A Robot in the Orange Orchard Episode 28 Recap
> A Robot in the Orange Orchard Recap
After learning about his father’s conspiracy, Li Zhan felt a profound sense of sadness. He recalled his childhood friendship with Lu Sen. Overwhelmed by guilt, he drove to Lu Sen’s estate to speak with Mr. Xie. Li Zhan inquired about Lu Sen’s condition over the past fifteen years, learning the full extent of his suffering.
Mr. Xie revealed that since his parents’ tragic accident, Lu Sen had been sick for fifteen years, locking himself away, unable to interact with others, forced to cook for himself, and endure illnesses alone, with no one visiting him. Mr. Xie also stated that Li Jingcheng, under the pretense of caring for Lu Sen, had done nothing but plot to seize his family's assets. Li Zhan admitted his family’s culpability, stating that the accident could have been avoided.
Mr. Xie urged him to apologize to Lu Sen directly, to which Li Zhan responded that some mistakes could not be mended with a simple apology but affirmed his intention to apologize properly. Li Zhan then met Lu Sen in a park, apologizing for Friday and for Lu Sen’s past hardships. He handed over his father’s dashcam from the time of the accident, requesting that Lu Sen hold him accountable for all wrongs and spare Li Jingcheng.
Lu Sen accepted the dashcam, acknowledging that its contents confirmed his long-held suspicions about Li Jingcheng. He stated that he had known about Li Jingcheng’s true intentions all along but had held onto a hope that his suspicions were false. Lu Sen cautioned that Li Jingcheng might not comply with Li Zhan's wishes, which Li Zhan understood.
They both reflected on the difficult choices they had to make regarding their fathers, expressing a shared desire to protect them from the worst consequences. Back home, Lu Sen watched the dashcam footage, witnessing the horrific scene of his parents' death. He stared, stunned and heartbroken, as if reliving a long-forgotten trauma. Just then, Yang Shanshan entered, quickly turned off the computer screen, and embraced him, offering silent comfort and shielding him from further distress.
Meanwhile, Li Jingcheng was on the phone, receiving updates about a secret lab and a subordinate named Tom, who was now in hiding and anxious to leave the country. Li Jingcheng ordered Tom to wait and avoid contact. His assistant then informed him that Lu Sen had sent an email, demanding an investigation into a recent information leak and threatening to reopen the fifteen-year-old embezzlement case if Li Jingcheng refused.
Li Jingcheng scoffed at the threat, claiming Lu Sen had no proof. However, the assistant then revealed that Lu Sen had attached screenshots from Li Jingcheng's own dashcam footage of the car incident fifteen years prior. Enraged, Li Jingcheng demanded to know why the video had not been destroyed and ordered an exhaustive search for the original data. He then instructed his assistant not to prevent Lu Sen from coming to the office.
Instead, Li Jingcheng intended to force Lu Sen to willingly transfer the chairman’s position to him. Unbeknownst to Li Jingcheng, Lu Sen was already planning his counter-move, informing his allies—presumably major shareholders—that Li Jingcheng would soon need their "help," and it was time for them to act. Later, Lu Sen met with Uncle, speaking openly about Yang Shanshan.
He highlighted how her inventions, such as an "ugly car wash device" for her uncle and an "alarm clock that can't be caught" inspired by Enbao, all stemmed from her deep care for her family. While Uncle initially dismissed these inventions as "useless," Lu Sen emphasized that this inherent concern gave Shanshan's creations a unique "heart-warming magic." Uncle acknowledged Lu Sen as the first person to truly understand Shanshan in this way.
Lu Sen then directly sought Uncle’s approval for his relationship with Yang Shanshan, promising to confess his feelings to her once the company affairs were settled. Uncle, impressed by Lu Sen’s wit, initially seemed to approve, but then voiced a concern that Lu Sen and Shanshan were "not from the same world." Lu Sen passionately responded that Shanshan had brought warmth to his once "lonely and cold" existence, inviting him into her "vast and interesting" world.
He declared that she and her family were now his own. Uncle jokingly warned him not to covet their modest family fortune, to which Lu Sen quipped that Uncle was welcome to inherit his fortune instead, leading to a lighthearted "penalty drink." Through a phone call, Li Zhan questioned Mr. Luo about unusual cash flow in the R&D department.
