Some scenes were definitely lifted from the book, but there were a lot of changes especially towards the end -- but on the whole, I think the drama stuck to the spirit of the book so I don't mind the changes and can even appreciate them. I now love both the book and the drama!
Definitely. He is an ENABLER. But he admits as much when he tells his wife that it's not that he's been in the dark about all the things that she's done, but rather he deliberately turned a blind eye to it - because it was easier and because it benefited him. He is not blameless, and he knows it. And in some ways it's worse because the mom lives in her own delusional world and I'm not sure she can even differentiate between right and wrong sometimes, but the dad definitely can - he has more of a heart, but instead of using it to do the right thing, he let his self-interests close off his heart and let his wife go unchecked. But now he regrets it.
Best Change from Novel to drama is Momma Meng almost Kneeling infront of Miao Maio đđđđđđđ
That's not a change from the novel. She also almost kneeled in the book and ZM called it off at the last minute. ZM then said the same thing to her in the drama as she did in the book (about how she was basically calling off the kneel out of consideration of XQ).
On the other hand, what ZM said to her after that (about parents needing to bear the responsibility for their own wrongs versus their children) and what XQ's adopted mother does after that, *that* is a change from the book.
Unfortunately this was an exemption. I was also disppointed to be honest.
I thought it was a way to show how life goes on... and we can see how their life will continue to be even after the drama ends. I appreciate how they gave us the certainty of marriage and allowed us to see them in their wedding clothes!
They will according to the original schedule (the unsubbed eps were released as part of an express package option, i.e., pay more, in China). If you want spoilers, scroll down to where I shared recaps of the remaining 8 eps.
Last ep! Picks up with the typhoon rescue efforts. Iâm fast forwarding through a lot of these scenes as well but there was one guy with a truck full of bikes whoâd stopped to talk to Yezi and help her. He said he was working extra to help send his daughter to college and then of course the minute they part ways, the entire pile of bikes fall on the man. Yezi ends up flagging down SY and his firetruck for assistance. Of course XQ meets him in an ambulance and along the way to the hospital they help others and take them to the hospital too. After a lot of fast forwarding, have arrived to the scene where XQâs adopted mother has been in a car accident and is stuck in her car in a tunnel. There are other cars stuck there as well and one is in flames. In short, itâs not a good situation. SYâs team is closest and they run over to assist. The tunnel is collapsing around them and Jiang Yi runs over to tell SY that they got everyone out and should retreat now, but just then, they hear the sound of a honking horn â itâs XQâs mother. Of course SY saves her and carries her out on his back. (Will the narcissist finally grow a heart?)
Adopted mom sits in a bus with the other people theyâve saved. The other people are praising the firemen for saving them and one turns to XQâs mother and asks if she knows the person who carried her out. Adopted mom looks out the window to SY and finally answers, âHeâs my daughterâs boyfriend.â
Clean-up montage follows of the typhoon and at the hospital, XQ is happy/relieved when she gets to text SY that the patient they worked together to send to the hospital finally woke up.
Li Meng is eating breakfast and looking out her window when she notices that the tiny plant that Jiang Yu had gifted her has actually sprouted pretty blue flowers. She texts him to tell him the âblind boxâ bloomed and Jiang Yu texts back, âBlind box?â She sends a picture of the flower and in reply, she gets an article about âlan xing huaâ (a flower that appears to be in the morning glory family). She reads that it symbolizes having mutual trust of the heart and holding onto the present. Li Meng ends up visiting Jiang Yu at his house and sheâs all glammed up, not wearing her uniform. Looks like they have a mutual interest in a book as sheâs surprised to find he has a copy when itâs out of print. Jiang Yu tells her that he searched a long time before finding it at a used bookstore. She asks which one and when he answers, she laughs saying that she used to go there all the time and never ran into him, and Jiang Yu then says, âArenât you meeting me now? Itâs not too early or too late; itâs perfect (timing).â (Awwwww!)
Continued typhoon clean-up continues â this one involving a tree. A man asks SY if instead of cutting down a tree thatâs poking into a balcony and presenting a potential future safety hazard, the fire crew will help him remove the tree. SY notes that the tree is really huge and the man says heâs got a truck and everything to move it. As the fire crew works to remove the tree, he explains how his mom had planted the tree when his business was suffering. Every so often sheâd send him messages saying that the tree was doing well and growing, just like his business would too. The man says business finally did get better, but by then his mother had already passed away. He hopes to keep the tree as a memory of his mother. As the mom walks away, Yang Chi says that you have to have pity on a parentsâ heart/efforts.
XQ is having a meal with her parents and brother. Dad says he heard from MYC that she would be transferring from ER to the outpatient clinic. Mom comments that the outpatient clinic is just as tiring work, but dad says itâs still better than the ER. Mom agrees and tells XQ to drink up (her soup). She then asks whether her wedding has been settled. She says yes, but not the date, and that she and SY have agreed to have a small wedding. The mother protests that a wedding is a big event and asks how it can it be a small event. MYC reminds the mom that this is XQ and SYâs business so the mom says fine, fine, fine, this is âtheirâ Meng familyâs business so they can have the last word. MYC says he didnât mean it in that way and dad pipes up that if it were up to him, it should be whatever SY and XQ want to do, so if XQ wants to have a small wedding thatâs fine. He does ask though whether sheâll still have the usual traditions, including him walking her down the aisle, and she says yes, so dadâs like, âSee? Isnât it complete then?â Mom can only smile and continue eating. She notices XQ smiling and watching her, so she tells her her soup is getting cold.
XQ visits Dr. Yang to pick something up and Dr. Yang asks if XQ hadnât said sheâd be by later. XQ says she happened to be passing by so she stopped in. Dr. Yang offers to get things ready and send it over later that evening and thatâs when XQ notices a pair of menâs shoes by the door. Which is then followed by XYXâs voice from inside the house announcing that the dumplings are ready. Surprise! LOL. XYX asks what sheâs doing there and offers her some of the dumplings, so XQ just puts down the melon sheâd been holding and told them to eat that.
Looks like the fire crew is training a new batch. Yang Chi and Jiang Yi are joking around with each other and the latter mentions that heâs already registered his marriage. (Itâs pink hearts everywhere, I guess!)
SY and XQ are packing up his room when she gets a message from XYX inviting her to dinner with him and her brother. He says SY is invited too and XQ asks if he wants to go, and itâs okay if he doesnât want to, but SY asks why wouldnât he want to go. XQ asks if she can drink then since heâll be around.
Dinner that night. SY holds out his hand in greeting and he and MYC finally shake hands. XYX tells XQ they should also shake hands and she slaps his hand aside. SY comments that this place theyâre meeting at is nice and MYC says the wine and food are both good there, and the owner is nice too. XYX explains that this is their meeting point. The owner walks out saying she heard people complimenting them and then comments that they have a ânew friendâ among them today. XYX introduces SY as XQâs husband and the owner comments that they do have a married couple feel about them. To celebrate, she offers to personally cook a few dishes for them. XYX jokes that if he knew this was the service heâd get by bringing around a new bride, heâd bring a new bride to that place all the time.
