All Rise Episode 10 Recap
> All Rise Recap
Jiang Chen concluded that Warm Nest's central issue was a shortage of cash flow and proposed a financing solution to settle debts with both landlords and tenants. He submitted his plan, but Bai Xiao informed him that Ren Jiatong had already submitted a similar financing-focused proposal, which included a more detailed analysis of the affected tenants and was thus more concrete than Jiang Chen's. Jiang Chen privately confronted Ren Jiatong, accusing her of appropriating his financing idea.
Ren Jiatong countered that her success stemmed from extensive data collection and comprehensive analysis, not just an idea, emphasizing that clients seek concrete solutions, not theoretical concepts. She thanked him for shielding her earlier and respected his idealism, noting that her father was similar. However, she deemed such idealism a luxury she could not afford, having experienced situations where she was wronged without a chance to defend herself, and advised him against taking such risks.
To address the escalating public sentiment fueled by Liang Xiaosong's Weibo post, Ren Jiatong revealed she had arranged to meet Liang Xiaosong after work. Jiang Chen, feeling she was overstepping, defiantly asked if she intended to apologize on his behalf, asserting his principled stance and demanding respect for it. Ren Jiatong explained her involvement, highlighting the Weibo post's rapid virality, which quickly reached over ten thousand reposts and exposed her photos.
She recounted a similar past experience at Jun An, asserting that online, people often prioritize drama over truth. The deadline for submitting the final written proposals was announced to be in one hour, with a strict warning that late submissions would be invalidated. Zhou Nian had earlier explained the new assessment rules, stating that participants could form teams, and high scores would depend on both the group achieving the top rank and the individual performing best within their team.
Feeling anxious after ranking last in the previous round, Guo Xiaoyu texted Zhu Zhisheng about her stress, expressing concern about the current assessment. She then approached Ren Jiatong, aligning with Ren Jiatong's earlier points about the importance of settlement. Guo Xiaoyu offered the detailed victim profiles she had compiled and proposed they team up, aiming for a "win-win" situation to outperform Jiang Chen and avoid ranking last again.
Ren Jiatong, acknowledging their shared ambition, agreed, affirming their goal to achieve first place. Guo Xiaoyu later expressed her joy that Ren Jiatong found her collected data useful. She then confided in Zhu Zhisheng about their junior mentor, Zhou Nian, breaking up with his seven-year girlfriend due to a work-related issue at Jun An. Inspired by Zhu Zhisheng's past efforts to cheer her up, Guo Xiaoyu planned to help Zhou Nian reconcile.
Zhu Zhisheng, however, shifted the conversation to their own relationship, asking Guo Xiaoyu to choose between her work and him. He expressed concern that their demanding work schedules had severely impacted their communication and could jeopardize their relationship. Despite Guo Xiaoyu's attempts to differentiate the situations, Zhu Zhisheng, believing their prolonged separation and lack of communication would lead to a breakup, hung up the phone, leaving Guo Xiaoyu feeling unloved.
Huang Yue approached Guo Xiaoyu, presenting detailed victim information survey forms and offering to use her programming skills to create a database for efficient data processing. She apologized for her past actions and expressed a genuine desire to contribute to the team and to her own success. However, Guo Xiaoyu, without consulting Ren Jiatong, revealed their team's strategic ideas to Huang Yue. Ren Jiatong was displeased, reminding Guo Xiaoyu of confidentiality protocols.
Huang Yue intervened, admitting she had no better plan and wished to join to avoid losing, offering to let Ren Jiatong and Guo Xiaoyu discuss it privately. Ren Jiatong, recalling a critical lesson from her previous firm about maintaining boundaries even with close comrades and never fully exposing one's back, expressed reservations about adding another person, viewing it as an increased risk that could lead to their elimination.
Guo Xiaoyu countered, questioning if such guardedness applied to friends, asserting that while the competition was important, she valued the genuine friendships she had formed at Jun An and believed competitors didn't necessarily have to be enemies. After careful consideration, Ren Jiatong eventually agreed to let Huang Yue join their team. After the team successfully presented their proposal, Guo Xiaoyu was thrilled by the positive reception.
Later, Ren Jiatong sent Guo Xiaoyu two messages, clarifying that she allowed Huang Yue to join the team because her skills offered tangible benefits, and reiterating the importance of maintaining a cautious distance in the workplace, as competitors remain competitors. Li Ke also faced challenges in forming a team, with others advising him to find a partner due to his low ranking.
He overheard Zhou Nian and Lü Min discussing how Bai Xiao actively championed Jiang Chen, preventing him from facing consequences more severe than mere point deductions. Zhou Nian, however, revealed that the incident caused by his girlfriend's brother, Liang Xiaosong, had created a major setback in the cooperation between Warm Nest and Jun An.
He mentioned that Warm Nest's legal director was attempting to persuade their CEO to switch law firms, and he felt personally responsible for failing to manage his family affairs. He expressed frustration that both Liang Xiaosong and his sister had blocked his attempts to reach them, and he was considering apologizing in person after the test. Li Ke reinforced the severity of the situation, explaining that the entire firm was now affected.
He urged Jiang Chen to issue an apology, even if it was a private post on Weibo or WeChat visible only to Liang Xiaosong, as it would be a symbolic gesture to resolve the conflict. However, Jiang Chen firmly refused, asserting that principles should not be casually abandoned. After the group report, Li Ke approached Jiang Chen to propose teaming up, suggesting that with their combined ideas, they could achieve first place.
