Episode Summary
Li Jinyu's secrecy surrounding his investigation into the Hanhai Group causes a major rift with Ye Meng, leading her to postpone their wedding. After a heated confrontation, Li Jinyu reclaims his rightful shares in Hanhai Group from Li Lingbai. Meanwhile, Ye Meng discovers that Li Jinyu was a key witness in a past incident. To find answers, she agrees to rejoin her company to get closer to the investigation, setting the stage for a tense reunion where she and Li Jinyu must act as strangers.
Spoiler Alert
Deep Affection Eyes Episode 15: Secrets, Lies, and a Point of No Return
The growing distance between Ye Meng and Li Jinyu reaches a critical point as his secrets push her to reconsider their entire relationship. When Cheng Kairan and Li Jinyu pick up Fang Ya'en's son, Chen Jiayu, from school, the boy is perceptively quiet, already aware of the conflict between his parents. This somber mood mirrors the troubles brewing between Li Jinyu and Ye Meng. Cheng Kairan's attempt to mend fences by sending a playful message to Ye Meng from Li Jinyu's phone backfires, earning only a confused question mark in response.
Meanwhile, Ye Meng is with a distraught Fang Ya'en, and the two friends reflect on the overwhelming uncertainties of marriage. The tension is palpable later when Li Jinyu and Ye Meng go home together. She is still angry about the things he is hiding, but Li Jinyu feels he cannot tell her the truth. He knows the Hanhai Group is a dangerous organization and believes he must investigate it from the inside to protect her from being drawn into its murky affairs.
Their personal conflicts derail family plans when their grandmothers, Grandma Ye and Grandma Dou, excitedly shop for traditional wedding jewelry. When they call the couple for input, Ye Meng makes an excuse and later tells Li Jinyu she wants to postpone the wedding. When he asks if she regrets their marriage registration, her silence is a clear answer.
Upset, Ye Meng goes to see Fang Ya'en, only to find Fang Ya'en's ex-husband, Chen Jian, plastering posters outside her home that accuse her of having an affair with Cheng Kairan. Furious on her friend's behalf, Ye Meng joins Fang Ya'en for revenge. They storm into a nightclub where Chen Jian is meeting a client and pour a bucket of red paint over him, publicly shaming him for domestic violence and failing to pay child support. The stunt works; the client cancels their cooperation, leaving Chen Jian defeated.
Later, while drinking, Ye Meng confides in Fang Ya'en that she regrets rushing into marriage, feeling that Li Jinyu has become a total stranger. At the same time, Li Jinyu unburdens himself to Cheng Kairan, deciding to take time off to resolve his issues with Ye Meng.
That night, Li Jinyu waits for a drunk Ye Meng to return home. She confronts him, exhausted by his silence and secrets, and declares that a relationship built on deception cannot survive. As she pulls away, Li Jinyu is tormented by his past, recalling a period of severe depression when he was convinced to sign over his Hanhai Group shares to Li Lingbai. Armed with new surveillance footage exposing a secret between Li Lingbai and Wang Xingsheng, Li Jinyu confronts Li Lingbai and successfully negotiates the return of his 15% stake in the company.
The next morning, the plot thickens when Tai Mingxiao informs Ye Meng that an eyewitness in a past case—who had suddenly recanted their testimony about a license plate number—was none other than Li Jinyu. Just as she processes this bombshell, she sees Li Jinyu leaving with a suitcase. She follows him to Jiangbei and watches him enter the Hanhai Group headquarters.At this pivotal moment, Gou Kai contacts her, suggesting that the only way to uncover the truth is to get close to Li Lingbai by rejoining her old company. Determined, Ye Meng agrees.
The episode culminates in a tense business meeting where Gou Kai brings Ye Meng to Hanhai Group to sign a project. There, she sees Li Jinyu standing right behind Li Lingbai, reintroduced as the company's "Little Mr. Li."They pretend not to know each other, but after the meeting, Li Jinyu attempts to speak with her, only to be met with a cold and distant demeanor.
