Notable Actors/Actresses
Bu Guan Jin: Jiang Xiao Guo
Guan Xiao Tong: Liang Shuang
Li Geng Xi: Luo Yan
Dong Si Yi: Duan Jia Bao
Jin Shi Jia: Zhou Xun
Wang An Yu: Duan Zhen Yu
Director
Chinese Title
二十不惑Twenty Not Confused
Network: MangoTV
Recap Grade: A
First Impression: 4.5/5
First Impression: 4.5/5
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Mini Recaps
[Ep21*] This episode's theme: Spring is here albeit a bit late.
Xiao Guo complains to Duan Zhen Yu that it's still the bitter winter. Zhou Xun never treated her like his team. Xiao Guo is just like Da Bao in using Duan Zhen Yu as her complaining target. There's a specific reason she's complaining to Duan Zhen Yu. She wants him to convince his teammates to complete a survey for her about a sports app that she's trying to get Zhou Xun to approve of. This upsets Duan Zhen Yu who thought she wanted to sincerely attend his competition to watch him. In the middle of their conversation he sneezes. She naturally reaches over to touch his forehead to check if he's sick. He freezes at her touch. She then touches his cheek and notes how red he's gotten. With just a slight touch from her, she soothes his mood instantly. She quickly offers to buy him congee.
Xiao Guo is off photocopying the surveys and completely misses his competition (again). He lost his individual match but overall, his team won. Xiao Guo was prepared to comfort him but he's actually happy. He's only ever won individual gold medals. This is his first time winning a team one. Xiao Guo adds her own credit to his team's win by saying she had secretly added cold medicine to his congee. Duan Zhen Yu's smile completely disappears. It's no-no for athletes to take cold medication prior to an athletic competition to avoid testing positive for doping. The medication scared me. Fortunately, for Duan Zhen Yu, Xiao Guo is a smart potato. She was very careful in selecting Duan Zhen Yu's medication. She was like five steps ahead; ultimately she decided to opt out of Western medication and go with Chinese ones instead. Duan Zhen Yu is touched. I am relieved she didn't ruin his competition. Phew.
Xiao Guo is still handing out the surveys but she doesn't give one to Duan Zhen Yu. She tells him he's already done it because she filled it out for him. Duan Zhen Yu looks at his completed survey to see every single detail about himself filled out. Even when she bought his cold medication, she was able to tell the pharmacist his exact height, weight, blood type, snoring habit, health condition etc. Just who does Xiao Guo like! Duan Zhen Yu is hit with another love bomb. With that, he promises to make sure his teammates fill out her survey accurately. Xiao Guo doubts him. Duan Zhen Yu assures her he has his personal charm to make his team complete the survey.
Liang Shuan's ex is making it difficult for her to sign on commercials. He's determined to make her fail at every corner because he thought the kid who appeared on her video is her child. He thinks she cheated on him when they were dating. Da Bao stands up for Liang Shuan that he's of no threat to them. She has a commercial that no one from his company can take from her. It's a family oriented commercial. Da Bao also comforts her by buying her the drink that they had lined up for multiple times but failed. Da Bao begged the people in the line if they could give their spots for them. Da Bao is Liang Shuan's spring. Liang Shuan is cheered up to have a true friend like her.
Shi Tou passes her interview. She's supposed to invite everyone for dinner but she postpones it because there's one person who has been patiently waiting for her this entire time. Lu Ran. He had confessed to her in the comment section of an anime they both like. If you're aware of how Chinese streaming sites work, comments are sort of like Viki and appear on the screen but when there's a lot of comments, it can take over the entire screen. So Lu Ran confesses by saturating the ending of the anime with his comments of love to her. It's cute. In response, Shi Tou invites him to a movie. He's deliberating on whether to hold her hand but Shi Tou is already on it. She holds his hand and asks him if he'll walk with her (be together with her). Of course he is.
Spring is finally here for Xiao Guo. After her presentation on the sports app (that's supported by her survey results), she has successfully entered Zhou Xun's team. He adds that she's still an intern though. He also thanks her for all the encouraging texts she had sent to him. There's another quirk to being on his team. She gets to use the executive fridge space. She's always last to put in her lunch so there's always no space for her. She's ecstatic to be on his team but remembers to be humble. She calls herself a mere potato compared to him. Thus, he calls her "Di Gua" (potato). Ha. I feel my heart wavering but nope I'm still loyal to Duan Zhen Yu.
Xiao Guo is celebrating with Duan Zhen Yu's team for the competition they won. She's outside taking a breather after celebrating three hours with them. He looks for her and she casually asks him how fencing even works. He sighs, but happily explains it to her. He uses chalk to draw the fencing field on the floor: I ignored everything but just know that there is a centre space and once a fencer crosses that line into the opponent's field, it is his turn to initiate the attack. In the middle of his lesson, his friends interrupt him and reveal that he promised to buy them this expensive thing if they completed the survey. Xiao Guo is surprised that he used money to get his team to help her. Duan Zhen Yu confidently tells her that graciousness is his charm, lol. I guess it can be viewed that way. Just how rich is his family anyways? He tells her she's worth his money. She laughs and jokes if he likes her. He replies without hesitation, "Yes, you guessed right." She laughs out loud again thinking he's joking but nope, he's dead serious.
[Ep22] Shi Tou is so girly, it scares Da Bao and Xiao Guo especially when she gracefully lifts her hand to permit Xiao Guo to touch her, heh. Off topic, why is this episode not starting from Duan Zhen Yu's confession!! Shi Tou doesn't tell her besties but Liang Shuan is able to tell just by looking at her changing lip colours that she's dating.
Xiao Guo earns a compliment from Zhou Xun at work. Xiao Guo is no longer satisfied with just mere compliments; she cutely asks him to show it with action (i.e. treat her) or with money. Zhou Xun gives her his pen. Heh. Wendy and Xiao Guo have lunch together and she asks her if she would be interested in Zhou Xun. Nope. Wendy then asks her if she has someone she likes. We get Duan Zhen Yu's confession scene flashback. He confessed to her but she refused him on the spot saying she doesn't like him. Oof, liking him never crossed her mind. Xiao Guo doesn't like anyone. She likes money. I should have known.
