they are making excuses, but allows it as long as her kids are happy.
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| So cute 🥰 |
Bai Han watches them leave ominously.
Yong'an Village, 2009. The Liao and Qi families are celebrating the New Year together. Father Liao is thankful that the River Spirit has been brought back, the weather for crops has been good, and most importantly, Mei Hua Jie for bringing them good fortune. Liao Zhi Bai is about to graduate and he can come back home to be an officer. Young Si Yuan wants to be a cop like his brother.
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| Mama Liao speaks Cantonese |
Seeing how sweet Zhi Bai and Qi Xia are, Father Liao says it's time that they arrange marriage for Liao Si Yuan and Su Pa (Wang Zhen), a childhood friend who is also present for this holiday dinner. Uh, isn't he just out of a booster seat? Su Pa doesn't want to marry someone shorter than her. 🤣 That won't be a problem. Su Pa's mom calls her home. Feels like something is off. Drama ups the creep factor ending on the River Spirit God statue flickering with the fireworks.
Chapter 3: Yong'An Village
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| That skull... |
Bright and happy music. Lush green mountains. Car trip! Li Zhi told Mei Hua Jie that she has a crush on Si Yuan and she planned this secret camping trip to be closer to him~~. Her love will be the best medicine to heal his depressed heart. 🤣 Si Yuan can't jump out of the moving car and can only weakly protest her teasing. Mischievous big sister takes advantage of the winding road to get them closer - Hardy style.
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| You should have worn your seatbelt |
Ghost Liao Zhi Bai pleads for her to think about him and his car sickness. 🤢🤮
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| Pretty village. Set Designer has lots of details on this setting selection. |
At the village entrance, another car almost hits them, Qi Xia swerves into the River Spirit Statue. The jerk driver, Jie En (Hu Hao Fan) and his passenger, Ba Song, were completely at fault but want to start trouble. Jie En mistakes Si Yuan as Liao Zhi Bai. Qi Xia corrects him, but the jerk wants to block them from entering the village.
Li Zhi checks out the nearby gas station to look for help with their car. She gets a scare from a praying creepy lady and an old woman with cataracts instead. The mood of this case is extra spine tingling.
Li Zhi screams, door flies open, fierce girl comes in ready to knock out the intruder with a gas tank. She looks like GI Jane now. Su Pa hears that they hit the statue and runs out.
Ba Song eyes the praying lady wearing red lasciviously. 🤢
Su Pa recognizes Liao Si Yuan. He also calls out to her. Aww... His height isn't a problem anymore, eh?
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| Young Su Pa vs grown |
There's actually someone else who is happy to see our gang. Uncle Na Wa vouches for them to get rid of the villagers.
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| He's the only character so far with no name card. Oversight? |
Na Wa shu shu teases Si Yuan. "The first thing you do is looking for your wife". No one laughs except me. Su Pa tells Si Yuan she will meet him at their old haunt.
Jie En watches and calls someone. "Ge, I couldn't stop them".
Exposition time:
- Jie En, born a jerk.
- His family took over stole the Liao Family's dried fruit factory after they were wiped out by the fire.
- Father Liao brought the River Spirit God stature here when there was a drought, saving the village with rain.
- River Spirit God punishes bad peeps by making them gasless.
Liao Zhi Bai warns Si Yuan that Jie En had crashed to them on purpose. Si Yuan knows, he feels that someone has been watching them. He's right. That someone is BEHIND THEM!!!
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| Dun! Dun! Dun!!! 🐓 |
Scary. These village chickens congregate in trees and noisily interrupt filming. Gangstas. It was revealed that WZQ bought them all and made soup for the crew. 🤣
They stay at Uncle Na Wa's house which was renovated last year. Li Zhi asks the important questions. Why does everyone call Su Pa his wife? Don't be too obvious, girl. 🤣
More exposition:
- The pretty 40+ year old lady with flawless skin and perhaps not all her mental status is Su Pa's mom, Ke Xin (Jin Feng)
- The mother & daughter moved to the village like Qi Xia and her mother.
- Villagers gossip that Ke Xin cheated on her husband and that the boyfriend killed him.
Qi Xia doesn't think that seems like something the quiet Ke Xin would do. Li Zhi, quite perceptively, agrees. It costs nothing to spread lies.
Li Zhi: We are living in the modern era and they're still pinning all the blame on women.
