Episode Summary
Hao Chengcai faces mounting financial pressure from his wife and son's expenses. Li Dangui investigates Zhang Yulan's insurance policy, leading Shen Ye to suspect she might have sacrificed herself for her son's financial gain. Hao Tianyou reveals details about his grandmother's relationship with Ying Youchang. Hao Chengcai discovers his mother had already sold her house to support his lifestyle. An autopsy reveals new details about Ying Youchang's death. Shen Ye confronts Hao Chengcai with the truth about his mother's illness and her final plan.
Spoiler Alert
In Episode 9 of "Unnatural Fire," the financial pressures on Hao Chengcai are mounting. Back at home, his wife, Wang Yingying, is pressing him about the mortgage. On top of that, they're facing a 200,000 yuan bill for their son, Hao Tianyou's, new private school, and if they don't pay up soon, their credit cards will be frozen. Hao Chengcai, feeling the strain, snaps at Wang Yingying, accusing her of being obsessed with money. She fires back, questioning his involvement in family matters. Their argument is interrupted when it is time to take their son to school. Hao Tianyou, is wearing clothes made by his late grandmother, Zhang Yulan. Wang Yingying, deeming them unfashionable, makes him change, but Hao Tianyou, who clearly misses his grandmother, secretly wears them underneath his new clothes.
During their fight, Hao Chengcai and Wang Yingying also mention the need for a death certificate, which Hao Tianyou overhears. After dropping him off at school, Wang Yingying emphasizes how precious this educational opportunity is, but Hao Tianyou is preoccupied with thoughts of Zhang Yulan.
Meanwhile, Li Dangui discovers that Zhang Yulan had purchased an accidental death insurance policy for herself a few years prior. Shen Ye suspects that Hao Chengcai's family has been living beyond their means by exploiting Zhang Yulan. He theorizes that Zhang Yulan, to provide for her son, might have either committed suicide or deliberately provoked Ying Youchang into killing her. To uncover the relationship between Ying Youchang and Zhang Yulan, Shen Ye and Xu Tongsheng pick up Hao Tianyou from school.
Hao Tianyou, already sensing something is wrong with Zhang Yulan because she used to take care of him every weekend. When asked about how Ying Youchang treated his grandmother, he innocently reveals that Zhang Yulan was always happy to receive Ying Youchang's calls. However, Hao Chengcai often scolded her, even criticizing her for mending his clothes.
After returning Hao Tianyou to school, Xu Tongsheng casually asks Shen Ye if he had a similar bond with his own grandmother. Shen Ye explains that he grew up with his father and had no other close relatives. He once asked his father about it, but his father became very upset, only saying that he had cut ties with his family due to a certain event.
Hao Chengcai decides to sell Zhang Yulan's house, only to learn that she had already sold it long ago and had been renting ever since. The down payment for Hao Chengcai's villa, as well as a later car purchase, had been largely funded by Zhang Yulan's savings from selling her house. Hao Chengcai is overcome with guilt.
Jin Chun performs an autopsy on Ying Youchang and makes a new discovery. She immediately contacts Xu Tongsheng and Shen Ye. The body, initially found face down, had been repositioned in the morgue, causing the lividity to shift. There are multiple bruises on the chest with blood clots, indicating a severe impact before death.
The next day, Hao Chengcai returns to the police station to obtain the death certificate, openly admitting he's going through the insurance claim process. While this is not inherently wrong, Shen Ye recounts the story of Zhang Yulan and Hao Chengcai from a third-person perspective, highlighting how a young couple's pursuit of an extravagant lifestyle drained a mother's resources. He then reveals that Zhang Yulan's last medical checkup showed she had uremia, a serious kidney disease. Ying Youchang had urged Zhang Yulan to tell Hao Chengcai, but she refused, not wanting to burden her son, and planned to buy an accidental death insurance policy to leave him a substantial sum.
The episode concludes with the implication that Zhang Yulan asked Ying Youchang to kill her, knowing that a disabled person would face lighter legal consequences and could receive care in prison. Ying Youchang was reluctant, but Zhang Yulan was determined.
