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| Beneath the Undertow Ending Explained: Justice Served, But at a Heartbreaking Cost |
After 19 episodes of tense investigation, Beneath the Undertow finally pulled the curtain back on the tangled conspiracy lurking beneath its murder mystery. The iQIYI suspense-crime drama, led by Chen Jianbin, Chen Ruoxuan, and Sierra Li, gave us a finale that was equal parts satisfying and bittersweet — where justice came, but at a devastating cost.
Quick Recap of Beneath the Undertow Final Episode
The finale wastes no time tying the threads together.
The serial killings of young women — each linked by the gruesome severed-foot detail — trace back to two culprits operating for different motives.
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Li Dada, the spoiled and deeply disturbed son of property tycoon Li Longhe, was behind the murders of Wang Yishan and Jia Beibei. His psychological trauma from childhood, compounded by an abusive father, had warped into violent behaviour. He’s arrested and later sentenced to death.
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But Shen Xiaozhou’s murder — the case that started it all — was committed by Hu Xiangze, deputy general manager of Lucheng Environmental Company. And he didn’t act alone; Li Longhe himself pulled the strings.
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Here’s the chain of events: Shen Xiaozhou, a kind-hearted university student, stumbled upon fraudulent environmental reports tied to Jinhai No. 1, a property project developed by Li Longhe’s company.
The report concealed severe pollution issues. Hoping to protect residents and pressure Li into fixing the problem, she confronted him.
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Li first tried to buy her silence. When that failed, he ordered Hu Xiangze — who also happened to be Shen’s senior at university — to “handle” the problem.
Hu lured her to the seaside, drugged and strangled her, then attempted to dispose of the body through the Xuri Factory’s sewage system. But a faulty valve left her remains in the abandoned pool, where she was later found.
Meanwhile, Hu Xiangze’s relationship with Yue Chunxia (daughter of Xuri Factory’s director) and her pregnancy nearly became another loose end. Li Longhe planned to bury both of them alive to cover his tracks, but Hu’s arrest spared her life.
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The climax comes when the police finally close in on Li Longhe at his rural estate. His escape plan — a hidden tunnel to an old air-raid shelter — literally caves in on him.
Sea water floods the tunnel, and the self-proclaimed “giant” drowns in the very element that exposed his crimes. Poetic justice, if ever there was.
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Characters Wrapped
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Lian Haiping (Chen Jianbin) – The grizzled but principled detective who doggedly follows the trail despite political pressure and personal entanglements. His instincts about Li Longhe prove right, and his persistence delivers justice.
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Shi Qiangfeng (Chen Ruoxuan) – The hot-headed rookie who grows into his role. The finale clears up the mystery about his parentage — he is not Haiping’s son but the child of a thug Haiping once arrested.
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Shen Xiaozhou (Yang Xizi) – The victim whose integrity and courage set the whole investigation in motion. Though she dies early, her actions expose a corporate cover-up and ultimately topple two dangerous men.
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Li Longhe (Yao Anlian) – A manipulative real estate tycoon whose greed and arrogance seal his fate. His drowning is a direct, ironic echo of the environmental crimes he tried to hide.
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Hu Xiangze (Cheng Taishen) – Once an idealistic scholar, now a cold, calculating corporate climber. His betrayal of Shen is both professional and personal, making him one of the drama’s most loathsome figures.
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Li Dada (Wu Haochen) – A deeply broken man who weaponises his trauma to justify his crimes. His execution feels grimly inevitable.
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Yue Chunxia (Wu Shuang) – A tragic bystander almost destroyed by her lover’s lies, surviving by sheer chance.
In-Depth Beneath The Undertow Ending Explained
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At its core, Beneath the Undertow isn’t just about catching a killer — it’s about how corruption, greed, and moral compromise ripple through entire communities.
The “undertow” of the title symbolises the invisible forces pulling people under — be it the corporate deception of Li Longhe, the moral decay of Hu Xiangze, or the systemic complacency that allowed them to operate for so long.
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Shen Xiaozhou’s death, while tragic, becomes a catalyst for change. In confronting Li Longhe, she knowingly took on a fight far bigger than herself — and though she lost her life, her actions dismantled a criminal network and exposed environmental fraud.
Haiping’s rhetorical question — “Didn’t Shen Xiaozhou change the world?” — underlines the drama’s bittersweet moral: one person’s courage can indeed shift the balance, but the price may be unbearably high.
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TLDR + Short Review
TLDR:
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Two killers: Li Dada (murders of Wang Yishan, Jia Beibei) and Hu Xiangze (murder of Shen Xiaozhou)
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Li Longhe orchestrated Shen’s death to hide environmental crimes
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Shen Xiaozhou’s investigation exposed corporate fraud, but cost her life
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Li Longhe drowns while escaping, Hu Xiangze sentenced to death, Li Dada executed
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Justice served, but bittersweet ending
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Short Review:
Beneath the Undertow delivers a gripping blend of crime investigation and social commentary, bolstered by strong performances (especially from Chen Jianbin and Chen Ruoxuan).
The pacing falters slightly in the mid-section, but the final reveal and thematically rich ending make the ride worth it. Expect a dark, layered mystery rather than a feel-good wrap-up.
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FAQ
Q: Is Beneath the Undertow based on a true story?
A: No, but it draws on real-world themes like environmental scandals, corporate cover-ups, and abuse of power.
Q: Why did Li Longhe drown instead of getting arrested?
A: His escape tunnel collapsed, and the incoming sea water trapped him — an ironic fate for someone who tried to hide pollution beneath the surface.
Q: Did Shen Xiaozhou know she was in danger?
A: Not entirely. She understood she was challenging powerful people, but she underestimated the lengths they would go to silence her.
Q: Is there any romance in the drama?
A: Very little — the focus is firmly on crime, investigation, and moral dilemmas, though relationships (like Hu Xiangze and Yue Chunxia) play a role in the plot.
Q: Does Shi Qiangfeng turn out to be Haiping’s son?
A: No — the finale confirms his biological father was a criminal Haiping arrested years ago.