Amen. Si Yuan asks about Tai Shu. Uncle Na Wa is taken aback. Tai Shu is his brother who has been on the run from debt collectors for years. 5 years ago, he stole their mother's savings, got on a bus and has not been seen since. Poor old mother, who was the one that accidentally scared Li Zhi at Kexin's house, has been missing her oldest son.
After Si Yuan signals for Qi Xia to leave with Li Zhi (sibling communication 💓), he asks Uncle Na Wa if he knows how Tai Shu was present at the Liao fire. That night was at the Water Lantern Festival. He remembers Zhi Bai being weird though. Drunk, LZB despondently asks the River Spirit God who it protects.
Si Yuan goes to the bus station to investigate. Tai Shu bought a ticket 5 years ago, but did he actually get on the bus? No surveillance footage. Bus Station lady remembers him because Tai Shu made a scene and dropped his fake eye. Co-worker saw him get on the bus. I'm amused by hovering Ghost LZB. Every time he is about remind Si Yuan, Si Yuan already got it. Float in. Float out. Unnecessary. 😭
Some icky customer sexually harasses Su Pa. Ke Xin, while combing her hair, watches. She takes out a red "Karma" paper and draws his truck on it. 🛻 Later, the truck inexplicably crashes. River Spirit power! Cool. I like it.
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| She is very beautiful. And creepy. |
By the river, Si Yuan, Qi Xia, Li Zhi and Su Pa are barbecuing. Awkward.... Si Yuan hands out a skewer and 2 girls reach for it. Don't worry about trite girl fights, this drama has established that no ladies really want Si Yuan. He's only good for flirting. Tang Monk. Su Pa helps Li Zhi open her beer. 🍻
- Su Pa and her mother are living fine. Villagers don't mess with them because the River Spirit protects them.
- Si Yuan will probably leave tomorrow since he can't find Tai Shu
- Su Pa looks disappointed.
Li Zhi asks Su Pa directly about their childhood engagement.
Su Pa: It's true. Back then I told him I'd only marry him if he grew taller than me. Now? Height-wise, he's barely acceptable. But personality-wise? He's kinda clueless.
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| No poker face |
🤣 True. Si Yuan denies it. But true again. Li Zhi agrees that Si Yuan is out of Su Pa's league.
Su Pa: It was just a joke when we were little. We're not part of the same world anymore.
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| There's a deeper meaning here... |
Si Yuan goes to check on their drinks. Why do they keep them in the river?
Su Pa comes over and knocks his head.
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| I'm mean. I like to watch him get picked on |
He's in his feels about all his leads being dead. Heh.
Si Yuan: Yong'an isn't the same as I remember it.... Even the river. It has a weird stench.
Su Pa hasn't noticed any differences. Si Yuan asks her if she believes his brother took drugs. Resolutely, she says "Liao Zhi Bai would never do drugs."
Su Pa: He was proud, brilliant and good-looking. He had the perfect girlfriend and a bright future. Even if he got addicted while working a case, do you think he would drag down his family?
Hmm. Seems like Su Pa really knew LZB. She reassures Si Yuan. She believes in the River Spirit because the good will be rewarded and the bad will be punished. What he hears is not as important as what he believes.
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| I don't drink, but sharing beer scenes always get me |
Su Pa: I wish for you peace, happiness, and everlasting health
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| Her serene look. Seems like a bittersweet farewell |
Si Yuan visits the ruins of his burnt down house. Is night really the best time for this? He remembers his loving parents. Big bro pops up to warn that at a crime scene, investigators and perpetrators are likely to meet. Investigators search for clues while perpetrators are here to erase them.
Liao Zhi Bai: Nice to meet you, Liao Si Yuan.
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| LSY inside, LZB outside. Symbolism? The light sources of this scene is also interesting to follow |
Eek. Ghost Zhi Bai, you aren't cool.
Si Yuan, non-reacts: You are childish.
Subconsciously, Si Yuan might have hoped to have met real Zhi Bai. Si Yuan is resolute in his quest despite these set backs.
Si Yuan: I believe in myself. And as long as you are still with me, everything I'm doing has meaning.
Ouch. That anvil of foreshadowing hurts. Si Yuan points out that these ruins have life growing in them. Before Zhi Bai can smile at his brother's innocent optimism, he screams for him to watch out for the falling debris. Bam! Analyzing the wood, the break is too clean. Someone is watching them.
