Didn’t enjoy this episode quite as much as the last, but what I surprisingly do enjoy is that I now have feelings about Zi Yu…Feelings of dislike yes, but at least I feel something about this character.

As left off last week, Wen Kai tries to steer clear off Team 3 but cannot escape Hui Xin’s sharp eyes.

Let’s replay that moment again – I love Wen Kai’s little wince HAHA.

He has no choice but to turn around, “Yes…yes…I came to shop alone.” You Rui questions why he’s holding two ice cream cones then, and Wen Kai looks down at them as if they have betrayed him HAHA, “I can’t decide which one I like, so I bought both.” He proceeds to lick from one cone each and comments that there seems to be a third flavour from the mix of the two.

Team 3 laughs and seems slightly entranced by this weird antic. He asks if they are going to watch him eat finish hahaha and gives Meng He a look. Meng He finally catches on and quickly steers the curious little ones away.

As luck would have it, Team 3 then runs into Yu Tang which is bad because she said that she was going to be busy at the shop. She finally extracts herself with much difficulty and help from Meng He, but you can tell that no one believes her excuse that she sneaked out from the shop to have some fresh air and that she’s going back right now.

Indeed, after Wen Kai makes sure that Team 3 has gone and proceeds to feed Yu Tang with the cone (sharp-eyed Yu Tang notices that he has already bitten both ice creams HAHA), Team 3 appears from behind the wall with a loud chorus of “Ooohhhhhhhhhhh”. Omg I can feel their excitement through the screen, so much so that I feel like saying “Ooooooohhhhs”too.

Wen Kai lamely brings up a hand, “Hi…” I LOVE their guilty faces HAHAHAHA. This scene amuses me so much.

Hahaha Aaron and Joanne laugh behind the scenes that they might as well be a celebrity couple dating.

As things go, the couple is forced to tell their story HEHE so cute. Yu Tang struggles shyly so they ask Wen Kai to say it instead. Just when he looks like he’s going to spill juicy stuff, he backs out with a, “Where should I start?” Meng He can’t take it anymore and tells everyone that the fortune teller has predicted that they would kiss within a month. A loud chorus ensues again and Yu Tang quickly explains that they didn’t kiss that day…which makes things worse ‘cos now everyone’s like, “You didn’t kiss that dayyyy? Then when did you kiss!”

Liang Yu is ready to spin his own story on how the big CEO has fallen in love with a small employee. Jia Ying continues, “A couple who doesn’t know each other…started because of conflicts and run-ins – ” Hui Xin takes it further, “Till there’s sparks of love -” You Rui is inspired, “Sparks, sparks, sparks till it shatters the Earth with fire -” and Meng He finally ends, “Olala a story of love and courage.”

Basically in Mandarin, they are continuing a story based on the last word that the previous person has said.

Faced with Team 3’s teasing, Wen Kai confesses that the couple already knew each other ten years ago. They were just friends then.

Oh my gosh, is this where the chin squeeze came from???

Back to the present, he takes Yu Tang’s hand (Hui Xin gives a little gasp) and admits that he hasn’t been able to see any other girl since. Awwwww. Hehe everyone is impressed by this pure love that has lasted since high school days.

Wen Kai clarifies that he will not be biased towards Team 3 just because of the relationship and warns that if there’s any gossip about them, he will….he bangs the table, to everyone’s shock, but is just joking hehe.

They start talking about Jia Ying’s child (called Min Ho HAHA) and she reveals that she and her husband are getting back on good terms. Ohhh? No more Jia Ying – You Rui pairing?

Jia Ying leaves to feed her baby and later, Wen Kai leaves to talk to Ai Sha about responding to some big guy’s offer. Jia Ying runs into him outside of the ladies and asks him to take a photo of her and her baby so that she can send it to the father. Hmmmm, why does the voice over of the baby is really cute, thank you, Jia Ying, sound so much like Zi Yu haha.

