Episode Summary
After being humiliated by Ai Linjiang, who stole his girlfriend Wu Ya, Xue Xiaozhou spirals into despair. Hu Manli comforts him with tough love after saving him from a potential suicide attempt. Xiaozhou vows to start anew. The next day at a work dinner hosted by Tang Ling, Xiaozhou is simultaneously praised and publicly embarrassed when forced to wear an "I'm Last Place" T-shirt. Meanwhile, Hu Manli learns another friend, Zhong Ning, might be suicidal after inquiring about insurance payouts. Unable to reach Zhong Ning directly, Manli tricks her into calling back by mentioning her son Junjun's policy. Manli then rushes to find Xiaozhou at the dinner, pulling him away to help save Zhong Ning.
Spoiler Alert
A Better Life: Episode 21 Recap & Spoilers
So, the episode kicks off with some serious salt being rubbed in Xue Xiaozhou's wounds. Ai Linjiang, the guy who apparently snagged Xiaozhou's girlfriend Wu Ya, isn't content just having her – he has to flaunt it and humiliate Xiaozhou right to his face. Ouch. But thankfully, our girl Hu Manli isn't having any of it. She steps right up, gives Ai Linjiang a piece of her mind (you go, girl!), grabs Xiaozhou's hand, and storms out. Class act defending her friend, but then reality hits at the cashier. The bill is a whopping 13,000+! Manli considers getting a membership for a discount, but finds out you need to drop 100k upfront. Yikes. She ends up swallowing the cost.
Back home, Xue Xiaozhou is understandably a complete mess, totally heartbroken and spiraling. Hu Manli tries to comfort him, but he's stuck on the idea that Wu Ya only left him for Ai Linjiang's money and wants to call her to demand answers. Hu Manli, ever the pragmatist, snatches his phone away. She tells him calling Wu Ya will just make things worse and that wallowing in self-pity will only make Wu Ya look down on him more. Instead, she gives him a tough-love pep talk: buck up, focus on making serious bank, and that's how you'll come out on top and prove everyone wrong.
Their housemate, Ding Da'er, overhears the commotion and cautiously tells Hu Manli to ease up on Xiaozhou, worried he might be fragile. Even though Manli herself has bounced back from marriage and career failures, Ding Da'er's concern plants a seed of doubt. Manli gets worried too and goes to check on Xiaozhou in his study. The door's locked. She tries coaxing him out by pretending she has fruit for him, but gets no response. Getting a bad feeling, she uses a key to open the door and finds him sitting silently, staring out from the balcony window ledge.
Cue panic mode! Hu Manli immediately assumes the worst – that he's about to jump. She rushes over, talking him down while physically wrestling him back inside (apparently it took some serious effort!). Once he's safe, the fear turns to frustration, and she lets him have it, yelling at him. Surprisingly, this seems to be the wake-up call he needed. Xiaozhou snaps out of his daze and swears he'll start fresh. Relieved, Manli finally heads off to rest.
The next morning, it's like a switch flipped. Xue Xiaozhou is up, eating breakfast like nothing happened, and even cheerfully offers to take Ding Da'er to school. Hu Manli is genuinely happy to see him seemingly back on his feet. He hops on the bus to work and, taking Manli's earlier advice (probably about networking or keeping up appearances), starts methodically liking posts in his friends' social media feeds.
Later, his boss/team lead Tang Ling messages the work group chat, inviting everyone for a meal. Xiaozhou, along with his colleagues, 'likes' the message. Tang Ling treats them all to hot pot and even brings gifts for the top five sales performers, funded out of her own pocket. She gives Xiaozhou a designer bag (nice!) and has their colleague Yang Yichang take a picture of them, insisting Xiaozhou post it on his social media right then and there.
After a few drinks, Tang Ling puts Xiaozhou on the spot, asking him to share his secrets to becoming the "Sales King." Fueled by a bit of liquid courage, Xiaozhou gives a surprisingly passionate speech, earning applause from everyone. But then things take a cringey turn. Tang Ling insists that Wang Lingling, a female colleague who hadn't made any sales, wear a T-shirt emblazoned with "I'm Last Place." Wang Lingling understandably resists, pointing out that Xiaozhou didn't have to wear it when he was last. In a surprising move, Xiaozhou grabs the shirt, puts it on himself, and then starts walking around the restaurant handing out his business card to other diners. Tang Ling and the team actually cheer him on for this bizarre display.
Meanwhile, a different crisis is brewing. Hu Manli gets an urgent call from Wang Chunlu. Apparently, someone named Zhong Ning has been asking Wang Chunlu a lot of questions about insurance payouts related to suicide. Alarmed, Hu Manli tries calling Zhong Ning, but her phone goes straight to voicemail. She learns from Zhong Ning's secretary that she supposedly took leave to go to the Maldives. Hu Manli's gut tells her something is seriously wrong. Desperate, she sends Zhong Ning a text, lying that there's an issue with the insurance policy for her son, Junjun, hoping it will force Zhong Ning to respond.
The lie works, but for a terrifying reason. Zhong Ning is actually suicidal. Having set up a trust fund for Junjun, she was literally about to jump from a building when she received Hu Manli's text. Believing the policy issue is real, she calls Hu Manli back, asking her to come meet her – along with Xue Xiaozhou. Hu Manli quickly gets her location.
Frantic, Hu Manli tries calling Xue Xiaozhou, but he's still at the noisy hot pot dinner and doesn't pick up. Remembering the picture he posted earlier, Hu Manli figures out where he is and rushes over.
She bursts into the restaurant... only to find Xue Xiaozhou, wearing the humiliating "I'm Last Place" T-shirt, still trying to drum up business among strangers. Seeing him like this, while she's desperately trying to reach him for a life-or-death situation, pushes Hu Manli over the edge. She's furious and exasperated. Tang Ling recognizes her and tries to make nice, but Hu Manli is convinced Tang Ling is deliberately making Xiaozhou debase himself. Without explaining, she grabs a bewildered Xue Xiaozhou and drags him out of the restaurant. As they leave, Hu Manli is already on the phone, presumably calling Junjun, as she pulls Xiaozhou along on a desperate mission to find and save Zhong Ning.
Phew! What an episode! Xiaozhou's hitting rock bottom and trying to claw his way back up, while Hu Manli is juggling her friend's crisis and now a potential suicide intervention. Can't wait to see what happens next!