Jie En and Boss Song get drunk at the factory. Jie En has good stuff to negotiate with him. Boss Song is interested in Ke Xin, who Jie En cautions him to stay away from. She's belongs to the River Spirit. Anyone who touches her, will face consequences. If Si Yuan marries Su Pa, will he be the River Spirit's son-in-law? 😵💫 Boss Song stumbles into Ke Xin's house.
Ke Xin: You're here.
She's not referring to the asshole.
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| Tusky River Spirit |
Boss Song wakes up with 1 fewer appendage.
Mei Hua Jie, partying at a night club. Bad Guy With Glasses, serenading her. Thugs in the back waving glowsticks. This is very BAD. No, it's not an acid trip.
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| I apologize. My computer knew this was an atrocity and kept deleting it. But I got it to work! 😁 |
Mei Hua Jie dumps out the gun in her purse to look for her make-up. Pouty, bimbo-voice, she threatens BGWG to stay away from her son. She knows Song En was his henchman.
Mei Hua Jie: You think I'm some pharmacist? I will kill you.
This isn't 干他 (Gàn tā)!!! She's completely menacing and BGWG knows his place.
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| BGWG is sweating bullets Especially when he looks at her gun |
Villagers upset that the River Spirit de-limb Ba Song. Jie En takes a sledgehammer to it, causing a crack. He peaks in and seems to see something cray and runs away. Scared villagers pray, they ain't part of this. Police tell them to go back to their fields. So wrong. 🤣
Father Liao has a name! Liao Ning Guo. This Yong'an policeman must be Shu He's doppelganger. "Oh.... You came here the same day as the victim?" Si Yuan's Murder Suspect Record: 3/3. 🤣🤣
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| Are you a GPS tracker for a Yong'an college student, sir? |
Ominous music. Su Pa is sus.
Jie En isn't afraid of the River Spirit anymore. Time to threaten Ke Xin. "Please" 🤢🤮 him and he won't tell anyone what he saw in the statue.
Water Lantern Festival. Nice of policeman to keep Si Yuan here for questioning and this holiday. The whole village is here, every signs in. Qi Xia reminisces buying a lantern with Zhi Bai. Tiny detail, drama's currency is called "puna". 90 of them gets you 3 water lanterns. This is very pretty.
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| Su Pa is watching in a corner. I can't tell her expression |
Li Zhi asks what Su Pa wished for. She doesn't tell her but asks back instead.
Li Zhi: Of course, I wish to be with Liao Si Yuan forever.
I can't tell if she's serious or playing. Si Yuan sighs. Su Pa laughs. Actually, based on the parallels and last episode, Su Pa probably fulfilled her promise of wishing Si Yuan "peace, happiness, and health".
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| This Ep's theme is "2 sides of the same coin" |
Some pretty for you all.
Everything is cute until a dead body floats in to destroy the mood. Jie En is on that raft. Okay, my mood is perfectly ok with this. Villagers all kneel to pray to the River Spirit.
Police allow Buhe forensics doctor Qi Xia and her little bro with special clearance to examine the body.
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| "Killer used the River Spirit to mask his crime" Si Yuan's impressed face 🤣 |
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| College student has every right to help, imaginary brother does not |
Based on the amount of candle wax burnt, river speed, and map, Si Yuan immediately calculates out that this body traveled 16 kilometers. I'm embarrassed again by my US math education. Who could run 16 miles on mountain roads in under 40 minutes to be present at the Water Festival?
Si Yuan asks Uncle Na Wa why the villagers say Ke Xin is the River Spirits wife. According to the village's tradition, when a woman decides who she will marry, she will wear a red dress. On the day the statue was renovated, they found dazed Ke Xin, wearing a red dress, in front of the statue like an offering. She's been insane since.
Jie En's death smile looks like this.
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| Maybe less creepy |
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| No bunk beds |
Si Yuan uses his super memory to check to see if all the villagers were accounted for at the festival. No one missing, all there plus one!?!
They go upstream to the original crime scene. A shadowy figure lurks. Is it the murder? Memory flash...
Si Yuan: Worse than the killer
🤣🤣🤣 Si Yuan is perpetually 10 years old with Shu He. Hey! Shu He finally arrives on scene before Si Yuan! Shu He's vacation is checking out crimes in other cities. He completely doesn't impress Zhi Bai with his "no footprints" findings. The water level is higher because flood gates were released for the festival.
