Qi Zhen Kai fully reveals his true colors to Fei Yang, who finds that he’s left with nothing. But he has Ai Sha.
Recap
Zhen Kai leads his father’s funeral procession, carrying the urn with his father’s ashes. Fei Yang and his mother are at the back of the group, along with the family’s butler. While Zhen Kai and the rest of the EC board of directors are permitted into the room that is the elder Qi’s final resting place, Fei Yang and his mother are barred at the doorway. Zhen Kai’s secretary says that Zhen Kai said “outsiders” are not allowed in.
Fei Yang and his mother can only watch from afar as Zhen Kai goes through the ceremony that all sons are supposed to go through. Fei Yang kneels and bows to his father from outside the room.
Ai Sha watches.
Fei Yang’s mother packs some of his father’s things in a box, hoping to give Fei Yang some keepsakes to preserve his father’s memory. But Zhen Kai finds her and says that his father’s things should stay in his house. If Fei Yang wants to see them, he can always come by. After all, they’re a family, aren’t they?
Mama Yi says she plans on moving back to America shortly. Zhen Kai comments that she sure seems to be in a hurry to leave after his father’s death. She diplomatically says that she doesn’t want to disrupt Zhen Kai with her presence. That makes Zhen Kai laugh hysterically. What about the last thirty years?
He takes his father’s things and starts to leave, but Mama Yi stops him. She knows he blames her, but she asks him to spare a thought for Fei Yang, as his brother. She didn’t want the elder Qi to give EC stock to Fei Yang, but he should at least have something to remember his father by.
Zhen Kai latches onto the mention of stock. How does she know that? Does she know about the will? She must know where it is. She’s the person who has been closest to his father all these years. Mama Yi insist she doesn’t know where it is, but he doesn’t believe her. She says that she never cared about the elder Qi’s wealth. Even if there was a will leaving Fei Yang an inheritance, she would never let Fei Yang follow through with it. All she wants is stability.
That sets Zhen Kai off. He yells at her, then turns dangerously calm as he reminds her that all of her happiness and stability was paid for by his mother’s tears.
Fei Yang is still distracted by grief as he meets with Zhen Kai to finalize the ownership transfer of Golden Man & Chic to his brother. His brother reassures him that for now, he will be the owner of Golden Man-Chic, just until his position as chairman is secure. Once his position is secure, he’ll return ownership to Fei Yang as quickly as possible. Fei Yang will still be CEO and in charge of day-to-day operations.
After their meeting, Fei Yang says he’ll go home after having dinner with his mother. Zhen Kai turns and feigns concern. His mother left for America last night. Didn’t she tell him?
Fei Yang is confused. He tries calling his mother, but his call goes straight to voicemail. He goes back to his father’s empty room and smiles at the framed photo of the three of them, the only thing that remains. He texts his mother and takes the photo home with him.
Ai Sha is shopping at a convenience store when she sees a news report that EC Group’s stock has taken a nosedive because of the uncertainty around who will succeed Fei Yang’s father as the chairman of the company. The board seems unlikely to elect Zhen Kai. She absentmindedly touches her shark necklace, thinking of Fei Yang.
Fei Yang considers messaging Ai Sha on Ocean’s Heart, then thinks better of it. He gets a text from Ni Mo asking when he’ll be back in the office.
Zhen Kai is preparing for a press conference and unhappy with his secretary’s work. He tells him to fix it, and to also make a call to someone.
Ai Sha is busy caring for her mother and coordinating on the phone with Nan Cheng. He hangs up on her after she starts lecturing him about borrowing money again. She gets another phone call from an unexpected person.
Fei Yang is finally back at Golden Man-Chic and in a meeting with his three trusted Golden Men when the family butler shows up. He tells Fei Yang that his mother has been taken away. He overheard Zhen Kai and Mama Yi talking about the elder Qi’s will. Zhen Kai seemed unhappy. Shortly afterward, some men came and took Mama Yi away.
The only reason the butler was even able to get away from the house and warn Fei Yang is because Zhen Kai has been distracted with an upcoming press conference.
Fei Yang calls Zhen Kai, who ignores him, so he goes looking for his brother at the hotel where the press conference is happening. He bursts into the VIP meeting room where his brother is to find him meeting with Ai Sha.
