Chapter Summaries

Su Qiao had sorted out the case and found the culprit, while Li Jingtai was interrogated over his presence near the crime scene. The interrogation ended without proving his guilt, and he continued to insist he had been searching for his missing dog.

• The narrator considered whether An Yixi or a psychopathic serial killer had killed He Shangyuan, and wondered if the murder was connected to Li Jingtai.
• Su Qiao found the culprit, while Li Jingtai was taken in for questioning by Min Xingyu and He Meishu.
• He Meishu and Min Xingyu challenged Li Jingtai about his presence at the scene and his dark clothing.
• Li Jingtai said he had followed clues about missing dogs and dead animals, and denied knowing a murder would happen.
• Min Xingyu and He Meishu suspended the interrogation and left the Interrogation Room.

The Major Crimes Unit debated whether Li Jingtai knew the killer or was the killer, while Min Xingyu described the masked figure he had seen at the parking lot. After piecing together the situation, Su Qiao went to the police station to visit Li Jingtai and began using her phone in the monitored room.

• Min Xingyu asked the Major Crimes Unit members what they thought of Li Jingtai, and they suspected he knew the killer, had been framed, or was the killer himself.
• Min Xingyu said he had only seen the masked killer from behind after A Zhi was found with his throat slit.
• He Meishu questioned Min Xingyu's account because she remembered him entering the parking lot before A Zhi.
• The officers noted that Li Jingtai's dark clothing could be ordinary during the flu outbreak, but his presence at the scene remained suspicious and the murder weapon was missing.
• Su Qiao went to the police station to visit Li Jingtai and began fiddling with her phone under surveillance.

Su Qiao confronted Li Jingtai at the Police Station about his hidden identity and the events of sixteen years ago. After she learned An Yixi was behind them, she left, while new evidence about Li Jingtai’s case reached Captain Min Xingyu.

• Su Qiao visited Li Jingtai at the Police Station and demanded to know why he had deliberately approached her.
• Li Jingtai refused to explain himself, but Su Qiao asked who was behind what happened sixteen years ago.
• Su Qiao named An Yixi as the mastermind, and Li Jingtai sprang up and urgently asked what she planned to do.
• Su Qiao said she would get Li Jingtai out, pulled free of his grasp, and left before officers noticed the surveillance footage had failed.
• A middle-aged officer hurried into Min Xingyu’s office with documents and told him there had been new progress in Li Jingtai’s situation.

Min Xingyu investigated the people linked to Li Jingtai and the old case, while public pressure over Li Jingtai’s arrest weighed on him. He Meishu took the drunken captain home as Su Qiao continued driving around under police surveillance.

• Min Xingyu suspected Kim Ji-woo had photographed something connected to the mother and daughter’s deaths and ordered further investigation into Zhou Keqin and He Shangyuan’s high-school acquaintances.
• He Meishu spotted Min Xingyu drunk by his car and helped him into her vehicle.
• Min Xingyu said Li Jingtai’s fans had been calling the Police Station and posting online, while the higher-ups pressured police to solve the case quickly.
• He Meishu reassured Min Xingyu that Ah Shu was watching Su Qiao and offered to take him home because he could not drive.
• Su Qiao drove around aimlessly before returning home, confusing the officer following her.

After Min Xingyu drunkenly struggled with guilt, He Meishu comforted him and advised him to make amends. The next morning, they agreed to be together, though Min Xingyu worried about what he had said the night before.

• He Meishu told a distressed, drunk Min Xingyu to seek forgiveness and do what he could to make amends.
• Min Xingyu clung to He Meishu and admitted that he felt awful, and she soothed him until he fell asleep.
• He Meishu made breakfast for Min Xingyu the next morning and said the previous night had been her own affair.
• Min Xingyu insisted he had a responsibility and asked He Meishu to be with him.
• He Meishu agreed that she wanted to be with Min Xingyu, who then awkwardly asked whether he had said anything the night before.