XQ wakes up alone in bed in their new home. After looking around, she gets up and walks out to find SY sitting on the rooftop. She joins him and says, âSY, you had a hard time these past 10 years, didnât you?â He responds, âIt was worth it.â She asks, âReally?â And he says, âReally,â because although the physical training was hard, itâs the same for all firefighters. XQ asks what about when he was in the military and he says it was about the same. He also says that when he enlisted, theyâd made an oath to work hard through struggles, so they just endured it and suffering a little bit wasnât any sort of big thing. XQ asks to hear the military oath and he has to think about it for a minute before reciting it. He ends by adding that he will never betray/foresake her.
The End!
Iâll probably have more thoughts tomorrow but um, bed for now. LOL.
Episode begins with the dinner where XQâs father explains that he came today to discuss the childrenâs matter. Uncle explains that SY doesnât have any parents so he and his wife have treated him as their own child, so they shouldâve come to him first, but the dad says they donât have to worry about formalities. All parents just want to see their children happy. Aunt reassures that XQ will never suffer in their family and ZM chimes in with agreement. Dad says he heard their neighborhood is going to be demolished and asks about their plans. ZM say she doesnât have to worry because her brother long ago prepare â and thatâs when SY kicks her to shut her up (and omg the look he shoots her, lol). The aunt jumps in to say he doesnât have to worry because no matter where they move, theyâll be sure to help SY and XQ settle somewhere.
After dinner, XQ offers to walk her father to the entrance of the neighborhood but he instead suggests that SY accompany him. Along the way, dad tells SY that he can tell his daughter is determined to marry SY and SY says heâs equally determined to marry her. The dad says that before he came, he was worried that SY wouldnât be able to give her happiness, but now that heâs met him and his family he sees how they leave others envious. It wasnât what he expected, but he tells SY that he genuinely hopes that the family they create for themselves will be able to be equally happy. SY reassures her father that heâll never let her down. The dad starts to apologize for his familyâs involvement in him not being able to get into the military academy, but SY cuts him off and says heâs never regretted the choices heâs made in the past and plus, heâs doing fine now so he doesnât live with any regret or resentment. He also reassures that he has a long future ahead of him. Dad pats him on the shoulder before walking off. (I guess weâre making up with dad, at least.)
Cute scene between SY and XQ after he returns home. He starts to bring up the fact that they may need to rent a house and she cuts him off. She would rather know about what secret he and ZM are keeping from her, but he insists that he really doesnât have any secrets. The next day, he takes her to visit a place. He says the owner says that if she likes it, heâll ask his wife. XQ opens the card that contains the key and after reading it, exclaims that the owner seems to be romantic, and he says itâs no use complimenting him when it's all up to the wife as to whether they can move in. After looking all over the house, XQ says she loves the house and tells him to hurry up and call the wife. So, SY pulls out his phone andâŠ. Of course, calls XQ. She thinks he called the wrong number but he says, no, itâs you, my homeownerâs wife. Aww, cute! [Totally a different from the way he introduced the house to her in the book, but I like this version as well.] And he proposes!!!
Nurses exclaim over XQâs ring in their changing room. And at the fire station, food is spewed as the underlings are amazed to learn their captain is getting married. Theyâre amazed he managed to pull it off and this earns them a slap to the back of the head when SY walks in, lol.
XQ comes to find SY at the fire station where everyone greets her in a ceremony â firefighter style and then SY introduces her to them as their sister-in-law. Lots of cuteness to look forward to, so I wonât spoil further.
Love how ZMâs planning this wedding for them. She even tries on wedding dresses for XQ since the actual bride and groom are too busy with their work.
XQ meets with her brother. Sounds like heâs finally sleeping and getting some rest. He notices her engagement ring and says it looks nice. He also gifts her an early wedding present. He then tells her that heâs decided to enter his fatherâs company (parents are getting old). After they part ways, XQ sends him a text message saying she feels fortunate to be able to his family member for a lifetime, and that this good fortune was something she felt from the first moment they met as children. He turns and she waves back at him, while MYC smiles. (Guess we can finally let go of that block in his heartâŠ. Not loving his new hairstyle, though.)
Back at home, XQ looks at the pictures of the wedding dresses ZM tried on. ZM then asks her how many guests XQ plans on having for her side of the wedding. This leads to awkwardness as XQ says not many, but ZM tells her not to worry as there will be a lot on their side so they can help make up the difference. SY then arrives home just in time to find XQ trying on a tiara â it was the gift from her brother. XQ then tells SY itâs a good thing he arrived when he did because she didnât know how to answer all the wedding planning questions that ZM had been asking her. Ultimately, SY observes that a traditional wedding in a hotel is not XQâs style because she doesnât like being in front of so many people. She suggests they just forego everything, but SY says they should still have some ceremony to the process. He suggests they get married at the fire station with Xiao Meng as their flower girl. She likes the idea but suggests he swap Xiao Meng out for a person since Xiao Meng is a dog.
MYC takes over the family company and greets the board of directors.
ZM frets as SY and XQ are running late to their own engagement photo shoot. She pleads with the photographer to give them more time as itâs hard for her brother and sister-in-law to find time to meet up together, so the photographer agrees and finally XQ and SY show up in their wedding clothes. As they begin, XQ tells SY that she has a regret â he asks what she regrets â and she answers that she regrets she didnât get to together with him earlier.
Typhoon time! I fast forwarded through most of this as Iâll rewatch with subs but itâs a lot of rescue scenes, including of XQ at the hospital, and then we see MYC even stopping to pick up random strangers when he sees them standing on the side of the road desperate for a ride to the hospital as the wife is not feeling well. On the way, he runs across Yezi who is standing outside in the storm helping to direct traffic. (Oh gosh, are they going to do a redemption arc and bring the two of them together?? MYC, I would not turn back to look for as long as you have â thereâs a storm going on and your eyes should be on the road in front of you!)
Episode starts with SY reminding his cousin that no matter how unsatisfied she feels, they canât turn back time. She agrees they canât go back, but points out the wounds can still be present and she doesnât understand how he can forgive the Meng family so easily. But SY corrects her and says he hasnât forgiven them and doesnât even want them to apologize, as he wouldnât be able to forgive them anyway. But he also says doesnât have any resentment left nor does he seek revenge, because he doesnât want to keep living the rest of his life under feelings of resentment. He then tells her that in terms of what she should do next, she shouldnât think of it as saving or not saving someone, but rather, doing the right thing â so itâs not something she should do to be thanked or for an apology. As for himself, he says heâs living well now and his future will be even better, so they should just let the past be the past. ZM says thatâs fine â he can do whatever he wants, but as for her, sheâll do the right thing, but sheâs also going to do her own thing and he better not meddle. In short, ZM ends up making the adopted mom kneel for the evidence â I love this because this entire time, the only way the adopted mom has known how to operate has been to solve problems by throwing money at it and finally, she has met the one thing money canât buy. I also kind of love how in the drama, they make the parents come find ZM at her own house. In the book, this all takes place at the police station.
Wait, I thought you all said the mom actually kneels in the drama! She doesnât. She only gets close to doing so, but thatâs the same in the book â ZM calls it off before her knees actually hit the ground by asking how sheâs supposed to get along with XQ in the future if she accepts this kneel. BUT, on the other hand, this is something different from the book: ZM tells the mother that if she did something wrong, then she should bear the responsibility, and if she does, then her child will naturally not have to bear the consequences. As a result, next scene is MOM â TURNING â HERSELF â IN!!!!!! But before we get too excited about that, you should know the next scene involves mom and son crossing paths in the hallways of the police department. Sheâs heading in while MYC is being released and then mom turns back to start beating him asking him why he didnât just go die and asking if heâs trying to force her to death. Sheâs a great mom. MYC apologizes but then says that since she did something wrong, someoneâs got to bear the responsibility and if she wasnât going to do it, he was going to do it for her. XQ and her father then arrive and the mother continues to complain that her children are against her and this family and zomg, woman, do you still not see whoâs to blame? Sigh⊠narcissists. As she walks off, she tells the children that fine, they have their freedom. Yay?