Wen Kai is actually quite happy about Team 3 finding out about them, but Yu Tang is still hesitant. Wen Kai does a little whine and asks how long he has to stay low. Nevertheless, he relents once again but reminds her that now is their personal time, even though he’s happy as a CEO that he has a professional employee.

He buys a pot of roses for Yu Tang and hopes that she will take care of it as carefully as their relationship. Later, Yu Tang waters the plant and whispers that roses now have another meaning to her, other than being her mum’s favourite flower.

The next day, they stroll to the office but cautious Yu Tang wants to enter separately. He smiles and waves her goodbye.

Yes this gentle touch is PERFECT. Right after he leaves, Zi Yu texts her for a meet up because he wants to finish his unfinished conversation. This Yu Tang?? actually forgot what he meant, until he replies that he’s referring to his confession. Oh mah gawd….I can’t believe Yu Tang cleanly forgot about it.

She frets over how to reply and Wen Kai’s voice sounds, “Just reply him honestly.” She replies, “Yeah, I have nothing to hid-” and gets a shock when she realises Wen Kai is back haha.

She quickly explains that there’s nothing between Zi Yu and her. Wen Kai smiles and assures her it’s fine. He passes her back her bag (oops) and puts her hair tie on her wrist.

Zi Yu is here for a presentation of his company’s newest product, which impresses Team 1 greatly. Wen Kai watches with amusement and thanks “Wang Manager” for his support.

Zi Yu is taken aback that Wen Kai knows about his promotion from Secretary to Manager. He has even prepared a gift to congratulate Zi Yu. (Without any invitation) Zi Yu  comments that he has always been working hard because he doesn’t want people to think that his success is due to genetics and now his hard work has paid off, “I’m proud of myself, because whatever I want is in my plans…and I will get it, no matter what.”

The true question is – how did this become a bragging speech hahaha? Zi Yu reminds everyone that he will remember those who fought alongside with him (and Team #1’s Manager puffs up in delight).

Zi Yu later meets Yu Tang and watches her tie her hair (what a mouthful).

*Dum dum dum*

He tells Yu Tang that even though he was in Russia for only a week, every day was like a year. “Please believe me, I will do my best to make you happy. I will not let you be hurt; I will not let you suffer.

I just want to hold you carefully in my palms and protect you. Can you give me this chance?”

I AM NOT FEELING THIS AT ALL. IT’S GIVING ME WEIRD HIBBLY GIBBLIES. Come on dude, you barely spent any time getting to know her better. This is almost the case of love at first sight.

Also, he’s the bad guy I think. That will be very interesting actually, but will have better effect if we actually like and invest emotions in Zi Yu. Unfortunately, up till this point, I had no feelings at all about Zi Yu. Nevertheless, I think that his acting skills have improved here in this scene!! Which doesn’t make sense because Taiwan dramas aren’t filled chronologically, so later scenes could be filmed first.

Yu Tang thanks him for thinking so highly of her, but… Zi Yu cuts in,”What follows after the word ‘but’ is usually the most cruel answer.” Yu Tang assures him that it’s always nice to be liked and admired and (foolishly) confides in Zi Yu that not many people know about their relationship yet. She’s afraid that people will talk since it’s an office relationship and that she fell for his status.

Zi Yu promises to keep her secret but invites her to work with him instead, “To be honest, I’m envious that Ji Wen Kai can see you everyday.” Yu Tang thinks that he’s joking, but he replies seriously, “If he makes you unhappy, I will let him have it. I will snatch you over. At Xin Wei, you don’t need to be afraid of anything. We can be together in public and no one will say anything.”

You did not just…try to poach the girl on the pretense that she’s capable but mostly because you are jealous that Wen Kai gets to see her everyday. And what’s with that desperate flaunting of your status, that she will be ‘happier’ if she gets together with you? Come on this girl has already rejected you!

I’m not sure if I’m being too harsh on Zi Yu right now, but rest assured, it’s not because I’m biased towards Wen Kai/Aaron. This confession is just rubbing me the wrong way.

