Episode Summary
Ye Qi becomes increasingly interested in Zhou Jieyue for his comic, making Zuo Qiandai jealous and regretful. His comic character Ah Mei lacks depth, so Ye Qi decides to live as Ah Mei for a day to find inspiration, including giving Chai Ziyu a bento. Jiang Ruosong seeks out the singer Luo Leilai (who is Zhou Jieyue) for his insomnia and performance issues, but Zhou Jieyue deems him unsuitable for singing. Ye Qi's attempts to find inspiration, like creating a public spectacle with Lu Dao, fail. Zuo Qiandai tries to impress Ye Qi by mimicking Zhou Jieyue's "devilish" style, but Ye Qi sees through it, leading to a misunderstanding and Zuo Qiandai's hurt feelings. Ye Qi, advised by Chai Ziyu after a gaming session, decides to apologize by taking Zuo Qiandai shopping. Meanwhile, Gu Zhengxing informs Lu Dao that their musical is canceled, much to Lu Dao's secret delight.
Spoiler Alert
So, our main man, Ye Qi, is finding himself increasingly drawn to Zhou Jieyue. You know, the more he observes her for his comic, the more fascinating she becomes. This, of course, is sending Zuo Qiandai into a bit of a spiral. She's majorly regretting introducing her friend to Ye Qi, terrified he's actually going to fall for Zhou Jieyue. Girl can't even concentrate in class, scribbling character notes instead. Speaking of which, Zhou Jieyue happens to peek at Zuo Qiandai's notebook and is like, "Hey, this sounds a lot like me!" – right before she gets agitated and accidentally breaks a school desk. Yeah, Zhou Jieyue is that kind of "devilish" girl, the intense type who definitely knows how to make an entrance and grab everyone's attention.
Meanwhile, Ye Qi's latest comic submission didn't exactly get rave reviews. The magazine basically told him that his portrayal of the character Ah Mei is falling flat. They pointed out a bunch of scenes where Ah Mei's inner turmoil and feelings are supposed to shine, but Ye Qi just isn't capturing it, leaving readers totally confused.
Understandably, Ye Qi is now obsessing over how to bring Ah Mei to life, feeling like he just doesn't get her yet. He pores over his own comic, trying to pinpoint what's missing. His solution? He decides to literally become Ah Mei for a day to experience her world and mindset. First up on his method acting agenda: delivering a bento box to Chai Ziyu, all while in character as Ah Mei.
Later that night, while Ye Qi and Zuo Qiandai are trying to work on the comic, Jiang Ruosong wakes up from a nap and realizes the music Ye Qi was listening to is a miracle cure for his insomnia. He's suddenly on a mission to find the singer, a certain Luo Leilai. Coincidentally, Jiang Ruosong has also been struggling with his stage presence and was already looking for this Luo Leilai, who's apparently a big deal in the music room. And guess who Luo Leilai turns out to be? None other than Zhou Jieyue! So, Zuo Qiandai takes Jiang Ruosong to meet her. Zhou Jieyue puts him on the spot, asking him to sing a new song to test his skills. Her verdict after hearing him? Yeah, singing is probably not his forte.
Adding to the comedic misunderstandings, Jiang Ruosong later pops by the music club looking for Luo Leilai and gets the wrong idea, thinking Zhou Jieyue is being ostracized by the club members. He actually starts feeling pretty sorry for her.
The bento box drama continues when Ye Qi thoughtfully brings one for Zuo Qiandai. She's all smiles until he whips out another bento, this one for Zhou Jieyue. Ouch. Zuo Qiandai's disappointment is palpable. Ye Qi explains his whole "live as Ah Mei for a day" plan to find inspiration. Zuo Qiandai thinks he's being a bit much (the original word implies something like "devilish" or "playing a trickster") and isn't keen on joining his charade. But, man, that bento Ye Qi made looks good. After a moment of internal debate, she caves and takes it.
Still desperate for inspiration, Ye Qi cooks up a new plan: become the "public enemy of all girls" by staging some kind of stunt involving "abducting" Ah Mei (or at least, that's how it sounded). While Zuo Qiandai is moping and trying to figure out how to get Ye Qi's attention back, she spots him pushing Lu Dao (maybe in a wheelchair?) with a whole pack of girls chasing after them. Despite the chaos, Ye Qi admits this stunt isn't sparking any ideas either. Seeing him so stuck and frustrated, Zuo Qiandai feels for him and decides she wants to help.
On a side note, Gu Zhengxing has some bad news for Lu Dao: the musical is a no-go. Gu Zhengxing can't find anyone willing to help out. Lu Dao, however, is secretly pretty pleased about this development.
Back to the main drama: Zuo Qiandai gets an idea. Since Ye Qi seems to be into Zhou Jieyue's "devilish girl" vibe, she decides to transform herself into that persona to give him some inspiration. Just as she's about to show off her new look, someone arrives to pick up Ye Qi's manuscript. Zuo Qiandai goes full Zhou Jieyue-imitation mode, thinking Ye Qi is finally getting the spark he needs. But nope, Ye Qi sees right through her act and gently tells her she doesn't need to go to all that trouble. Zuo Qiandai completely misunderstands. Her feelings are crushed, and she storms off, convinced Ye Qi doesn't appreciate any of her efforts. Later though, she starts to regret her outburst, wondering if Ye Qi had a point and maybe she overdid it.
Worried he’s messed up, Ye Qi turns to Chai Ziyu for advice on how to get Zuo Qiandai to forgive him. After an all-night gaming session (because, why not?), Ye Qi has an epiphany: girls are happiest when they're shopping! So, his grand plan to make amends? He asks Zuo Qiandai to go shopping with him.
Will a shopping spree smooth things over? We'll have to wait and see, but it's clear these two have a lot to work through, and Ye Qi's quest for comic inspiration is far from over!
