Recaps

Su Qiao and Du Muhan returned to the Police Station after examining a female corpse found by the river. As Du Muhan began the autopsy, the two continued their sharp-witted rivalry.

• Du Muhan examined the corpse and reported that the young woman had been soaked in sulfuric acid, while her cause of death remained unknown.
• Tao Junhui ordered team members to take the body back for an autopsy, and Su Qiao left to investigate where it had entered the river.
• Du Muhan invited Su Qiao to dinner, and she accepted while teasing him about demonstrating how he made corpses speak.
• Su Qiao and Du Muhan traded barbs during the drive back, while Qiang Zi and Little Li wondered about their rivalry.
• At the Police Station, Su Qiao changed into flat shoes and went to the autopsy room.

Su Qiao and Du Muhan traded barbs in the autopsy room, where Du Muhan accidentally cut his hand during an examination. Su Qiao treated the wound, but Du Muhan grew agitated and refused to get it checked, leaving her suspicious of his reaction.

• Su Qiao entered the autopsy room and exchanged taunts with Du Muhan.
• Su Qiao accidentally activated her Truth-telling skill, and Du Muhan cut his thumb with a scalpel.
• Su Qiao hurried to stop the bleeding, but Du Muhan shoved her away in anger.
• Su Qiao pinned Du Muhan against the wall, then disinfected his wound when he calmed down.
• Du Muhan took the gauze and insisted he could handle the wound himself, but Su Qiao brought a suture kit and urged him to get medical tests.
• Du Muhan snapped at Su Qiao for pressing the issue, and she questioned why he seemed so afraid for his hand.

Su Qiao treated Du Muhan’s injured hand, then prepared to examine the corpse despite his objections. The chapter ended with Du Muhan trying to stop her from performing the autopsy.

• Su Qiao assured Du Muhan that his hand would heal well enough for him to use a knife again, then teased and scolded him as she bandaged it.
• Du Muhan argued with Su Qiao about the Social Facilitation Effect and struggled to respond to her sharp remarks.
• Su Qiao put on gloves and picked up a scalpel to examine the corpse, prompting Du Muhan to try to block her.
• Su Qiao explained that examining the waterlogged corpse promptly could help reveal substances in its tissues, the black material in its throat, and evidence through a Bone Marrow Diatom Test.
• Du Muhan called her actions foolhardy and tried to stop the autopsy, while Su Qiao told him to stand aside and act like a patient.

Su Qiao expertly dissected a female victim and reported her observations, leaving Du Muhan impressed by her forensic skills. She left the remaining investigation to him, and he complimented her hands while she washed them.

• Su Qiao began dissecting the corpse while Du Muhan watched tensely.
• Su Qiao assessed the victim’s age, build, injuries, and likely murder weapon as she worked.
• Su Qiao reported that the victim may have inhaled ether, been strangled with wire, and exposed to an industrial substance, pending test results.
• Du Muhan asked how Su Qiao knew, and she claimed she was better than him.
• Su Qiao finished the dissection and left the remaining investigation to Du Muhan.
• Du Muhan praised Su Qiao’s skill and remarked that her hands were beautiful.

Su Qiao and Du Muhan argued over his fascination with her hands in the dissection room. After he protected her from a falling screen, he insisted on guarding her hands, leaving her baffled by his strange behavior.

• Du Muhan admired Su Qiao's hands and said he liked beautiful hands, making her wary of him.
• Su Qiao decided to leave rather than eat in the dissection room.
• Su Qiao pushed the screen too hard, and Du Muhan caught it and shielded her from it.
• Du Muhan checked Su Qiao's hand and insisted that he would not let anyone hurt it.
• Du Muhan asked whether he could have her hands and promised to protect them, leaving Su Qiao speechless.

Su Qiao rejected Du Muhan’s request to use her hands if his were injured and tried to leave the dissection room. Du Muhan followed her, insisting she could dislike corpses as long as she liked him, and declared that they belonged together.