Duan Zhen Yu waits for Xiao Guo at her dorm the whole night. She doesn't let him see her though. Aw. The next morning, Xiao Guo tells Da Bao her brother confessed to her. Da Bao reveals that it's the first time he's confessed. That night, Duan Zhen Yu successfully gets her to speak to him. On the vending machine at her dorm, he stuck a sign that says there's a promotion of buy one get one if they scan the QR code. Xiao Guo, who's tempted by sales like these, immediately scans the code only to be scammed. Love it how Duan Zhen Yu knows her so well. She only got one drink out of the vending machine. Duan Zhen Yu shows up behind her, takes the ad, and hands her the other coke. He tells her that he's over the rejection. Look at him pretending to be cool about it. I'm pouting for him. Xiao Guo is surprised but relieved they can be friends again. He's here to ask her for her notes to help his studies. At his dorm, his friend reveals he knows he was rejected. Duan Zhen Yu confidently tells his friend that if she were to reconsider him, it'll be his turn to reconsider her. But when Xiao Guo asks him for dinner, he quickly accepts it. Hehe. He's definitely related to Da Bao. Both so cute and lovable.
Liang Shuan finds her kiddo. He's Xiao Juan. She needs the kiddo in order to film the commercial . His brother, Zhao You Xiu, is a shameless bum. Liang Shuan takes advantage of this and seduces him with money. However, he's quite astute with money and won't easily sign the contract unless they raise the salary. But Liang Shuan will have her way.
Zhou Xun is pretty petty. His friend endlessly teases him that he's got zero votes on who's the most handsome guy in the company. He indirectly hints to Xiao Guo that he wants her to vote for him but that completely goes over her head. It was also a little too ambiguous for the normal-minded. Therefore, late at night, he calls her all the way back to the company to directly order her to vote for him. Ha. Xiao Guo was like a deer caught in the headlight having no idea what she did wrong. For each vote she gets for him, he will give her his golden advice on how to succeed. Xiao Guo, without thinking, sighs that it's too hard (haha) but she accepts the task – or is forced to accept the impossible task.
By the end of the episode, it's Lu Ran's time to meet Shi Tou's friends.
[Ep23] Xiao Guo takes the lead to ask Lu Ran the first question, "What do you like about Shi Tou?" Because she's pretty, he tells them. Liang Shuan coldly makes him reconsider his answer. Because if we're talking about pretty, there's no one prettier than Liang Shuan – at least that's Liang Shuan's train of thought. He's nervous as he repeats that Shi Tou is pretty. He's also quick to pick food for Shi Tou. Xiong Chi feels threatened and starts picking food for Da Bao. Duan Zhen Yu is invited to this dinner as well and congratulates Lu Ran while eyeing Xiao Guo. Da Bao is very confused about their relationship but Duan Zhen Yu nods to his sister, signalling to her that he's got it all under control.
When the dinner's over, the girls are outside waiting for the guys to wrap up the leftovers. The girls have their conversation and the guys have theirs. Xiong Chi is praising Lu Ran who reveals he researched about how to impress girlfriend's friends prior to this meeting. Duan Zhen Yu applauds him. He's not learning from good examples though because the three girls don't have a lot of compliments for Lu Ran. Xiao Guo notices that when he dropped his chopsticks, it was Shi Tou who gave her clean ones to him, picked his dirty ones up from the floor, and cleaned them. Although he kept picking food for her, Da Bao notices that he doesn't even know what Shi Tou likes to eat. Although he prepared cash in advance to pay for the bill, Liang Shuan notices his poor taste in wallet. Despite everything they say though, they can't beat what Shi Tou has to say. No matter what, she likes him. I love how the men and women have their separate conversations. I can totally see this happening in real life. The things that the girls picked on, I would pick on too. Hahaha. Meanwhile the guys think Lu Ran passed with flying colours.
Xiao Guo has successfully found five more votes for Zhou Xun. She had to bribe them and the voters are janitor ladies, haha. Shouldn't that hurt Zhou Xun's pride more? As promised, Zhou Xun gives her five pieces of advice. Xiao Guo reminds him it should be six because she also voted for him. Zhou Xun gives her one last piece of advice: Don't be too greedy. Ha.
Xiao Guo and Zhou Xun are looking into another investment. It's a hotel that targets customers in their early 20's. Xiao Guo rubs it in to Zhou Xun that she's their perfect customer (since he's in his 30's). She's all giddy until she realizes the cheapest room is far from her budget. The hotel staff clarifies that it's for the young and rich. Zhou Xun doesn't miss a beat to rub it in back to her that she's not the hotel's targeted customer either. That's when Xiao Guo realizes she has the perfect person to help them: Duan Zhen Yu. He shows up in an instant and reviews the hotel. He's quite the expert at knowing how to live lavishly. She lies on the bed and notes how soft it is. Duan Zhen Yu does the same and isn't as impressed. I love the cute way Duan Zhen Yu got up from the bed. He was pulling an invisible rope to get up when Xiao Guo wouldn't help him up. Zhou Xun doesn't seem to like him. He especially didn't like hearing that Duan Zhen Yu confessed to her. Duan Zhen Yu is so cool about her rejection that he can casually just tell anyone about it.
In the middle of lunch, Xiao Guo realizes she has her period. It seeped through her skirt. Zhou Xun who's sitting beside her notices her discomfort and smartly drapes his jacket over her pretending she's cold. Duan Zhen Yu is obliviously sitting in front of her and doesn't have the least bit of aptitude that his girl is being stolen. Xiao Guo excuses herself to the washroom and seems to have fallen for Zhou Xun. However, she also receives a text from him telling her he told Rebecca to bring her pants. Rebecca is the new manager who seems to be Zhou Xun's ex.
