Episode 11 – Main Storyline
Si Ping High School is told to be having financial problems. This has Si Ping High School look for sponsorship from commercial enterprises in favour of raising student fees. The sponsor that Si Ping High School is hoping to obtain is a food manufacturing plant.
The agreement to sponsor Si Ping High School comes with a request, however. This request is to solve their problem of the company’s staff not eating at the cafeteria, leaving them with large amount of leftovers at the end of lunch. This brings Han Jie and Fang Xiao Rou heading to the sponsor’s company with their students on a mission to solve this problem the company has.
The plan of attack is with a lunch menu consisting of four main courses—five side dishes, appetisers, soup and dessert. The result is less than enlightening, however. Only the BBQ chicken wings, fruit salad in yoghurt dressing and caramel pudding were cleared out by the company staff. The remaining dishes are unfinished and ample in volume.
With no useful information from the lunch menu, this brings Fang Xiao Rou and the students on a discussion of new menu item ideas. These are brought into a survey and the students go on the task of carrying out the survey on the company staff. When they come back together to collate the data, the results of the survey are again less than enlightening when their tastes are dispersed and are similar in votes.
Han Jie is not seen amongst the group during the meeting collating the survey data. When Fang Xiao Rou receives a call from Han Jie during the meeting, we find out he has been at the company’s soybean fermentation farm studying the process of production. Han Jie’s reason for the study is his way of understanding their work day and hence their appetites.
Han Jie’s study of the process of production is fruitful. The lunch items developed from studying the process of production has Han Jie come up with creating dishes that allows the staff to be proud of the product that they themselves had contribution in making. With this, the manufacturing plant staff are seen positively enjoying the food and Si Ping High School successfully obtains sponsorship from the food manufacturing plant.
Romance Storyline
After Han Jie catches Fang Xiao Rou trailing him, he manages to get Fang Xiao Rou to say out she likes him—much to Han Jie’s relief that Fang Xiao Rou does indeed like him. However, this effort Han Jie puts into getting Fang Xiao Rou to reveal her true feelings to him only results in Fang Xiao Rou hearing Han Jie rejecting her like without an explanation why.
Fang Xiao Rou isn’t discouraged. She goes on a mission to reel in Han Jie. She comes up with the idea of making Han Jie a bento and soup—an idea that rose from her brief encounter with Ma Chong Sheng following Han Jie’s departure when Ma Chong Sheng expresses how he and Liu Xuan have been getting closer because of his grandma’s braised pork rice that he exchanges for her breakfast every morning.
Fang Xiao Rou gives Jiang Pei Ying the job of handing over this bento and soup that she got up at three in the morning and laboured over to make for Han Jie. Fang Xiao Rou giving this task to Jiang Pei Ying to do instead of doing it herself is with the hope of having Han Jie fall in love with the bento and soup before finding out who made it. She wishes to have him become anxious over not being able to eat it in the future first before jumping in to reveal that it’s she who made it and have him realise that he needs her in his life to solve this anxiety he has over not being able to eat such delicious food in the future.
Fang Xiao Rou succeeds in having Han Jie accept her bento and soup. However, her wish to not be discovered as being the one the bento and soup belongs to isn’t successful. It even seems that Han Jie accepted the items of food so simply is because he realised it was from Fang Xiao Rou: he had spotted Fang Xiao Rou hiding behind the column observing him a moment after Jiang Pei Ying shows up before him with the items.
If Han Jie goes according to the person he was a year ago, he would have been seen taking the opportunity to amuse himself with doing something to bring Fang Xiao Rou to reveal herself. But, Han Jie doesn’t. He simply reacts normally: he offers to pay for the bento that Jiang Pei Ying had said she bought for him. Jiang Pei Ying rejects the offer of reimbursement and goes on a long story of winning it at a raffle draw at an upscale restaurant. She explains her having tried giving it to the principal, Su Ying Jun and Li Zhi Chao before coming to him. Han Jie picks up that she hadn’t mentioned Wen Zhen Yu, to whom he believes hasn’t had anything to eat yet and goes to suggest trying him. Jiang Pei Ying simply tells him that she will figure something out for Wen Zhen Yu. With this, Han Jie graciously accepts the bento.
Unfortunately, a misunderstanding arises from this. A while after receiving the bento, Han Jie comes across a football hitting into the bento and soup container. Fang Xiao Rou doesn’t see her bento falling to the ground and spilling over onto the ground because of the football bouncing into the items Han Jie held in his hands. With binoculars, spying from afar on a balcony, Fang Xiao Rou only sees Han Jie placing the bento box into a rubbish bin. Jiang Pei Ying comes running towards Fang Xiao Rou at this point and asks Fang Xiao Rou how it’s going. Fang Xiao Rou is disappointed and explains the situation to Jiang Pei Ying. Jiang Pei Ying sees reason to be feeling disappointed; however, she tells Fang Xiao Rou to not be quick to misunderstand. She offers to look into it for Fang Xiao Rou. However, Fang Xiao Rou doesn’t have the stamina to continue embarrassing herself in this love marathon and tells Jiang Pei Ying that she wishes to stop and admit defeat.