Jiang Chen, however, declined, stating that this was not just a legal case but also a personal matter that he needed to resolve independently. Later, Li Ke received an encouraging message from his niece, calling him "Uncle" and telling him he's "the best," which brought him some comfort amidst his mixed emotions. As the final deadline approached, Song Yifan and Bai Xiao reported to Zhuang Xin about internal disagreements within Warm Nest regarding the selection of a partner law firm.
They assured him that the firm had managed to keep Warm Nest's business for now, as Warm Nest's CEO, Mr. Liu, was highly receptive to Song Yifan's financing proposal, and they had already secured preliminary letters of intent from several investors. However, Song Yifan expressed suspicion about Warm Nest's legal director.
Separately, Bai Xiao summoned Ren Jiatong to her office, noting that Ren Jiatong's report estimates were heavily based on tenant needs, likely due to her own status as a tenant. Bai Xiao instructed Ren Jiatong to further optimize her report by also considering the landlords' demands, reminding her that the previous conflict at Warm Nest's headquarters involved many protesting landlords whose legitimate concerns cannot be ignored.
Jiang Chen initially wavered on whether to apologize, confessing to Ren Jiatong his discomfort over Jun An's Business Development Director, Kai, having to apologize on his behalf to Warm Nest, which led him to question the cost of maintaining his personal principles for the firm. He reflected on a past lesson from a great lawyer about the necessity of compromise in their profession, a notion he previously resisted but now found himself doubting.
Ren Jiatong deduced that the "great lawyer" was his father. Jiang Chen admitted he understood his father but didn't want to become him, feeling he might not be cut out to be a lawyer, and stated he would be deeply disappointed in himself if he compromised his ideals. He also shared that Song Yifan advised seeking a "win-win solution" instead of self-compromise.
Ren Jiatong, having just been admonished by Bai Xiao for not considering the landlords' perspective, revealed her difficulty in engaging with landlords, having only interacted with them during the Warm Nest incident and an earlier argument with Jiang Chen's aunt. The two then realized that Jiang Chen's aunt was, in fact, Ren Jiatong's landlord. This realization sparked a solution for Jiang Chen, who decided to discuss the matter with his aunt.
He complimented Ren Jiatong, calling her the most suitable person he's met for being a lawyer. Assuming leadership, Ren Jiatong assigned Guo Xiaoyu the task of proofreading the report and directed Huang Yue to assist Jiang Chen in developing a strategy to analyze the landlords' needs. Ren Jiatong declared her intention to confront Liang Xiaosong directly.
Jiang Chen, feeling personally responsible for the Warm Nest crisis, volunteered to go himself, asserting that he would make Liang Xiaosong apologize, not apologize to him. However, Ren Jiatong firmly reminded him of her role as team leader and insisted he remain to collaborate with his aunt to ensure the landlord-focused strategy was perfectly executed. Li Ke then offered to accompany Ren Jiatong, expressing his wish to contribute to the firm and support Zhou Nian. Ren Jiatong accepted his offer.
To clear Jiang Chen's name, Li Ke meticulously reviewed the video of Jiang Chen's confrontation with Liang Xiaosong, noticing a suspicious man with a buzz cut next to Liang Xiaosong. He recalled seeing this same individual at the Warm Nest branch during a previous incident involving handwritten replies. Guo Xiaoyu confirmed the man's presence in her own livestream video.
Ren Jiatong and Li Ke then confronted Liang Xiaosong, revealing that the man who incited him, Wang Yu, was actually a lawyer from a rival firm, not a tenant, landlord, or Warm Nest staff member.
Liang Xiaosong, realizing he was manipulated by Wang Yu, who had falsely claimed to be Warm Nest's legal representative and accused Jiang Chen of being a Jun An spy and a tenant (implying Jun An wouldn't support him), and even provided him with the water bottle used in the incident, was stunned. Ren Jiatong urged Liang Xiaosong not to act foolishly, reminding him of his sister's long-term relationship with Zhou Nian and highlighting that he was being used.
Convinced by their evidence and persuasion, Liang Xiaosong wrote an apology statement. The collaborative report by Ren Jiatong, Jiang Chen, Guo Xiaoyu, Huang Yue, and Li Ke was successfully submitted to Zhou Nian's email, alongside an independently submitted report from Yan Fei. Zhou Nian confirmed receiving both reports on time. Later, feeling responsible for Zhou Nian's breakup, the group apologized to him and orchestrated a plan to help him reconcile with his girlfriend.
They presented him with a surprise kit, which included a box contributed by Yan Fei, his retrieved engagement ring, his girlfriend's live location at a nearby bar from RedNote, pre-written confession poems for him to memorize, roses, and her favorite teddy bear. They enthusiastically encouraged him to hurry to the bar to win her back, assuring him of success.
Ren Jiatong received a call from her mother, who informed her that her stepfather Lin's business was experiencing difficulties and asked Ren Jiatong to transfer some of her salary. Ren Jiatong agreed to do so later and then left the celebratory gathering early. Seeing this, Jiang Chen also opted not to join the others for dinner. Guo Xiaoyu, Li Ke, and Huang Yue went out for hotpot and discussed their career paths and the costs of living in Beijing.
Guo Xiaoyu mentioned seeing Wang Lu on RedNote, where he shares lawyer fashion tips and seems to be thriving at a boutique firm, making them ponder if elimination from the program wasn't necessarily a bad thing. Later that night, Jiang Chen texted Ren Jiatong asking if she was okay. Ren Jiatong sent a red envelope as a thank you, stating she was fine.
Jiang Chen's aunt, seeing him text, advised him to be more proactive and asked him to video call his mother, who missed him. Jiang Chen, still holding onto past grievances, expressed his lingering doubt about his parents' care for him, recalling their constant arguments when he was young.