Liang Shuan wins over Zhao You Xiu. She becomes his tenant and he has no other choice but to sign the contract at a discounted price. Liang Shuan wants Da Bao to lie to the other girls about Xiao Juan not actually being her brother. Da Bao bets on her weight that they won't tell anyone. So if Da Bao loses, she loses weight. There's no loss here, is there? Xiao Guo and Shi Tou tease Liang Shuan that they're angry she judged their loyalty. Liang Shuan is relieved her friends are still her friends.
Zhao You Xiu becomes the photographer and my gosh this guy is terrible. No wonder no one hires him. Liang Shuan had one request of him, to take pictures of the watch, this guy takes long shots to capture the full length of the trees behind her. Not knowing the focus of a photoshoot is unprofessional. Liang Shuan is angry at him. Zhao You Xiu has the audacity to be angrier at her for not knowing how to admire his awful pictures. He walks off but Xiao Juan wants to stay. Thus, Liang Shuan and Da Bao retake the pictures. Unfortunately, they lost Xiao Jun.
[Ep24] Theme: Fireworks and kisses
Liang Shuan finds Xiao Juan but loses her camera with the SD card. All her pictures are gone. Zhao You Xiu saves the day. With a few snaps on his phone, it seems he has captured the perfect shot for the watch commercial.
Xiong Zhi feels responsible for losing both the kid and the SD card. Da Bao comforts him and apologizes to him for not accompanying him today when he purposely came to help her. Fireworks cover the sky. Xiong Zhi lovingly stares at Da Bao and gives her kisses.
Lu Ran and Shi Tou make up. They watch the fireworks together. Shi Tou falls asleep in the taxi. Lu Ran gives her head a kiss as he holds her. It’s the same loving scene for Da Bao who’s sleeping on Xiong Zhi’s shoulder. Liang Shuan doesn’t have a boyfriend but Zhao You Xiu is lovingly staring at her too as he snaps more pictures of her sleeping beauty.
Xiao Guo watches the fireworks too. There’s Zhou Xun and Duan Zhen Yu too. Duan Zhen Yu gives her his jacket thinking she’s still cold. Zhou Xun sees it but at his side is Rebecca. Xiao Guo and Duan Zhen Yu return home together. He’s staring at his phone because he secretly took a picture of her. Meanwhile Xiao Guo is wide awake. Her mind is full of someone else: Zhou Xun.
Next day all the girls are talking about kisses. Xiong Zhi thought he didn’t kiss well and promised in front of all the girls he would practice. The girls squeal. Duan Zhen Yu can’t handle anymore of this talk and reminds them they have a plane to catch. It’s Chinese New Year. Today’s the last day before they all return home for the holidays.
On Xiao Guo’s way back home, she receives a phone call from Zhou Xun calling her to work. She smiles and says she’ll happily accept it but she’s already out of the city. Perfect for him, because he’s near her home anyways. Xiao Guo’s smile disappears. He says he’ll give her three times the salary. She quickly accepts (with regret). The business is successful and Xiao Guo invites Zhou Xun to her family for dinner. It’s the holidays, she doesn’t want him eating alone. He refuses but he asks her if there’s anything sweet. She perks up and says there is. With that, Zhou Xun is at her place. Mom offers him a strong drink and he passes out almost immediately. The next morning he wakes up in Xiao Guo’s room. He wants to ditch for lunch but Xiao Guo’s mom is way too friendly and makes him stay. She promises to cook him something yummy but he pukes at the sound of her dishes. He's a picky eater, eh.
Shi Tou is the only one not at her family's to celebrate Chinese New Years. Lu Ran invites her over to his place to celebrate. Thus, Shi Tou meets his parents.
Da Bao has such a loving family. Her parents dote and cherish her like there's no tomorrow. It's a very different story for Duan Zhen Yu. His parents treat like he's thin air. Da Bao gets all the good food. Duan Zhen Yu is alone in his room and the only joy he can find is viewing pictures of Xiao Guo. Da Bao comes in with good food and wishes that in their next life, she can give her life to his but that may mean he'll no longer be skinny, handsome, and smart. Duan Zhen Yu smirks and reconsiders that he might be better off with a little less love from his parents. That night he also learned that his mother personally cooked for him when she barely cooks. However, when he sees his parents only giving Da Bao pa resent, he sulks again. Da Bao quickly runs over and gives the present to him. Duan Zhen Yu is happy again. Although he barely gets the same love from his parents to his sister, he gets a lot of love from his sister.
Zhou Xun calls Xiao Guo at night. She thought he was in the airport but he's at her door. He's here to give her ice cream. It's a sweet and sour ice cream. He says too sugary is bad for her teeth but cold is good, Xiao Guo's mother comments on where he could have bought the ice cream when everything's closed during the holidays. Xiao Guo's heart is swelling with sweetness from the sweet and sour ice cream. She’s overcoming her emotional pains from her father because of Zhou Xun. Nooooooo.
Shi Tou's mom is in the hospital. She probably had a car crash while endlessly calling her daughter over the Lunar New Year's. Shi Tou still won't pick up her calls. The only resolution mom can think of is to break up with the married man. He doesn't want to though. Xiao Guo accidentally learns of this infidelity and she doesn't know what to do but she keeps it a secret for now. Xiao Guo's family also broke up because her father cheated.
Lu Ran had invited Shi Tou on an overnight trip. It was an innocent accident on his part but all the girls think he has ulterior motives. All the girls approve of it and prepare Shi Tou for it. However, come the night, Shi Tou learns her mother is hospitalized. Afraid that Lu Ran will find out about her mother being a mistress, Shi Tou doesn't want Lu Ran to follow her. Poor Lu Ran thinks she's rejecting him.
