Episode Summary
The episode begins with the Sun family moving in across from the Liu family, creating tension between the children. Dai Jing, stressed from work, gets into a major fight with Liu Xiangshang, who suggests divorce. This misunderstanding leads Dai Jing to rush home to fight for custody, only to walk into a surprise birthday party organized by her family. After an emotional reconciliation where Liu Xiangshang offers his full support, Dai Jing decides to accept a demotion at work to reduce her stress. In a parallel storyline, Tang Xiaowei decides to quit live streaming to open a salon, with Ma Yingjie's support.
Spoiler Alert
Growing Together S2, E2: The Birthday Meltdown
Here we go. This episode was a lot. We got new neighbors, a massive fight, and a pretty sweet birthday surprise. Let's get into it.
New Neighbors, New Problems
The episode kicks off with chaos in two different households. Tang Xiaowei gets home to find her place is a wreck. Ma Yingjie, of course, hasn't cleaned a thing. He's just playing with his models. Some things never change.
Over at the Liu family's place, Dai Jing comes home from a terrible day at work. She immediately starts stress-cleaning and finds fault with everyone and everything. The kids, Liu Guoning and Liu Guobao, are already miserable for another reason. The Sun siblings, Jiayu and Jiaxin, just moved in right across the hall. They are not thrilled about this development.
Things get even more awkward when the Sun family's dad, Sun Wancheng, brings his kids over to say hello. To make matters worse for Liu Guoning, Sun Jiayu has a mission from their teacher. She’s been told to check his homework. He really can't catch a break from his rival.
Sun Wancheng explains his family's deal. His wife is a geological surveyor, so she's away for work a lot. He's a warehouse keeper with a weird schedule. The kids are basically raising themselves, with the older sister looking after her younger brother. When Dai Jing hears how independent they are, you can just see the envy on her face.
The Breaking Point
Dinner at the Liu house is super tense. Liu Guobao is trying to be slick, secretly texting her brother on her smartwatch.
Dai Jing sees it and just loses it. She lays into the kids, which starts a huge fight with her husband, Liu Xiangshang. He has no idea why she's so angry. In the middle of the argument, he says the one word you probably shouldn't say. Divorce. That, obviously, makes everything a thousand times worse.
The next day, the house is dead silent. Liu Xiangshang doesn't call or text Dai Jing. He does ask Tang Xiaowei to talk to her, though. But something Tang Xiaowei says makes Dai Jing completely panic. She gets it in her head that she's going to lose custody and her kids will end up with a mean stepmom.
So, she bolts home, ready to demand a divorce and fight for her kids.
The Birthday Surprise
Dai Jing storms into the apartment ready for war, but she walks into a surprise birthday party. Her whole family is there. The kids even used their allowance money to buy her a massage cushion she’d been wanting but felt was too expensive.
She just completely breaks down and runs into the bedroom to cry. Liu Xiangshang follows her, and she finally tells him everything that's been going on at work. He gets it. He tells her his own job is going well now and he can support them. He says she should do whatever she needs to do, whether that's finding a new job or just taking a break. Hearing his support, Dai Jing is incredibly moved. The family makes up and finally celebrates her birthday.
Career Moves and Kid Politics
After all that drama, a few people decide to make some big changes. Tang Xiaowei decides she's done with live streaming.She's going to open a nail and eyelash salon. Ma Yingjie, whose own business failed, is totally on board and offers to become a stay-at-home husband.
Dai Jing also makes a move. She goes to her boss, Manager Qin, and agrees to the demotion and pay cut. Qin is surprised but tells Dai Jing she's making a smart choice. Then she drops a little bomb of her own. She's planning to start her own company soon and tells Dai Jing there will be a place for her when she's ready.
Meanwhile, the kids have their own drama. Sun Jiaxin wants to get into the "anti-parent" group chat, but he knows the group's leader, Liu Guobao, won't let him in. His sister, Sun Jiayu, gives him some advice. He asks two other kids, Feihu and Ma Ziheng, to talk to Liu Guobao for him. Ma Ziheng agrees to help. Sun Jiaxin is pumped that his sister's plan is working.
