Cupid's Kitchen Episode 2 Recap
> Cupid's Kitchen Recap
Lin Kesong and Song Yiran enthusiastically enjoyed the Traditional Spicy Grilled Fish, but Jiang Qianfan remained silent, not touching his food. Lin Kesong identified ten distinct seasonings, including Sansho pepper, green pepper, and red pepper, but an eleventh, elusive flavor stumped her. Jiang Qianfan, observing the fish’s color, revealed it was a food additive. Song Yiran, disbelieving, argued that such an illegal substance couldn't be used in the restaurant.
Jiang Qianfan explained that while deep-fried fish meat usually turns light yellow or white, food additives cause it to turn pink at a lower temperature, which was visible in their dish. He noted that the small amount used made it metabolizable and hard for ordinary taste buds to detect. Feeling Jiang Qianfan was unfairly criticizing his chosen restaurant, Song Yiran proposed a bet: they would sneak into the kitchen after closing at 10 p. m.
If they found the additive, Song Yiran would give Lin Kesong ¥1,000; if not, Jiang Qianfan would pay her ¥1,000. Jiang Qianfan agreed, even offering to double his payout to ¥2,000. After the restaurant closed, Song Yiran and Lin Kesong climbed over a wall to enter. Not seeing Jiang Qianfan behind them, they assumed he had chickened out. To their surprise, Jiang Qianfan was already waiting at the kitchen entrance.
He instructed Song Yiran to stand guard outside while he and Lin Kesong went inside to search for the seasoning. Inside, as Lin Kesong leaned in to examine some fine powders, she involuntarily sneezed. The noise alerted the restaurant staff, and the trio hastily fled. On the way home, Jiang Qianfan turned on the car radio, telling Lin Kesong that music should complement one's mood.
The next day, despite waking early and cycling furiously, Lin Kesong was still late for her meeting with Jiang Qianfan. She took him to a restaurant for aromatic tofu fish soup, a local Hangzhou specialty. She enthusiastically described the fresh ingredients and revealed its "beautiful name": "Fish Tears in the Heart."
When Jiang Qianfan commented that such a poetic name must have been coined by a young girl and didn't fit the restaurant's style, Lin Kesong sheepishly admitted she had just made it up. After tasting the soup, Jiang Qianfan critically noted that the tofu was unevenly marinated due to the chef's excessive caution, which he felt ruined an otherwise good dish. Lin Kesong was unconvinced, so Jiang Qianfan proposed a game.
He arranged four pieces of tofu from the bowl, claiming they were ordered from mildest to strongest flavor, and challenged her to confirm the sequence. Lin Kesong confidently asserted that two pieces were in the wrong order, only to discover on her phone that Jiang Qianfan had already sent her the correct sequence, proving her initial assessment incorrect.
She expressed admiration for Jiang Qianfan’s willpower, noting how he remained unfazed by so many delicious dishes, to which he countered by admiring her insatiable passion for food. Lin Kesong later reflected that during these three days, Jiang Qianfan was subtly guiding her towards a career as a chef. With the three-day tour guide job concluded, Jiang Qianfan told Lin Kesong he would contact her again. Lin Kesong then asked if he could drop her off at Song Yiran's party.
Upon arrival, Lin Kesong received a call from her cousin, Lin Xiaoyu. Xiaoyu was thrilled to learn that Lin Kesong had been guiding Jiang Qianfan, exclaiming that he was her idol. She urgently requested Lin Kesong to print her resume and personally hand it to Jiang Qianfan, which Lin Kesong promised to do. At the party, Song Yiran publicly announced that Chu Ting would be opening her second boutique in Shanghai.
He then revealed his plans to move to Shanghai to live with her, having secured a hotel management position at Bellagio Shanghai through his elder brother. To demonstrate his loyalty, he confessed to having deleted many female friends from his WeChat contacts, making the evening a farewell party. As guests celebrated, Song Yiran and Chu Ting shared a passionate embrace, while a crestfallen Lin Kesong retreated to the balcony to drink alone.
Soon after, Song Yiran approached Lin Kesong and informed her that he had arranged a job for her as an executive assistant at the same hotel she had previously applied to. Lin Kesong politely declined, stating that she was returning to her hometown the next day to take a job arranged by her parents. After the party, as rain threatened, Lin Kesong walked home alone, sadly reminiscing about her days silently accompanying Song Yiran.
