Meteor Garden 2018 Episode 3 Recap
> Meteor Garden 2018 Recaps
Tengtang Jing meticulously applied makeup to Shancai, transforming her appearance to be exceptionally beautiful. Jing then extended an invitation for Shancai to attend her birthday party the following week, an offer that left Shancai deeply flattered by Jing's unexpected kindness. While F4 members discussed Daoming Si's ongoing cold war with Huaze Lei, Feng Meizuo explained that Daoming Si's temper flared and subsided quickly, while Huaze Lei was generally calm and unlikely to hold grudges.
Jing presented Shancai with a small gift, reassuring her that her birthday celebration would be an intimate gathering, unlike typical school events, and encouraged her to bring her friends along. Jing expressed her desire to dress Shancai up to surprise everyone. At Jing's grand party, the atmosphere was lively and boisterous. Daoming Si was observed drinking, his gaze fixed as Jing led Shancai, adorned in a white gown with her hair styled like a princess, into the room.
Her transformation captivated F4, who showered her with compliments, though Daoming Si, despite being visibly stunned, stubbornly refused to acknowledge her beauty. Shancai's attention primarily remained on Huaze Lei, while Daoming Si's never left Shancai. During a party game, the host announced a ten-second blackout where guests could kiss anyone they wished. As the lights dimmed, Shancai was accidentally bumped, causing her to stumble and fall into Daoming Si's arms, leading to an unexpected kiss.
When the lights returned, Daoming Si, attempting to maintain his composure, jokingly accused Shancai of pouncing on him and almost knocking out his teeth. He then teased her, asking if that had been her first kiss. Mortified that her first kiss was with the "annoying pineapple head," Shancai fled the party in anger, leaving Daoming Si secretly delighted.
Back in her room, Shancai was plagued by unsettling dreams, envisioning her wedding to Huaze Lei, only for him to transform into Daoming Si at the altar. In the dream, she refused to marry him, and he retaliated by pushing her into the sea, jolting her awake. The next morning, Shancai was still disoriented and gloomy. On the beach, Qinghe noticed her unusual demeanor. Soon, F4 appeared and began teasing Shancai, mockingly calling her "First Kiss Shancai."
Daoming Si, with a smirk, boasted that Shancai had been "proactive" in offering him her first kiss, claiming she had been waiting for that moment. Shancai attempted to explain to Huaze Lei that the kiss was an accident due to the dark, but he curtly interrupted, stating that her private affairs were "none of his business," further humiliating and disheartening her.
Witnessing Shancai's distress, Qinghe angrily confronted Daoming Si, storming his door and calling him a "thief" and a "loser" for stealing Shancai's first kiss. He challenged Daoming Si to a duel. Daoming Si, after initially mocking Qinghe as an "ugly freak," agreed to a competition, clarifying that the Joker Card he sent implies a bridge game, though Qinghe was determined to compete regardless.
Qinghe proposed the stakes: if he won, Daoming Si would not be allowed to stand next to Shancai; if Daoming Si won, Qinghe would not be allowed to stand next to him. Daoming Si agreed. Qinghe led Daoming Si to his family's small boat for a fishing contest. Daoming Si scoffed at the boat's modest size, to which Qinghe retorted it was "energy conservation." Daoming Si continued to insult Shancai, calling her "rude, hot-tempered, rustic, and stupid."
Qinghe fiercely defended her, recounting a high school incident where Shancai bravely stood up to a teacher who unfairly accused students of stealing class funds. Qinghe, inspired by Shancai's integrity, joined her in protest, and from that day, he vowed to protect her from any harm. Daoming Si dismissed the story as stolen from a movie plot.
Qinghe then tried to assert his closeness to Shancai by mentioning their high "intimacy" as "married" characters in a mobile game, prompting Daoming Si to call him an "idiot." During the fishing, Daoming Si sampled Qinghe's spicy peas and surprisingly found them delicious. Qinghe ultimately won the fishing challenge with a bucket full of cuttlefish, while Daoming Si only caught one.
Despite his loss, Daoming Si later childishly invoked the bet on the beach, telling Qinghe to stay away, to which Qinghe retorted that it was Daoming Si who was standing next to him. Shancai went to Jing's house to return the dress, only to find Jing and Huaze Lei together.