As for Yezi, she is arrested and hauled off in handcuffs. The police then meet with the classmates outside of the police station and reveals the truth to them while also reminding them to be more careful the next time.
Oh wait, MYC doubles back to meet with Yezi. In sum, she felt led on while he wanted was to not see her walk down a crooked path and for her to lead a better life. Eventually MYC tells her that he wonât pursue anything against her. Yeziâs still upset and still yelling at him when he walks out.
The director of the hospital is also arrested and lead away!!!! XQ overhears nurses gossiping about this.
As for the adopted mom, in light of the fact that she turned herself in and has a serious illness, the police decide to release her from custody while pending investigation.
MYC visits his mother in the hospital. (Heâs just standing there and his mom has her back turned to him.) XQ goes to the room and looks through the door, but walks away when she sees her father arriving. He notices XQ in the distance and then enters. The father gestures for MYC to leave. After MYC does so, the mother starts muttering about SYâs cousin and how she was really capable (in making her kneel). She also says that sheâd better not think that just because she helped them, sheâll accept SY. [Itâs good to know the adopted mom has learned her lessons well, isnât it? I canât believe she still feels like sheâs the one suffering here. I think I like this part better in the book where nothing else is said and it is assumed/implied she learned her lesson and everyone can just keep living on in their separate spheres.] The dad, meanwhile, points out that it seems like XQ really cares for SY and she just responds that itâs impossible with all the baggage between their two families. The dad, in turn, responds by asking whether she thinks that he really didnât know all the things sheâd done through the years. He then answers his own question by saying thatâs not the case and the only reason he didnât say anything, meddle, and even pretended at times to not know anything is because sometimes her actions resulted in a benefit for him. He then admits that allowing her to be the bad person while he received all the acclaim was wrong and that she isnât the only one whoâs been at fault. As a result, he asks her to not live under such resentment.
XQ meets with her brother and asks whether he heard what she said that night. He asks whether she really will never return to their home. And she says that even though their parents were at fault, he didnât need to use these methods to hurt them. She asks him to think about how his life might have been ruined if there hadnât been someone to come forward with proof. MYC says that at that time, he just didnât want to do anything anymore. XQ says that maybe their parents have certain behaviors that have left him disappointed, but she reminds him that thereâs no such thing as a perfect person and it would be impossible to expect that their parents would never do anything wrong. MYC says that maybe she should be saying these words to herself. He asks if she doesnât hate his family and she says that she doesnât have the right to hate; she just feels bad for SY. MYC says he finally understands why after all this time, she would still choose SY â itâs because heâs resolute and has never given her up, despite everything theyâve experienced. XQ asks her brother to live for himself.
ZM returns to her dorm room where Yezi is present and one of the roommates is busy scolding Yezi. Yezi cries and apologizes. She packs her suitcase and apologizes to ZM directly. Yezi asks what she plans on doing next and Yezi says she doesnât even know if she has a future. ZM tells her not to look down on herself and then asks if Yezi blames her. Yezi says sheâs actually glad ZM stepped forward because if not, sheâs not sure sheâd have a chance to turn her life around. She then tells ZM that she really did consider her a friend and then says good-bye and leaves.
Adopted dad meets with XQ and asks whether itâd be possible for XQ to come visit her mother when she returns home. XQ sits in silence and so the dad asks her to believe that if sheâd fallen into the same situation as MYC, her mother wouldâve done the same thing for her. He admits theyâre not good parents and that more than their childrenâs feelings, theyâve concerned themselves more with benefits/gains. But he asks her to believe that both he and her mother feel the same about the two children. XQ responds that if MYC were to feel hurt, mom would feel bad about that. But if she were to be hurt, would she also feel bad about that and would she feel bad to the same extent that she would if MYC were to be hurt? XQ says mom once asked how she could hurt her parents for the sake of a man, but did her mother think about the fact that she was hurting her when she hurt the person she cared about? And if she did, did she hurt for her? XQ tells her dad that she canât get over how her mother hurt SY. Dad thinks they should just talk it out to resolve, but XQ asks how theyâre supposed to solve this problem when itâs a whole personâs future what was ruined. She then asks him to think about how SYâs the type of person who would rebel at the smallest slight; yet, in this matter, he never thought about exposing it. It's because he let off the Meng family. She then asks her father what else he would like SY to do â to call them âfatherâ and âmotherâ because of her, to sit down at one table and have a meal together because of her? XQ says that there are some problems that canât be solved over eating one meal and sheâs tired and doesnât want to keep crying over it. Her father agrees to let the convo go but still believes that thereâs no problem that a family canât solve over time. (Amazing optimism considering the wife heâs gotâŠ)
XQ doesnât allow her father to send her back to the hospital so he tells her that when sheâs settled on a wedding date, she must tell him. She doesnât respond so he calls her name and she finally makes a noise of assent before watching him walk away and climb into his car.
Back at the hospital, XQ goes to her motherâs hospital room and finds that sheâs already checked out.
And then XQ and SY are in his bedroom where they sit watching the rain, with buckets catching rain falling through the ceiling, and the two of them think back on a high school memory. Next scene is the family working together â SY and his uncle are on the roof fixing the tiles while XQ helps the aunt with laundry. At one point, the uncle asks SY how the preparations on his house are coming along and SY tells him to be quiet and answers the question in a softer tone â itâs almost done.
Thereâs a scene with Jiang Yu randomly giving Li Meng a plant, catching her off guard.
Episode ends with XQâs adopted father coming to visit SYâs aunt/uncleâs house. SYâs running down the alleyway with XQ on his back when they spot him at the gate. Itâs awkward as heck but aunt/uncle are good people (way better people than the Meng parents) and so they invite him to join them for the meal they were about to have.
I guess any amount of misconduct is not to be tolerated PLA! As for the medical exam, if they went into specifics as to what was abnormal, I didn't catch it. Guess we'll find out when subs come out for that. ;)
And yeah, I hope something is done about that hospital director as well. Don't know if the drama will loop back on that one, though.
XQ storms home and confronts her mother to ask whether she was the one whoâd done all those things to SY in the past, including the fact that she never received the multiple letters heâd sent to her. The motherâs only response was to ask who told her about it â SY? XQ then confronts her father as well, but the mother says he only learned of it after the fact and that everything was done by her. XQ canât understand how her mother could mess with a personâs life and future like that, especially to someone she loves. She also doesnât understand how her mother could do that to her and accuses her parents of only treating her like a tool. Their only response is to ask how she can speak to them like that (ahh⊠tenets of filial piety, so frustrating at times like these!!!). I love how the mom can turn this into her XQâs problem, saying this is her problem for being an imperfect daughter. But this time XQâs not falling for the guilt trip â YAY. She calls her mother a hypocrite â YES! Her mother asks her what she wants to do and suggests XQ should just report her then, but XQ says she wonât pursue the past. But from now on, theyâll have nothing to do with each other and the mother had better not do anything else to SY in the future. She slams the family portrait on the way out of the house. The brother overhears everything from the stairwell (he, too, is only learning of the past today). As he walks past, the mom tries to remind him of his upbringing/breeding and you can imagine how he feels about that. He tries to plead his own case by asking her to actually look at him. You can imagine how that goes. The dad also tries to plead for peace but the mom is not having it. (The dad should just get rid of the mom! But side note: looks like the drama is leaving out the part about SYâs mom and him having had a thing in the past.)
