Episode 12 recap: A popular artist dies mysteriously on stage.
Before the singing and dancing competition begins, Luo Yi Wei's assistant brings her a bowl of soup backstage. Unexpectedly, she is deliberately tripped by Duan Xiuchan. Not only does Duan Xiuchan trip someone, but she also insults Luo Yi Wei with many offensive words. Shen Qinghe and Shen Qinghe, the sisters, try to say a few words in defense but end up being scolded by Duan Xiuchan as well. When Yan Jun Jie and Ren Meng Yao see the backstage commotion, they intervene and use the excuse of urging Duan Xiuchan to prepare for the competition to stop the argument.
The singing and dancing competition begins, and the Shen Qinghe sisters are the first to perform, successfully finishing their performance. Next is Luo Yi Wei's turn to compete, but halfway through her performance, her heel suddenly breaks, preventing her from continuing the competition. While Duan Xiuchan waits for her turn to perform, she feels something entangling her feet. Annoyed, she kicks a few times and realizes that there's a rat there, which displeases her. However, she doesn't have time to pay attention to it and goes on stage to compete. After singing for a while on stage, the theater suddenly loses power. When the power is restored, Duan Xiuchan is found hanging dead on the stage.
Duan Xiuchan's death causes chaos at the scene. Che Su Wei and Gu Yuan take charge and investigate both the cause of her death and the truth behind the incident. The props staff informs Gu Yuan that they had a rehearsal five hours ago, and there couldn't have been any problem with the props.
Gu Yuan brings in the relevant personnel from the theater for questioning, starting with Chen Fei. Chen Fei insists that he needed to generate publicity for the theater but would never have killed Duan Xiuchan at this time, as it would affect the singing and dancing competition. A clue is provided by a janitor at the theater, mentioning a previous incident where a female artist named A Lian hanged herself in the theater after losing a competition. A Lian had a connection with Duan Xiuchan, so the janitor suspects supernatural involvement.
Upon learning about A Lian, Gu Yuan asks Chen Fei for more information. Chen Fei reveals that he previously manipulated the situation to make it seem like A Lian was caught by the press holding opium, thus ruining her reputation. Gu Yuan and Che Su Wei investigate A Lian's case and discover that the artists participating in the singing competition are mostly affiliated with the Zhenxing Group, headed by Fan Wenkai. Fan Wenkai is using these artists to make money from investors.
Given the numerous news articles about artists under the Zhenxing Group, Gu Yuan believes it's necessary to meet Fan Wenkai and takes Yan Jun Jie to the Fan family.
Gu Yuan had a conversation with Fan Wenkai and learned that Fan Wenkai was planning to propose to Duan Xiuchan. This made Gu Yuan think that the situation was more complicated than they had initially thought, so he asked Yan Jun Jie to continue investigating Duan Xiuchan's past.
Gu Yuan believed that Duan Xiuchan had excellent singing skills and must have previously performed in traditional Chinese opera. He instructed Yan Jun Jie to investigate in that direction. Che Su Wei went to meet the Shen Qinghe sisters and asked about the incident with the rat under Duan Xiuchan's feet before going on stage. The Shen Qinghe sisters admitted that it was their doing, as they wanted to stand up for Luo Yi Wei.
After meeting the Shen Qinghe sisters, Che Su Wei went to the hospital to see Luo Yi Wei, who appeared to be regretful about Duan Xiuchan's situation and tried to distance herself from Duan Xiuchan. Gu Yuan went to find Duan Xiuchan's master to learn more about her, and discovered that Duan Xiuchan had a senior brother named Qiao Yunfei. He then paid a visit to Qiao Yunfei's home.
Qiao Yunfei went to the theater to watch Duan Xiuchan's competition, and his wife, Nie Xiaojing, also went to the theater, but their seating arrangement was peculiar. Qiao Yunfei bought seats on the second floor, while Nie Xiaojing kept an eye on him from the first floor. When Gu Yuan arrived at Qiao Yunfei's home, he happened to encounter the couple arguing about going to the theater, so he had to mediate between them.
Gu Yuan and Che Su Wei were investigating Duan Xiuchan at the police station when they received word that an electrician from the theater had been arrested. They learned that a fuse had been deliberately tampered with, and it was at the instruction of Fan Wenkai. Fan Wenkai had been relying on his wife, Jiulongzi, for his wealth, so it was unlikely that he would divorce her. Gu Yuan believed that Fan Wenkai's claim of planning to propose to Duan Xiuchan was a lie and found him highly suspicious. However, at that moment, he received a report that Fan Wenkai had died.
Fan Wenkai was found dead at his home, smashed by a suit of armor. Che Su Wei and the team went to the scene to investigate and discovered a bottle of perfume, leading them to inquire about it at a store. They found out that it was a newly released sandalwood-scented perfume for men, and the Shen Qinghe sisters had purchased a bottle. Just as Gu Yuan was about to investigate the Shen Qinghe sisters, Shen Qinghe came forward voluntarily, claiming that she had bought the perfume to give to Fan Wenkai, who wanted to engage in a sexual transaction with her. Shen Qinghe refused, and in the heat of the moment, she grabbed something and hit Fan Wenkai.
Shen Qinghe stated that she didn't know that Fan Wenkai was already dead and panicked, so she ran away. It was only afterward that she learned about Fan Wenkai's death and decided to turn herself in at the police station. There were many inconsistencies in Shen Qinghe's statement, and it differed from what she had initially claimed about the true cause of Fan Wenkai's death. Therefore, both Gu Yuan and Che Su Wei believed that there might be someone else who had conflicts with Fan Wenkai.
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