Falling Into Your Smile Episode 2 Recap
> Falling Into Your Smile Recap
The news of ZGDX recruiting a female player, Tong Yao, spread like wildfire, igniting a fierce online debate. Many netizens expressed strong doubts, questioning the team's decision to bring in a "nobody" to replace the retiring God Ming, especially a female player. They cynically remarked on ZGDX's perceived desperation for popularity.
However, Tong Yao's best friend, Chen Jinyang, staunchly defended her during a phone call, arguing that gender shouldn't restrict one's ability to play professionally and asserting Tong Yao's superior skills over her detractors. Tong Yao, known online as the top-ranking "Tamamo-no-Mae," also made a public statement, which the ZGDX team read, asserting that professional gaming has no gender boundaries and girls can excel if they truly commit. Amidst the online chatter, the doorbell rang at the ZGDX base.
Lu Sicheng, already irritable from struggling to gain ranking points and facing a potential 20% salary cut if he dropped a level, assumed it was his food delivery. Without a second glance, he took the bag from Tong Yao, thanked her, and promptly shut the door, leaving her and her cat, Da Bing, outside. Fatty, who had been busy posting negative comments about Tong Yao on an alt account, soon noticed the food wasn't his.
The team then saw Tong Yao's social media post about the incident and finally realized their new teammate was the one Lu Sicheng had dismissed as a delivery person. Once inside, Tong Yao and Lu Sicheng engaged in a silent standoff until their manager, Xiao Rui, intervened. He formally introduced Tong Yao, detailing her impressive achievements: topping the national server at nineteen and becoming the "Lord of Kyoto" on the South Korean server at twenty-one.
Xiao Rui then introduced the rest of the team: Lao Mao, the Top laner, a "muscleman" with a slow reaction time; Fatty, the Support and the team's "nanny," described as a kind and harmless nerd; and K, the Jungle, who appears cool but is actually quite sophomoric. Lu Sicheng, the team's sharp-tongued AD, unapologetically stated he mistook her for a delivery person.
When Tong Yao introduced her cat, Da Bing, Lu Sicheng sternly warned her to watch her "furry beast" carefully, expressing concern for his "sons"—his pet fish—and the "food chain" threat the cat posed. Fatty then led Tong Yao to her new room, proudly unveiling a space he had meticulously decorated. The room was overwhelmingly pink, adorned with what he considered "girls-only decorations," including bedclothes with pink trim and lace, and flamingo-themed items.
Though Tong Yao was inwardly horrified by the stereotypical "girly" aesthetic, she politely told Fatty it was nice. As he left, he gave her a team handbook and told her Xiao Rui would explain the training routine the next day. That night, Tong Yao messaged her parents to confirm her safe arrival, which prompted her dad to initiate a video call. Her overprotective father immediately began questioning the security of the door locks and windows.
Her mother then took over, criticizing Tong Yao's decision to pursue professional gaming over a "proper job" like the bank internship she had secured. She questioned if gaming offered benefits like social insurance and a housing fund, which Tong Yao confirmed it did. After enduring her parents' bickering, a resigned Tong Yao ended the call and read the team handbook before going to sleep.
The next morning, Tong Yao was woken by her alarm and, finding the common area empty, she went looking for food. The team's live-in chef and cleaner, an auntie, arrived from grocery shopping and explained that the players rarely wake before noon due to their late-night training, quipping that "morning doesn't exist in an e-sports player's dictionary." Just then, Fatty stumbled into the living room in his Superman boxers.
Tong Yao playfully complimented them, causing a startled Fatty to shriek and retreat. Soon after, Lu Sicheng emerged in a bathrobe, freezing for a moment upon seeing Tong Yao before quickly returning to his room, clearly still unaccustomed to having a female teammate. Shortly after, team manager Xiao Rui arrived with God Ming, who, despite retiring from play, would now serve as the team's coach.
Xiao Rui called Tong Yao aside and informed her about the mandatory 45 hours of live streaming required monthly. Having never shown her face online, Tong Yao asked if she could wear a mask, but Xiao Rui insisted she face her fans with courage as a professional. Following their discussion, Tong Yao officially signed her contract. Xiao Rui then tasked a reluctant Lu Sicheng with taking her shopping for daily necessities.
Lu Sicheng protested, citing his need to rapidly climb from the "Elite" rank to "Lord of Kyoto" for an upcoming assessment, but Xiao Rui was firm. On their way to the mall, Tong Yao and Lu Sicheng immediately resumed bickering, with him teasing her about her height. Their argument was interrupted by Ai Jia, the Mid player for YQCB, and Liang Sheng, YQCB's captain. Tong Yao excitedly introduced her university senior, Ai Jia, to a still-aloof Lu Sicheng.
Ai Jia is also the ex-boyfriend of Tong Yao's best friend, Jinyang, who had forbidden Tong Yao from contacting him. After the teams agreed to a friendly match, Ai Jia privately begged Tong Yao to help him get unblocked by Jinyang. Tong Yao hinted that Jinyang had sacrificed overseas opportunities for him, while he was only focused on his live stream earnings.
As they drove, Lu Sicheng recognized Tong Yao as the "stubborn shorty" he had seen struggling to reach something on the 46th floor of their hotel during the Spring Playoffs, but she denied it. Their bickering continued at the supermarket. When Tong Yao couldn't reach a pair of pink slippers on a high shelf, Lu Sicheng reluctantly helped her.
This action made Tong Yao realize he was the "water thief" who had taken the bottled water she'd hidden on a high shelf in a previous incident. Lu Sicheng defended himself, claiming he thought he was "sieged by a group of dwarf zombies" that day. After checking out, they were swarmed by fans. Panicked, Tong Yao tried to hide, worried about her appearance without makeup.
When fans asked if she was Lu Sicheng's girlfriend, he dismissively said she was a "team staff member." Afterward, Lu Sicheng gave her a stark lesson: if the team's performance declined because of her, she would face immense public backlash. He stressed that in e-sports, only strength earns respect. She had to prove her worth to silence the doubters, just as he had. " In esports," he concluded, "being weak is the original sin."
Back at the base, Lu Sicheng sarcastically likened the shopping trip to "taking a kindergarten daughter to buy snacks." Tong Yao was shown to her new gaming station, God Ming's former spot. Fatty proudly presented her new chair, adorned with pink decorations. Lu Sicheng, calling the decor an "eyesore," immediately ordered its removal, threatening to blame her if he lost rank. Tong Yao retorted that not all girls like pink. God Ming then stepped in, reminding her that her performance in the upcoming team warm-up competition would determine her future with ZGDX.
