First Love Episode 21 Recap
> First Love Recap
Lu Wanwan arrived at the airport to see Ren Chu off, a moment filled with reluctance to part. Ren Chu encouraged her to eat more and asked her to call and video call him daily, admitting he enjoyed being disturbed by her. Lu Wanwan then gave him handmade chocolates, explaining that there were 30 pieces, one for each day, and that they would reunite once he finished them all.
They promised to watch the sunrise and sunset together and gaze at the starry sky upon his return. Before Ren Chu left, he affectionately told her to take care of herself and to lean on Fan Yi for any tough tasks. Lu Wanwan playfully responded, "I love you. I said it first." After Ren Chu departed, Lu Wanwan headed to the hospital for her orthopedics internship.
She met Dr. Zhang, introducing herself as a sophomore from Qingyao University's clinical department, having transferred from General Surgery. Dr. Zhang acknowledged her prior rotations in internal medicine and pneumology, advising her to find a specific area of medicine to specialize in for her future. Later, Lu Wanwan visited Wang Yuyang, bringing him nutritious carrot cake and spinach cookies.
She found him completely absorbed in a game, convinced that his support player, whose gaming ID was "I'm super cute," was falling for him because she protected him throughout several rounds and even defended him when he made mistakes. Lu Wanwan, however, was skeptical, questioning if the player might be male, arguing that female players typically wouldn't use such a "cringey name" or casually call someone "brother."
Meanwhile, Fan Yi met Qiao Qiao for a meal, meticulously taking care of her. He then presented her with a brand-name bag, explaining that he wanted to add a sense of ritual to their relationship since he hadn't given her a gift since they officially started dating. Qiao Qiao was touched but, recognizing the expensive brand, immediately suspected it might be a knockoff given Fan Yi had just started working.
Despite her doubts, she accepted it gracefully, deciding to pretend she didn't know if it was fake, valuing his good intentions. Soon after, Fan Yi rushed to find Lu Wanwan with Qiao Qiao, bearing bad news. He revealed that the school's old complex was scheduled for renovation during the summer vacation, which would lead to a reduction in club venues and an "integration of clubs."
Since Lu Wanwan’s Baking Club had no members and its activity level was below average, it was likely to be on the disbandment list. Qiao Qiao suggested that she and Fan Yi join to boost membership and activity, hoping to save it, but Fan Yi couldn't guarantee it would be enough. That evening, during a video call with Ren Chu, Lu Wanwan shared her predicament.
Ren Chu, calling her his "Girl Out of Oxygen," promised to help her save the club upon his return. Lu Wanwan confessed she was contemplating shutting it down entirely, admitting that while it started as an interest, it consumed too much of her study time. She revealed Dr. Zhang had asked about her future medical direction, and she hadn't even considered it, realizing she had a long way to go academically.
Ren Chu, however, reminded her that her strong hands-on ability was cultivated through baking, a significant advantage she should recognize. Lu Wanwan agreed to think it over, asserting she couldn't rely on him for everything. Ren Chu then offered her his latest research project: an AI companion named "Xiao Huo," designed to chat with her and solve problems when he couldn't be by her side. Lu Wanwan found it interesting, and Ren Chu sent her the program.
Before hanging up, as his seniors were calling him, Ren Chu asked for a kiss, though Lu Wanwan declined. Later, Lu Wanwan attempted to use Xiao Huo, asking it to set an alarm for her class and confiding in it about her dilemma between her beloved studies and her passion for baking. Xiao Huo suggested finding "what you really want to do in life."
She also tried to share Xiao Huo with her dormmates, but the application consistently refused to install for them. Lu Wanwan even tried telling Xiao Huo she missed her boyfriend, only to realize an AI couldn't understand love. The next morning, a sudden notification from her teacher about a class adjustment meant she had no classes in the afternoon. Upon confirming this with her class monitor, her dormmates immediately teased her, concluding she was "definitely going to meet her boyfriend."
Meanwhile, Meng Xibai approached Ren Chu for advice, having bought a mobile phone specifically to text Wang Xinyu for a date. He sought guidance on how to phrase his invitation appropriately. Ren Chu, claiming to have "carefully studied the instructional materials," advised Meng Xibai to be mindful of women's emotions, care about their mood, and give them space to think, summarizing it as appearing "immediately when you should" and staying away "when you shouldn't."
He called this the "sense of space." However, Ren Chu was surprised to learn that Meng Xibai hadn't even added Wang Xinyu on WeChat yet, calling his problem "too elementary" compared to the "advanced" advice he had just given. He then offered to send Wang Xinyu's WeChat ID to Meng Xibai. Meng Xibai immediately tried to add her, but Wang Xinyu, knowing he didn't use phones or WeChat, thought it was a scammer trying to impersonate him.
She scoffed, declaring she'd be a "pig" to add such a person. Following her newfound free time, Lu Wanwan decided to surprise Ren Chu. She messaged him that she had ordered food for him and asked him to come pick it up downstairs at the lab. When Ren Chu arrived, he found the "delivery" on the floor and Lu Wanwan waiting behind it, exclaiming "Surprise!"