Mr. Luo claimed it was for a highly confidential project approved by the board and known to Li Jingcheng, adding that a factory had been purchased. Li Zhan feigned forgetfulness, then requested all project details and the factory's location, stating he would ask his father directly about anything he did not understand. After the call, he pondered why his father was setting up a lab and needing a factory now that Friday was destroyed, sensing something suspicious was at play.
Simultaneously, Lu Sen initiated a "smoke bomb" strategy. He anticipated that whatever Li Jingcheng's reaction, it would "definitely leave traces" in his haste. After the dinner, Aunt took the genuinely inebriated Uncle home, leaving Yang Shanshan to care for Lu Sen, who was only feigning drunkenness to remain close to her.
Yang Shanshan playfully chastised him for getting her uncle so drunk, to which Lu Sen, with a twinkle in his eye, confessed his desire to claim her from "everyone in the world who likes you."
Yang Shanshan accused him of not being drunk, but Lu Sen insisted he was too "drunk" to walk, leading to a playful exchange where she threatened to leave him to be "picked up" by others, and he asked what she would do then, to which she replied she'd "take in another one." The playful moment concludes with Lu Sen moving closer and Yang Shanshan questioning if his actions were appropriate.
After the dinner, Fu Yang approached Yang Shanshan, intending to apologize. However, she preemptively forgave him, recalling the Alpha team's past struggles in a "dilapidated warehouse," their initial arrogance, and her admiration for their unwavering pursuit of dreams. Fu Yang then revealed the true reason they repeatedly ordered takeout from her: they wanted Friday, an emotional companion robot, to imitate Yang Shanshan’s "lively, warm, and full of vitality" essence, as Friday required a human prototype.
Yang Shanshan was delighted to learn she was the inspiration behind Friday. Later, while Lu Sen and Yang Shanshan were walking, Yang Shanshan used an instrument from Dr. Ou to check Lu Sen's health. She then decided she needed to hear his heartbeat directly, placing her ear against his chest. Lu Sen’s heart raced, betraying his emotions.
Still later, on the street, Yang Shanshan shared oranges with children, prompting Lu Sen to playfully ask why she was gentler with kids than with him. He claimed not to know what "jealousy" was, so Yang Shanshan offered him a taste of the orange, which he found "sweet," playfully discovering the taste of jealousy. Lu Sen then reassured Yang Shanshan about the ongoing company issues, promising to always be by her side. Meanwhile, Li Jingcheng observed the couple.
Concluding that Yang Shanshan’s presence was the key to preventing Lu Sen’s attacks, he orchestrated her abduction. As Lu Sen and Yang Shanshan continued their walk, they were attacked by two individuals. Lu Sen was knocked unconscious. When he awoke, Yang Shanshan was gone. He rushed back to Fu Yang and his team for help. During their urgent discussions, Fu Yang's team also talked about Friday's A. I.
black box preventing forced formatting, a critical detail for future robot development, as they searched for Yang Shanshan. Lu Sen, suspecting Li Jingcheng, instructed the team to first gather intelligence on Li Jingcheng before involving the police, fearing a desperate reaction might further endanger Yang Shanshan. He also asked them to lie to Yang Shanshan's uncle, telling him she was staying with Tang for a few days, to prevent panic.
Yang Shanshan found herself captive in Li Jingcheng’s lab, screaming for help, only to be taunted by him, who reminded her that no one would hear her. He arrogantly introduced himself as her elder, questioning her knowledge of Lu Sen. Li Jingcheng claimed to have nurtured Lu Sen and the company, yet received no gratitude from a supposedly "heartless" Lu Sen, suggesting Yang Shanshan was suffering for nothing.
He then demanded to know if Lu Sen’s condition was directly tied to her presence, implying she was essential to preventing his episodes. Faced with these threats, Yang Shanshan felt helpless. Li Jingcheng escalated his threats, reminding her that while Lu Sen’s family was gone, she still had her own, specifically mentioning her elementary-school-aged sister. He warned her that her silence would result in losing everything and that he would test how long Lu Sen could last without her. Horrified by his threats, Yang Shanshan shouted for him not to harm Lu Sen and demanded her release.
