Zhang Qian

Biodata

History

Lin Feng’s wrongful detention

Zhang Qian treated Lin Feng’s written statement of remorse as conclusive evidence that he had molested Sun Tingting. She neither sought possible library surveillance footage nor properly questioned the students present. Instead, she subjected him to repeated hostile interrogations. Already physically and mentally exhausted, the original Lin Feng suffered severe chest pain and died during the ordeal; another soul subsequently took control of his body 1.

During the next interrogation, Zhang dismissed his explanation that Li Jing had coerced the statement. She defended Sun Tingting on the grounds of her academic record and reputation, then offered to report Lin Feng as remorseful if he confessed. His refusal strengthened her hostility, while her conduct made her one of his principal revenge targets 3 4 8.

Surveillance and the Cell 107 investigation

Lin Feng ordered Wang Wu to investigate Zhang Qian alongside Sun Tingting and Li Jing, later expanding surveillance through additional deathsworn. Zhang repeatedly noticed possible observers—a deliveryman, a sanitation worker, a taxi, and a shadowy figure near her home—but attributed her unease to exhaustion and the memory of Lin Feng’s changed expression 3 5 6 7.

After Zheng Qi and Qian Er attacked inmates in Cell 107, Zhang suspected that Lin Feng had directed them. Her veteran colleague, Brother Wang, warned that instinct was not evidence and that the incidents fell outside their team’s jurisdiction. She nevertheless went to the detention center to question both men. Zheng Qi threatened her family, while Qian Er denied acting under orders and raised the possibility of a procedural complaint. Neither supplied evidence connecting Lin Feng to the attacks 19 20.

Obstruction of the defense

Zhang obstructed lawyer Zhou Wenyuan’s access to Lin Feng. After the initial meeting request was rejected and the eventual appointment delayed, she terminated the meeting at twenty-one minutes despite the permitted thirty-minute duration. Zhou challenged her interference and stated that he would document procedural violations 29.

Pressure subsequently came from the procuratorate and her own superiors, who questioned the remorse statement’s reliability and warned against a wrongful conviction. Zhang blamed Zhou for using influence against her. During a further interrogation, she threatened repeated supplementary investigations to keep Lin Feng detained until he broke down. His calm question—why she was so angry—briefly forced her to recognize her own loss of composure 30 31.

Collusion with Sun Tingting

Eventually acknowledging to herself that the evidence was dangerously weak, Zhang privately met Sun Tingting at a café. She invoked solidarity between women, encouraged Sun to call her “Sister,” and proposed coordinating details to complete the prosecution’s evidence. Sun secretly recorded the conversation 39.

Before trial, Zhang disclosed that the presiding judge was a close friend of many years. She coached Sun to appear frightened and wronged while firmly repeating their agreed account, promising that Lin Feng would go to prison. Sun recorded this call as well, preserving it as leverage against Zhang 42.

Presiding Judge He subsequently obstructed the defense and sentenced Lin Feng to three years for forcible molestation. Zhang privately celebrated the verdict and joined Sun’s celebration afterward. Lin Feng instructed Zhou to appeal and investigate both Zhang and the judge 44 45 46.

Exposure and career collapse

When a recording of Sun admitting to the false accusation went viral, Zhang blocked her number. Sun reached her through Wang Meng’s phone and played the café and telephone recordings, threatening to expose Zhang’s misconduct unless she helped contain the scandal. Zhang yielded and proposed claiming that the incriminating audio had been fabricated using AI 47 48.

Sun followed those instructions, but an anonymous account released three recordings exposing their coordinated testimony, Zhang’s judicial connection, and the subsequent blackmail and cover-up. The release discredited the AI explanation and made Zhang’s involvement public 49.

Zhang’s uncle warned that, although the recordings’ procedural flaws could make a criminal conviction difficult, her conduct constituted serious disciplinary violations. He told her to expect the end of promotion prospects and repeated undesirable postings, adding that his own career would suffer. Zhang switched off her overwhelmed phone and collapsed into despair at home. No completed disciplinary ruling is shown in the provided chapters 50.