XQ goes to find SY and asks for them to make-up, but he asks what they have to make-up from. She then asks how heâs lived all these years and he realizes that she now knows everything. [In the book, XQ actually never lets on that she knows about his past once she learns of it. She just treats him extra well to try to make up for the past.]
The brother, on the other hand, ends up at XYXâs bar â of course. One of the workers there then calls Yezi to tell her heâs there. When she arrives, he mistakes her for XQ for a hot second and then realizes its Yezi. She tries to be all up in his business as always and this time he sets her straight by likening her to a moth versus a butterfly. He says that sometimes they can look so similar that regular people canât the difference between the two, but he can. He also says that a difference between the two is that the butterfly likes to fly under the light, but the moth operates in the darkness. Yezi pretends to not know what heâs talking about and asks if itâs so wrong for her to like him, but he scoffs and reminds her that heâs a businessman whoâs seen all sorts and kinds so please donât treat him like someone dumb. The insult angers her and when she later spies him sleeping on a couch, she goes back into the room where we then see her crouched in front of the couch with her shirt pulled down on one side. (Ah, Yeziâs revenge moment has finally arrived!)
The parents are at home discussing MYC when mom gets a phone call from MYC. When she answers the phone, itâs Yezi who only makes crying noises before hanging up. Yezi then calls her class president and asks them to save her because sheâs been assaulted and doesnât know what to do. Meanwhile the parents call over their lawyer and they discuss whether to report the matter to the police. I love that the mom says how whether this is true or false, itâs unreasonable towards their family. (She is seriously twisted in alllll the things in that tiny head of hers. I would love to meet her parents and know how she was raised!) At the same time, Yezi continues to do her things at the bar. She texts with MYCâs mom (looks like sheâs trying to extort them for money) and MYC scares her when he suddenly warns from behind that if she sends out her next message, sheâll have to go to prison. She realizes then that he wasnât drunk to the point that he didnât know what was going on. She asks him to explain himself and he points out that sheâll never win over his mother. She claims to have evidence, but he says he was drunk, not dead, and gets up to leave. Yezi then threatens to report him to the police, saying heâll be ruined, and he invites her to do so as heâd like to see how heâll be ruined. Once he leaves the room, she actually does.
As in the book, MYC doesnât say anything in defense himself at the police station nor does he deny what heâs being accused of. SY was going to find XQ to take her to the police station just as XYX calls to tell her something happened to her brother. As a result, XYX drives them both to the police station and hands over his phone so XQ can read online what her brotherâs been accused of. XQ can hardly believe what sheâs reading and XYX explains that currently, the problem is MYC refuses to talk which is allowing the truth to be manipulated online. When he says this, XQ realizes her brother mustâve been home the night before and overheard her conversation with their parents.
While XQ meets with her parents at the police station, SY and XYX try to figure out what to do outside. SY asks if there are any cameras at XYXâs bar. He says there are in the hallway, but not the room themselves, and although the camera caught a guest looking through the door, they donât know how to locate that person. SY asks to see the photo and then immediately says he has some place to go â he recognized ZM in the photo.
SY finds ZM at home. She was avoiding his phone calls and pretends to not know what heâs talking about when he brings up MYCâs name. After some pushing on his part, she admits what she knows â how the blog post came to be (it was the result of Yezi calling the class president and the other classmates getting upset on her behalf). ZM says she had nothing to do with it, but she didnât stop them either. SY then forces her to admit that she knows MYC didnât actually do anything and that she has the proof because she was at the door and took pictures. ZM doesnât want to help them, though, because itâs the Meng family and SY tells her that does doesnât need to be this way because he doesnât care about the past anymore anyway. ZM asks how he can really not care anymore and says he doesnât need to pretend with her. Episodes ends with ZM saying that if he wants to forgive them because of XQ thatâs his own business, but she never will.
After XQ storms out, she ends up at Dr. Yangâs house (much to her surprise given that they were never that close). SY calls her, but XQ hangs up on him and pouts. SY calls a second time and this time she answers. He asks where she is and says he wants to pick her up, but XQ asks whether heâs thought about what to say to her and when he doesnât have an answer, she hangs up on him again.
XYX asks the brother how XQâs doing and says he canât believe the pressure his mom is giving her. The brother asks if XYX thinks XQ will keep on persisting and he says probably. He then asks whatâs going on with the brother and warns him away from the girl from his bar (aka Yezi). The brother says heâs overthinking things and that he only doesnât want to see Yezi go down a crooked path. He says Yezi doesnât have anything to do with him.
Yezi checks her phone where there are no new messages from the brother. Behind her, ZM (SYâs cousin) does the accounting for their business out loud and complains that Yezi isnât paying any attention to her. They then discuss how this monthâs business wasnât as good as the last one before ZMâs back starts hurting her. She decides to go to the hospital and Yezi offers to accompany her. Meanwhile, the brother also visits the hospital which results in Yezi seeing the brother and XQ together. After they part, Yezi runs up to the brother to greet him. Itâs pretty clear he doesnât put too much stock in her while she tries to ask him out (says she wants to repay him for the meal last time) but he says thereâs no need and uses the opportunity when her phone rings to walk away.
Lol, hilarious scene at the fire station where SY is trying to get dating advice from Ge Zheng. You can all imagine how that ends up going with that gossipy crew.
SY texts XQ asking whether sheâs eaten. Heâs happy when she actually responds. Sheâs annoyed though that heâs not saying what she wants him to say, and then he becomes depressed when she doesnât continue texting.
At the hospital, Dr. Yang encounters a drug-seeking patient. XQ steps into help and ends up getting her hand slashed as a result. (Other stuff happens at the hospital with the most important thing being she finally receives recognition from Dr. Xu.) Later, XYX picks her up from the hospital and she ends up asking him relationship advice/questions. As expected, he doesnât have anything useful to say but he asks whatâs going on and XQ explains how SY wonât tell her anything about his past. He says that itâs either SY has an unglorious past or thereâs something in his past that brings him pain. He asks whether she really needs to know and suggests that itâs because she feels insecure that she needs to know. (I disagree! I think she should know.)
SY and his crew return to the fire station. Thereâs still no word from XQ. Yang Chi asks whether he should ask for leave to see XQ, and SYâs like, âIt hasnât reached that point yet.â But Yang Chi says that were he in her shoes, heâd be upset too given that she was injured. This is the first SY is hearing about XQâs slashed hand (which Yang Chi learned about through the nurse heâs seeing). After some effort, SY finally makes contact with XQ â she lies at first that her hand is broken but quickly reassures him her hand is fine. He then asks about them and she says theyâre fighting, but not broken up. He sighs in relief and says theyâre not fighting, and that quickly results in another hung up phone call (LOL). SY then visits XQ at her colleagueâs apartment that night. He apologizes for not discussing things with her before making decisions and says that although he makes it sound nice by saying he doesnât want to give her pressure, etc., if he were honest with himself, heâs just been trying to escape from the truth. He promises to change his bad habits and she asks if thereâs anything else. She then asks him again about the gunshot wound and he asks if they cannot pursue this matter. She responds, however, that itâs not that sheâs trying to pursue things to their death but that it just feels like he doesnât trust her like she trusts him. And so ends another one of their conversations (with SY cutely following up to make sure they havenât broken up).