Though Fang Xiao Rou is disappointed from seeing her bento thrown into the rubbish bin and feels she isn’t fit to run this love marathon, she isn’t seen giving up or going away from opportunities created for her.
In the meeting discussing possible sponsorship from a food manufacturing plant to solve the problem of the school’s poor financial position, Han Jie had opted to work with Wen Zhen Yu over Jiang Pei Ying’s suggestion of Fang Xiao Rou to follow him into fulfilling the request of the food manufacturing plant to investigate and find a solution to the food manufacturing plant’s problem of their staff not eating at the cafeteria. Jiang Pei Ying isn’t happy about this outcome, but she doesn’t take any action. She only finds the need to take action when, after the meeting, she overhears Wen Zhen Yu telling Han Jie that he will be putting himself back into the chase for Fang Xiao Rou’s heart. (Wen Zhen Yu’s reason for this seems to have risen from seeing Han Jie rejecting Fang Xiao Rou as the other person to go on the food manufacturing plant assignment with him which he seems to see it as indication to Han Jie’s decrease of interest in Fang Xiao Rou.) With this knowledge, Jiang Pei Ying takes desperate measures to return the team going on this assignment back to Han Jie and Fang Xiao Rou. Jiang Pei Ying creates a scenario that enables her to give Wen Zhen Yu a cup of coffee with laxatives to make him too ill and unsafe to work in a kitchen: she hides a tyre of Wen Zhen Yu’s car before approaching him and giving him a coffee (with laxatives) to drink as he waits for her to call for her mechanic friend to come help him with a replacement of the tyre.
Fang Xiao Rou therefore becomes the one to go on the assignment with Han Jie. The plan seems to have been to meet up at some location beyond Si Ping High School prior to heading to the food manufacturing plant as we see Fang Xiao Rou meet up with Han Jie waiting by his car at this location outside of Si Ping High School. Fang Xiao Rou is greeted by Han Jie’s surprised expression. “Am I not welcomed?” Fang Xiao Rou asks him before she tells him that he doesn’t have a choice when Wen Zhen Yu isn’t able to come. She tells him to start going before heading into his car on her own accord.
During the drive to the location, the misunderstanding of Han Jie throwing Fang Xiao Rou’s bento swiftly gets cleared up when Fang Xiao Rou tells Han Jie she is prepared to do well when Han Jie informs her that they will be doing a site inspection and cooking a sample lunch on location. Han Jie’s response reveals to Fang Xiao Rou he has eaten her bento: he tells Fang Xiao Rou that he isn’t worried about her doing well in cooking because the bento she made is evidence to her ability to produce delicious food.
Even with the misunderstanding set straight again and Fang Xiao Rou no longer feels hopeless, the relationship between Han Jie and Fang Xiao Rou stands as it is currently with Han Jie suggesting for the both of them to simply be colleagues until both of them can find a reason why each of them like the other. Fang Xiao Rou makes a brief objection, but she doesn’t persist in changing his mind. She only asks if he likes her at all—to which Han Jie simply tells her to use her imagination to find the answer.
In the short amount of time of carrying out the request from the food manufacturing plant—in the time of watching over soybeans in the storage room overnight and making soy sauce, Han Jie finds the reason to why he likes Fang Xiao Rou. We aren’t told what it is that Han Jie likes about Fang Xiao Rou. However, we hear Han Jie ask Fang Xiao Rou to allow him to pursue her until she wishes to kiss him. He tells Fang Xiao Rou that when that time comes when she cannot help herself but to kiss him, they will be together.
Han Jie is seen preparing his pursuit of Fang Xiao Rou the very next day. He’s riding on the bus Fang Xiao Rou apparently takes to work every day and he’s sharing his breakfast with her. On top of that, he’s attempting to change her bad habit of imagining situations beyond reality. However, Fang Xiao Rou is uncomfortable with allowing Han Jie to pursue her. In a conversation with Jiang Pei Ying at the apartment the previous night, Fang Xiao Rou expresses concern of Han Jie’s ability to make her lose autonomy. This scares her. Jiang Pei Ying tells Fang Xiao Rou that she needn’t be worried: the anniversary of the school’s founding event will allow her to make a move that will afford her the power she desires to have over Han Jie. In the bus scene, however, she ultimately agrees to cooperate with Han Jie in his mission to change her ways.