[Ep27] Duan Zhen Yu misunderstands that his buddy got his girl (aka Xiao Guo). Xiao Guo gave the buddy movie tickets; she just doesn't want to return to the dorm to face Shi Tou. She hasn't figured out what to do with what she knows about her mother. Duan Zhen Yu dashes to his sister and admits he still likes Xiao Guo and needs her help. Da Bao reveals Xiao Guo doesn't have a crush on his buddy, but Zhou Xun. Duan Zhen Yu is relieved to hear that because he's confident that the greasy man has no game on him. Da Bao is astounded by her brother's narcissism.
Duan Zhen Yu picks up Xiao Guo from work. She still doesn't want to go back to dorm so he takes her to break a sweat on a basketball court. Coincidentally, Zhou Xun is there. The two men, recognizing the brewing rivalry, challenge each other to a one-on-one. It was a close game but Duan Zhen Yu won. Although he won the basketball match, it was a loss overall. Xiao Guo only has dreamy eyes for Zhou Xun. Aww, Wendy rooted for Duan Zhen Yu too.
Other problems in this episode: Xiong Chi feels neglected by Da Bao. His world practically revolves around her but her world has her family, her brother, and her work (Liang Shuan). He's always last on her list. Meanwhile Liang Shuan needs Xiao Juan for a photoshoot but Zhao You Xiu lies to her about his brother's whereabouts. When she wants him to photoshop his brother into the pictures, he rejects. He refuses to edit any of his pictures, that's his bottom line.
The biggest problem in this episode: Although Lu Ran and Shi Tou have made up, the married man's son accuses Shi Tou of seducing his father. This boy also knows Lu Ran. It's a huge misunderstanding but Shi Tou can't explain herself because that would mean exposing her mother. Xiao Guo appears at this moment and takes the blame that his father was visiting her.
[Ep28] Xiao Guo lies for Shi Tou that the kid's father visited her (Xiao Guo) because she's an employee of a company that her father works with. Xiao Guo comforts Shi Tou that she would do the same if she was in her shoes. Shi Tou is feeling a lot better these days now that she has Xiao Guo's understanding and especially because her mom tells her she broke up with the married man. But mom didn't completely break it off. Shi Tou is angry at her once more for lying and reveals to her mother that the son of her boyfriend thought she was his mistress. Maybe this will make mom cut off that man for good.
Xiao Guo is to return to work under Zhou Xun again. Before she leaves Rebecca's office, Rebecca gives Xiao Guo a laptop. In actuality, that laptop was a present from Zhou Xun. He had noticed her laptop was freezing during a meeting. Rebecca asked why he didn't give it to her himself. He smiles and replies that he doesn't want her turning arrogant. Liang Shuan had deduced that he didn't like her because of how calmly he had asked her to join her team again (as Xiao Guo had recounted) but now I'm not so sure.
Xiao Guo discovers that it was Zhou Xun who leaked the information of the cheating. Thus, making Xiao Guo the original source of the rumour. Feeling guilty at herself and disappointed at Zhou Xun, she texts Rebecca saying she wants to stay in her team (rather than return to Zhou Xun's).
Shi Tou tells Lu Ran her mother is the mistress. She asks him whether he'll still accept her. He hesitates on answering. Understanding what that means, Shi Tou leaves.
[Ep29] This episode's theme is Leaving.
There's a terrible mood in the dorm. Shi Tou learns that Xiao Guo was the one who exposed the married man cheating. She's angry at her because that's equal to exposing her mother. It's only a matter of time her mother will be discovered in the media. Meanwhile Liang Shuan experiences an acne explosion. She's upset also because Zhao You Xiu disappeared and someone maliciously edited her pictures. She ends up having a fight with Da Bao on her inadequacy as her manager.
Xiao Guo confronts Zhou Xun for going against the principles he valued: never using underhanded tactics. Zhou Xun doesn't explain himself to her. Rebecca knows what he's done for Xiao Guo. His team had investigated the married man. He had pictures of Shi Tou's mother and group photos of Shi Tou's friends but he shredded everything related to Xiao Guo and her friends. He only submitted information on the married man cheating to the media outlet. If he didn't volunteer himself to do this, all the information about Shi Tou's mother would have been released. Rebecca knows he's done a lot for Xiao Guo. She also knows the pen that he had randomly given to Xiao Guo had a deep meaning to him. That was the pen he bought for himself when he signed his very first contract. It has never left him and now he gave it to Xiao Guo.
Xiao Guo tries to be Shi Tou's cupid. They make up but Lu Ran's mother is against the relationship because of Shi Tou's mother. Lu Ran doesn't tell Shi Tou this and asks her to leave with him to Beijing. Shi Tou agrees.
Shi Tou forgives Xiao Guo after she learns that she went against Zhou Xun for her. However, there's still tension between Da Bao and Liang Shuan. After a case of low blood sugar, Xiao Guo gave Liang Shuan some of her fruit tea. Liang Shuan eyes glitter at the taste of sweetness. Liang Shuan had abstained from things like bubble tea and chips. Now that her face has exploded, her appetite explodes as well. She drowns herself in snacks. Xiao Guo is very worried.
Da Bao is sending Duan Zhen Yu to training. He's still sulking about Xiao Guo. He's been purposely keeping his distance from her, even resorting to hiding from her when he sees her. For the past three days, he hasn't contacted her first (and she hasn't contacted him). It's only been three days? Ha. He'd purposely update his wall posts with questions like 'who wants to have free food with me', 'who wants a free movie ticket', or 'I'm sick'. But there's zero response from Xiao Guo. He even purposely uses the work "free" to tempt her. He sighs that he really wants to block her so he doesn't have to care about her (non)reaction. That's when he gets a call from Xiao Guo. He jumps up in joy. But she's looking for Da Bao through him. Ha. Da Bao tells him Xiao Guo doesn't like little brother types. She likes uncles. Duan Zhen Yu wants to run to Xiao Guo to tell her he's not a little brother at all; he's more uncle than an uncle. Haha.