Zhen Kai dismisses Ai Sha. Fei Yang demands to know where his mother is. Zhen Kai smirks and says that he’ll tell Fei Yang once everything that is rightfully his is returned to him. He tells the henchmen holding onto Fei Yang to take him out of the room.
But Fei Yang struggles against the men holding home, asking his brother why he’s doing this to his mom. Aren’t they all one family?
Zhen Kai turns around. Family? The only family he had was ruined by Fei Yang’s mother thirty years ago. Fei Yang would do the same if he had a mother who lived in an assisted living facility and a father who never smiled at him. Zhen Kai smiles and says he’s curious to see whether Fei Yang’s mother will do what his mom did. Will she also go crazy and end her own life?
Fei Yang tries to attack Zhen Kai, but the bodyguard henchmen hold him back and punch him to subdue him. Fei Yang crumples. Zhen Kai shakes his head and tsks at him with a smile. He leans in and says that Fei Yang has had it too easy growing up. That’s why he’s always so impulsive and immature. While Mama Yi was being taken away, her only thought was to protect Fei Yang. Isn’t that just too unfair?
Fei Yang says he’ll give his brother whatever he wants as long as he releases his mother. But Zhen Kai just laughs. Golden Man and Chic belong to him now. Ai Sha is now working for him. Fei Yang has nothing left.
But then he thinks of something Fei Yang can do for him. He could disappear. He could return everything he and his mother stole from the Qi family and disappear forever.
His henchmen drag Fei Yang out of the room, punching him a few more times for good measure. Ai Sha spots him being dragged off and follows in concern. Zhen Kai’s secretary pulls her away, saying it has nothing to do with her. She shakes him off, telling him to take his hands off her.
Zhen Kai strolls out of the room, looking like nothing has happened. Ai Sha is full of questions about Fei Yang, but he waves it off as a family matter. He tells Ai Sha that he plans on announcing her as head of Chic and Golden Man at the upcoming press conference. Ai Sha is appalled. This isn’t what she signed up for.
But Zhen Kai knows that Ai Sha can’t afford to be picky. He knows that she tried to start her own business but failed to secure any projects. And now, it seems like her family needs money. He’s giving her a second chance, but it’s also her last chance.
Ai Sha realizes that Zhen Kai had her followed. But he just laughs and says that the business world is a battlefield. It makes sense that he would want to know about the people at his disposal. He reminds her that he now owns Chic and Golden Man. Fei Yang has nothing left; he’s of no value to Ai Sha anymore. He advises Ai Sha that if she wants to make it big, she shouldn’t let her emotions get in the way. Otherwise she’ll end up like Fei Yang and lose everything to him. He starts to walk away.
“Do you really think he’s lost?” Ai Sha asks, forcing him to turn back toward her. “Don’t forget, he still has me.”
She leaves, making sure that she had the last word. She looks around for Fei Yang at the bottom of the stairs, then takes a deep breath and steels herself before striding confidently out of the hotel.
Things are busy at Chic-Golden Man, until Yuki checks her phone and comes up with some big news. EC Group now owns Chic and Golden Man. Everyone is stunned, except for Steven, who just nods. Xi Jun finds it odd that Steven doesn’t even seem concerned.
Jing Jing arrives in the office with Vicky’s money pouch. She claims that the farm they were at found it and called her, sparing Xiao An from public humiliation. But she pointedly advises all the employees to work hard and show their devotion to the company, like Du Ai Sha, in order to prove their worth to the new owners and to not resort to petty tricks. “Right, Xiao An?” she asks.
Xiao An just stares at her and doesn’t respond. They maintain eye contact for a long moment while everyone else watches. Then Jing Jing moves on, saying that no matter how in flux the executive leadership seems, everyone must continue to do their jobs so the company continues running smoothly. The first people to be fired by their new boss will probably be the impatient people who try to use this unstable time to claw their way into power. She shoots Xiao An another pointed look.
Xi Jun continues to call out Steven later for not showing any concern for Fei Yang. But Steven just says that Fei Yang is probably fine, and even if he weren’t, none of them would be able to help him. He leaves and Xi Jun tries to call Fei Yang, but his phone is disconnected.