Most interesting about this episode is the cinematography and parallels. It's not Zhi Bai standing shoulder to shoulder with Si Yuan, but Shu He. The river reflects them as they are discussing the case, working together for the 1st time. Their clothing styles are similar like how Si Yuan and Zhi Bai tend to dress. Both wearing same white undershirt. Zhi Bai wears dark colors instead of his usual white. Compare the pictures below. Love the light beams.
Qi Xia's autopsy findings:
- Jerk died from a penetrating wound to neck
- Had AH7 in his body, but might not be enough to kill him
- Murder weapon was a triangularly shaped, with long stick, fired from a mechanical device.
Si Yuan flashes back to Tai Shu shooting rabbits with a hand-held cross bow. Zhi Bai protects Young Si Yuan. Si Yuan's protector throughout this drama has been Shu He.
Uncle Na Wa helps look for his brother's old bow but they can't find it. It's a Buhe party. Ni Ke is here too!
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| Another parallel |
Someone stole Jie En's credit card on the night of the murder and surveillance footage caught him using it. The figure looks like Tai Shu! All out man hunt for Tai Shu ensues.
Angry villagers want police to lift the barricade around the River Spirit. They need to appease its wrath. Ni Ke says the River Spirit didn't kill anyone, it was Tai Shu.
Oh, Ni Ke, you are so fierce. Villagers aren't afraid of some River Spirit anymore. Time to get revenge on its "wife". Drama's commentary on human nature. Without an authority figure/higher power/karma/consequences, will people's animal nature take over?
Shu He and Si Yuan come to Jie En's dried fruit factory to search for Tai Shu. On the day he died, Jie En was drunk and happy, claiming that Ke Xin is his. Shu He is called away because there's trouble at Ke Xin's house before he was able to find Bad Guy With Glasses is hiding with his drug production.
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| Our guys being doubtful together. This time, they are dressed in inverse colors. |
Villagers trash Ke Xin's house and sexually assaults her, blaming her for bewitching men. This is so awful. I want the River Spirit to smite them all.
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| She's like a frightened, vulnerable child |
Even our blind granny can see this barbarity and finds help. Su Pa, Qi Xia, and Li Zhi run in to kick some asses. They are awesome!!! Women help women in this drama.
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| She's tiny but fearless |
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| You have to get through them first! Tiny detail: Li Zhi is rich. She will lawyer up. |
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| Awesome acting detail: Qi Xia's hand shook after shooting the warning shot. It's a completely dangerous and bonkers situation, she may be scared, but she will defend Ke Xin. Ke Xin is essentially a stranger to Qi Xia and Li Zhi. |
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| The protective bond between mother and daughter is powerful |
Another crowd smashes the River Spirit Statue. Si Yuan and Shu He arrive and are shocked to see what's revealed inside.
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| Si Yuan looks at Shu He for his reaction first, then the statue. |
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| Like the title card |
Trigger warning: Sexual assault
Yong'an Village 2009. Liao Zhi Bai saves teenage Su Pa from being raped by Tai Shu. I want him dead.
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| Her screams and cries were heart-wrenching |
Present day. Got my wish. The skull with the fake eye in the statue is Tai Shu. Jie En must have seen him when he made that crack. Why didn't he say anything? His mother and brother Na Wa are devastated. Ghost Zhi Bai is confused, wasn't he trash and had conflicts with them?
Si Yuan: After all, they're still family.
Zhi Bai: Family isn't just about blood. It's also about love and protection.... Whatever bond is long gone.
Si Yuan still values family even if they do terrible things. Drama says love and protection is family = Qi Xia, Mei Hua Jie and Shu He to Si Yuan. Ghost Zhi Bai doesn't forgive.
The 10 year old statue was renovated 5 years ago when Tai Shu went missing. Renovation was miraculously completed overnight. Power of the River Spirit! Come to my house.
Si Yuan discusses the case with Zhi Bai. Killer pretended to be Tai Shu to "escape" the village, then took his identity to kill Jie En. Shu He agrees, kill must know Tai Shu well in order to mimic his movements. Um, sorry Shu He, this was a private conversation that wasn't asking for your input.
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| Amy noted his "look of disgust" 🤣 |
Shu He: Was he talking to air?
Zhi Bai: I'm right here. (BTW, Zhi Bai sounded jealous)
Su Pa watches the discovery from a distance. She laughs ironically.