[Ep30] Da Bao doesn't forgive Liang Shuan and now she's disappeared for an entire day. She went to a resort area and ended up meeting Zhao You Xiu. She spills all her problems to him. He comforts her and shows her all the messages Da Bao had sent him if he found Liang Shuan. All of a sudden, there's a meteor shower. Liang Shuan quickly makes a wish. Zhao You Xiu misses his chance to capture the sky. He does capture her making a wish. That night, she leaves to return to her dorm. The next day Liang Shuan and Da Bao make up. It's bright and sunny in the dorm again.
Xiao Guo works overtime and didn't know the elevators would shut down. She takes the stairs and bumps into Zhou Xun. As they walk down together she whines at how much better Rebecca is compared to him. She accidentally trips in the dark and Zhou Xun catches her before she falls. He's overly worried about her. It turns out he purposely walked her down the stairs and now he has to walk back up because he's not done with work. Aw. Although he's not my ship but it's still sweet of him.
Rebecca tells Xiao Guo everything that Zhou Xun had done for her (the laptop and the media outlet). Just when she thinks he cares about her, a karaoke mishap happens. She picked a song that was Zhou Xun and Rebecca's love song. Feeling conscious and heartbroken she leaves karaoke with a random excuse. On her way back to the dorm, she bumps into Duan Zhen Yu. He was waiting for her.
Duan Zhen Yu brought her food. They're both looking at the sky because there's supposed to be a meteor shower tonight too. She comments on how he knew about this restaurant. He tells her he saw it on her wall post from 2017. She blinks in surprise and before she can ask him why he would read such an old post he cuts her off and finishes her question for her. He's reading all her posts because he wants to know her more. He formally tells her he's planning to pursue her again. Xiao Guo has a voiceover: Even if we don't see a meteor shower, we may still have a shining star that's beside us all along.
This episode's theme was meteor showers. Do the "couples" who tried to watch the meteor shower end up together? I'm trying to find hints that the final CP will be Duan Zhen Yu and Xiao Guo.
[Ep31] Duan Zhen Yu tells Xiao Guo he can change for her. If she likes mature, he can grow a beard or something. So mature, lol. He asks her why she can improve herself to fill the gap between her and Zhou Xun but not the gap between her and him (Duan Zhen Yu). Xiao Guo can't reply him. Because she likes Zhou Xun and not Duan Zhen Yu.
At work, Xiao Guo indirectly learns Zhou Xun had purposely walked her down the stairs that night the elevators were down. She's hopeful once more. Does Duan Zhen Yu have no hope again?
Duan Zhen Yu tells his sister about Xiao Guo: how she rejected him twice, and how much he loves her that he would mimic her actions and remember her words, etc. Da Bao begins to wonder what love is. She tells his brother that when Xiao Guo goes to see him, she wouldn't even wash her face but tonight she's spending five to six hours dressing up to impress Zhou Xun at the formal company party. Poor Duan Zhen Yu. Da Bao also asks Shi Tou the difference between like and love. Da Bao seems lost. Poor Da Xiong.
Xiao Guo is pretty and cute in her dress but it doesn't fit the dress code. It turns off an important client her company wants to invest in. Zhou Xun gives her a harsh lecture. She admits she was wrong but she asks him if she's only an employee to him. He tells her, of course. I really don't think this is the right time to ask... Xiao Guo runs off. Rebecca confronts Zhou Xun that he knows Xiao Guo likes him and asks him what his response is. We don't hear the response but he does pick Xiao Guo up. If he doesn't pick her up, Xiao Guo would have to walk in the dark for who-knows-how-long in who-knows-where.
[Ep32] Xiao Guo heartrendingly cries to her friends Zhou Xun never liked her. Da Bao cutely suggests to consider her brother, ha. Xiao Guo wails that it's impossible. Sigh. Liang Shuan agrees, there's no way she can forget Zhou Xun like that. Xiao Guo wails some more.
Da Bao has concluded that she doesn't like Da Xiong. She sends him a breakup text but he doesn't see it because his WeChat is down. Without knowing she wants to end things with him, he's decided to stay in Shenzhen to advance his career for Da Bao. He made this announcement to all her friends. Shi Tou and Lu Ran stare at each other awkwardly. That's because she's dropping everything to leave with him. Well, that was before she got angry at him for going on a blind date with another girl. From this, Shi Tou learns his family is against his relationship with her.
Zhao You Xiu refuses a career opportunity to stay as Liang Shuan's photographer. At Da Xiong's party, they play truth and dare. Zhao You Xiu chooses truth. He looks towards Liang Shuan but she doesn't have a question for him. Thus, Da Xiong asks him whether he has someone he likes. He does. The bottle then points to Liang Shuan. She picks dare. He dares her to truthfully answer his question whether she has someone she likes. She does. It's herself. The bottle then points to Da Bao. She chooses truth. Zhao You Xiu asks her if she plans to marry Da Xiong after she graduates. She gulps down her beer, gathers her courage, and tells Da Xiong to break up. I like that the whole night Liang Shuan holds Da Bao's hand to give her courage. But still, poor Da Xiong. She asks him if they can still be friends. He tells her no.
Zhou Xun is too distracted thinking about Xiao Guo that he ends up being late for a meeting and loses an important client. Duan Zhen Yu is also wary of Xiao Guo's rejection that he doesn't show up for Da Xiong's dinner party. It's a good thing he didn't go, the entire party is a mess. Lu Ran and Shi Tou are about to break up. Da Bao and Da Xiong have broken up. Perhaps the only good thing is Liang Shuan and Zhao You Xiu who may get together. He for sure likes her.
Because of that mess of a party, there's no one to send Xiao Guo home. Da Bao calls up his brother to pick Xiao Guo up. Xiao Guo is a drunk mess. She drunkenly calls Zhou Xun (who's not picking up at all) in front of Duan Zhen Yu. I'm sad for Duan Zhen Yu. The sadness on his face makes my heart ache.