Su Qiao pieced together how Zhou Keqin and He Shangyuan were involved in the old crime and how An Yixi killed He Shangyuan. As Min Xingyu continued questioning Li Jingtai, Su Qiao concluded that An Yixi was the only known perpetrator from that incident still at large.

• He Meishu told Min Xingyu that Li Jingtai seemed suspicious and that the recent cases were putting pressure on him to catch the killer.
• Min Xingyu interrogated Li Jingtai again, but Li refused to answer and demanded to be released.
• Min Xingyu stopped another officer from striking Li Jingtai and warned him to behave properly.
• Su Qiao reviewed the evidence linking Zhou Keqin to blackmailing He Shangyuan with photos of the original crime scene.
• Su Qiao recalled that He Shangyuan killed Zhou Keqin and that An Yixi later killed He Shangyuan, then reasoned that An Yixi was the only one of the three known perpetrators still at large.

Su Qiao confronted Li Jingtai after he was released from the Police Station, revealing that she knew his real identity was Gu Qinghan and had already erased evidence connected to him. She stayed in his home and warned him not to make another reckless move.

• Su Qiao used modified Nano Drones to monitor places An Yixi visited and placed some of her devices at the Police Station.
• Li Jingtai was released for lack of evidence and returned home to find Su Qiao waiting for him.
• Su Qiao refused to leave and threatened Li Jingtai with a feather duster until he sat down and listened.
• Su Qiao asked whether he was Li Jingtai or Gu Qinghan and said she had uncovered his identity through clues from the murdered mother and daughter.
• Su Qiao told Li Jingtai she had destroyed the items in his basement and erased traces of information sent from his devices, then warned him not to act recklessly again.

Su Qiao confronted Li Jingtai about the tricks he had used against her, including steering thugs toward her and connecting her poster to a murder. Li Jingtai admitted her deductions impressed him, then dropped his timid act and declared that she made him more obsessed with her.

• Su Qiao demanded that Li Jingtai explain what had happened before and confess his other schemes.
• Li Jingtai said he had realized Su Qiao saw through his tricks after learning about her drug resistance and hacking skills.
• Su Qiao accused Li Jingtai of hinting to four thugs about her situation and watching when they tried to rob her.
• Su Qiao suspected Li Jingtai had placed her poster with the murderer through his visits to feed stray animals, and reasoned that the killer had a connection to someone who tortured small animals.
• Li Jingtai praised Su Qiao's intelligence, sat beside her, and revealed a confident, possessive side before saying she made him increasingly obsessed with her.

Su Qiao pressed Li Jingtai about the kidnapper she believed was the real Serial Murder Case culprit. Li Jingtai admitted he did not know the culprit’s identity but promised to find him and protect her.

• Su Qiao reasoned that He Shangyuan, An Yixi, and Kim Ji-woo were responsible for separate crimes, while her kidnapper was the true Serial Murder Case culprit.
• Su Qiao blamed Li Jingtai for indirectly drawing the Perverted Killer’s attention to her and angrily rejected his affectionate advances.
• Li Jingtai said he had gone to the crime scene to find the culprit and end the matter, then promised not to let anyone hurt Su Qiao again.
• Su Qiao was surprised that Li Jingtai did not know who the culprit was.

Li Jingtai explained how he linked a man who stole and abused his puppies and kittens to a ten-year-old murder case, and Su Qiao realized he had tried to use the suspected killer against her. He begged her not to leave and offered her a whip, but she questioned why he owned it.

• Li Jingtai said he had seen a man drug and take his puppies and kittens, then found abused animals’ bodies and suspected the man was the serial killer from ten years earlier.
• Su Qiao inferred that Li Jingtai had hoped to use the killer to get rid of people, including her.
• Li Jingtai clung to Su Qiao’s legs, admitted he had drugged and frightened her and incited hooligans against her, and begged her to punish him without leaving.
• Li Jingtai released Su Qiao and handed her a small leather whip from the coffee table’s storage compartment.
• Su Qiao asked what the whip was for, and Li Jingtai said he had bought it out of curiosity after seeing it while writing a novel.