• Du Muhan asked Su Qiao to let him use her hands if his own became unusable, and Su Qiao refused.
• Du Muhan argued that using her hands would keep his work from being delayed, but Su Qiao said she only cared about her own work and would not agree.
• Su Qiao left the dissection room, and Du Muhan followed her and asked whether she hated him.
• Du Muhan concluded that Su Qiao hated corpses and told her she could like him instead.
• Du Muhan held out his hand, called their hands and themselves a perfect match, and described corpses as tools for their enjoyment.

Su Qiao asked Du Muhan to pretend to be her boyfriend so she could deal with Tao Junhui. She left Tao Junhui flustered by acting intimate with Du Muhan at the station.

• Su Qiao told Du Muhan she would only date him if he genuinely fell for her, then demanded he return her favor.
• When Su Qiao spotted Tao Junhui approaching, she asked Du Muhan to pretend to be her boyfriend for a month.
• Du Muhan recognized that she wanted to provoke Tao Junhui, and Su Qiao threatened to stop helping with autopsies if he refused.
• Su Qiao posed intimately with Du Muhan as Tao Junhui arrived and asked why she was there.
• Su Qiao called Du Muhan her darling and fussed over his injured hand, leaving Tao Junhui flustered.

Su Qiao pretended to accept Du Muhan’s pursuit in front of Tao Junhui, who reluctantly blessed them. The three then turned to the autopsy.

• Su Qiao told Du Muhan to act affectionate, and he held her hand and touched her hair.
• Su Qiao coached Du Muhan to look at her with a doting gaze as they entered the autopsy room.
• Su Qiao told Tao Junhui that Du Muhan was pursuing her and she had decided to give him a chance.
• Su Qiao said her relationship with Tao Junhui had been habit rather than love, and Tao Junhui struggled with regret while forcing himself to wish them happiness.
• Tao Junhui turned to Du Muhan and began asking about the autopsy.

Su Qiao teased Du Muhan about his awkward acting and learned that his beloved pets were a hamster named Little Mi and a dog named Little Wang. She headed to a team meeting, where she found Su Xiyan seated beside Tao Junhui and taking notes.

• Du Muhan ended Tao Junhui’s visit and promised to provide the autopsy report in half an hour, with some identification reports to follow later.
• After Tao Junhui left, Su Qiao praised Du Muhan’s acting, and he admitted he had imagined her as a corpse to feel more natural.
• Su Qiao suggested things Du Muhan could imagine instead, and he told her about his pet hamster, Little Mi, and dog, Little Wang.
• Du Muhan offered to bring Su Qiao lunch, and she left for the meeting.
• Su Qiao arrived to find the team gathered, with Su Xiyan sitting beside Tao Junhui and appearing to take notes and look up information.

Su Qiao suggested comparing the Headless Female Corpse’s DNA with Ding Peixin’s, suspecting a link between the cases despite the team’s doubts. Tao Junhui ordered investigators to collect samples and question Sun Zhihao’s neighbors, while Su Qiao planned to investigate further on her own.

• Su Qiao noted the timing and possible dumping location connected Ding Peixin’s disappearance to the Headless Female Corpse and suggested a DNA comparison.
• The team objected that Ding Peixin had been seen on the coastal rocks and had left a suicide note, diary, and medical records supporting her suicide.
• Su Qiao questioned whether Ding Peixin had actually attempted suicide and pointed out that her treatment began only three months before her disappearance.
• Su Xiyan mocked Su Qiao’s suggestion, and Tao Junhui noted that Group Five had verified the suicide note and diary as Ding Peixin’s.
• Tao Junhui told Xiao Li and Qiang Zi to collect Ding Peixin’s hair and skin flakes and ask Sun Zhihao’s neighbors about the couple’s relationship and any unusual events.
• Su Qiao decided to pursue the connection privately because she trusted her intuition.

Su Qiao joined Xiao Li and Yu Qiang to question Sun Zhihao about his missing wife, Ding Peixin. After seeing Sun Zhihao's impatience, she asked to use his bathroom and left the conversation poised to investigate further.