Jing, sensing something different in Huaze Lei's behavior towards Shancai, directly asked him if he liked Shancai, admitting she felt "a little jealous" that he was no longer "exclusive" to her. Huaze Lei, feeling misunderstood by Jing, rejected her notion of Shancai being a match for him. Jing accused him of being "hypocritical" and uncaring about those hurt by his "caprice," declaring she wouldn't be "played" anymore.
Huaze Lei, asserting his true feelings, gently pushed Jing onto a sofa and kissed her, stating, "The one I care about is you." Shancai, witnessing this, quietly departed, trying to convince herself there was "nothing to be sad about," as Jing and Huaze Lei were a perfect match. Despite her efforts, tears flowed as she sat alone on the beach. She remembered Huaze Lei's advice to do a handstand when sad, but her tears continued.
Qinghe and Daoming Si, returning from their fishing trip, discovered her. Qinghe inquired about her red eyes, to which Shancai attributed it to sand. Qinghe recounted his victory over Daoming Si in the fishing challenge, causing Daoming Si to blush when Qinghe pointed out he was thinking about their kiss. Qinghe playfully attacked Daoming Si, and their ensuing scuffle helped pull Shancai back from her melancholic thoughts.
Later that evening, Daoming Si, having roasted the cuttlefish caught by Qinghe, enthusiastically woke up Meizuo and Ximen to share the meal. He even tried to offer some to a sleeping Jing. Meanwhile, Huaze Lei sought out Shancai, asking if she had witnessed his interaction with Jing. Shancai apologized, claiming she had merely been returning the dress, and tentatively asked if he disliked her.
Huaze Lei, entering a room with a piano, assured her that she was "an important, very important friend," questioning, "If I hate you, would I save you over and over again?" He then began playing the piano. Encouraged by Meizuo and Ximen, Daoming Si took some grilled cuttlefish to Huaze Lei, initiating a reconciliation between them. With the holiday over, it was back to school.
The news of Shancai and Daoming Si's kiss had spread throughout the campus, making Shancai an outcast. As she searched for her missing sneakers, Daoming Si appeared, proudly wearing them himself, revealing he had ruined them. Shancai, infuriated by his childish behavior, stormed off. Daoming Si, amused by her reaction, confessed to Meizuo and Ximen that this was merely the "first step of his revenge plan" – to lure Shancai, make her fall in love, and then cruelly abandon her.
His friends teased him, suggesting he might be the one to fall first, which he vehemently denied. Shancai sought refuge on the rooftop, where she found Huaze Lei sketching on an old blackboard. She correctly guessed he was drawing Jing. Noticing chalk dust in his hair, Shancai gently brushed it away, finding a moment of peace in his presence. Unbeknownst to them, Li Xinhui and other girls from their class secretly filmed their interaction.
They then approached Daoming Si, presenting the video and fabricating stories, claiming Shancai and Huaze Lei had been "secretly meeting on the rooftop for a while" and that Shancai was "fawning over" him, despite his affections for Jing, and two-timing him after their kiss. Enraged, Daoming Si yelled at them to "shut up" and "get away." Later, Shancai invited Li Zhen to Jing's birthday party, and Li Zhen happily accepted, hoping to see celebrities there.
Shancai then realized she had left her notebook on the rooftop and went to retrieve it, only to find Daoming Si waiting there. Having seen the video and heard the girls' gossip, Daoming Si misinterpreted Shancai's presence on the rooftop as confirmation of the rumors, believing she was playing him. He violently pushed her against a wall, demanding to know why she dared to "play" him. Shancai, confused by his sudden rage and erratic behavior, called him "crazy."
When she tried to flee, he angrily slammed his hand against the wall, terrifying her. She stumbled and fell, desperately pleading with him to stop as he advanced towards her. Daoming Si grabbed her, declaring, "It's all your fault," and attempted to forcibly kiss her. However, Shancai's tearful pleas seemed to break through his anger. He released her, holding her close, and gently promised, "I won't hurt you again."
Shancai later returned home, her parents noticing blood on her arm, though she claimed it was just from a fall. Her father, concerned, offered to confront anyone who had bullied her, but her mother dismissed it as Shancai's usual "bitter face." Meanwhile, Meizuo questioned Daoming Si about his injured hand, speculating if he had hit Shancai or a wall, concluding he likely hit both.