[Ep33] Da Xiong is leaving Shenzhen. Zhou Xun has left Shenzhen too to find his important client. Xiao Guo feels bad and follows him on the trip. She arrives at a motel that's owned by Zhou Xun's father and casually takes his room because no other room is available. So these two have met each other's parents and slept in each other's rooms. She laughs out loud at the picture of the young him and that's when he walks in. He's giving her new bed sheets. After he leaves, she starts dancing in joy. Zhou Xun sees her dancing cutely and smiles. That night, dad and Zhou Xun are awkward in the same room. Dad asks if hates it when people touch his stuff. He does but Zhou Xun clarifies she's not any other person. Dad looks at him with hope. Zhou Xun explains that she's only his employee. Meanwhile Xiao Guo is in his room, rolling around in his bed of happiness.
Duan Zhen Yu is given the rare and precious chance to train in Germany. He's hesitant about it because he'll have to leave for a year. He's worried that a lot can change in a year. He's scared of losing Xiao Guo for good.
Zhao You Xiu's parents are in town. They want to see his girlfriend which he lies that it's the girl he's working with. Now he needs either Liang Shuan or Da Bao to cooperate by making up another lie that his parents only agreed for Xiao Juan to work with them because one of them is his girlfriend.
[Ep34] Xiao Guo tries to comfort Zhou Xun but he doesn't need it. He counters her that she hasn't gotten smarter one bit. So cute how she pouts to herself that she had one more line to comfort him after he left her. She once again thinks he's committing suicide on the beach. He isn't. He's waiting for the perfect chance to invest. She perks up again and wants to be on his team. He asks her if she's sure because if the project fails she might lose her job. She's not sure but she knows she won't regret it. He smiles. Later that evening, Zhou Xun's dad tells her that his son never bought any girl home. She’s the first one.
Zhao You Xiu needs either Liang Shuan or Da Bao to show up as his girlfriend. Neither of them wanted to go but both girls showed up. Da Bao showed up first so his parents think she's his girlfriend. That night, Da Bao tells Liang Shuan that she likes Zhao You Xiu. HUH. Liang Shuan puts aside her own growing feelings for him and decides to help Da Bao.
Da Bao tells Duan Zhen Yu she likes Zhao You Xiu. Duan Zhen Yu is flabbergasted at how fast her feelings changed (when he's still heartbroken about Xiao Guo). He calls his sister "garbage", ha. He learns that Xiao Guo had traveled to a far city to visit Zhou Xun. Duan Zhen Yu does the same for Xiao Guo. Duan Zhen Yu shows up at the resort area. He quickly hides when he hears Zhou Xun ask Xiao Guo to go for a walk (to help her digest). He also learns that she's sleeping in Zhou Xun's room. That night he's alone at the beach watching the waves. He reminisces about the second confession where she told him she can't fill in the gap between them because he's not Zhou Xun. Duan Zhen Yu had told her he'll fill in the gap between them. However, it all seems futile now.
Lu Ran and Shu Tou make up. She takes him to see her father. However, he lied about his mother approving their relationship. Thus, Shi Tou asks for a breakup. This one sounds real. Lu Ran doesn't know how to fix problems at all. He just keeps running away from them. Liang Shuan takes care of a sick Shi Tou at night.
[Ep35] The contract is successful. Zhou Xun and Xiao Guo return to Shenzhen together. As they're leaving, Xiao Guo recognizes Duan Zhen Yu's car. He tries to lie that he's on a trip but it's obvious he slept in the car alone. He confesses that he was worried about her being with a stranger in a strange place. Zhou Xun bossily drives up and asks Xian Guo if she's leaving with Duan Zhen Yu or with him. Duan Zhen Yu quickly answers for her that she's going to be leaving with him (Zhou Xun). After all these episodes I still had hope for Duan Zhen Yu but I'm feeling the last flicker of my hope blow out.
Xiao Guo is singing her love song again. But that happy bubble pauses. The company is facing another crisis.
[Ep36] Xiao Guo helps Zhou Xun with a task. He asks her out for dinner with an emoji. She answers back happily with a cute emoji. She is secretly helping him but others think she's the company spy. Despite being accused, she still goes out of her way to comfort Zhou Xun. She assures him that she knows she's innocent and therefore, she doesn't care what others say. He smirks. She raises her hand for a high five and he replies with a high five. I hope the mole is that male intern. I did not like him from the beginning. Such a snake and so gossipy.
Da Bao asks Liang Shuan if she likes Zhao You Xiu too. Liang Shuan denies it. The lie with Xiao Juan as her little brother also snowballs. Liang Shuan is bothered by all her lies.
There's an event Shi Tou's company is hosting. Her mother and the married man attend. Her mother wanted to hand over the married man's case to another firm to break it off with him completely. However, the media gets hold of their picture and bombards the two. The next day, everything is exposed. Shi Tou's mother quits her law firm. The married man's family also falls apart. The most innocent victim is his son. Shi Tou is also a victim. She returns to the dorm and all the girls hug her until she suffocates. The girls draw a picture of her as Nezha. They want her to continue to be confident of herself regardless of the rumours.
The two victims meet up. The boy wants to leave his family because his mother also lied to him. Shi Tou convinces him otherwise. She already tried that and it isn't effective at all. At the end of the day, your family will always be your family. You can't get rid of them.
[Ep37] Shi Tou quits her job. She wants to depend on herself (even though she said all that to the boy). Her and Lu Ran are also officially done. She's completely over him.