Side Storyline
The fight for Liu Xuan’s heart continues to go on between Wang Mai Zhi and Ma Chong Sheng. Wang Mai Zhi and Ma Chong Sheng has been on the same level thus far. However, Wang Mai Zhi is beginning to fall behind Ma Chong Sheng in his pursuit of Liu Xuan. In this episode, he quickly drive her towards Ma Chong Sheng with his constant view of affluence being superior to hardwork and seeing money as an indicator of a person’s worth. This part of Wang Mai Zhi becomes very unattractive to Liu Xuan.
This is seen during a scene after their work at the food manufacturing plant. Wang Mai Zhi is seen verbally attacking Ma Chong Sheng for allowing Liu Xuan help out at his grandmother’s noodle shop. This is in light of Wang Mai Zhi’s failed plan of having some alone time with Liu Xuan when he devised a plan to send Ma Chong Sheng to help out at his grandmother’s noodle shop—only to see Liu Xuan choosing to follow Ma Chong Sheng and offering to help him out at the noodle shop. Wang Mai Zhi’s dislike of Ma Chong Sheng allowing Liu Xuan to work in such a dirty and oily place leads to criticism of Ma Chong Sheng having no clue of how to treat such a princess like Liu Xuan before this leads Wang Mai Zhi to describe the money that Ma Chong Sheng earns as dirty and oily in comparison to the money that he earns. Liu Xuan hears all of these views of Wang Mai Zhi’s—views that Liu Xuan terribly disagrees with. The outcome is bad for Wang Mai Zhi: he is left calling after Liu Xuan when she takes Ma Chong Sheng by his hand and leads Ma Chong Sheng away from him.
The next morning before school when Wang Mai Zhi goes to do his routine wait outside Liu Xuan’s apartment gates to head to school together in his luxurious car, Liu Xuan tells Wang Mai Zhi to not wait outside every morning for her anymore. It makes her feel bad seeing him come every morning for no reason. Wang Mai Zhi doesn’t seem to understand the reason Liu Xuan has asked him not to wait for her anymore and or the reason why she chooses to head to school with Ma Chong Sheng on his bicycle when Wang Mai Zhi tells Liu Xuan to ride in his luxurious transport and forget Ma Chong Sheng’s shabby one. This has Liu Xuan give reasons why she prefers Ma Chong Sheng’s shabby transport over his: she enjoys the breeze from riding on the bicycle whilst enjoying Ma Chong Sheng’s braised pork rice and his company. Wang Mai Zhi expresses superiority of his affluent background once more: she can enjoy the breeze in his car and he can take her all over Taipei City to look for and buy the best braised pork rice. This has Liu Xuan ask Wang Mai Zhi to stop talking about money and request him to be an ordinary student. Wang Mai Zhi has no defense but exclaim how he can’t help being born affluent. Ma Chong Sheng wraps the conversation up: he tells Liu Xuan to stop trying to make Wang Mai Zhi understand before suggesting for them to begin heading off to school.
No one makes a move to head off to school when the three Si Ping High School students get alerted to calls for them to get out of the way. The calls come from a girl with curly hair, black thick-rimmed glasses and wearing the Si Ping High School uniform on a bicycle that is apparently unable to be stopped.
Wang Mai Zhi is in this girl’s line of path. Wang Mai Zhi calls her to stop. She doesn’t. She only is able to stop with the help of Wang Mai Zhi: he stops her with a grab of her bicycle handles. The girl along with her bicycle falls to the ground below Wang Mai Zhi. While Ma Chong Sheng is the gentleman, immediately going to help this girl up and even provides her a plaster for the scratch on her palm, Wang Mai Zhi demands an apology for running into him. Wang Mai Zhi’s insensitivity further makes Ma Chong Sheng look like the better guy when Ma Chong Sheng tells the new girl to ignore Wang Mai Zhi and follow him and Liu Xuan to school.
The girl takes her bicycle and makes a move to follow Ma Chong Sheng and Liu Xuan. However, Wang Mai Zhi stops the girl. Wang Mai Zhi wishes to borrow the girl’s bicycle. He offers her money to allow him to rent her bicycle and forces her to ride his car to get to school. Wang Mai Zhi will not be defeated by Ma Chong Sheng and his bicycle.
Thoughts
We love this episode so much! It feels like it’s gone back to the atmosphere and feel of how the series opened. It’s fun and about cooking.
Weren’t there just so many awesome scenes between Han Jie and Fang Xiao Rou in this episode?! There were!
There were the small moments and situations that were just really sweet! We’re talking about Fang Xiao Rou specially getting up at three in the morning to make Han Jie a bento and soup. And then there’s Han Jie who plays it cool when he gets given the bento Fang Xiao Rou made for him, but it felt like, underneath, he was extremely happy to have received something that Fang Xiao Rou spent time to make especially for him, judging by the incredibly disappointed expression he had when he loses the bento to the ground and when he looked sadly on the contents of the bento spoiled on the ground!
