Su Mingzhe

Biodata

Appearance

• Scholarly bearing: Looks refined and scholarly, matching his work as a laboratory researcher 15.
• Clothing: Introduced wearing a plain Zhongshan suit 15.
• Glasses: Wears gold-rimmed glasses, which he frequently adjusts while thinking or speaking 15 28 44.

Personality

Su Mingzhe is normally gentle, refined, and intellectually curious. When he encounters the unfamiliar drawing among Su Mingyue’s belongings, his curiosity immediately gives way to alarm as he recognizes its classified significance 15 26.

His composure does not mean he is forgiving toward those who harm his family. After learning about Nuannuan’s abuse, he calmly demands the trafficker’s confession and detailed information on Liu Guifang. During the investigation, he favors secrecy and conclusive evidence over action that might alert their enemies 15 27.

With Nuannuan, he deliberately softens his approach. He crouches to her eye level when asking about disturbing testimony and later insists that her education should take the form of games rather than military drills. Although he recognizes her intelligence value, he objects when Su Mingguo discusses her as a battlefield asset: “Nuannuan isn’t a weapon” 28 44 46.

History

Nuannuan’s Return

An expert at a major national research institute, Su Mingzhe spends most of his time in the laboratory. He joins the family at Nuannuan’s hospital bedside after her rescue and learns that she has suffered prolonged abuse. He immediately asks Su Mingfeng to obtain investigative material on the traffickers and Liu Guifang 15.

He is also present when Nuannuan wakes and begins recognizing her reunited family 17.

Su Mingyue’s Hidden Evidence

While visiting Nuannuan after finishing a project early, Su Mingzhe sees a drawing recovered from a tin box beneath her bedroom floor. He identifies it as Project 713’s top-secret mineral-vein distribution sketch. Its presence among his deceased sister’s belongings leads him and Su Mingfeng to suspect that Su Mingyue and her husband did not die accidentally 26.

He secures the drawing and advocates investigating privately before informing the rest of the family. When reports arrive that Liu Guifang has trapped the investigation team in Li Family Village, he recognizes the obstruction as a possible attempt to destroy evidence or coordinate false accounts 27.

After Nuannuan reports that mice have seen human bones in Liu Guifang’s cellar, Su Mingzhe locks the diary and map inside a steel security cabinet. He insists on accompanying Su Mingfeng to the village, proposing that military force and psychological pressure be used together 28.

Li Family Village Investigation

At the village, Su Mingzhe supports the search by citing emergency authority when the village secretary challenges its legality. After soldiers uncover a postman’s remains, he warns Liu Guifang that a forensic examiner can investigate the skull injury 31 33.

Among the recovered correspondence, he finds Su Mingyue’s letters and a letter addressed to “Green Pine” from Northwest Base 713. Recognizing the base’s high security classification, he warns that the case extends beyond Liu Guifang’s crimes 34.

He also carefully opens the ruined mailbag, recovering letters and the baby clothes, powdered milk, toy duck, and tiger-head shoes intended for Nuannuan. The sight moves him to tears, and he tries to comfort Su Mingfeng 36.

Uncovering Green Pine

Su Mingzhe suspects that the ordinary-looking correspondence conceals a secret delivery channel. Testimony obtained by Nuannuan from mice reveals that the murdered postman tried to swallow the letter and that a bespectacled man regularly waited near the village entrance 38.

From these clues, he deduces that the village committee office served as a dead drop and that “Green Pine” names an enemy spy organization rather than an individual. Nuannuan’s description of the courier’s hospital-like smell leads him to identify formalin as a likely clue, narrowing the search toward people working with medical or pathological specimens 39.

During the return journey, a hidden armed observer forces the convoy to stop. Su Mingzhe draws his pistol and watches their surroundings before the party changes course to a military airfield 41.