Su Qiao questioned Li Jingtai about the adult toy she had found, then heard the truth about his childhood and family. The chapter ended with her learning that he had grown up hidden and isolated because he lacked legal household registration.

• Su Qiao challenged Li Jingtai about why he had bought an adult toy, and he tried to avoid her questions by pretending to be exhausted.
• Su Qiao threatened to wake Li Jingtai with a Silver Needle and sent him upstairs to shower before he explained himself.
• After dinner, Su Qiao and Li Jingtai talked on the sofa about what had happened in the past.
• Li Jingtai explained that he and his mother and older sister had come illegally to find his father, who turned out to be a liar and refused to acknowledge him.
• Li Jingtai told Su Qiao that he had no household registration, so he could not attend school or leave home, and that his mother and sister had to leave him alone in their attic.

After his mother and older sister were murdered while he was lost on his birthday, Li Jingtai discovered their gifts and realized they had not abandoned him. He formed a plan and later assumed the identity of a child believed to have died in a bus accident.

• As a child, Li Jingtai ran away to visit an amusement park after his mother and older sister could not take him, then got lost and slept outdoors.
• A stranger helped Li Jingtai return home, where he found police surrounding the house and learned his mother and older sister were gone.
• Li Jingtai found the Little Vajra his mother had prepared and the illustrated primer his sister had bought, realizing they had not abandoned him.
• Li Jingtai overheard neighbors say that his mother and sister had been murdered, then began forming a plan while wandering with their gifts.
• After a bus carrying Li Jingtai's parents crashed and burned, Li Jingtai was mistaken for a child who had died in the river and assumed that child's identity.

Su Qiao learned about Li Jingtai’s childhood and warned him not to interfere in the current cases or harm He Meishu. Meanwhile, the Major Crimes Unit uncovered that Li Jingtai’s identity was false and found evidence linking him to the murders of He Shangyuan and A Zhi.

• Li Jingtai told Su Qiao how he survived a bus accident as a child, was sent to the Orphanage under another child’s identity, and later studied abroad and became a writer.
• Su Qiao ordered Li Jingtai to stop pursuing his plans until the current cases were resolved and forbade him from harming He Meishu.
• Li Jingtai told Su Qiao that Min Xingyu had encountered and fought with An Yixi, who was disguised, and said he was waiting to see whether Min Xingyu’s group would expose An Yixi’s past.
• The Major Crimes Unit reported that the real Li Jingtai had died in the bus accident and that the man using his identity had later become a writer.
• The Major Crimes Unit said the recent events were connected to Li Jingtai and revealed that a knife bearing A Zhi’s blood and Li Jingtai’s fingerprints had been found near the crime scene.

Su Qiao watched Li Jingtai get arrested after He Meishu presented evidence linking him to A Zhi’s murder. She believed Li Jingtai was being framed and promised to find a way to clear him.

• He Meishu arrived with an arrest warrant and claimed fingerprints, victim’s blood, and an online purchase record tied Li Jingtai to the murder weapon.
• Li Jingtai brought out his knife and insisted he had not killed A Zhi, while Min Xingyu treated the evidence as grounds to take him in.
• Su Qiao told Li Jingtai she believed him and asked whether he trusted her to get him out.
• Li Jingtai agreed to trust Su Qiao and went with the police.
• Afterward, Su Qiao wondered who had planted the evidence and suspected the situation was more complicated than it seemed.

Su Qiao investigated An Yixi and Councilman An, discovered An Yixi was in contact with Min Xingyu, and began monitoring their communications. Li Jingtai escaped after Min Xingyu tried to kill him in a staged car accident, and Su Qiao rushed to rescue him as the police tracked his phone.

• Su Qiao investigated An Yixi and Councilman An and found that An Yixi was in contact with Min Xingyu.
• Su Qiao decided to monitor Min Xingyu and An Yixi's phones, calls, emails, and chats.
• Li Jingtai called Su Qiao and said he had escaped after a car accident nearly sent him over a bridge railing.
• Li Jingtai identified Min Xingyu as the person who had deliberately rammed the police car to kill him.
• Su Qiao told Li Jingtai to hide his phone on a passerby, then drove to meet him while the police tracked his number.

