Episode Summary
Fu Yudong and Zhang Ran both struggle with their new lives in Canada after career failures and relationship scams. They meet as neighbors, bond over a lockout incident, and start a romance after Fu surprises Zhang Ran with a birthday cake.
Spoiler Alert
Episode 2 Recap
The PhD on the Construction Site
We jump back to 2011. Fu Yudong just got his PhD. He feels good about his future. He expects a high-paying career. Reality hits him hard though. His spoken English is terrible. No company wants to hire him. He needs to eat. He ends up joining a renovation crew to make ends meet.
The work is rough. The crew is mostly Chinese. They welcome him without judgment. They treat him like family. But Fu Yudong still feels the sting of failure. He eats dinner alone one night while locals party outside. A friend calls him. Fu’s dad is back home asking about him. The friend is covering for him. He doesn't have the heart to tell Fu's dad that his PhD son is doing manual labor. This puts Fu in a terrible mood. The noise outside just makes it worse.
New Guy on the Crew
Life on the construction site is hard but friendly. The guys joke around. The boss brings in a new worker named Duan Zhihao. The veteran workers get suspicious immediately. They think the boss sent Duan to spy on them. Fu Yudong disagrees. He thinks Duan looks decent.
The other guys freeze Duan out. Fu Yudong does the opposite. He welcomes the new guy. They start talking. Duan finds out Fu is a PhD graduate. Duan opens up about his own past. He is from Taiwan. He is actually a film director. He used to make art films. Art films don't make money. He went broke. He came to Canada because his kid lives there.
Zhang Ran’s Bad Romance
We jump forward to 2013. Fu Yudong is heading out. He sees a new neighbor moving in. It is Zhang Ran. This is the first time they see each other.
The show takes us back to 2011 to explain her side. Zhang Ran was a reporter. She interviewed a guy named Pierce. Pierce chased her hard. He asked her to dinner and confessed his love. She said no at first. He kept pushing. She eventually gave in. She quit her job and followed him to Canada.
They lived together for two years. Then 2013 hits. The truth comes out. Pierce is a fraud. He owes money all over town. He lied about his assets. He even spent all of Zhang Ran’s savings. She dumps him immediately.
The Hallway Encounter
Fu Yudong comes home late from work one night. The neighbors are throwing another loud party. He ignores them and goes inside to eat noodles alone. Zhang Ran has had enough though. She storms out. She yells at the party crowd and chases them off. The other neighbors thank her.
She turns to go back inside. She realizes she forgot her keys. The door is locked. The stress of the breakup and the move crashes down on her. She starts crying in the hallway. Fu Yudong hears this. He goes out to help. He invites her into his place to wait. They start talking. The vibe shifts from awkward to friendly.
The Birthday Cake
Zhang Ran walks home with Fu Yudong the next night. They part ways at their doors. Fu suddenly wishes her a happy birthday. She is surprised he knew. She goes into her apartment. The silence hits her. She keeps checking the door. She hopes he might do something more. Nothing happens for a while. She feels disappointed.
She lies in bed feeling lonely. Then she hears a knock. She opens the door. Fu Yudong is standing there with a cake. He prepared it for her earlier. They sit down to eat. She finds out he is single. She doesn't waste any time. She confesses her feelings right then and there.