Ren Chu was overjoyed, admitting how much he missed her and that he was eating her chocolates daily. A passing professor commented on the enviable love of young people, making Lu Wanwan worry about Ren Chu's colleagues' perceptions, but Ren Chu assured her they were friendly. He then invited her to dinner with his seniors.
During the meal, Ren Chu’s seniors warmly welcomed Lu Wanwan, discussing their own clear future plans, with one planning to continue studying and another aiming to start a business. Lu Wanwan was struck by how amazing they all seemed, noting their definite life paths and Ren Chu's ability to lead his own life. Ren Chu affirmed that Lu Wanwan was also incredibly capable and would become a "great doctor who can bake."
Lu Wanwan, however, voiced her concern about balancing her passions, fearing she might neither become a pastry chef nor a doctor. Ren Chu then suggested that perhaps her two passions could be combined, reminding her of her past professional competition topic related to food. This sparked an idea in Lu Wanwan: since Wang Yuyang and Ren Chu’s seniors often praised her food as nutritious and delicious, she wondered if she could become a nutritionist.
She then realized their hospital had a "nutritional medicine" department, which she could potentially make her research direction, thereby not having to give up making desserts. Ren Chu beamed, confirming he knew she would figure it out. Ren Chu then led Lu Wanwan to the school rooftop. Although they missed the sunrise and sunset, he offered to look up at the starry sky together, bringing out a telescope.
He patiently taught her how to use it, explaining he learned when he once invited her to watch a meteor shower. Through the telescope, Lu Wanwan was amazed to see a golden ring, which Ren Chu identified as Saturn's rings—the brightest group of rings in the solar system. Overwhelmed by the sight, Lu Wanwan asked why he had brought her there. Ren Chu confessed, "Because I want to be like the rings of Saturn. Always around you. Always guarding you."
Despite his previous attempts, Meng Xibai still hadn't managed to add Wang Xinyu on WeChat. He speculated that her phone might be out of credit. Convinced it was the latter, he recharged 100 Yuan to her account and sent a message: "I am Meng Xibai. I recharged for you. You ran out of credit. Add me." Wang Xinyu received the recharge notification and accepted his friend request, thinking it indeed was a credit issue.
Immediately after, she initiated a video call, which Meng Xibai mistakenly thought was a regular phone call. In the call, Wang Xinyu sternly accused him of being a "low-level scammer," said the top-up was now his "tuition fee," and threatened to call the police if he ever bothered her again. She then promptly blocked him, leaving Meng Xibai in disbelief. Lu Wanwan successfully restructured her Baking Club into the Nutrition Society, attracting many new members from various departments and clubs.
Her friends congratulated her, noting that the club was now safe. While Lu Wanwan began explaining the Nutrition Society, Fan Yi arrived. He presented Qiao Qiao with a handmade wool bear, depicting her "heroic move" when she saved him from a rascal on the bus. Qiao Qiao loved the thoughtful gift. Fan Yi then noticed Qiao Qiao wasn't using the branded bag he had given her earlier.
Qiao Qiao admitted she loved it but felt it was too "high profile" for a student. Fan Yi conceded it was his mistake, mentioning that when he bought it at the formal counter, the salesperson had only told him it was the "best-selling" model. Qiao Qiao then realized it was a genuine bag and questioned how he afforded it.
Fan Yi confessed that his family had recently had a house demolished, and his parents, knowing he was in a relationship, had given him extra pocket money. He then abruptly excused himself. Meng Xibai found Wang Xinyu at the dance studio. She immediately confronted him, asking if he was involved in any irregular loans, explaining that someone had been impersonating him to add her on WeChat, and "that idiot even paid for my phone bill."
Meng Xibai, with a solemn expression, then revealed that "that idiot was me," explaining that he bought the phone and used WeChat all because of her. He then pulled out a handwritten "WeChat application" and publicly read it aloud. In the letter, he formally requested to add her as a WeChat friend to "enhance the relationship" and "start anew," promising to "reply in seconds" and "abide by your charter," signing it "your ex-boyfriend, Meng Xibai."
Wang Xinyu, secretly pleased by his earnest declaration, though maintaining a composed exterior, simply replied, "That's quite sincere. I got it." When Meng Xibai asked if she would still ignore him, she nonchalantly said it was "not a big deal" and that she was "used to it." Later, Ren Chu surprised Lu Wanwan in person with a bouquet of flowers to congratulate her on reorganizing her club.
He explained he had finished his work on the train because he "wanted to see her." Shortly after, his seniors called to congratulate Lu Wanwan on her new Nutrition Society. One of them accidentally let slip that it was "not in vain that Ren Chu chats with you until late at night." Lu Wanwan, surprised, questioned this, stating she had been chatting with "AI Xiao Huo."
The senior tried to cover up, but Ren Chu confessed that while they did develop an AI, he had sent her an "unfinished version" that could be "human-operated." When Lu Wanwan accused him of lying, Ren Chu denied it was intentional, explaining he was worried about her and wanted to be her "exclusive artificial intelligence." Lu Wanwan then questioned him about the many selfies she had seen through Xiao Huo, to which Ren Chu promised to take more pictures in the future.