Appearance

• Face and expression: Described as reasonably attractive, but made harsh-looking by her tense expression and openly disgusted scrutiny 1.
• Uniform and grooming: Usually wears a crisp police uniform with her hair meticulously pinned up 4 29.
• Signs of strain: Uses light makeup to conceal fatigue before the third interrogation, though her agitation remains visible 31.
• After exposure: Appears with disheveled hair and makeup smeared by tears and sweat, contrasting with her earlier composed presentation 50.

Personality

Zhang is judgmental, stubborn, and deeply invested in proving her initial conclusions correct. She interprets Sun Tingting’s good reputation as evidence of innocence and Lin Feng’s denials as proof of bad character. Her interrogation methods prioritize obtaining agreement with her judgment rather than testing competing explanations 1 4.

She takes resistance personally. Lin Feng’s composure, Zhou Wenyuan’s legal challenges, and scrutiny from superiors provoke increasingly uncontrolled anger. Even when she recognizes weaknesses in the evidence, she chooses to reinforce the accusation rather than reconsider it 29 30 31 39.

Her warmth toward Sun is tied to protective instincts, vanity, and a claimed alliance between women. Sun’s flattery reassures her enough to disclose compromising information about the judge. That solidarity proves conditional: Zhang abandons Sun when the scandal begins and resumes helping only after being blackmailed 39 42 48.

Abilities & Skills

Interrogation and psychological pressure

Zhang uses practiced interrogation techniques to seek confessions 4 31.

• Alternates threats of punishment with offers to report remorse and seek leniency 4.
• Invokes a suspect’s future and parents to undermine resistance 31.
• Uses raised voices, desk-slamming, insults, and prolonged questioning to intimidate 1 4.
• Fails to break Lin Feng’s silence or extract admissions implicating him from Zheng Qi and Qian Er 20 31.

Investigative observation

Zhang notices behavioral changes and suspicious connections, but frequently treats suspicion as confirmation 7 19.

• Recognizes the significance of Zheng Qi calling Lin Feng “big brother” and Qian Er attacking just as Lin Feng is threatened 19.
• Detects signs of surveillance without identifying the network behind them 7.
• Cannot establish an evidentiary link between Lin Feng and the Cell 107 assaults 20.

Procedural and personal influence

Zhang uses her position and connections to obstruct Lin Feng’s defense and support the prosecution 29 31 42.

• Interferes with lawyer meetings and threatens extended detention through supplementary investigations 29 31.
• Coaches Sun Tingting’s account and courtroom presentation 39 42.
• Relies on her friendship with the presiding judge, a connection later exposed in recordings 42 49.

Equipment & Possessions

• Collapsible baton — Carried concealed at her waist; she reaches for it when investigating a suspicious figure near her home 7.
• White SUV — Used for her commute 7.
• Personal phone — Used for private conversations with Sun Tingting; switched off after the scandal overwhelms her with calls and messages 42 50.

Relationships

• Lin Feng — Suspect and principal adversary. Her handling of his case helps drive his revenge campaign; he places her under surveillance and later orders an investigation into her 1 3 45.
• Sun Tingting — Favored complainant and co-conspirator. Their supposed sisterhood becomes mutual leverage when Sun records and blackmails her 39 42 48.
• Li Jing — Defends Li’s role in obtaining Lin Feng’s remorse statement, insisting that the teacher was trying to help him 4.
• Zhou Wenyuan — Opposing defense lawyer. He challenges her interference and procedural conduct; she blames him for pressure on the investigation 29 30.
• Brother Wang — Veteran detective and mentor. He cautions her against relying on instinct and accompanies her questioning of Zheng Qi and Qian Er 19 20.
• Presiding Judge He — Close friend whose involvement Zhang presents as assurance of a favorable verdict 42 44 45.
• Unnamed uncle — Family connection she turns to after exposure. He warns that her misconduct has ruined her prospects and damaged his own 50.

Notable Quotes

“The law requires evidence, so we’ll give him evidence! I have a plan...” 39

“Uncle! I know I was wrong! What do I do now? Am I going to... go to prison?” 50