Episode Summary
In this episode, Yingtao and Jiang Qiaoxi both move to the provincial capital and end up as classmates in the same high-achieving school. While Yingtao tries to cut ties with their shared past, Jiang Qiaoxi makes subtle attempts to reconnect. Their unresolved history creates a tense and awkward dynamic between them as they navigate their new lives, friendships, and the pressures of their competitive school environment.
Spoiler Alert
"Our Generation" Episode 3
After studying relentlessly, Lin Yingtao successfully earns a spot at the prestigious Experimental Middle School in the provincial capital, prompting her entire family to relocate. While packing, an old piece of clothing resurfaces—a gift from Jiang Qiaoxi. It was his cousin's and held deep sentimental value for him. He had given it to Yingtao as a promise that he would return from the provincial capital, a place she feared was like a "man-eating beast" that consumed people who never came back. Seeing the clothing now, Yingtao feels it's a memory she no longer needs to hold onto and asks her parents to throw it away.
Coincidentally, Jiang Qiaoxi's family has also moved to the provincial capital, and they now live in the same employee housing complex, just as they did back in their old town of Qunshan. One evening, Yu Qiao and their friends take Yingtao to a bustling night market. She is amazed by how much more vibrant it is than Qunshan. However, her friends wander off to buy snacks without a word, and Yingtao panics when she finds herself alone. When they return, they notice her fear, though she denies it. In a playful gesture, they kneel and present the snacks to her. The group shares a laugh and runs home. On the way, they pass Jiang Qiaoxi's house. He sees her from his window, and for a moment, her steps falter. But not wanting to show any lingering attachment, she quickly speeds up to rejoin her friends.
When school starts, Yingtao is placed in the same class as her friends Yu Qiao and Cai Fangyuan. Qin Yeyun is in a different liberal arts class. By a twist of fate, Jiang Qiaoxi is also in Yingtao's class and is ranked as the top student. He is secretly thrilled to be in the same class as her.
At the new school, her friends suggest that Yingtao should go by the name "Lin Qile" to avoid any drama associated with Jiang Qiaoxi. During English class, the teacher asks Yingtao to practice a dialogue with a classmate. Jiang Qiaoxi volunteers. Yingtao asks him about his most unforgettable memory. He recounts a time when someone took him to a mountaintop to watch the sunset and gave his name a new, special meaning. Flustered by his pointed story, Yingtao pretends she can't understand his advanced English. The teacher reassures her, noting that the sentence structures he used were beyond their current curriculum. Later, another classmate, Cen Xiaoman, asks Jiang Qiaoxi who the person in his story was, but he refuses to answer.
During a break, Jiang Qiaoxi intentionally approaches Yingtao at the water dispenser. Claiming he forgot his water card, he asks her to fetch water for him, but she pointedly ignores him. The moment is witnessed by several other students, and word of the encounter quickly spreads to Cen Xiaoman.