• Su Qiao volunteered to accompany Xiao Li and the others, while Tao Junhui reprimanded Su Xiyan for dismissing her professional judgment.
• Tao Junhui reconsidered his trust in Su Xiyan, and she apologized for her earlier comment.
• Su Qiao left for Sun Zhihao's home with Xiao Li and Yu Qiang without having lunch, leaving Du Muhan waiting in vain.
• On the way, Su Qiao reviewed information about Ding Peixin and her husband, Sun Zhihao, a young painter who ran an art gallery and his family's company.
• Sun Zhihao impatiently asked whether they had found clues, and Su Qiao requested to use his bathroom.

Su Qiao questioned Sun Zhihao about a headless, acid-damaged female corpse found with painting pigments and chemical dampness-removing powder. Sun Zhihao reacted angrily and denied his wife had been murdered, leaving Su Qiao suspicious of his behavior and his avoidance of the evidence.

• Sun Zhihao demanded to know whether Xiao Li had found his missing wife, and Xiao Li said they still had questions for him.
• Su Qiao told Sun Zhihao that police had found a headless female corpse damaged with sulfuric acid and carrying painting pigments and chemical dampness-removing powder.
• Sun Zhihao leapt up, insisted his wife had drowned herself, and accused the officers of wasting time.
• Su Qiao challenged Sun Zhihao about his apparent nervousness as he repeatedly tugged at his collar.
• Sun Zhihao claimed he was angry and threatened to complain, while Su Qiao noticed he avoided discussing the pigments despite being a painter.

Su Qiao suspected Ding Peixin’s apparent suicide was unusual and that Sun Zhihao’s behavior did not match his claims of loving his wife. After questioning a housekeeper about Ding’s hobbies, Su Qiao focused on the music she had danced to.

• Su Qiao noticed Sun Zhihao showed little grief and had made no effort to search for Ding Peixin himself.
• Su Qiao and Little Li left Sun Zhihao’s villa with a sample of Ding’s hair and suspicions about the couple’s relationship.
• On their way to another villa, Su Qiao and Little Li met Yu Qiang speaking with Auntie Li, a housekeeper.
• Yu Qiang reported that Auntie Li said the couple rarely argued and Ding enjoyed dancing, gardening, and sewing.
• Su Qiao asked when Ding had last danced and what music she had played, but Auntie Li could only recall that it was sometime the previous week.

Su Qiao questioned Auntie Li about Ding Peixin’s disappearance and noticed signs that the woman was reluctant to answer. After returning to the office with her investigative objectives completed, Su Qiao found Du Muhan waiting to eat lunch with her.

• Auntie Li told Su Qiao she had seen Ding Peixin dancing in the second-floor hall before she disappeared and claimed she had noticed nothing unusual about Ding or Sun Zhihao.
• Su Qiao observed that Auntie Li answered too quickly, avoided eye contact, and angled her body as if she wanted to leave, though Little Li suggested she might simply have been in a hurry.
• Su Qiao returned to the city with Little Li and Yu Qiang after obtaining what she needed and meeting Sun Zhihao.
• Su Qiao arrived at her office and found Tao Junhui and Du Muhan waiting there; Du Muhan had warmed their lunch and said he had waited for her to eat.

Su Qiao told Tao Junhui she suspected Sun Zhihao was hiding the truth about Ding Peixin’s disappearance and might have been unfaithful. The chapter ended with Xiao Li and Yu Qiang agreeing to investigate Sun Zhihao’s contacts and habits.

• Su Qiao told Tao Junhui that forensic testing was underway on hair with follicles and that Sun Zhihao and his neighbor’s nanny, Auntie Li, seemed suspicious.
• Su Qiao reasoned that Sun Zhihao did not believe Ding Peixin had jumped into the sea and might be seeking other women for inspiration.
• Su Qiao pointed out that Ding Peixin’s note about having a perfect home suggested she valued her marriage, making suicide less certain.
• Tao Junhui described Ding Peixin as a dependent housewife who stayed home to sew, dance, and sing.
• Tao Junhui assigned Xiao Li and Yu Qiang to investigate Sun Zhihao’s friends, art gallery contacts, and usual haunts, and they agreed.