Jing Jing and Steven end up heading out of the office together. Steven guesses that Xiao An is the one who stole the money and hard drive that the marketing team lost. Steven asks why she didn’t out Xiao An earlier. Letting her stay would be dangerous, wouldn’t it? But Jing Jing just smiles sadly and says she thinks everyone deserves a second chance. Steven calls her soft.
Jing Jing smiles another sad smile and says that she knows better than anyone what it’s like to desperately try to climb the corporate ladder. Xiao An chose the wrong approach this time, but Jing Jing hopes that she’ll make the right choice next time.
Steven asks her what choice she would make in order to succeed. She shows him her new engagement ring and says, “This is my choice.” She starts walking away as she explains that Director Xiao has pursued her for many years. He’s introduced her to a lot of clients and has always wanted to take care of her. So she said yes.
She turns back to Steven and asks, “What, you’re not going to congratulate me?”
He asks her, “Are you sure this is the happiness you want?”
Jing Jing looks away with another sad smile. Men and women are different. For women, happiness has its limits. She tells him that if she had met him two years earlier, she would’ve taken the risk. But now she’s past the age where she can afford to let her emotions get in the way. She can’t afford to lose. She has to pick the safer option.
Steven gives her a sad smile of her own and praises her judgment, saying that if he were her, he would make the same choice. They stare at each other for a long moment, until the elevator arrives.
She gets in, but he stops, claiming that he forgot something at the office. She forces a smile at him as the elevator doors close, then lets her tears fall.
Fei Yang goes to see his father. (Now they let him in?) He promises his father to take care of his mom. He may no longer have a way of being in the Qi family, but he will always be his son. He gets a text from Ai Sha, asking him to follow through on an earlier promise he made to do whatever she asked to make up for breaking her necklace.
Fei Yang finds Ai Sha at the place by the shore where they watched the sunrise together. She tells him that she’ll forgive him if he gives her Ocean’s Heart. The app already has over 600,000 users in just a few months. It doesn’t compare to Chic or Golden Man, but it’s a good start. She understands the women’s consumer market and he understands men. She’s confident that together, they can turn it into something more.
She gently takes his face and tells him that she doesn’t care what he’s lost, she’ll be by his side to help him get it back. Even if it means going against EC Group, she’s not afraid, but he has to get back on his feet.
Fei Yang takes her hands and then says, “I’m sorry, I can’t do that.” He’ll give Ocean’s Heart to her as a gift. He’s confident she will be able to build it into a platform. She can do whatever she wants with it, but he can’t do it with her.
He starts walking away. She runs to catch up and hug him from behind. She apologizes for not being there for him earlier, when his father passed away. But from now on, no matter what happens and no matter what he does, he won’t be alone. She’ll be with him.
Fei Yang sighs heavily and says that his mom can’t be found and his brother wants him to disappear. Before today, being hugged by her would have made him the happiest person in the world. But now, he doesn’t know how to protect her. He tells her to start over and forget about doing anything for him. Protect herself, for him. He kisses her gently on the forehead, then leaves.
When Fei Yang returns home, he finds three of his brother’s henchmen outside. They tell him that the house is the Qi family’s property and Zhen Kai has asked him to move out. He has fifteen minutes to gather his things and vacate the premises.
Fei Yang packs whatever he can into a duffel bag — including the framed photo of him and his parents — and leaves. Zhen Kai’s secretary sends two men after him. He notices and manages to lose them in a department store after he changes clothes.
Xiao An overhears some of the marketing team gossiping about Jing Jing and how a lot of her clients are married men who seem to be chasing her. Could she be a mistress?
She asks to borrow the laptop of a coworker in the sales department, then surreptitiously connects a USB drive to download some files. She leaves the office, just missing Ye Xuan.
Ye Xuan arrives at the office to find it mostly empty except for two employees. They explain to him that most of the company is preparing for a livestream event hosted by Marguerite. He gives them some snacks he made for the team, then glances at Xiao An’s empty desk and tightens his grip on a separate, smaller bag.
Steven gives Zhen Kai a report on Chic and Golden Man’s business metrics. While Zhen Kai looks over the document, Steven asks if Fei Yang is okay. Zhen Kai notices that Steven seems to care about Fei Yang a lot, which makes Steven tense up. But Zhen Kai says that it’s normal to care about Fei Yang. He tells Steven that he should try to keep in contact with Fei Yang and let him know if he hears anything. He also tells Steven that he plans on putting him in charge of Chic and Golden Man.