Su Qiao disguised Li Jingtai as a woman to keep him safe and took him from a small hotel, where authorities might inspect, to find a more secure place. Before they left, she planted a tiny device in his mouth.

• Su Qiao found Li Jingtai near a subway station and led him to a small hotel.
• Su Qiao used potions and cosmetics to disguise Li Jingtai as a woman, but he protested and asked to stay indoors or be disguised as an old man.
• Su Qiao rejected his suggestions, explained that the disguise was safer, and told him to act more confidently.
• Su Qiao added height-increasing insoles to her sneakers so she and Li Jingtai would look the same height.
• Su Qiao decided they could not remain at the hotel because authorities might inspect it and prepared to take Li Jingtai somewhere else.
• Su Qiao placed a tiny object in Li Jingtai's mouth and fixed it to his teeth.

Su Qiao brought Li Jingtai, disguised as a woman with a voice-changing device, to the company dormitory, where Sister Wu noticed Su Qiao's increased height and told her about international designers seeking to hire her. Sister Wu then became interested in Li Jingtai as a potential model, while Su Qiao tried to discourage her.

• Su Qiao used a device to change Li Jingtai's voice, and he was startled when it sounded feminine.
• Su Qiao and Li Jingtai arrived at the company dormitory and encountered Sister Wu.
• Sister Wu noticed Su Qiao had grown taller and asked about the protein powder she had been drinking.
• Sister Wu told Su Qiao that international designers had invited her to work as a guest model, and Su Qiao was pleased the invitations could help complete her mission.
• Sister Wu admired Li Jingtai's proportions and urged him to consider modeling, but Su Qiao described him as timid and unsuitable.

Su Qiao kept Sister Wu from immediately recruiting Li Jingtai as a model by promising to give him time to adjust before a trial. Li Jingtai learned it was only a delaying tactic and believed Su Qiao would not let him take a risk.

• Sister Wu enthusiastically examined Li Jingtai and said his appearance made him a promising model despite his flat chest and timid manner.
• Su Qiao pulled Li Jingtai behind her and told Sister Wu she was worried her enthusiasm would scare him.
• Li Jingtai rejected the idea of modeling, but Su Qiao squeezed his hand and persuaded him to listen to Sister Wu.
• Su Qiao promised to let Li Jingtai stay in her dormitory and bring him to the training ground for a trial in a few days.
• After Sister Wu left, Su Qiao told Li Jingtai the trial was only a delaying tactic, and he concluded she would not let him take a risk.

Su Qiao brought Li Jingtai to a vacant apartment in her building so he could hide while she left to avoid being found. She questioned him about a knife tied to a murdered police officer, and he said it was his but denied leaving it beside a trash can.

• Su Qiao took Li Jingtai to her apartment building and packed clothes and toiletries for him.
• Su Qiao settled Li Jingtai in her absent friend’s room on the second floor and told him to stay inside and order takeout.
• Su Qiao showed Li Jingtai a photo of the knife found near the crime scene and asked if it was his.
• Li Jingtai said the knife was probably his, explained that he had bought one online and another through the Black Market, and denied throwing it beside a trash can.

Su Qiao explained why Li Jingtai had been framed and gave him a phone to protect him from Min Xingyu and his allies. After warning Su Qiao that a serial killer might be near Qilitun, Li Jingtai watched her hurry home to avoid arousing suspicion.

• Li Jingtai explained that his knife had likely fallen beside the trash can, where someone used it to frame him for the police officer's murder.
• Su Qiao concluded that Min Xingyu had probably killed his teammate by accident during a fight with An Yixi, then framed Li Jingtai to escape responsibility.
• Su Qiao gave Li Jingtai a modified phone that would warn him if Min Xingyu or the others came close and help him detect surveillance.
• Li Jingtai warned Su Qiao that the serial killer might live near Qilitun, prompting her to think of Kim Ji-woo's home.
• Su Qiao hurried home instead of going to Qilitun, worried that Min Xingyu and the others might notice if she stayed away too long.