When last we left our useless rich guy and tall caretaker, a punch was thrown.
But now we’re going back to before that
When Shao Peng pushed Zi Xang away, he remembered being pushed away after the kiss, and Shao Peng’s mom never seeing him angry. Shao Peng pushes him away to hide his true feelings.
That’s why he yells at Shao Peng that he’s deaf.
After throwing that punch, Shao Peng unleashes his repressed feelings. He angrily signs, asking if he should thank Zi Xiang for liking him or if he thinks he wants to be deaf. He’d be normal if not for the antipyretic injection. He’d have a job and have known when his mom collapsed.
Shao Peng sobs and wants to know why him. Hasn’t he tried hard enough and been patient enough? What else can he do to hear again?
Zi Xiang pulls Shao Peng into a hug. He resists for a moment before clutching at Zi Xiang.
They aren’t done melting our hearts yet
After Shao Peng checks on his mom and pulls the privacy curtains, they sit on the next bed over. Zi Xiang hands Shao Peng his phone to do speech-to-text, sitting with their backs together while he talks.
He’s happy Shao Peng cares, and isn’t as strong as he seems. Zi Xiang is weak, there isn’t much he can do for Shao Peng. But he’s patient, has a good temper, and wants Shao Peng to be free to share his vulnerability. Zi Xiang would never laugh because he’s weaker and not good at things.
Zi Xiang turns to Shao Peng, wipes his tears, takes the phone, and holds his hand. They smile sweetly. On the other side of the curtain, Shao Peng’s mom sheds a tear. She heard it all.
Somehow, Shao Peng and Zi Xiang share that tiny hospital bed and make it look sweet.
The next morning, Zi Xiang is curled against Shao Peng’s chest with the sheet over his head. Shao Peng pulls it away to peek at him, and Zi Xiang sleepily pulls it back. They Are The Cutest.
Shao Peng’s Dad rushes in, convinced his wife is amnesiac. She’s not. Zi Xiang wakes up and grumbles. Shao Peng’s dad pulls the curtain to see Zi Xiang in bed with his son. There are some awkward “hellos”.
Shao Peng’s mom wants to talk
After Zi Xiang leaves, she tells Shao Peng she overheard them. Before that, she understood he hid his feelings, but not why. Now she realizes they were so worried about each other’s feelings that they didn’t talk about them.
Shao Peng still tries to reassure her that it’s okay, but she doesn’t let him. She apologizes for pushing him and not explaining that it was only because she wanted him to have a bright future. She never meant for him to pretend he could hear and that things were fine.
Shao Peng thought they wanted him to be normal. Both his parents object to the word “normal”. They want him to know he can admit when he’s upset and rely on them. They just want him to be happy. Family hug time!
Jessica is upset Zi Xiang never came home last night
Zi Xiang is upset Jessica approached Shao Peng.
At Shao Peng’s, Shu He sees Zi Xiang’s coat and offers to take it to him. At work, she notices Zi Xiang working harder and has Shao Peng’s pen. Feng Jie comments that people in love are different.
At home, Jessica mocks Zi Xiang for working hard. Zi Xiang asks why, considering they come from the same environment, she doesn’t understand. Jessica acts like she’s fallen for him. It’s unconvincing.
Then black hoodie guy runs over Zi Xiang, maybe?
We never get the details. Shao Peng learns from Feng Jie that Zi Xiang got hurt. He’s worried but tells Feng Jie they’re just friends. Feng Jie plays fairy godmother and tells him what Zi Xiang is doing to prove himself. But if Shao Peng only sees him as a friend, it’s sad.
Shao Peng runs to Zi Xiang’s room and checks him over. He seems fine, and Shao Peng kisses him before he explains much, so I have no idea if the car even touched him. Never mind that, kissing!
Suddenly, we’re back home with Shao Peng. His mom also notices Zi Xiang’s coat because everyone in this show is nosy. Shao Peng shares that he likes Zi Xiang, but things are complicated. Mom tells him not to give up and offers to help. Love. Her.
Feng Jie has romantic issues, too
For one, men won’t stop throwing themselves. Handsome and confident are a strong combo. He’s at the bar where Xin Jia works now, but Feng Jie helps out when Xin Jia nearly hits some obnoxious customers.
He also waits for him after work and forces Xin Jia to have a late-night snack with him.
The next day, Zi Xiang’s fashion becomes Too Much when he dresses to visit Shao Peng’s. Xin Jia helps him pick something appropriately rich-guy fancy but not too much. He shows up at Shao Peng’s door with flowers for his mom. Aww.
Shu He shows up for dinner too, but rather than watch the guys be sweet she gets called away for work.
After dinner, Shao Peng shows Zi Xiang his room. Zi Xiang sits on Shao Peng’s bed, acts cute, and talks about his smell. Shao Peng cannot resist this and becomes super intense, staring into Zi Xiang’s eyes before kissing him.
Kisssssssssing! Shirt unbuttoning!
At least the show named what caused Shao Peng’s deafness
Usually, it’s just some mysterious “illness”, although a cursory internet search in English makes it appear that the links between antipyretic injections and deafness may not be proven.
There’s A LOT in these two episodes, and I love all of it.
First, Zi Xiang proves he can be a true partner to Shao Peng by confronting him at the hospital. Before that scene, I liked Zi Xiang because he’s cute, likes Shao Peng, and is trying to improve himself. But in the hospital scene, he helps Shao Peng in a way he needs to be helped, by making a place where Shao Peng can express himself freely.
Shao Peng needed to know he could trust Zi Xiang with his feelings before he admitted to them. You can see it in his career choice alone. Shao Peng wants to be a caretaker. He wants to be completely independent and capable. But no one can be, hearing or not. Zi Xiang showed him that he would be there even when Shao Peng wasn’t being the most amazing caretaker. He’d share his burden.
I think it’s also important to see that even loving, well-meaning families can goof things up. Shao Peng pushed himself so hard for his parents because he loved them. His parents pushed him because they loved him. No one wanted to hurt each other, so they hid their problems, and it got worse. This kind of thing happens all the time in real life.
I definitely have a weakness for a character who is slow to warm up to love, but once they do, they are all in (See Also: Love Is A Poison). I guess it’s that fell first/fell harder thing. Shao Peng took a bit to warm up, but those are intense kisses he’s laying on Zi Xiang.
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