An elderly Tanghulu vendor, seeing her distress, gave her the last skewer for free. Eating it while observing the desolate streetscape, Lin Kesong burst into tears. She then aimlessly wandered to Jiang Qianfan's hotel room, knocking on his door. Sitting on the floor, weeping, she confided that unrequited love tasted like Tanghulu—sweet on the outside, but increasingly sour with every bite. Jiang Qianfan tried to send her home, but a distraught Lin Kesong pulled him to the rooftop.
She tearfully confessed feeling like an ugly duckling who had desperately tried to mold herself into Song Yiran's ideal type, even pursuing his preferred major, but never dared to confess for fear of rejection. Jiang Qianfan tried to comfort her, suggesting Song Yiran was just an immature child not worth such tears. However, Lin Kesong insisted that while Song Yiran could live without her, she couldn't live without him.
As the rain began, Jiang Qianfan, unable to console her, threatened to leave. Lin Kesong tearfully offered him the last piece of Tanghulu, then, in her drunken state, began to stumble towards the rooftop railing. Seeing her precarious state, Jiang Qianfan quickly rushed over and pulled her away from the edge. The next morning, Jiang Qianfan presented his newly developed "Dumplings with Fish Tears in your Heart" to Elise for tasting.
Elise initially found them delicious, but when Jiang Qianfan mentioned that Lin Kesong had inspired the dish, Elise abruptly stopped eating and declared the dish had no merit, dismissing it as unsuitable for their restaurant, Yuxuan. Jiang Qianfan, taken aback by her emotional response, pointed out their three-year partnership and her usual fair and objective evaluations. He pressed her for a rational explanation, but Elise refused to discuss it further and left.
En route, Elise was still fuming about events from the previous night. She recalled going to Jiang Qianfan's room to bring him a night lamp and discovering a drunken Lin Kesong asleep on his sofa. In her anger, Elise had splashed cold water on Lin Kesong. Shortly after, Junbin called Elise, informing her that Jiang Qianfan had a fever and needed careful attention, as a problem with his nervous system could worsen if his temperature rose.
This call revealed to Elise that Jiang Qianfan had lost his sense of taste. Junbin explained that Jiang Qianfan's sensitivity to sweetness had declined months ago when Yuxuan opened, and upon arriving in Hangzhou, he had completely lost the ability to taste anything sweet. While his taste buds were intact, his brain wasn't receiving the sweet taste signals due to blocked nerve pathways, and Junbin couldn't guarantee the condition wouldn't deteriorate further.
Elise urgently instructed Junbin to keep Jiang Qianfan's condition a secret. In the hotel hallway, Lin Kesong encountered Elise while holding Lin Xiaoyu's resume. When Lin Kesong explained that her younger sister deeply admired Jiang Qianfan and wished to become his pupil, Elise scoffed, advising Lin Kesong to "know what's good for you." She stated that Jiang Qianfan, famous from a young age, cared only for culinary skills.
Elise then coolly informed Lin Kesong that her three days of work were over, conveying Jiang Qianfan's request for her not to speak about him to others, to delete his number, and to cease all contact. Angered by Elise's dismissive attitude, Lin Kesong immediately deleted Jiang Qianfan's phone number. Lin Kesong called Lin Xiaoyu, apologizing for failing to deliver her resume.
Xiaoyu then informed Lin Kesong that Elise was not only Jiang Qianfan's business partner but also his ex-girlfriend, a well-known fact in the culinary world, and that her presence ensured no other woman could get close to him. Despite Xiaoyu's understanding, Lin Kesong felt deeply frustrated by this setback, intensifying her desire to leave the city. Elise hurried back to the hotel to care for Jiang Qianfan.
She confronted him, asking why he hadn't told her about his lost sense of taste. She then gently suggested his search for disciples was actually a search for a "suitable crutch" for his condition. Jiang Qianfan explained that both he and Yuxuan needed Lin Kesong. Tears welled in Elise's eyes as she questioned why, despite his loss of taste, he needed Lin Kesong—the girl who got drunk and passed out in his room—instead of her.
Jiang Qianfan apologetically explained that Lin Kesong was a "genius" with a gift for taste. Lin Kesong returned to her hometown of Wuzhen and attended an interview for a job her parents had found. She did not get the position, but she realized that even if she had, she wouldn't have wanted it. She longed for more than a stagnant, predictable life with average pay and workload, feeling unwilling to abandon her dreams.
Lin Xiaoyu encouraged her, suggesting that since confessing her long-standing crush on Song Yiran was her greatest motivation, she should pursue it, even if it meant facing rejection. Inspired by this renewed hope, Lin Kesong embarked on a journey to Shanghai, embracing her dreams.