That night, SY thinks about his past conversations with his cousin as well as with XQ. He also thinks about the past and so we also see a lot of money being delivered to that head doctor at XQâs hospital who tells the adopted mother to leave things to him. There are flashback scenes to past missions followed by SY visiting his fatherâs grave to tell him how heâd done a good job and will be promoted, and so his father doesnât have to worry about him anymore. And then someone else visits his fatherâs grave and SY asks what heâs doing there. The other guy says heâs thought of his dad as his bro so of course he should visit, but SYâs like â my dad stood up for you, and you betrayed him. The other guy keeps yammering on about how SY shouldnât blame him for what happened to his dad, and that he should instead blame his dad for not being more capable which resulted in his mom cheating on him, and SY finally reaches his limits and punches the other guy. Looks like the other guy provoked SY intentionally at the request of the Meng family, and that this resulted in SY getting kicked out of the military and turning to the fire department instead.
[Looks like the drama has taken down what happened to SY in the past down several notches as, in the book, the adopted mom had him framed as a traitor and almost beaten to death.]
Next morning, SYâs having breakfast with his fam and his aunt asks after XQ. He says sheâs been busy and the aunt offers to make soup for XQ, saying he can deliver it later. ZM, on the other hand, guesses immediately that he mustâve done something to make XQ angry so she goes to find XQ at the hospital. XQ ends up playing ZM by pretending sheâs rethinking her relationship with SY and on the verge of breaking up with him, and so ZM finally spills the truth â in his repeat year, SY worked really hard to get into the military academy as he thought that would put him on par with XQ, but during the physical examination something happened and he didnât pass (that must be where the head doctor of XQâs hospital comes into play). His uncle suspected something was wrong and took SY to the hospital for another exam and it was completely normal, so his uncle went to beg her adoptive mom as it was she whoâd been pulling strings in the background. ZM explains that her brother wouldnât let her say anything before because he was afraid XQ would be upset. As for the gunshot wound, ZM explains that after he was allowed into the military, he performed well and went into special ops where he got his gunshot wound during a mission. However, even after risking his life and almost dying from it, just based on one phone call where he was reported, everything was ruined and so he left the army and went into the fire department. ZM then says that she trusts she doesnât need to say for XQ to know who was behind that phone call. ZM also tells XQ that during SYâs hardest times, the only thing that kept him going all these years was her. XQ breaks down into tears.
I had to include scallion bit because it made me laugh, lol. I admit that half the time when I'm watching I sit there asking myself, "How is it possible that YY looks amazing no matter what he's wearing or what situation he's in?" But when he had scallions dotting his face, I finally thought, "Okay, well, now he looks a little ridiculous." Haha.
In any event, I totally agree with you and XQ - he shouldn't try to hide everything from her even if he thinks it's for her own good, and he should definitely tell her what happened to him in the past.
On the other hand, what ZM said to her after that (about parents needing to bear the responsibility for their own wrongs versus their children) and what XQ's adopted mother does after that, *that* is a change from the book.
Adopted mom sits in a bus with the other people theyâve saved. The other people are praising the firemen for saving them and one turns to XQâs mother and asks if she knows the person who carried her out. Adopted mom looks out the window to SY and finally answers, âHeâs my daughterâs boyfriend.â
Clean-up montage follows of the typhoon and at the hospital, XQ is happy/relieved when she gets to text SY that the patient they worked together to send to the hospital finally woke up.
Li Meng is eating breakfast and looking out her window when she notices that the tiny plant that Jiang Yu had gifted her has actually sprouted pretty blue flowers. She texts him to tell him the âblind boxâ bloomed and Jiang Yu texts back, âBlind box?â She sends a picture of the flower and in reply, she gets an article about âlan xing huaâ (a flower that appears to be in the morning glory family). She reads that it symbolizes having mutual trust of the heart and holding onto the present. Li Meng ends up visiting Jiang Yu at his house and sheâs all glammed up, not wearing her uniform. Looks like they have a mutual interest in a book as sheâs surprised to find he has a copy when itâs out of print. Jiang Yu tells her that he searched a long time before finding it at a used bookstore. She asks which one and when he answers, she laughs saying that she used to go there all the time and never ran into him, and Jiang Yu then says, âArenât you meeting me now? Itâs not too early or too late; itâs perfect (timing).â (Awwwww!)
Continued typhoon clean-up continues â this one involving a tree. A man asks SY if instead of cutting down a tree thatâs poking into a balcony and presenting a potential future safety hazard, the fire crew will help him remove the tree. SY notes that the tree is really huge and the man says heâs got a truck and everything to move it. As the fire crew works to remove the tree, he explains how his mom had planted the tree when his business was suffering. Every so often sheâd send him messages saying that the tree was doing well and growing, just like his business would too. The man says business finally did get better, but by then his mother had already passed away. He hopes to keep the tree as a memory of his mother. As the mom walks away, Yang Chi says that you have to have pity on a parentsâ heart/efforts.
XQ is having a meal with her parents and brother. Dad says he heard from MYC that she would be transferring from ER to the outpatient clinic. Mom comments that the outpatient clinic is just as tiring work, but dad says itâs still better than the ER. Mom agrees and tells XQ to drink up (her soup). She then asks whether her wedding has been settled. She says yes, but not the date, and that she and SY have agreed to have a small wedding. The mother protests that a wedding is a big event and asks how it can it be a small event. MYC reminds the mom that this is XQ and SYâs business so the mom says fine, fine, fine, this is âtheirâ Meng familyâs business so they can have the last word. MYC says he didnât mean it in that way and dad pipes up that if it were up to him, it should be whatever SY and XQ want to do, so if XQ wants to have a small wedding thatâs fine. He does ask though whether sheâll still have the usual traditions, including him walking her down the aisle, and she says yes, so dadâs like, âSee? Isnât it complete then?â Mom can only smile and continue eating. She notices XQ smiling and watching her, so she tells her her soup is getting cold.
XQ visits Dr. Yang to pick something up and Dr. Yang asks if XQ hadnât said sheâd be by later. XQ says she happened to be passing by so she stopped in. Dr. Yang offers to get things ready and send it over later that evening and thatâs when XQ notices a pair of menâs shoes by the door. Which is then followed by XYXâs voice from inside the house announcing that the dumplings are ready. Surprise! LOL. XYX asks what sheâs doing there and offers her some of the dumplings, so XQ just puts down the melon sheâd been holding and told them to eat that.
Looks like the fire crew is training a new batch. Yang Chi and Jiang Yi are joking around with each other and the latter mentions that heâs already registered his marriage. (Itâs pink hearts everywhere, I guess!)
SY and XQ are packing up his room when she gets a message from XYX inviting her to dinner with him and her brother. He says SY is invited too and XQ asks if he wants to go, and itâs okay if he doesnât want to, but SY asks why wouldnât he want to go. XQ asks if she can drink then since heâll be around.
