A Love So Beautiful Episode 5 Recap
> A Love So Beautiful Recap
The school announced that a drama competition would be held this Friday, much to the excitement of the students. At the Alumni Bookstore, Chen Xiaoxi enthusiastically told Li Wei about her dream of opening a bookstore. She envisioned it as a front for a student dating center, where she would count money and watch young couples fall in love. However, Lin Jingxiao quickly dampened her spirits by revealing that Li Wei had asked Jiang Chen to star in "Thunderstorm."
Lin Jingxiao warned Chen Xiaoxi to act fast, advising her to also ask Jiang Chen to join her drama group before someone else snatched him away. Chen Xiaoxi immediately got to work. She used Lin Jingxiao as bait to recruit Lu Yang, then instructed Lu Yang to persuade Jiang Chen to join their team.
Chen Xiaoxi’s grand plan was for her to play Ziwei and Jiang Chen to play Er Kang in "My Fair Princess," hoping their on-stage romance would translate to real life. When Lu Yang approached Jiang Chen, highlighting that their team had Lin Jingxiao, Jiang Chen flatly refused. Undeterred, Chen Xiaoxi launched a relentless campaign. She copied lines every night and placed the script in every conceivable spot Jiang Chen might encounter, from his schoolbag to his door.
One afternoon, Jiang Chen found Chen Xiaoxi asleep at her desk, murmuring "Er Kang" in her sleep. He quietly placed the script on her desk and told her, "Here is the script. Don't give it to me again." Chen Xiaoxi secretly followed Lin Jingxiao and discovered her feigning a foot injury to visit the school doctor, Mr. Li.
Lin Jingxiao then confided in Chen Xiaoxi about the day of the sports meeting when she climbed over the wall, ripped her pants, and Mr. Li lent her his shirt. Chen Xiaoxi was envious, wishing for such a romantic encounter with Jiang Chen. The two friends promised to keep each other's secrets. Chen Xiaoxi optimistically concluded that even if Jiang Chen didn't join her group, he wouldn't join Li Wei's either, ensuring no one would get him.
Later, on the stairs, Chen Xiaoxi saw Jiang Chen approaching and dramatically launched into character as Ziwei, calling out "Er Kang, is that you?" and lunging at him. Jiang Chen casually deflected her by gently touching her forehead with one hand and walked past. The class teacher, Ms. Liu Xinxia, announced that due to the generally low acting skill among students, she would form a core group of visually appealing and talented students for the drama competition.
This group included Jiang Chen, Li Wei, and Lin Jingxiao, among others. Chen Xiaoxi, much to her dismay, was not included. At lunch, Chen Xiaoxi melodramatically asked Jiang Chen, "Er Kang, are you deserting the blind Ziwei?" Wu Baisong, sitting nearby, immediately chimed in, offering, "Let me be your eyes." Jiang Chen, casting a glance at Wu Baisong, simply stated, "There is no difference. You are blind whatever," before leaving.
Chen Xiaoxi, Lu Yang, and Wu Baisong formed their own team, embarking on a unique and unconventional rendition of "My Fair Princess." She also teasingly told Lin Jingxiao that her group might win, offering Lin Jingxiao a spot if her team failed. Chen Xiaoxi sighed at the thought of Jiang Chen and Li Wei acting as lovers, feeling it was an "arranged marriage" for Jiang Chen. She vowed to practice hard, defeat their group, and "give Jiang Chen freedom."
Meanwhile, Lu Yang's father arrived at school with his son's medication but was denied entry by the security guard, who cited school policy. Lin Jingxiao happened to pass by, and Lu Yang's father asked her to deliver the medicine. When Lin Jingxiao accidentally dropped the package and saw the "stabilizing agent" inside, she realized that Lu Yang's claims about having a serious heart condition were true.
This prompted a change in her attitude towards him, and she offered to help him rehearse. However, Lu Yang's antics, trying to infuse romantic lines into their rehearsal, caused Lin Jingxiao to eventually throw the script at him in exasperation. After school, Wu Baisong offered to help Chen Xiaoxi with her lines and took her to his grandmother's house. There, Chen Xiaoxi learned that Wu Baisong’s grandmother suffered from Senile Dementia, often not recognizing him.
She also discovered the strained relationship between Wu Baisong and his father, who had forced him into swimming since the age of six, regardless of his own feelings. Wu Baisong confessed to Chen Xiaoxi that he was unsure if he even liked swimming. Chen Xiaoxi reassured him, saying that she "knows nothing" herself but is "still a remarkably beautiful girl." Later that evening, Chen Xiaoxi returned to her apartment building and found Jiang Chen fixing the electric meter.
He asked her why she was out so late alone. Chen Xiaoxi replied that Wu Baisong had walked her home to the alley entrance. Jiang Chen's expression subtly darkened upon hearing this. The next morning at school, Jiang Chen observed Chen Xiaoxi and Wu Baisong discussing their lines with familiar intimacy, and an unidentifiable feeling of discomfort settled in his chest. In the library, Chen Xiaoxi struggled to reach a book on a high shelf.
Jiang Chen came over to help her. He took the book down, but after seeing its title, "Ice Cold Genius Falls in Love with Me," he deliberately placed it on the very top shelf, out of Chen Xiaoxi's reach. During the class preliminary for the drama competition, Chen Xiaoxi’s "My Fair Princess" trio performed a hilarious and unique act.
Despite their entertaining performance, Ms. Liu Xinxia ultimately chose Jiang Chen’s group, praising their thorough preparation and excellent acting, declaring them fit to represent the class. She told Chen Xiaoxi's group that while their performance was "very interesting" and "very funny," it was "inappropriate for the competition." Upset that her clothes were stained from the performance, Chen Xiaoxi was consoled by Wu Baisong, who quickly ran off to get her some laundry detergent.
When she jokingly suggested he should have just brought her new clothes, he immediately offered to get an outfit. Later, Chen Xiaoxi found Jiang Chen and confided that she had wanted her group to win so he wouldn't have to participate, acknowledging that life sometimes requires doing things one doesn't like. Chen Xiaoxi and Lin Jingxiao were assigned to record thunder sound effects for Jiang Chen's group's "Thunderstorm."
However, they accidentally left the recorder on, capturing a private conversation between themselves. On the day of the final drama competition, Wu Baisong, recalling Chen Xiaoxi's earlier joke, presented her with a new outfit. Backstage, Chen Xiaoxi was accidentally splashed with water by Wang Dazhuang, who was responsible for props and believed "Thunderstorm" needed real rain. She handed the recorder to Liao Chenxuan to play the thunder sounds and rushed to change her wet clothes.
Jiang Chen also noticed Chen Xiaoxi’s wet clothes but had to go on stage for his performance. During Jiang Chen's "Thunderstorm" act, instead of the intended thunder, the audience heard the accidental recording of Chen Xiaoxi and Lin Jingxiao's conversation about love and doing things well. Mortified, Chen Xiaoxi hurried backstage, but in her haste, she tripped over a stage screen and fell sprawling onto the stage, humiliating herself in front of the entire school.
After the performance, Jiang Chen frantically searched for Chen Xiaoxi, worried about her being in wet clothes. He eventually found her crying backstage, hidden behind a curtain. As Chen Xiaoxi tearfully called his name, Wu Baisong suddenly appeared, rushing in, saying he had come back specifically for the show. Seeing Chen Xiaoxi and Wu Baisong in what appeared to be matching outfits, Jiang Chen’s intended words of comfort twisted into an angry retort, "Chen Xiaoxi, you were so embarrassing today." This comment only caused Chen Xiaoxi to cry even harder.