Yu Tang is saved from answering because Meng He calls her back for an urgent meeting with Ji CEO and Team 1. Zi Yu asks for her help to get a present for one of his company’s employee who is retiring. Although she initially hesitates, she assures him that they are still friends and accepts his request.

Back in the office, Team 3 waits with abated breath and screams in delight when the sales report shows an exponential increase in sales. Hahaha, this means that they are only 4mil away from their target and they still have one week to go.

Team 1 and Team 3 have a showdown outside of the meeting room. Mr Jerk comments that Team 1’s time is very valuable and it should not be wasted on a dumping ground like Team 3. He takes You Rui’s retort in stride and congratulates Team 3 on their low-class advertisement.

Team 3 triumphantly shows off their new sales report, but Mr Jerk is unfazed because the sales have reached bottleneck – a soap bar will only be depleted in a month at the very least, so this means that people will only re-purchase after a month. They will not make the target within a week.

Jia Ying smiles, “Jia Manager, let me remind you. In 2013 when the industry was bad, I was the one who made the product popular between females aged from 18 to 55.” Ooooohhh I like Jia Yin’s reply!! You go girl. Anyway, whats dis showdown without Ji Wen Kai.

Team 3 is a bit flustered now because Jia Manager has scored a point. Meng He presents without much conviction and Team 1 scoffs at them. Wen Kai, being the cool CEO he is, asks, “Are you done laughing?” He has a more important piece of news. Turns out from the CCTV (which he was eyeing the previous episode), they found out that Jia Manager’s sidekick was sneaking around in the office.

Even though he couldn’t hack into any of the computers, a document was faxed to the office, hence allowing him to leak the order details to the competing company. This is predictable, but very exciting!!

Mr Jerk’s eyes twitch and he turns on his own subordinate, even though it’s blatantly obvious to everyone that he was acting under the instructions of Mr Jerk. Wen Kai wants Team 1 to sell their product well and sends them off. Yu Tang doesn’t understand why he doesn’t go after Jia Manager and Wen Kai replies that he has his own plans. Maybe it’s because he has a bigger fish to catch, which is Zi Yu?

Back in the office, You Rui comments that even though people laugh that Team 3 is a dumping ground, this is the only place where there is no back stabbing or plotting, causing Team 3 to tear. Meng He brings everyone back to the problem at hand – the sales have gradually reached a plateau (which I realise means that even though Team 1 has jeopardised the sales initially, their leak didn’t affect the ultimate sales reached by Mei Mei, so this isn’t a problem that Team 1 created).

Jia Ying suggests that they open new markets overseas instead.

Turns out that Wen Kai wants to send her to Singapore for the conference, so that she can also make use of the opportunity to find new clients. He believed in her abilities – back in her prime, she could find 10 new business routes weekly. Tian Xing is planning to expand and Singapore will be their first stop in Southeast Asia.

 Team 3 worries that they will not be able to see her for a long time, and what about her baby? Turns out that Jia Ying’s ex-husband has also been sent to Singapore. She thinks that it will all work out – even though they have divorced, they both love Min Ho a lot and they can get along peacefully now. I feel like the Dad is going to suddenly snatch away the baby so that You Rui can step in and save the day.

Everyone is stunned when she says she will be flying off the next night but You Rui is the first to wish her good luck, “If you need help, call me anytime.” Hehe. Is this what they call love?

Ai Sha is very impressed that Wen Kai is always one step ahead. Without him, they wouldn’t be able to find out the truth so quickly, including Zi Yu’s promotion. Wen Kai shows her a photo of Liao General Manager (of Xin Wei)’s farewell party. Ai Sha realises that even the other Managers of Liao Manager’s generation is leaving. She wonders, “It can’t be that…”

On a side note, I need to find a better translation of that rank – it’s quite high up in the company so I’m not sure if they are still called Managers in English, even though technically that’s the correct translation.

Ai Sha reports that someone has been constantly requesting for financial reports but Wen Kai isn’t afraid.