Dinner that night. SY holds out his hand in greeting and he and MYC finally shake hands. XYX tells XQ they should also shake hands and she slaps his hand aside. SY comments that this place theyâre meeting at is nice and MYC says the wine and food are both good there, and the owner is nice too. XYX explains that this is their meeting point. The owner walks out saying she heard people complimenting them and then comments that they have a ânew friendâ among them today. XYX introduces SY as XQâs husband and the owner comments that they do have a married couple feel about them. To celebrate, she offers to personally cook a few dishes for them. XYX jokes that if he knew this was the service heâd get by bringing around a new bride, heâd bring a new bride to that place all the time.
XQ wakes up alone in bed in their new home. After looking around, she gets up and walks out to find SY sitting on the rooftop. She joins him and says, âSY, you had a hard time these past 10 years, didnât you?â He responds, âIt was worth it.â She asks, âReally?â And he says, âReally,â because although the physical training was hard, itâs the same for all firefighters. XQ asks what about when he was in the military and he says it was about the same. He also says that when he enlisted, theyâd made an oath to work hard through struggles, so they just endured it and suffering a little bit wasnât any sort of big thing. XQ asks to hear the military oath and he has to think about it for a minute before reciting it. He ends by adding that he will never betray/foresake her.
The End!
Iâll probably have more thoughts tomorrow but um, bed for now. LOL.
After dinner, XQ offers to walk her father to the entrance of the neighborhood but he instead suggests that SY accompany him. Along the way, dad tells SY that he can tell his daughter is determined to marry SY and SY says heâs equally determined to marry her. The dad says that before he came, he was worried that SY wouldnât be able to give her happiness, but now that heâs met him and his family he sees how they leave others envious. It wasnât what he expected, but he tells SY that he genuinely hopes that the family they create for themselves will be able to be equally happy. SY reassures her father that heâll never let her down. The dad starts to apologize for his familyâs involvement in him not being able to get into the military academy, but SY cuts him off and says heâs never regretted the choices heâs made in the past and plus, heâs doing fine now so he doesnât live with any regret or resentment. He also reassures that he has a long future ahead of him. Dad pats him on the shoulder before walking off. (I guess weâre making up with dad, at least.)
Cute scene between SY and XQ after he returns home. He starts to bring up the fact that they may need to rent a house and she cuts him off. She would rather know about what secret he and ZM are keeping from her, but he insists that he really doesnât have any secrets. The next day, he takes her to visit a place. He says the owner says that if she likes it, heâll ask his wife. XQ opens the card that contains the key and after reading it, exclaims that the owner seems to be romantic, and he says itâs no use complimenting him when it's all up to the wife as to whether they can move in. After looking all over the house, XQ says she loves the house and tells him to hurry up and call the wife. So, SY pulls out his phone andâŠ. Of course, calls XQ. She thinks he called the wrong number but he says, no, itâs you, my homeownerâs wife. Aww, cute! [Totally a different from the way he introduced the house to her in the book, but I like this version as well.] And he proposes!!!
Nurses exclaim over XQâs ring in their changing room. And at the fire station, food is spewed as the underlings are amazed to learn their captain is getting married. Theyâre amazed he managed to pull it off and this earns them a slap to the back of the head when SY walks in, lol.
XQ comes to find SY at the fire station where everyone greets her in a ceremony â firefighter style and then SY introduces her to them as their sister-in-law. Lots of cuteness to look forward to, so I wonât spoil further.
Love how ZMâs planning this wedding for them. She even tries on wedding dresses for XQ since the actual bride and groom are too busy with their work.
XQ meets with her brother. Sounds like heâs finally sleeping and getting some rest. He notices her engagement ring and says it looks nice. He also gifts her an early wedding present. He then tells her that heâs decided to enter his fatherâs company (parents are getting old). After they part ways, XQ sends him a text message saying she feels fortunate to be able to his family member for a lifetime, and that this good fortune was something she felt from the first moment they met as children. He turns and she waves back at him, while MYC smiles. (Guess we can finally let go of that block in his heartâŠ. Not loving his new hairstyle, though.)
Back at home, XQ looks at the pictures of the wedding dresses ZM tried on. ZM then asks her how many guests XQ plans on having for her side of the wedding. This leads to awkwardness as XQ says not many, but ZM tells her not to worry as there will be a lot on their side so they can help make up the difference. SY then arrives home just in time to find XQ trying on a tiara â it was the gift from her brother. XQ then tells SY itâs a good thing he arrived when he did because she didnât know how to answer all the wedding planning questions that ZM had been asking her. Ultimately, SY observes that a traditional wedding in a hotel is not XQâs style because she doesnât like being in front of so many people. She suggests they just forego everything, but SY says they should still have some ceremony to the process. He suggests they get married at the fire station with Xiao Meng as their flower girl. She likes the idea but suggests he swap Xiao Meng out for a person since Xiao Meng is a dog.
MYC takes over the family company and greets the board of directors.
ZM frets as SY and XQ are running late to their own engagement photo shoot. She pleads with the photographer to give them more time as itâs hard for her brother and sister-in-law to find time to meet up together, so the photographer agrees and finally XQ and SY show up in their wedding clothes. As they begin, XQ tells SY that she has a regret â he asks what she regrets â and she answers that she regrets she didnât get to together with him earlier.
Typhoon time! I fast forwarded through most of this as Iâll rewatch with subs but itâs a lot of rescue scenes, including of XQ at the hospital, and then we see MYC even stopping to pick up random strangers when he sees them standing on the side of the road desperate for a ride to the hospital as the wife is not feeling well. On the way, he runs across Yezi who is standing outside in the storm helping to direct traffic. (Oh gosh, are they going to do a redemption arc and bring the two of them together?? MYC, I would not turn back to look for as long as you have â thereâs a storm going on and your eyes should be on the road in front of you!)
Wait, I thought you all said the mom actually kneels in the drama! She doesnât. She only gets close to doing so, but thatâs the same in the book â ZM calls it off before her knees actually hit the ground by asking how sheâs supposed to get along with XQ in the future if she accepts this kneel. BUT, on the other hand, this is something different from the book: ZM tells the mother that if she did something wrong, then she should bear the responsibility, and if she does, then her child will naturally not have to bear the consequences. As a result, next scene is MOM â TURNING â HERSELF â IN!!!!!! But before we get too excited about that, you should know the next scene involves mom and son crossing paths in the hallways of the police department. Sheâs heading in while MYC is being released and then mom turns back to start beating him asking him why he didnât just go die and asking if heâs trying to force her to death. Sheâs a great mom. MYC apologizes but then says that since she did something wrong, someoneâs got to bear the responsibility and if she wasnât going to do it, he was going to do it for her. XQ and her father then arrive and the mother continues to complain that her children are against her and this family and zomg, woman, do you still not see whoâs to blame? Sigh⊠narcissists. As she walks off, she tells the children that fine, they have their freedom. Yay?
As for Yezi, she is arrested and hauled off in handcuffs. The police then meet with the classmates outside of the police station and reveals the truth to them while also reminding them to be more careful the next time.
Oh wait, MYC doubles back to meet with Yezi. In sum, she felt led on while he wanted was to not see her walk down a crooked path and for her to lead a better life. Eventually MYC tells her that he wonât pursue anything against her. Yeziâs still upset and still yelling at him when he walks out.
The director of the hospital is also arrested and lead away!!!! XQ overhears nurses gossiping about this.
As for the adopted mom, in light of the fact that she turned herself in and has a serious illness, the police decide to release her from custody while pending investigation.