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| Not sus.... 🙃 |
Qi Xia says the murder weapon is similar to that of Jie En's. But something is different, she hasn't figured it out yet. Perhaps he was killed accidentally in a fight. Body was wrapped in activated charcoal and plastic, keeping the odors in. Estimated murder May 2014. Killer was clever to make people think that Tai Shu left on the bus, but knowing that Tai Shu is dead, why did they impersonate him to kill Jie En?
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| Listening intensely to every word of hers. The way she wields a pen is similar to when she and Zhi Bai were hanging out on the swing and she used a spoon to gesture "scalpel". |
The Liao bros discuss the case in the bathroom. Look ma! There's a reflection! What?!?
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| First time Zhi Bai is reflected. Is real bro closer? Or is he a reflection of Si Yuan? |
Did Bai Han kill Tai Shu? But why kill Jie En and impersonate Tai Shu, leading to he discovery of his body in that statue? Bai Han doesn't seem that dumb.
Other questions:
- Did Jie En figure out the killer and went to blackmail them?
- Blackmail for what? He's already rich.
- Ke Xin is the only one without an alibi. Could she kill Jie En?
- Why is Zhi Bai talking from a bathroom stall?
Oh. So that he clues Si Yuan that there is a time gap between when the toilet is flushed and the water level lowers and when the tank fills up again.
Si Yuan leaves Zhi Bai in the toilet. What a metaphor? 1st time we see Ghost Zhi Bai alone and he seems to be disappearing.
Back at the river. Killer used the dam water release to alter their perception of time to create an alibi. Timing mechanism is underwater. Si Yuan dives down. WOOO HOOOOO!!! I get my water duck picture.
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| Si Yuan: What is this here? Duck: Afflack! Call your car insurance, there's your tire down here. |
Alibi method:
1. Tie raft with body to underwater tire.
2. Light candles and leave.
3. Mosey to festival for party
4. River water rises, tire floats up, rope is released.
5. Body joins the party.
6. Everyone is sus! Motto of this drama
Wait. Si Yuan recognizes this tire. It's from their own car. When it crashed into the statue, Uncle Na Wa fixed it. Nice that Na Wa recycles.
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| Rare carefree smile. Uncle Na Wa brings out his childhood feelings. |
Li Zhi calls. She was hungry and found Tai Shu's crossbow under a pot. What a careless hiding place. Scared, Li Zhi ran to Su Pa's house but left the crossbow. Su Pa runs off when she heard the bow is still there.
Shu He and Qi Xia pick up Si Yuan. Shu He must love his car, Si Yuan isn't going to ruin it with wet and dirty river clothes. Si Yuan no longer looks like he just dived in cholera. Case discussion. Si Yuan bounces theories to Zhi Bai. Qi Xia and Shu He seem to notice that he isn't talking to them.
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| Si Yuan is always regulated to the back seat This positioning, totally a couple up front |
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| Episode's theme: Reflection Is Zhi Bai really there? He isn't in the mirror now. |
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| Yay! He remember his seat belt. Ghosts don't need to buckle up He thought he was being stealth with this head nod |
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| Telepathy: We noticed |
Su Pa ran to Na Wa's house, demanding to know why he impersonated the River Spirit. He shoots her with the cross bow. Ouch.
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| Si Yuan's right and left support |
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| Another person he "failed" |
The gang rush her to the hospital. Si Yuan doesn't understand why the previously kind-hearted Uncle Na Wa would be like this.
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| I wonder if the sweat on his face is because it's hot in Thailand or if this was a conscious detail |
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| Ghost Zhi Bai is like an outsider looking in. Si Yuan already has emotional support. |
Li Zhi cares for Ke Xin. Ke Xin asks for her hairpin. Ke Xin suddenly gets more creepy and says, "Don't use this hairpin. It can't be used."
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| Flowers? Like "Lan Xiao Tang" and peonies? Flowers = Love |
Si Yuan and Li Zhi go back to Na Wa's to look for clues about Su Pa's shooting. The house has cameras.
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| Zombie! |
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| I know this look now.... "I don't believe this...." |
Uh oh. Na Wa attacks them. Na Wa hits Si Yuan, then chases Li Zhi. Ghost Zhi Bai tries to stop Si Yuan from going after Na Wa but can't.
Zhi Bai: Oh no....
He seems shocked that he can't protect Si Yuan and Si Yuan didn't hear or feel him. Ghost Zhi Bai has become less and less powerful. Si Yuan ends up being choked. Zhi Bai rushes downstairs to see that Shu He has arrived to save Si Yuan.