Tao Junhui ordered Yu Qiang and Little Li to watch Sun Zhihao while the DNA report was pending, and Su Qiao agreed to investigate Ding Peixin’s family background. Afterward, Du Muhan asked Su Qiao to wait for him so he could take her home, while she resolved to pursue her dream of becoming a pianist.

• Tao Junhui gave Yu Qiang and Little Li Forensic Doctor Du’s report, which matched Ding Peixin’s approximate height, age, weight, and dancing ability.
• Tao Junhui ordered Yu Qiang and Little Li to keep an eye on Sun Zhihao until the DNA report came out.
• Su Qiao offered to investigate Ding Peixin’s family background, and Tao Junhui assigned the task to her.
• Du Muhan held Su Qiao’s hand and asked her to wait for him after work so he could take her home.
• Su Qiao decided to develop her piano skills alongside her regular work.

Su Qiao discovered that she and Du Muhan lived in the same building, and he invited her to his apartment. There, she saw his unexpectedly gentle side as he cared for his puppy and hamster, and teased him about his work as a forensic examiner.

• Su Qiao and Du Muhan realized they lived in the same residential complex, with their apartments on the eighteenth and twenty-eighth floors.
• Du Muhan invited Su Qiao to his apartment, where his puppy and hamster rushed to greet him.
• Du Muhan fed Xiaomi and Little Wang and gently fussed over them while Su Qiao watched in surprise.
• Su Qiao joked that she had expected someone like Du Muhan to put the animals on his dissection table.

Su Qiao visited Du Muhan’s home and asked why he seemed to dislike her. After she found a collection of banned true-crime novels in his bookcase, he gave them to her, leaving her unsure whether he was trying to send her home.

• Du Muhan told Su Qiao that he liked corpses because they were cute, loyal, and did not lie, then offered her plain water.
• Su Qiao looked around Du Muhan’s simply furnished home and asked why he seemed to hate her.
• Du Muhan admitted that he hated people who were born with everything, and Su Qiao chose not to explain her real circumstances.
• Su Qiao discovered Du Muhan’s collection of true-crime mystery novels and noticed that its sixth book was missing.
• Du Muhan said he had lost the sixth book at the park, then packed the rest for Su Qiao to take home.
• Su Qiao wondered if Du Muhan was seeing her out, but he said he had packed the books only to make them easier for her to carry.

Su Qiao told Du Muhan about her complicated history with Su Xiyan and Tao Junhui, while he questioned her about their past relationship. Their conversation ended with Du Muhan suggesting that her career showed she was kind and had a sense of justice.

• Du Muhan asked whether Su Xiyan was Su Qiao's younger sister, and Su Qiao explained that she had been adopted by the Su family after Su Xiyan was abducted.
• Su Qiao said she had left to study abroad after Su Xiyan returned, then encountered her again after joining the bureau.
• Du Muhan asked about Tao Junhui, and Su Qiao explained that they had been childhood friends and that she had accepted his confession after returning home.
• Su Qiao said Tao Junhui soon began acting ambiguously with Su Xiyan, while Su Xiyan continued provoking her and Tao Junhui urged her to be kind.
• Du Muhan asked whether Su Qiao considered herself unkind, then pointed out that her career suggested she had kindness and a sense of justice.

Su Qiao and Du Muhan discussed why they chose their work and compared their aloof reputations, revealing a growing fondness between them. The conversation ended with Su Qiao demanding to know whether Du Muhan liked her face, and him teasing that he felt nothing special about it.

• Du Muhan realized that Su Qiao's unusual outlook and personality felt similar to his own.
• Su Qiao explained that she chose her work because she liked it, found it challenging, and valued its stable income.
• Du Muhan said he was alone except for the two little ones, and Su Qiao questioned why people called him aloof and eccentric.
• Du Muhan said he avoided pointless conversations with living people, but made an exception for Su Qiao.
• Du Muhan admitted he liked Su Qiao's hands and personality, then teased her by saying her face did not feel special to him.
• Su Qiao angrily challenged Du Muhan to repeat his remark.