Han Jie says he ate what was still clean and unspoiled in the bento. Just imagining him still in that crouched position and going to grab the remaining items and eating it, it’s such a cute scene!
There was Fang Xiao Rou’s clumsiness in the soybean storage room where Fang Xiao Rou constantly knocking into bamboo trays of soybeans has Han Jie guide Fang Xiao Rou through the narrow walkway with her on his feet, seeing the two of them in close contact for that duration—but, how painful it is for Han Jie to walk through such a narrow space and in such a careful and slow manner with Fang Xiao Rou standing on his feet! When we were watching Han Jie walk through that with Fang Xiao Rou on his feet, we were just thinking how that position could easily have Han Jie, himself, knock into one of those bamboo trays of soybeans if he lost his concentration and balance because the pain in his feet started to get to him. The safest way for Han Jie to lead Fang Xiao Rou out of the soybean storage room would have just been to stand behind Fang Xiao Rou and guide her with hands on shoulders. But of course, the intimate scene wouldn’t be there. So we were thinking if Fang Xiao Rou could just be in front of Han Jie with him wrapping his arms around Fang Xiao Rou from behind and guide her out that way. Wouldn’t that work, too?—they just wouldn’t be facing each other and create that shy shot of Fang Xiao Rou hugged against Han Jie’s chest and looking up at him, making Han Jie so cool-looking.
And then there are the bigger Han Jie and Fang Xiao Rou moments! Who can forget the teasing kiss from Han Jie in the soybean storage room! We do want Han Jie and Fang Xiao Rou to eventually have a sweet kiss between them; but, at this point, we are satisfied with what eventuated. We do prefer kisses to be further down and towards the end of the series. So, the almost kiss in this episode was perfect!
There’s the oh-so-sweet scene in the bus where Han Jie quickly goes to support Fang Xiao Rou’s sleeping head from hitting the metal support rail with a hand of his before bringing her head over to rest on his shoulder! Han Jie looked so awesome and cool there!
Han Jie felt a bit different in this episode. We can’t pinpoint exactly what makes us feel like Han Jie’s feeling a little different, but he does. Softer maybe—a bit more tender… gentler? (These are all synonyms of the same word, aren’t they? :o/ :o/. Can’t pinpoint Han Jie.)
We don’t know how this series does it, but we are interested in not only the main couple of Han Jie and Fang Xiao Rou now. We are also now interested in the secondary romance plot of Wang Mai Zhi, Liu Xuan and Ma Chong Sheng. It’s all due to the entrance of a new girl. We’re very curious to know what her character will bring into this love triangle—we’re going to assume she’s a character that will affect this love triangle: is she someone who’s going to enter as Liu Xuan’s love rival for Ma Chong Sheng or is she going to be someone for Wang Mai Zhi? We’re hoping she’s someone for Wang Mai Zhi! Wang Mai Zhi is an underdog in the love triangle, so we wish for some attention given to him. Hopefully this new girl will be the one to give Wang Mai Zhi some attention. But whichever side she enters into and affects, it’s looking very interesting especially when first impression of this new character is that she’s a little awkward and comes across as being (maybe) spunky underneath her awkwardness. We’ll be looking forward to see more of who this new character is and what kind of a personality she has—because, at this moment, she looks incredibly interesting!
Speaking of Wang Mai Zhi, he really is like the younger version of Han Jie. We mean, look at the way he lifts the new character over to the car: it’s exactly like how Han Jie lifted Fang Xiao Rou in Episode 2 at the gym foyer! He’s also misunderstood. He’s got a rude and superior exterior; but, underneath, he has some heart and can be swayed to change his views.
Does it not seem like Wen Zhen Yu is a character who goes in and then out a lot? He comes in being threatening, but then exits and becomes non-threatening the next moment because other characters easily get him out of the way. Being a character who shows up to provide problems in the romance arc by saying he’s going to start entering in the chase or in the main arc by making his background very mysterious, but then he either exits the next moment or he doesn’t appear at all in the storyline for an episode until he needs to create tension or conflict—is this Wen Zhen Yu’s role for the series? We’re still believing Wen Zhen Yu will eventually be someone creating real problems and not just empty threats—maybe closer to the end section of the series? Here’s hoping—*crosses fingers*.
We can’t help to notice Fang Xiao Rou’s styling. The clothes that she is wearing is definitely feminine, pretty and she’s sporting everything above her knees—shorts and mini-skirts. Maybe we’ll see skorts soon! We have to say, we are totally Fang Xiao Rou’s fashion, particularly the pair of shoes that she wore for the trip to the food manufacturing plant!
The final scene of the episode shows the faculty staff discussing about their annual event and using a wheel and darts to decide on activities. It looks interesting! We’re very curious why everyone was so shocked at the wheel segment Fang Xiao Rou’s dart landed on! Is it something awesome that will see more awesome scenes for Fang Xiao Rou and Han Jie?
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