This expression is quite good. After being relieved, Zhi Bai realizes that he isn't needed anymore.
Na Wa is cuffed to the railing of the staircase.
He is extra asshole-ly admitting his crimes. Detail, Shu He offers him water. Kindness. He's more similar to Si Yuan. Na Wa figures that Shu He wants Si Yuan to hear the details of why he killed his brother. Si Yuan subtly glances at Zhi Bai who is horsing around above Na Wa when he said he envied him for having a good big brother.
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| Si Yuan's eyes: No need to envy. I've lost my big bro and have another. But he's not real... |
Na Wa (voice breaking): I wish he wasn't such a jerk and was just my big brother.
Tai Shu:
- Asshole to their mother, pushed her down, stole her money
- Shot Na Wa with the crossbow (same shoulder location that Su Pa was shot by Na Wa)
- Stole his truck that he used for his livelihood.
Ke Xin defended and saved Na Wa. He peeped on and recorded her showering. Ick. He desired to possess her.
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| She's his light. "When I was most down, someone lit a lamp to light the way. But, I know the danger of a moth to a flame." |
Tai Shu stole the camera and threatened to rape Ke Xin. Na Wa killed him for that. Then he placed him inside the River Spirit. Admits to slicing ✋ and killing Jie En. Ke Xin belongs to him!
Li Zhi is furious. "Ke Xin isn't a pet... This isn't love".
Na Wa: After everything I did for her. How is this not love!?!
Toxic love. "Control and possession. Your protection was to satisfy your twisted desires". Drama's commentary on every day abusers among us.
Na Wa: That's because of you, Liao Si Yuan! If you hadn't investigated, everything would remain the same!
Interesting. It's the opposite of "If I met you earlier, would the ending be different?" for this case.
Si Yuan sees the picture of the Liao fire on Na Wa's camera. Wow. 10 years. Good memory card. Na Wa took it. Flashback. Tai Shu started the fire. Song En prevented Nu Na from calling out to young Si Yuan.
He blackmailed Nu Na.
Na Wa: You think I'm despicable, don't you? This is who I am!
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| 🔬 |
Trigger warning: Sexual, physical, emotional assault.
Black screen. Na Wa's voice narrates.
Na Wa: You once told me that you have a curse.
2005. Ke Xin's husband abuses her because he blames her for being raped. WTF. Typical misogyny. It's her fault for dressing and acting a certain way.
Na Wa's narration: A curse of being slandered throughout life.
After the trauma, Ke Xin catatonically brushes her hair. A neighbor frantically bangs on her door, shouting that her asshole husband has fallen and died at a construction site.
Na Wa's narration: Trust me. I will get you out of here. We'll go to a place without curses.
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| Broken |
Present day. Si Yuan feels something isn't right about the case. A person like Na Wa is so meticulous and skillful? Si Yuan must have been gone for a little while, Shu He arrives. He must have missed him. He asks about the photo.
Si Yuan: Bai Han gave it to me. I must find the 4th person.
No, you grabbed it from Bai Han's pocket in front of his face. Actually, Si Yuan isn't being facetious. Bai Han meant to give it to him.
Shu He: I may have some misunderstandings about you. But I now believe you are a good person. You just have a bad temper.
Awww.....🥰 And bwahahahaha.
Si Yuan's heart: Ditto.Si Yuan's mouth: I don't need your affirmation.
Boys. Shu He tells Si Yuan to come to him for anything, he will repay the favor.
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| Si Yuan had an imperceptible amused snort when Shu He apologized and called out his temper |
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| What's the longing look when Shu He leaves? |
Qi Xia wonders if Tai Shu's murder weapon isn't the crossbow, but some other sharp object. She's perplexed. Ni Ke sits down with a bouquet of poppy flowers he bought from a nearby hillside for his wife. Since Qi Xi looks like she's feeling down, he gives them to her first. He's sweet.
Qi Xia goes to the poppy field. She flashes back to a relatively empty field. She found a common poppy, to be distinguished from the other poppy.
Qi Xia: The common poppy is from the same family, but its beauty is untouched by sin.
Zhi Bai: However, beauty itself is innocent. Even if it is an opium poppy, is it born to be wrong? All sins are inflected by us humans.
Nice metaphors. Zhi Bai promises to give her a field of poppies.