Fei Yang manages to meet up with Uncle Wu on an overpass. Uncle Wu tells him his mother is safe overseas, but warns Fei Yang to take care of himself. Knowing Zhen Kai’s personality, he’ll want to eliminate anyone he considers a threat, including Fei Yang.
Zhen Kai’s henchmen end up finding Fei Yang again. He’s able to fight them off and elude them for a brief while, but they corner him in a dead end alley and start fighting with him over the duffel bag. Fei Yang desperately clings on.
The commotion draws a circle of onlookers, but no one steps in to help. Ye Xuan happens to walk by and jumps in to pull Fei Yang’s attackers off of him, claiming he’s already called the police. He manages to chase them off and checks to see if Fei Yang is okay. Fei Yang brushes off his concern, but still ends up at Ye Xuan’s restaurant, where Ye Xuan treats his scrapes with a first-aid kit.
Ye Xuan asks why Fei Yang isn’t contacting Ai Sha. Fei Yang claims that he doesn’t want to drag Ai Sha into this mess. Ye Xuan blithely says that it could be good he doesn’t contact Ai Sha. It’ll give him more of a chance with her. Fei Yang gives him a look, and Ye Xuan responds that he was the one who said they were rivals. Ye Xuan suggests that Fei Yang should be more honest with Ai Sha if he doesn’t want to lose her. He doesn’t want to end up like Ye Xuan and lose the person he likes the most.
Fei Yang says he’s just trying to protect Ai Sha, but Ye Xuan says he doesn’t understand her. He’s known her for twenty years. He knows that Ai Sha probably wishes she could be by his side right now and help him get through whatever hardships he’s facing. She’ll do anything for the people she loves. That’s who Du Ai Sha is.
Also, it’s too bad if Fei Yang doesn’t want to contact Ai Sha. Ye Xuan has already done that for him.
Ai Sha brings Fei Yang back to her own place. When he hesitates outside, she pulls him in by the arm and gets him settled in on her couch. Fei Yang continues to be silent and unresponsive, so she dries his hair for him after he showers while saying that she’ll be busy with her mom’s surgery, but he can stay here for the next few days.
Fei Yang says he’ll leave the next morning. He doesn’t want to drag her into his problems. But Ai Sha tells him that she was already involved. His brother made it so that she couldn’t get a job anywhere else so she would be forced to work for him. But she rejected him when he gave her a second (and last) chance, because she chose to be on Fei Yang’s side. She’s not scared of what Zhen Kai might do. She begs Fei Yang to not push her away anymore and asks him to be brave.
She starts to head toward her own room. Fei Yang stands up and pulls her into a hug, sobbing. She gently pats him on the back and tells him that it’ll be okay.
The next morning, Jing Jing storms into the office, wearing a dark pair of sunglasses and yelling Xiao An’s name. She immediately slaps Xiao An across the face. Xiao An tricked her into meeting with some of her clients’ wives. She takes off her sunglasses to reveal the beginning of a black eye. Xiao An responds that she wasn’t the one to intrude on their families. The two women start fighting while Xi Jun and Ni Mo try to separate them.
Xiao An grabs a metal cup from a nearby desk and is about to bludgeon Jing Jing with it when Steven steps in and grabs her wrist, yelling, “Enough!”
Behind him is Qi Zhen Kai. Both Jing Jing and Xiao An look ashamed as they face him.
Some quick hits for today’s episode!
- I love love love that the “wonder woman” is really coming out this episode. Ai Sha is here to save Fei Yang and save the day and nothing is going to stop her. That scene where she rejected Zhen Kai and made sure she had the last word before walking away? So badass!
- The will is totally in that framed photo of Fei Yang and his parents.
- Steven and Jing Jing’s goodbye to each other was heart breaking. 😦 But at least he’s still on Jing Jing’s side and doesn’t seem to like Xiao An either?
- I really hope we don’t get an actual Ye Xuan-Xiao An romance. She doesn’t deserve him and if Ye Xuan feels anything for her, it’s probably just pity.
The Drama Llama 