Zhou Xun invests his entire fortune into the company to overcome their crisis. With no home, Zhou Xun sleeps in the office. When he wakes up, someone had covered him with his suit. There's also a cake with an apple sticky note. It's from Xiao Guo. She's this nice to him but he ends up using her. Zhou Xun wants her to temporarily take the blame for the corporate espionage to regain the trust of their investors. He tells her he needs someone he trusts to take the blame. Feeling betrayed, Xiao Guo accuses him of never liking her or else he could never do that. Zhu Xun counters her, "Who says I don't like you?" Xiao Guo laughs it off. He stands up to reiterate, "I like you". Xiao Guo glares at him. If that's how he likes someone, she doesn't need it. He clarifies that romance is only ten percent of his life. He can't sacrifice his project for love. Emotionless, Xiao Guo understands. She signs the paper admitting she's the spy and leaves without another word. Isn't he also ruining her career?
Da Bao plans to confess her feelings to Zhao You Xiu but he’s already telling her his feelings for Liang Shuan. It gets majorly awkward when the waitress gives him a present that Da Bao had planned beforehand. Now he knows she likes him.
Da Bao receives a call from Duan Zhen Yu. He wants her to ask Xiao Guo to attend his match. He promises Da Bao he won't pursue Xiao Guo, he just wants her to witness his success (because she saw him start at rock bottom). Duan Zhen Yu keeps furrowing his eyebrows. I miss my carefree Duan Zhen Yu. While Duan Zhen Yu is still hesitating on whether to accept the training in Germany, he sees Xiao Guo carrying a box, the signature "I've been fired" look. He gets off his bus and runs toward her. She admits she lost. Without a word, he runs back onto the bus. She turns away thinking he's gone but he went to get his bag. He got off the bus for her.
[Ep38] Xiao Guo's friends help her deduce that Zhou Xun loves himself more. Rebecca tries to comfort her. She invites her back to Pu Lin. She also informs Xiao Guo that Wendy is the mole. Wut.
To be honest, there's no way Xiao Guo would have accepted this confession anyways, at least not right after being betrayed by Zhou Xun. That wouldn't be fair to Duan Zhen Yu at all.
Other news: Liang Shuan's ex shows up and still holds a grudge on Liang Shuan. Xiao Meanwhile Juan doesn't want to lie that he's Liang Shuan's brother anymore. Shi Tou and her mother make up.
[Ep39] Zhou Xun's investment failed. Xiao Guo comforts him. She tells him why she likes him. His flaws and his charms combined creates the perfect person she loves. He too starts talking about her qualities and flaws, but mostly flaws. He then asks her if she's still willing to be with him because right now he has nothing. He stretches his hand for her to take. Does she take it?
Zhou Xun's investment did not fail. His company is reborn with a timely change. We get a flashback to last night when he asked her out. She takes his hand to release it. Yay!!! I mean, aw. She tells him that she would have accepted him if he never told her that romance was only 10% of his life. She's not dumb and sadistic enough to suffer for him.
Liang Shuan decides to tell the truth that Xiao Juan isn't her brother to the media. Her and Da Bao also make up. Da Bao tells her that if she was in Liang Shaun's position, she would have done the same and supported her with Zhao You Xiu. Meanwhile Zhao You Xiu takes on a new project now that this team of three is coming to an end. These girls....none of them have a career or a love life and this is the second last episode. What am I watching!!
None of the girls can sleep that night. They talk about their new career paths as graduation is nearing. Da Bao wants to volunteer, Liang Shuan is applying to new jobs, Shi Tou has offers waiting for her and Xiao Guo is undecided. But that night she made a decision. She, who has slept with each of the two other girls, has never slept with Liang Shuan. She's made a decision to sleep there tonight. The rest of the girls run to Liang Shuan as well.
[Ep40] This is the episode Nothing but Thirty makes their cameo in. It's the last class of the year. The girls are almost graduating. Duan Zhen Yu calls up his sister to ask her why she's suddenly volunteering. He asks her if she's still heartbroken. She is. Such a sweet brother to care about her sister.
Zhou Xun leaves for Shanghai. Now that the company is stable, he's moving on to his next challenge. Xiao Guo learns that he won't be coming back for a long time but despite that she doesn't send him off. At least she sent Duan Zhen Yu off. Yes, I'm bitter about Duan Zhen Yu. Zhou Xun was waiting for her but he knows she's right about him. She's still young though and perhaps he might still have a chance, Zhou Xun thinks.
The next morning Liang Shuang and Zhao You Xiu send off Da Bao. She hopes that when she returns, she'll hear good news about them. Zhao You Xiu also has to leave tomorrow. Liang Shuan says she won't send him off. She doesn't want to send her friend today and her "boyfriend" tomorrow. She holds out her hand and he happily takes it with a silly grin.
Duan Zhen Yu video calls Xiao Guo to celebrate her graduation. Xiao Guo was trying to hide her mom from the camera, but mom is too curious and wants to take a look at the handsome Duan Zhen Yu. Duan Zhen Yu quickly wipes his lips and stops eating. He's nervous but happy to see her mom. Xiao Guo quickly hangs up. Mom wonders who Duan Zhen Yu is and wonders what happened to Zhou Xun. I. Need. An. Epilogue.
Remarks
[Behind the Scenes]
- I swear the director has so much fun with the four girls. It seems like Xiao Guo is the sanest one out of the four girls. Shi Tou and Da Bao are the ones who laugh uncontrollably all the time. When Liang Shuan gets in there, the laughter becomes way too contagious.
- I forgot to keep links to the videos but there was a canteen scene between Xiao Guo and Duan Zhen Yu. They were doing something lovely but Xiao Guo stopped herself. She looks at the camera and says his fangirls might attack her. Duan Zhen Yu says he has none (he's still a very new actor at this point). He's so honest about this, I'm pouting for him. Xiao Guo assures him he will have. Wang An Yu, yooohooooo, do you see me - waves with both arms -
[Ending] Happy for the girls.
If not for the ending, it would have been so easy to rate this drama. We started the drama with Liang Shuan breaking up and now we're ending it with her having a boyfriend. The other girls started boyfriend-less and are still boyfriend-less. Not a lot has changed but everything has changed. They're still twenty and from being confused, they're clearer about their life more than ever before. From this stance, this drama deserves high praises for its coming of age story. The romance aspect definitely left me yearning for more though.
