Blossoms Shanghai Episode 8 Recap
> Blossoms Shanghai Recap
After being kicked out by Lu Meilin and then rejected by Li Li, Xiao Jiangxi, despite warnings from her friends Min Min and Lu Si, sought revenge on the "ruthless bosses" by pulling the circuit breaker at Zhizhen Garden. Tao Tao suspected this power outage was related to Lu Meilin.
It was later revealed that Xiao Jiangxi had deliberately sabotaged Zhizhen Garden to please Lu Meilin and secure her return to Jinmeilin Hotel as a head supervisor, a move Min Min found shocking. Xiao Jiangxi, who also received a gold necklace for her actions, publicly stated she would lead Jinmeilin to glory, claiming she had acted "for everyone on Huanghe Road" because Li Li was a common target for the Huanghe Road restaurant owners.
Hearing from Tao Tao about the Huanghe Road restaurant owners' conspiracy against Li Li, A Bao was furious, remembering their past actions of spreading rumors about him and Jin Fenghuang to ruin her. He vowed to prevent their current plot from succeeding. Unwilling to be taken advantage of again, A Bao prepared to confront the Huanghe Road women.
He agreed to visit Ma Laoban's clothing factory in Zhuji, which produces high-quality counterfeit San Yang brand goods, a visit Ma Laoban admired A Bao for making alone. Tao Tao also begged A Bao to lie for her, and he eventually called A Fang, fabricating a story about playing mahjong with Tao Tao. Before heading to Zhuji at dawn, A Bao asked Ling Zi to assist Li Li at Zhizhen Garden.
Meanwhile, Zhizhen Garden faced a crisis when Fat Master Chef, their head chef, was poached by Ririsheng Restaurant's owner with a high salary. Despite a three-year contract, Fat Master Chef insisted on leaving, feigning illness, and even demanded an immediate raise if he were to stay, rather than waiting until the end of the month as Li Li pleaded.
Li Li, discerning Ririsheng was behind the poaching from Fat Master Chef's cigarette brand, felt helpless as her new chef wasn't due until the 25th. To prevent future dependencies, Li Li began secretly recruiting other chefs. The next morning, Wang Mingzhu came to give A Bao money for earrings, which Ye Shu informed her cost at most 500 yuan. She handed the money to Ye Shu.
Upon learning A Bao had left for Zhuji early, she became very alarmed, fearing for his safety due to the notorious reputation of the Zhuji locals. She immediately called Xiao Ningbo, who had driven A Bao to Zhuji. In Zhuji, amidst a heavy downpour, A Bao, carrying 1.
4 million yuan in cash, instructed Xiao Ningbo to return to Shanghai, telling him to pick him up at 8 PM, or inform Ye Shu if he didn't hear from A Bao by then. A Bao then went alone to the agreed meeting place to wait for Ma Laoban. Increasingly worried, Wang Mingzhu decided to go to Zhuji herself.
She purchased a used car from a car dealer without bargaining, paying 25,000 yuan with money Mei Ping retrieved from her office drawer and her own savings, then drove rapidly towards Zhuji. Ma Laoban's men brought A Bao to their factory, which A Bao found to be a "black factory." A Bao calmly inspected the high-quality counterfeit San Yang T-shirts, even testing one with fire, and confirmed their fabric and workmanship were identical to the genuine articles.
Seeing this, Ma Laoban, who had accumulated anger, and his workers, turned on A Bao. Ma Laoban produced a basket of white liquor, and when A Bao stated he would drink if he bought the goods, Ma Laoban, realizing the heavy weight of the box A Bao carried (containing 1. 4 million yuan in cash), furiously smashed it.
He then, with his men, restrained A Bao, intending to harm him, explaining their factory's advanced technology and equipment were wasted on counterfeiting due to lack of market access, and workers faced starvation. A Bao, seeing through Ma Laoban's bluster, persuaded him to stop counterfeiting and build his own brand.
He presented a 400,000 yuan order contract for full distribution in Hujiang Department Store, promising to establish their brand as a Shanghai famous brand and offer a future for the workers. Ma Laoban and his workers rejoiced. Meanwhile, Xiao Ningbo and his men, having waited past 8:15 PM for A Bao and fearing he was in danger, began searching Zhuji. They found Ma Laoban at a KTV, where Xiao Ningbo immediately kicked him, demanding A Bao's whereabouts.
Just then, A Bao, somewhat tipsy, stood up from the sofa and intervened, explaining the situation and embracing Ma Laoban, promising to meet in Shanghai again; they even sang a song together before parting. Wang Mingzhu, during her frantic journey to Zhuji, collided head-on with an oncoming vehicle due to her excessive speed, barely surviving the crash.
Upon seeing A Bao emerge safely, she was both surprised and overjoyed, rushing to hug him tightly, crying tears of joy and relief that she was alive to see him. A Bao, moved to tears, knelt beside her accident-damaged car to comfort her. On the way back to Shanghai, A Bao recounted the events at Ma Laoban's factory to Xiao Ningbo, expressing confidence in establishing their own brand.
Wang Mingzhu, exhausted, fell asleep, while A Bao looked at her haggard face, his heart filled with mixed emotions. Reflecting on his past with Wang Mingzhu, A Bao recalled meeting her at the end of 1988. At the time, foreign trade was strictly regulated, requiring approval from the Foreign Trade General Company, where Wang Mingzhu, a recent graduate, was assigned under Jin Hua's mentorship.
Wang Mingzhu, new to her job and prone to mistakes, was struggling to remove a cancellation stamp from an envelope by a hot water dispenser when A Bao, seeking approval for a foreign trade order obtained through his Hong Kong brother, first encountered her. He affectionately nicknamed her "Crybaby" after she cried out of frustration, and he taught her how to properly remove the stamp.
Although Wang Mingzhu was initially rigid and resistant to A Bao's attempts to use connections, telling him to wait in line for Jin Hua's approval, A Bao persisted, even studying "On Protracted War" while waiting.
Jin Hua, recognizing A Bao as a novice, initially dismissed him to the first floor or rejected his small business, telling him to return in half a month or even half a year, despite Wang Mingzhu subtly speaking on his behalf after A Bao helped her find another lost important stamp. Ye Shu, however, advised A Bao to approach Jin Hua directly, explaining that his order, requiring 24 procedures, could only be handled by Jin Hua.
A Bao continued to follow Wang Mingzhu relentlessly. Unwilling to give up, A Bao devised a plan: he would provide equipment imported from Japan under "three supplies and one compensation" trade, using his commission to offset costs, and then lease it to a factory. While searching for a factory, he met Xiao Ningbo, a factory director so burdened by difficulties that he was about to jump into a river, and A Bao followed him.
