Cute Programmer Episode 22 Recap
> Cute Programmer Recap
Upon hearing the doorbell, Jiang Yicheng eagerly rose, hoping Lu Li had returned, but was disappointed to find Li Man at his door. Li Man, feigning concern for his injury, revealed she had heard from Jiang Zitong that he and Lu Li were divorcing, claiming the news had spread throughout the company with people blaming her. Jiang Yicheng coldly dismissed this, stating the divorce had nothing to do with her.
When Li Man offered to clarify any misunderstandings with Lu Li, Jiang Yicheng admitted he didn't even know why Lu Li wanted a divorce. Li Man then suggested that young women like Lu Li were unpredictable and had likely grown tired of the relationship. She provoked him by claiming she knew he was "forced to marry" Lu Li and that the divorce was a way to "mitigate losses."
This enraged Jiang Yicheng, who vehemently denied being forced into the marriage, causing a startled Li Man to shrink back. Citing his unhealed wound and the recent stress, he asked her to leave. As Li Man departed, she privately vowed that Jiang Yicheng would one day return to her. Unseen, Lu Li had been watching from downstairs. She saw Li Man enter the building and, moments later, the lights in Jiang Yicheng's apartment go out.
This new misunderstanding deepened her heartbreak, and she numbly got into a taxi to go home. Lu Li's late-night arrival stunned her parents. When she announced her resignation and joked about them needing heart pills for the next piece of news, they grew worried. She explained that the woman Jiang Yicheng truly loved had returned, so she chose to "back out" of the marriage. Her parents were shocked to learn she had already signed the divorce agreement.
Her father, suspecting Jiang Yicheng had coerced her, threatened to confront him, but Lu Li insisted it was her own decision. She told her parents she didn't regret the marriage, as it taught her that "unilateral giving and principle-less concession can never win affection." Acknowledging that she had forced the marriage initially, she accepted that things were simply returning to their original state.
Lu Li then revealed her plan to move to Chongqing, having already sent out resumes and secured an interview. Though her parents were deeply concerned about her moving so far away, her mother ultimately respected her choice after Lu Li confirmed she had no regrets, emphasizing that her happiness was what mattered most. After a tearful farewell where Lu Li expressed her gratitude, her parents rushed her to the airport.
Later, Jiang Yicheng sought answers from Chen Yiming, who questioned his emotional awareness by pointing out he didn't know Lu Li's favorite foods, hobbies, or even her home address. Jiang Yicheng insisted their agreement-based marriage wouldn't end over such trivial matters. Breaking a promise to Lu Li, Chen Yiming told Jiang Yicheng to log into "Dream Maker," the first game he ever developed, to find the answers.
As Jiang Yicheng logged in, he recalled a time he was suffering from a creative block, and Chen Yiming had suggested he play the now-popular "Dream Maker" to relax. In the game, he met a high school student with the username 'Koala'—who was Lu Li—and she asked him to guide her. She expressed deep admiration for the game's developer, explaining how it provided an immersive escape from her real-world troubles.
Their conversation had given him a wealth of inspiration at the time. Back in the present, his game account was flooded with years of unread messages from Lu Li. They chronicled her entire journey: her admiration for him, her decision to study Computer Science at his alma mater, Xinhai University, to become his junior; her joy at getting in and learning his name; a painful memory of him ignoring her on campus; and her determination to join his company.
The more recent messages documented her joining his company and finally marrying him. The penultimate message, sent recently, read: "She's back. It turns out it's not that you won't fall for anyone. It's just that you won't fall for me." The last was a simple, heartbreaking, "Jiang Yicheng, goodbye." Overcome with emotion, Jiang Yicheng finally understood the depth of her long-held feelings and broke down in tears.
Meanwhile, as Jiang Zitong prepared to go to the company, her mother, Cheng Yueru, insisted on joining to visit her husband and Lu Li. Panicked that Lu Li's resignation would be exposed, Jiang Zitong feigned a broken-down car and then a sudden, severe stomachache. Cheng Yueru saw through the act. When she tried calling Lu Li and found her phone was off, her suspicions were confirmed.
She stormed past Jiang Zitong and confronted Jiang Yicheng at his home, demanding to know what happened. Blaming Li Man and reminding her son of her warnings, she acknowledged his feelings for Lu Li and offered to help find her. A defeated Jiang Yicheng could only admit, "She left Xinhai. I don't know where she went." As Jiang Yicheng agonized over his marriage, Chen Yiming suggested the car accident was a catalyst.
He revealed Lu Li hadn't been in a simple accident; she was being chased by a masked man with a distinctive scar on his right hand. The detail triggered a suspicion in Jiang Yicheng. He arranged to meet Li Man, secretly starting a recording on his phone. During their meal, he used her unlocked phone to text her father to come to their location.
Shortly after Jiang Yicheng excused himself to "pay the bill," Li Man's father arrived and, thinking his daughter had summoned him about the accident, began confessing that he had only meant to "scare" Lu Li and that she had crashed the car herself. A bewildered Li Man tried to silence him, but Jiang Yicheng reappeared, revealing he had sent the message.
Li Man's father tried to take the full blame, admitting he had followed the couple because Li Man "couldn't let you go." Jiang Yicheng exposed their entire scheme: the father-daughter estrangement was an act to make him feel guilty. Declaring their relationship had ended three years ago, he rejected Li Man's desperate pleas to win him back and stated his intent to call the police.
Her plan in ruins, Li Man lashed out at her father, blaming him for her ruin. Pained by her words, he clutched his chest as she stormed off. Elsewhere, in Chongqing, a real estate agent showed Lu Li a new apartment. Without hesitation, she decided to move in immediately. Back in Xinhai, consumed by regret, Jiang Yicheng resolved to find Lu Li and win her back, reflecting that, like planting a tree, the best time to start over is now.