At night, Wen Kai goes off to meet Ah Hui while the two ladies have a chat. Yu Tang admits that Ai Sha had such a great aura the first time they met and that she was scared off by Ai Sha’s russian. Wow I totally forgot that first fateful day! Ai Sha reassures her that she’s very smart and it’s not too late to brush up on her language skills if she wants. I think that Ai Sha is a very nice person<3

Yu Tang shyly asks Ai Sha to recommend a Russian teacher but Ai Sha reminds her that she will have less time for Wen Kai if she has to take up lessons too. Nevertheless, Ai Sha approves because this means that they trust each other even though they do not have a lot of time with each other, unlike some couples who have to stick together all day.

I feel like this show is eerily reflecting all my philosophies about love.

I am also wondering where this is going, when Yu Tang mentions that Wen Kai is good because he doesn’t get jealous about how she meets Zi Yu. She suddenly remembers that she has forgotten to tell Wen Kai that she’s going out with Zi Yu to purchase a farewell gift for the Vice Manager.

Aha! Cues Ai Sha’s question, “He’s also retiring?” She wonders why the Vice Managers are both retiring the moment Zi Yu rises to be the General Manager. *Dum dum dum* Yu Tang naively answers that it could be a coincidence. Anyway, Ai Sha cleverly tells Yu Tang to meet Zi Yu in the afternoon, so that she can leave her nighttime for Wen Kai.

This time round, Wen Kai accompanies Yu Tang to visit her mother. He holds her hand and tearily tells Zhong mum that he will take good care of Yu Tang.

Zhong Ma, do you feel that Yu Tang is a bit different now? Hasn’t she grown up a little? Will you rest more peacefully seeing her now? 

He promises the mum that he will always accompany Yu Tang and not let her face anything alone. He tenderly wipes Yu Tang’s tears and asks her if she’s okay. She replies that she really misses her mum and he brings her into a warm hug.

Although this is sweet, I’m also really scared she will suddenly know that the mum went out to buy eggs because of Wen Kai.

Every time she misses her mum, she will take a walk…along the pavement? Even though she always wants to cry when she comes here, she still feels like coming.

In a flashback, we see the significance of the pavement and gosh, it’s painful. She had wandered out to find her mum and saw a crowd gathering around someone who had collapsed…and that someone was her mum.

Wen Kai leans his head on hers. She says chokingly, “If only I had been more firm then. If only I had helped my mum to buy eggs. If only she fell sick at home…maybe there would have been more time.”

Everytime she thinks of that, she feels so much regret. Wen Kai recalls once again that Zhong mum promised to make a special omelette for him and bites on his lip. He wants to confess the truth, but Yu Tang cuts him off, “No matter what the reason was, it has already happened.”

Oh damn, that means this is going to come back to bite the couple??

He sits down with her and relents, “If you don’t want to mention that day…let’s not talk about it.” She realises that she still hasn’t gotten over her mum’s death but is hopeful that she will become braver with Wen Kai by her side.

For the third time that day, he reassures that he will be with her and face things with her.

Yu Tang then asks him why he suddenly disappeared a decade ago.

– the end –

I think as of now, my favourite conflict is oddly the possibility of Zi Yu being the ultimate villain. I never quite like the idea that Yu Tang may blame Wen Kai for ‘causing’ her mother’s death or the fact that she may be jealous about Ai Sha. But this drama also has its own way of dealing with certain issues. For example, it seems to be assumed now that Yu Tang already knew that Wen Kai liked her since high school days, although this was not actually explicitly mentioned anywhere previously. While I appreciate that things that happened in the past are supposed to stay in the past (as was Wen Kai’s wish in one of the episodes), I think that this deprived the fans/viewers of a possibly sweet and touching moment when Yu Tang realises that Wen Kai liked her all along and that the recording was meant for her.

The show’s strongest suit isn’t its corporate plot line, so I am not very engaged with the target issue as well. As things go, Team 3 will hit the target at the end, even though next week’s preview hints at a possible calamity of a factory strike. Don’t forget, Wen Kai has been nurturing his relationship with Ah Hui!

<3houghtsramble