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| Drama planted 3000+ flowers |
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| Cute and beautiful |
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| These farmers will look familiar.... |
Back to present day, Qi Xia asks to buy flowers. The farmer gives them to her for free. Shu He meets her to tell her that he is going back to Buhe and hands her evidence that Si Yuan found for her to examine.
Shu He: Are those flowers for me?
Qi Xia: 😶...... No
Shu He short circuits. 🤣 Ok, bye!
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| Wait for it.... I swear it's a GIF |
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| Look-y here. Both are even carrying beverages. Watches are on opposite wrists tho. |
He may be wearing the same color outfit as Flashback Zhi Bai, but that doesn't mean the flowers are for him. Not yet....
While transporting Na Wa, Ni Ke is called by Qi Xia to tell him that Tai Shu wasn't killed by a crossbow. Na Wa strangles Ni Ke and escapes. Is Buhe short staffed? Why only 1 cop to transport serial killers?
While visiting Su Pa, she thanks Si Yuan.
Su Pa: If you hadn't returned to Yong'an Village, none of this would have happened.
Si Yuan, changing lives. She flinches in pain. So happy about this case coming out.
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| Her pain is on her |
Si Yuan is confused. Not by how women gives him those exasperated looks. But how come Na Wa only shot her shoulder when he was at such a close distance? Na Wa didn't want to kill her. And why did Ke Xin go crazy? Su Pa is saved from answering because Si Yuan is informed that Na Wa has escaped.
Good news. Ni Ke isn't dead. Just still bad at his job. Si Yuan and Qi Xia go to Na Wa's house to look for him. Poor Granny Yun had her home trashed by the villagers. While cleaning up, Si Yuan finds a secret compartment with love letters to Ke Xin. Qi Xia found hot food, likely cooked by Na Wa as a final farewell to his mother. Si Yuan says the letters prove that Na Wa's confession is false.
🟡 Na Wa was hiding the real reason Ke Xin went crazy.
🟡 Na Wa will destroy the first crime scene, Ke Xin's house.
🟡Na Wa will commit suicide
🟡Su Pa killed Tai Shu❗
I like how Si Yuan doesn't explain how he knows about Su Pa. Every scene with her is a giveaway.
May 17, 2014. Tai Shu tires to rape Ke Xin. Su Pa stabs him dead with Ke Xin's hair pin.
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| Beautiful filming |
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| Out, out damn spot! |
Camera language went from colorless to color here. Su Pa freaks out. Mother's love takes over. Ke Xin, more lucid and powerful than ever, tells her daughter to run.
When Su Pa came to her senses, she went back for Ke Xin. Tai Shu's body was gone, Ke Xin said the River Spirit took him away. Ke Xin traded her sanity for her daughter's freedom.
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| Also breath taking |
Su Pa always believed that the River Spirit helped them and didn't know that Na Wa did all this for her mother. Subtle drama's detail: since being assaulted, Su Pa changed her look to be less traditionally feminine. Short hair, dark tan, "masculine" clothing. Women are told that how they present themselves invites these predators. 😡 Her appearance is the unspoken trauma.
Na Wa prepares to incinerate Ke Xin's house with the hair pin that he gave her. Flashbacks show that it was actually Tai Shu as the peeping tom. 😡When he arrived, he saw Ke Xin holding he bloody hairpin and thought she killed Tai Shu.
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| Shy, sweet looks |
Like a newb at disposing bodies, Na Wa was going to throw Tai Shu in the river. Luckily he met a professional. Bai Han and his friend. 🤔
| Shadowy figure looks familiar... |
1. Never get close to them (Ke Xin & Su Pa)
2. Make yourself despicable.
"People are more willing to believe in desire than love."
Interesting. I admit, I was fooled about the motive.
Na Wa locked himself inside. Si Yuan tries to convince him to not burn down the place. Uncle Na Wa comments that Si Yuan is just like Zhi Bai, "just and kind".
Na Wa: The world is unfair to Ke Xin. I can only use my life to fight this injustice. Isn't this the justice you want to see?
No and no. Na Wa lights up the place. Si Yuan keeps trying to convince him. Ke Xin was wearing a red wedding dress because she wanted to marry him! She was going to him. How could he leave her?
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| Dress is pretty |
Aye, that had the opposite effect. Uncle Na Wa is now feeling that his life is content because he was loved by Ke Xin. He drops the lighter, committed to death. Si Yuan keeps trying. Did Bai Han teach Na Wa? He's the real murderer. He's using Na Wa! Si Yuan, you are bad at this.