[Review] The twenties is the age where we enter the workforce, make new friends and long-lasting ones, find love and perhaps marry. It's the decade with the most possibilities and therefore the decade where we are the most confused. Twenty, Not Confused is the English translation of the Chinese title. This drama takes us on a journey with four girls in their graduating year from being confused to finding a goal in life. Shi Tou, a gamer, has no goals. She just wants to live her life leisurely. She's not fretting about finding a job. Da Bao, a rich and silly girl, a rich and cute girl, a rich and innocent girl, doesn't even know what it's like to ride a bike. She also has no aspirations. She’s just plain rich. Her only wish is to see her favourite idol up close. Xiao Guo, the shortest of all the girls with the biggest ambitions of them all, wants to enter the best company and she has the skills for it. Liang Shuan completes the quartet. Her ambitiousness can rival that of Xiao Guo's as she too works relentlessly to achieve her dream. Each of the four girls become friends who constantly fight but easily make up.
Just what is wrong with Da Xiong for Da Bao to not like him? I guess nice guys just don't make the cut??? I thought this pair was super cute and matched so well. I was so surprised she wanted to break up with him and even more surprised when she said she likes Zhao You Xiu. Zhao You Xiu is the least attractive guy for me in this drama.
I'm glad Shi Tou didn't choose Lu Ran in the end. I'm still not over the fact that she picked up his fallen chopsticks and gave her clean ones to him while she used his dirty ones. He's not a kid. There was also a scene of his mother peeling him fruits and literally feeding him. I was shaking my head.
I need an epilogue of Xiao Guo / Zhou Xun / Duan Zhen Yu! I saw an interview clip where Xiao Guo sort of revealed that her character never got to date (it's so true, all of them got to date except her). I was probably in the mid-twenty episodes by then but I was still hopeful that in the end she'd choose Duan Zhen Yu. Now that the end is here, I'm bitter. But, but, buuuut! My heart is telling me that Xiao Guo will choose Duan Zhen Yu because he's relentless. Don’t tell me otherwise! This drama had me nervous until the end. Honestly, if the drama really wanted her to be with Zhou Xun, it would have been so easy to make that happen (especially when he untied her emotional knot with her father) but they made his character flawed enough that she couldn't choose him. Unless Zhou Xun will change for Xiao Guo, this pairing won't happen. On the other hand, Duan Zhen Yu might just be willing to change for her. At the end of the day, whether Xiao Guo chooses Duan Zhen Yu or not, she'll shine wherever she is.
My favourite mini-group among the quartet: Da Bao and Liang Shaun. If the drama was going to make the other three girls boyfriend-less, I wouldn't have minded Liang Shuan without Zhao You Xiu as long as Liang Shuan has Da Bao. These two were such a contrast; one being tall and thin and the other being short and chubby. Despite being on the shorter end, Da Bao isn’t short of cuteness. She's so endearing, it rubs off on Liang Shuan. Da Bao is her saviour. No one else but her could have saved Liang Shuan out of her lonely fortress.
My favourite siblings of all time: Duan Zhen Yu and Duan Jia Bao (Da Bao). These two are precious and need to be locked up in a glass room so that nothing can taint them.
My favourite confession in this drama: Duan Zhen Yu’s. When he stepped over the centre line to start his pursuit of Xiao Guo, he had never backed down. That's the spirit of a fencer!
Final Review
[Review] The twenties is the age where we enter the workforce, make new friends and long-lasting ones, find love and perhaps marry. It's the decade with the most possibilities and therefore the decade where we are the most confused. Twenty, Not Confused is the English translation of the Chinese title. This drama takes us on a journey with four girls in their graduating year from being confused to finding a goal in life. Shi Tou, a gamer, has no goals. She just wants to live her life leisurely. She's not fretting about finding a job. Da Bao, a rich and silly girl, a rich and cute girl, a rich and innocent girl, doesn't even know what it's like to ride a bike. She also has no aspirations. She’s just plain rich. Her only wish is to see her favourite idol up close. Xiao Guo, the shortest of all the girls with the biggest ambitions of them all, wants to enter the best company and she has the skills for it. Liang Shuan completes the quartet. Her ambitiousness can rival that of Xiao Guo's as she too works relentlessly to achieve her dream. Each of the four girls become friends who constantly fight but easily make up.
Romance takes the backseat to career and friendship but that doesn't mean the romance was less than satisfying. Da Bao gets a chef and Shi Tou finds herself a fellow gamer. Liang Shuan started with a break up and no friends but in the end, she's a winner and it started with her breaking down her wall to be friends with her dorm-mates after three years of ignoring them. As for Xiao Guo's love line... let's just say I've never been so confused. She gets two highly qualified men to choose from. First is Duan Zhen Yu who's three years her junior. He's cute, he's smart, he's sweet, he's everything lovable until he gets too narcissistic. But still he's lovable. He won me over in an instant when he smirked at Xiao Guo's first love dumping her. Then there's Zhou Xun. He's an ambitious CEO with a keen insight. He's astute and values his career over all else. He's Xiao Guo's role model. All Zhou Xun's actions make it impossible to deny that he's someone Xiao Guo would definitely love given her personality. Will Xiao Guo win over Zhou Xun or will Duan Zhen Yu win over Xiao Guo? That is the question. Every time I think Duan Zhen Yu has a chance, Zhou Xun has a romantic moment with her. I can't help but support Zhou Xun as well. It's a constant back and forth that makes me eager to see the next episode everyday.
As for the ending, one can argue it has loose ends but it also doesn't. Twenty, Not Confused / Twenty Your Life On is a drama about these four girls, their careers and their outlooks in life. In that sense, the ending is beautifully complete. Each of them have an unbreakable bond with one another and are working towards their dreams. It's an ending that opens more windows for these four girls in their twenties.
It took me a long time to settle on a rating for this. I decided to rate this for the amazing, feel-good journey it gave me.
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