Aboard the transport plane, he separates the letter’s concealed envelope layer and discovers tiny Braille dots. He translates them into an encrypted string, then uses Su Mingyue’s diary to decipher the warning: “The mole is in the capital” 42.

Great Wall Group and Tutoring

Back in the capital, Su Mingzhe reports the discoveries to Su Zhenbang. His father establishes the secret Great Wall investigation group and assigns him responsibility for intelligence analysis, decryption, planning, and custody of all physical evidence 43.

After observing the precision of Nuannuan’s animal-derived information, he proposes teaching her an “information coordinate system.” With Su Zhenbang’s approval, he becomes her personal tutor, spending two hours each day teaching through games while keeping her happy and free from pressure 46.

Abilities & Skills

Scientific Knowledge

• Recognizes Project 713’s classified mineral-vein sketch on sight and understands its importance to national energy security 26 27.
• Connects the courier’s reported odor with formalin and explains its association with specimen preservation and prolonged medical or research work 39.

Intelligence Analysis

• Reconstructs Green Pine’s suspected dead-drop system from the letter’s destination, the postman’s behavior, and the courier’s repeated visits 38 39.
• Identifies the need for information blackouts to prevent suspects from relocating or destroying the intelligence network 27 39.
• Serves as the Great Wall group’s designated analyst and planner 43.

Cryptography and Evidence Examination

• Has some knowledge of cryptography through his scientific work; recognizes the principle behind Su Mingyue’s double cipher using dates and Chinese character structures 42.
• Translates concealed Braille and applies the diary’s cipher rules to decode the message 42.
• Uses gloves, precision tools, and controlled lighting to examine fragile documents without destroying concealed evidence 36 42.

Teaching and Reconnaissance Training

• Uses a map of the capital and a toy soldier to teach directions, landmarks, and location descriptions 46.
• Introduces labeled bottles of distinctive smells to help Nuannuan associate scents with occupations and places 46.
• Teaches her to turn animal reports into precise, actionable descriptions of locations, numbers, and movements 46.
• Conducts lessons as play rather than harsh training; Su Mingfeng nevertheless recognizes the material as tracking and reconnaissance instruction 46.

Equipment & Items

• Briefcase and secure document case — Used to protect the mineral-vein sketch, correspondence, and other sensitive evidence 27 39 43.
• White gloves — Worn when opening the damaged mailbag and examining the concealed letter 36 42.
• Precision tweezers and high-powered flashlight — Used to separate and inspect the envelope’s hidden layer 42.
• Pistol — Carried at his waist and drawn during the mountain-road security alert 41.
• Teaching aids — A capital map, toy soldier, and labeled scent bottles used in Nuannuan’s daily lessons 46.

Relationships

• Nuannuan — Niece and pupil. He investigates her abuse, praises her contributions to the case, and teaches her to communicate animal intelligence without subjecting her to military drills 15 39 46.
• Su Mingfeng — Brother and investigative partner. Su Mingfeng handles armed operations while Su Mingzhe concentrates on evidence, deductions, and decryption 28 39 42 43.
• Su Mingyue — Deceased younger sister. Her hidden map, correspondence, and diary drive his investigation into her death and the Green Pine network 26 29 42.
• Su Zhenbang — Father. Appoints him the Great Wall group’s intelligence lead and entrusts him with Nuannuan’s pressure-free education 43 46.
• Lin Wanyi — Mother. He reassures her that Nuannuan’s lessons will be gentle games rather than harsh training 46.
• Su Mingguo — Brother and fellow Great Wall member. Su Mingzhe challenges his battlefield framing of Nuannuan’s ability 43 46.
• Su Minglang — Younger brother. Explains his unconventional business career to Nuannuan and later gives her chocolate from his overseas gifts 47 49.

Notable Quotes

“You’re a soldier. You’ll handle breaking down the door. I’m a researcher. I’ll handle breaking her spirit.” 28

“Nuannuan isn’t a weapon.” 46

“We have to build an ‘information coordinate system’ for her.” 46