Su Qiao and Du Muhan traded strange jokes while bonding over his pets, then he walked her to her apartment door. Back home, Su Qiao sat down to research something, but first tried to contact Little Four and realized she was still grounded.

• Du Muhan joked that he wanted to collect Su Qiao's face, and she teased him about preserving him in formalin.
• Su Qiao picked up Xiaomi and admired the hamster while Du Muhan cuddled Little Wang.
• Du Muhan walked Su Qiao to her door, and she declined to invite him inside.
• Su Qiao returned home, tidied up, and sat at her computer to look up information.
• Su Qiao called for Little Four but received no response and concluded she was still grounded.

Su Qiao investigated Ding Peixin’s troubled past and discovered that she had severe depression and had attempted suicide after learning of Sun Zhihao’s affairs. A DNA report then showed that Su Qiao’s suspicions about Ding Peixin were wrong, leaving Su Xiyan to mock her.

• Su Qiao found Ding Peixin’s records and learned about her childhood, her dependence on her husband, and her possible risk of suicide.
• Su Qiao reviewed Sun Zhihao’s history and learned that he had cheated on Ding Peixin and that she had been diagnosed with severe depression and attempted suicide about three months earlier.
• Du Muhan waited for Su Qiao, and the two arrived at work together without speaking much.
• Su Qiao saw a DNA report showing that the DNA did not match, and Su Xiyan mocked her for suspecting Ding Peixin.

Su Qiao confronted Su Xiyan for letting personal feelings interfere with her work on the Headless Female Corpse Case. The chapter ended with Su Xiyan apologizing under Tao Junhui’s reprimand while he struggled with his hurt over Su Qiao dating Du Muhan.

• Tao Junhui clarified that the female corpse was not Ding Peixin and that the missing-person case had been returned to Group Five, where Su Xiyan was checking reports.
• Su Xiyan said she would investigate the missing person herself, and Su Qiao accused her of letting personal emotions undermine the team’s work.
• Su Qiao told Tao Junhui she was biased against Su Xiyan because Su Xiyan’s behavior was damaging the team’s performance.
• Tao Junhui told Su Xiyan to take leave if she could not control her emotions at work, and Su Xiyan apologized to the team.
• Tao Junhui reflected that Su Qiao had never seen him as more than a childhood friend and that she had begun dating Du Muhan.

Su Qiao heard that investigators suspected Sun Zhihao and his mistress, Xia Xiaolin, of killing Ding Peixin, whose body had not been found. Group Five could not locate Xia Xiaolin, and Little Li asked Su Qiao to help assess whether her best friend was lying.

• Su Qiao returned to her office and analyzed the case on her own.
• Little Li told Su Qiao that Group Five had discovered Sun Zhihao was secretly involved with Xia Xiaolin.
• Little Li explained that investigators suspected Sun Zhihao and Xia Xiaolin might have killed Ding Peixin, but they had not found Xia Xiaolin or confirmed Ding Peixin was dead.
• Little Li said Sun Zhihao kept pressuring Group Five and denied having a relationship with Xia Xiaolin.
• Little Li asked Su Qiao to help judge whether Xia Xiaolin's best friend was lying when Group Five questioned her.

Su Qiao joined Xiao Li and the Two Liu Combination to investigate Xia Xiaolin’s best friend. They arrived at Gu Xue’s home and introduced themselves as police officers.

• Xiao Li admitted he had told Group Five about Su Qiao’s theories and agreed to take her to meet the investigators.
• Su Qiao agreed to help and went with Xiao Li to meet Liu Juntao and Liu Liu, the Two Liu Combination.
• Xiao Li drove the group to Gu Xue’s apartment complex after Liu Liu explained Gu Xue’s background.
• Liu Liu showed Gu Xue her identification and introduced the group as police officers.