MYC visits his mother in the hospital. (Heâs just standing there and his mom has her back turned to him.) XQ goes to the room and looks through the door, but walks away when she sees her father arriving. He notices XQ in the distance and then enters. The father gestures for MYC to leave. After MYC does so, the mother starts muttering about SYâs cousin and how she was really capable (in making her kneel). She also says that sheâd better not think that just because she helped them, sheâll accept SY. [Itâs good to know the adopted mom has learned her lessons well, isnât it? I canât believe she still feels like sheâs the one suffering here. I think I like this part better in the book where nothing else is said and it is assumed/implied she learned her lesson and everyone can just keep living on in their separate spheres.] The dad, meanwhile, points out that it seems like XQ really cares for SY and she just responds that itâs impossible with all the baggage between their two families. The dad, in turn, responds by asking whether she thinks that he really didnât know all the things sheâd done through the years. He then answers his own question by saying thatâs not the case and the only reason he didnât say anything, meddle, and even pretended at times to not know anything is because sometimes her actions resulted in a benefit for him. He then admits that allowing her to be the bad person while he received all the acclaim was wrong and that she isnât the only one whoâs been at fault. As a result, he asks her to not live under such resentment.
XQ meets with her brother and asks whether he heard what she said that night. He asks whether she really will never return to their home. And she says that even though their parents were at fault, he didnât need to use these methods to hurt them. She asks him to think about how his life might have been ruined if there hadnât been someone to come forward with proof. MYC says that at that time, he just didnât want to do anything anymore. XQ says that maybe their parents have certain behaviors that have left him disappointed, but she reminds him that thereâs no such thing as a perfect person and it would be impossible to expect that their parents would never do anything wrong. MYC says that maybe she should be saying these words to herself. He asks if she doesnât hate his family and she says that she doesnât have the right to hate; she just feels bad for SY. MYC says he finally understands why after all this time, she would still choose SY â itâs because heâs resolute and has never given her up, despite everything theyâve experienced. XQ asks her brother to live for himself.
ZM returns to her dorm room where Yezi is present and one of the roommates is busy scolding Yezi. Yezi cries and apologizes. She packs her suitcase and apologizes to ZM directly. Yezi asks what she plans on doing next and Yezi says she doesnât even know if she has a future. ZM tells her not to look down on herself and then asks if Yezi blames her. Yezi says sheâs actually glad ZM stepped forward because if not, sheâs not sure sheâd have a chance to turn her life around. She then tells ZM that she really did consider her a friend and then says good-bye and leaves.
Adopted dad meets with XQ and asks whether itâd be possible for XQ to come visit her mother when she returns home. XQ sits in silence and so the dad asks her to believe that if sheâd fallen into the same situation as MYC, her mother wouldâve done the same thing for her. He admits theyâre not good parents and that more than their childrenâs feelings, theyâve concerned themselves more with benefits/gains. But he asks her to believe that both he and her mother feel the same about the two children. XQ responds that if MYC were to feel hurt, mom would feel bad about that. But if she were to be hurt, would she also feel bad about that and would she feel bad to the same extent that she would if MYC were to be hurt? XQ says mom once asked how she could hurt her parents for the sake of a man, but did her mother think about the fact that she was hurting her when she hurt the person she cared about? And if she did, did she hurt for her? XQ tells her dad that she canât get over how her mother hurt SY. Dad thinks they should just talk it out to resolve, but XQ asks how theyâre supposed to solve this problem when itâs a whole personâs future what was ruined. She then asks him to think about how SYâs the type of person who would rebel at the smallest slight; yet, in this matter, he never thought about exposing it. It's because he let off the Meng family. She then asks her father what else he would like SY to do â to call them âfatherâ and âmotherâ because of her, to sit down at one table and have a meal together because of her? XQ says that there are some problems that canât be solved over eating one meal and sheâs tired and doesnât want to keep crying over it. Her father agrees to let the convo go but still believes that thereâs no problem that a family canât solve over time. (Amazing optimism considering the wife heâs gotâŠ)
XQ doesnât allow her father to send her back to the hospital so he tells her that when sheâs settled on a wedding date, she must tell him. She doesnât respond so he calls her name and she finally makes a noise of assent before watching him walk away and climb into his car.
Back at the hospital, XQ goes to her motherâs hospital room and finds that sheâs already checked out.
And then XQ and SY are in his bedroom where they sit watching the rain, with buckets catching rain falling through the ceiling, and the two of them think back on a high school memory. Next scene is the family working together â SY and his uncle are on the roof fixing the tiles while XQ helps the aunt with laundry. At one point, the uncle asks SY how the preparations on his house are coming along and SY tells him to be quiet and answers the question in a softer tone â itâs almost done.
Thereâs a scene with Jiang Yu randomly giving Li Meng a plant, catching her off guard.
Episode ends with XQâs adopted father coming to visit SYâs aunt/uncleâs house. SYâs running down the alleyway with XQ on his back when they spot him at the gate. Itâs awkward as heck but aunt/uncle are good people (way better people than the Meng parents) and so they invite him to join them for the meal they were about to have.
And yeah, I hope something is done about that hospital director as well. Don't know if the drama will loop back on that one, though.
XQ goes to find SY and asks for them to make-up, but he asks what they have to make-up from. She then asks how heâs lived all these years and he realizes that she now knows everything. [In the book, XQ actually never lets on that she knows about his past once she learns of it. She just treats him extra well to try to make up for the past.]
The brother, on the other hand, ends up at XYXâs bar â of course. One of the workers there then calls Yezi to tell her heâs there. When she arrives, he mistakes her for XQ for a hot second and then realizes its Yezi. She tries to be all up in his business as always and this time he sets her straight by likening her to a moth versus a butterfly. He says that sometimes they can look so similar that regular people canât the difference between the two, but he can. He also says that a difference between the two is that the butterfly likes to fly under the light, but the moth operates in the darkness. Yezi pretends to not know what heâs talking about and asks if itâs so wrong for her to like him, but he scoffs and reminds her that heâs a businessman whoâs seen all sorts and kinds so please donât treat him like someone dumb. The insult angers her and when she later spies him sleeping on a couch, she goes back into the room where we then see her crouched in front of the couch with her shirt pulled down on one side. (Ah, Yeziâs revenge moment has finally arrived!)
The parents are at home discussing MYC when mom gets a phone call from MYC. When she answers the phone, itâs Yezi who only makes crying noises before hanging up. Yezi then calls her class president and asks them to save her because sheâs been assaulted and doesnât know what to do. Meanwhile the parents call over their lawyer and they discuss whether to report the matter to the police. I love that the mom says how whether this is true or false, itâs unreasonable towards their family. (She is seriously twisted in alllll the things in that tiny head of hers. I would love to meet her parents and know how she was raised!) At the same time, Yezi continues to do her things at the bar. She texts with MYCâs mom (looks like sheâs trying to extort them for money) and MYC scares her when he suddenly warns from behind that if she sends out her next message, sheâll have to go to prison. She realizes then that he wasnât drunk to the point that he didnât know what was going on. She asks him to explain himself and he points out that sheâll never win over his mother. She claims to have evidence, but he says he was drunk, not dead, and gets up to leave. Yezi then threatens to report him to the police, saying heâll be ruined, and he invites her to do so as heâd like to see how heâll be ruined. Once he leaves the room, she actually does.