Na Wa tells Si Yuan to stop investigating. Stop living in the past and live a normal life.
Na Wa: Xian Si Yuan, remember that living with a peace of mind is a blessing.
Oh, damn. Ke Xin is in the fiery house with Na Wa. Should have known something is gonna happen when she is wearing a red dress. Somehow she came back for him. Like how Pei Ji came back for Lan Xiao Tang. Ke Xin is clear-headed and asks for the hairpin. He had proposed to her with it. Haunting yet sweetly whimsical BGM.
Ke Xin: Yes, I agree. (to marry him)
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| I have too many screenshots, but I wanted to show them happy |
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| Even if it is foolish. |
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| 😢 |
This episode's ending OST is different. It continues the fire BGM.
[Ep16] [Jump to: Top | Comments]🎵A pure and white balloon flowerBlooms in the sunReach out and gently hold herHave a home togetherMy eternal balloon flowerI'll protect her all my life....
[Ep17] [Jump to: Top | Comments]
[Ep18] [Jump to: Top | Comments]
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Remarks
by Potato Chip
[First Impression (Ep1-12)]
There's nothing like this in C-drama land these days. Extremely dark and bold, yet compassionate and warm. Talented, beautiful and captivating women helm these roller coaster cases. Each character is presented 3 dimensionally, flawed and relatable. Cases risk stigmatizing them or being pretentiously calculated to elicit overwrought emotions, but drama successfully balances empathy and justice. I am shocked how most of this passed censorship.
This is not a crime procedural, but a mystery drama which references Agatha Christie. The overarching mystery is a fire that left Liao Si Yuan (Wang Zi Qi) orphaned and killed his brother, Liao Zhi Bai (Sun Yang). Under the guidance of his phantasmal brother, our young empath sleuth searches for the truth.
A snarky synopsis seen: ML has mental illness, 2ML is a ghost, the suspects are in love.
🤣 and eeeek. Can C-dramas present a complex psychological condition without stigma or soap opera antics? Drama dances on a tightrope magnificently.
Wang Zi Qi. And he hasn't worked with any of the cast before. Amazing. Sun Yang is more known for being in movies. There are also at least 6 actors who were in Nirvana in Fire in this drama. Zhang Yu Jian (his robot grew on me and fit the character), Liu Min Tao, Huang Wei De, Jin Feng, Wang Hong (who was an assistant director of NIF 1&2), and the actor who plays A Jin (Mei Hua Jie's employee)
Chen Rua Xuan guest stars. He has worked with this production company before in his own well-rated suspense drama, "Psychological Crimes"
.
[Behind the Scenes]
Half of the drama was filmed in Thailand. They created a fictional language and city.
Wrapped on February 2, 2024
💯 Director Cheng Hao Interview, English - Awesome read!
💧 Wet hair
🐓 Chickens
🏹 Archery
🫥 LSY Just talking by himself. Deleted scene present.
🔆 Cool transitions PromoEp 5: Deleted scene, LSY interrogated for Nu Na's death. Too tall for headbanging.
Ep 6: Duck Dance 🦆
Ep 7: Rain fight
Ep 9: Wedding laughter. Shu He runs funny.
Ep 10: Clip Xu Man and LXT
Ep 15: Fire and noodles. Na Wa Shu~ Shu~.....
Ep 16: Interrogation, Clip 1, Promo 😭
Ep 26: Clip 🏍😭😭😭
Ep 26: LZB & LSY 😭😭😭
Set designer:
🌷 Peonies
🏡🔥 Liao House
🔆 Compilation: 🏡 More Liao House, 🍴 Revenge Squad Base, 📷 Bai Han's photo studio, 👮🏻♂️ Buhe Police Station, 👮🏻♂️ Yong'an Village Police Station, 👩👧 Su Pa & Kexin's Home, 💉Surrogacy Center, Buddha Statue
📝 Final essays: Director , Screenwriter , Actors
📺 Re-watch (Don't read till done with drama): 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6 & 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13
[Ending]
Bittersweet. Optimistic.
[A Highlight]
Last 16 min of Episode 16 and first 11 min of Episode 26.
[Review & Rating]
Rating: /5
Recommendations
Preliminary recs are random / a peek at the list. These may be updated if drama is completed