As in the book, MYC doesnât say anything in defense himself at the police station nor does he deny what heâs being accused of. SY was going to find XQ to take her to the police station just as XYX calls to tell her something happened to her brother. As a result, XYX drives them both to the police station and hands over his phone so XQ can read online what her brotherâs been accused of. XQ can hardly believe what sheâs reading and XYX explains that currently, the problem is MYC refuses to talk which is allowing the truth to be manipulated online. When he says this, XQ realizes her brother mustâve been home the night before and overheard her conversation with their parents.
While XQ meets with her parents at the police station, SY and XYX try to figure out what to do outside. SY asks if there are any cameras at XYXâs bar. He says there are in the hallway, but not the room themselves, and although the camera caught a guest looking through the door, they donât know how to locate that person. SY asks to see the photo and then immediately says he has some place to go â he recognized ZM in the photo.
SY finds ZM at home. She was avoiding his phone calls and pretends to not know what heâs talking about when he brings up MYCâs name. After some pushing on his part, she admits what she knows â how the blog post came to be (it was the result of Yezi calling the class president and the other classmates getting upset on her behalf). ZM says she had nothing to do with it, but she didnât stop them either. SY then forces her to admit that she knows MYC didnât actually do anything and that she has the proof because she was at the door and took pictures. ZM doesnât want to help them, though, because itâs the Meng family and SY tells her that does doesnât need to be this way because he doesnât care about the past anymore anyway. ZM asks how he can really not care anymore and says he doesnât need to pretend with her. Episodes ends with ZM saying that if he wants to forgive them because of XQ thatâs his own business, but she never will.
After XQ storms out, she ends up at Dr. Yangâs house (much to her surprise given that they were never that close). SY calls her, but XQ hangs up on him and pouts. SY calls a second time and this time she answers. He asks where she is and says he wants to pick her up, but XQ asks whether heâs thought about what to say to her and when he doesnât have an answer, she hangs up on him again.
XYX asks the brother how XQâs doing and says he canât believe the pressure his mom is giving her. The brother asks if XYX thinks XQ will keep on persisting and he says probably. He then asks whatâs going on with the brother and warns him away from the girl from his bar (aka Yezi). The brother says heâs overthinking things and that he only doesnât want to see Yezi go down a crooked path. He says Yezi doesnât have anything to do with him.
Yezi checks her phone where there are no new messages from the brother. Behind her, ZM (SYâs cousin) does the accounting for their business out loud and complains that Yezi isnât paying any attention to her. They then discuss how this monthâs business wasnât as good as the last one before ZMâs back starts hurting her. She decides to go to the hospital and Yezi offers to accompany her. Meanwhile, the brother also visits the hospital which results in Yezi seeing the brother and XQ together. After they part, Yezi runs up to the brother to greet him. Itâs pretty clear he doesnât put too much stock in her while she tries to ask him out (says she wants to repay him for the meal last time) but he says thereâs no need and uses the opportunity when her phone rings to walk away.
Lol, hilarious scene at the fire station where SY is trying to get dating advice from Ge Zheng. You can all imagine how that ends up going with that gossipy crew.
SY texts XQ asking whether sheâs eaten. Heâs happy when she actually responds. Sheâs annoyed though that heâs not saying what she wants him to say, and then he becomes depressed when she doesnât continue texting.
At the hospital, Dr. Yang encounters a drug-seeking patient. XQ steps into help and ends up getting her hand slashed as a result. (Other stuff happens at the hospital with the most important thing being she finally receives recognition from Dr. Xu.) Later, XYX picks her up from the hospital and she ends up asking him relationship advice/questions. As expected, he doesnât have anything useful to say but he asks whatâs going on and XQ explains how SY wonât tell her anything about his past. He says that itâs either SY has an unglorious past or thereâs something in his past that brings him pain. He asks whether she really needs to know and suggests that itâs because she feels insecure that she needs to know. (I disagree! I think she should know.)
SY and his crew return to the fire station. Thereâs still no word from XQ. Yang Chi asks whether he should ask for leave to see XQ, and SYâs like, âIt hasnât reached that point yet.â But Yang Chi says that were he in her shoes, heâd be upset too given that she was injured. This is the first SY is hearing about XQâs slashed hand (which Yang Chi learned about through the nurse heâs seeing). After some effort, SY finally makes contact with XQ â she lies at first that her hand is broken but quickly reassures him her hand is fine. He then asks about them and she says theyâre fighting, but not broken up. He sighs in relief and says theyâre not fighting, and that quickly results in another hung up phone call (LOL). SY then visits XQ at her colleagueâs apartment that night. He apologizes for not discussing things with her before making decisions and says that although he makes it sound nice by saying he doesnât want to give her pressure, etc., if he were honest with himself, heâs just been trying to escape from the truth. He promises to change his bad habits and she asks if thereâs anything else. She then asks him again about the gunshot wound and he asks if they cannot pursue this matter. She responds, however, that itâs not that sheâs trying to pursue things to their death but that it just feels like he doesnât trust her like she trusts him. And so ends another one of their conversations (with SY cutely following up to make sure they havenât broken up).
That night, SY thinks about his past conversations with his cousin as well as with XQ. He also thinks about the past and so we also see a lot of money being delivered to that head doctor at XQâs hospital who tells the adopted mother to leave things to him. There are flashback scenes to past missions followed by SY visiting his fatherâs grave to tell him how heâd done a good job and will be promoted, and so his father doesnât have to worry about him anymore. And then someone else visits his fatherâs grave and SY asks what heâs doing there. The other guy says heâs thought of his dad as his bro so of course he should visit, but SYâs like â my dad stood up for you, and you betrayed him. The other guy keeps yammering on about how SY shouldnât blame him for what happened to his dad, and that he should instead blame his dad for not being more capable which resulted in his mom cheating on him, and SY finally reaches his limits and punches the other guy. Looks like the other guy provoked SY intentionally at the request of the Meng family, and that this resulted in SY getting kicked out of the military and turning to the fire department instead.
[Looks like the drama has taken down what happened to SY in the past down several notches as, in the book, the adopted mom had him framed as a traitor and almost beaten to death.]
Next morning, SYâs having breakfast with his fam and his aunt asks after XQ. He says sheâs been busy and the aunt offers to make soup for XQ, saying he can deliver it later. ZM, on the other hand, guesses immediately that he mustâve done something to make XQ angry so she goes to find XQ at the hospital. XQ ends up playing ZM by pretending sheâs rethinking her relationship with SY and on the verge of breaking up with him, and so ZM finally spills the truth â in his repeat year, SY worked really hard to get into the military academy as he thought that would put him on par with XQ, but during the physical examination something happened and he didnât pass (that must be where the head doctor of XQâs hospital comes into play). His uncle suspected something was wrong and took SY to the hospital for another exam and it was completely normal, so his uncle went to beg her adoptive mom as it was she whoâd been pulling strings in the background. ZM explains that her brother wouldnât let her say anything before because he was afraid XQ would be upset. As for the gunshot wound, ZM explains that after he was allowed into the military, he performed well and went into special ops where he got his gunshot wound during a mission. However, even after risking his life and almost dying from it, just based on one phone call where he was reported, everything was ruined and so he left the army and went into the fire department. ZM then says that she trusts she doesnât need to say for XQ to know who was behind that phone call. ZM also tells XQ that during SYâs hardest times, the only thing that kept him going all these years was her. XQ breaks down into tears.
In any event, I totally agree with you and XQ - he shouldn't try to hide everything from her even if he thinks it's for her own good, and he should definitely tell her what happened to him in the past.