Pretty Man Episode 17 Recap
> Pretty Man Recap
As the filming of "Nation's Hubby" continued, Lu Jinnian and Qiao Anhao prepared for a kissing scene. Although it was initially planned as a fake kiss, Lu Jinnian appeared visibly nervous, causing multiple retakes. The director, initially instructing them on aesthetics and maintaining the fake kiss, grew frustrated. During one attempt, the director pointed out that the kiss was too fake and that Lu Jinnian was blocking his face with his finger.
One crew member remarked that Lu Jinnian, who usually nailed fake kisses on the first try, was acting abnormally, possibly "blown away by Qiao Anhao's incredible acting." Another suggested they should just kiss for real. Finally, Qiao Anhao herself proposed a real kiss, and the director agreed. Lu Jinnian then embraced Qiao Anhao and kissed her, and to everyone's surprise, the scene was completed perfectly in a single take.
After the successful take, Lu Jinnian sat alone in the lounge, smiling to himself. Song Xiangsi quietly entered and immediately noticed his joyful demeanor. She teased him, asking what made him so happy and why he had broken his long-standing rule of fake kissing to give away his "first on-screen kiss." Lu Jinnian claimed it was simply because there were too many NGs, and he felt he had gotten rusty.
Song Xiangsi wasn't convinced, noting that he had also willingly taken on the second male lead role for Qiao Anhao and was acting "really different when it comes to Qiao Anhao." Lu Jinnian dismissed her observations, stating that he never cared about rumors. Shortly after, an assistant informed Lu Jinnian that his "first on-screen kiss" was trending online, with over 100,000 people discussing it in just ten minutes. "
Qiao Anhao and the Nation's Hubby" was also trending, and the video of their kiss was being widely shared. The assistant joked that many of his female fans wouldn't be able to sleep that night. Song Xiangsi then left the room. Meanwhile, Qiao Anhao's assistant, Little Rain, excitedly showed Qiao Anhao her phone, exclaiming that Qiao Anhao had become famous, gaining 200,000 new followers in ten minutes, more than she had acquired in the entire previous year.
However, Qiao Anhao pointed out that many of them were anti-fans, leaving harsh comments such as "I feel sorry for Lu Jinnian, he had to kiss such an ugly mouth," and "Qiao Anhao, you wench. You stole the first on-screen kiss of my Mr. Perfect. We're irreconcilable enemies." Qiao Anhao calmly dismissed the negativity, stating that it was normal for netizens to express their feelings and that some people don't even get the chance to be publicly disliked.
Elsewhere, Lin Shiyi, observing Qiao Anhao's rapidly increasing popularity, became enraged. She watched as staff prepared a swing for an upcoming scene and secretly used a small knife to cut the swing's ropes, plotting to harm Qiao Anhao. Qiao Anyi, Qiao Anhao's brother, also saw the news of Lu Jinnian and Qiao Anhao's kiss. Furious, he called Lu Jinnian, demanding that he come out to discuss "morality and how you shouldn't covet your friend's wife."
Lu Jinnian, after initially trying to diffuse the situation by saying Qiao Anyi misunderstood, agreed to confront him, rejecting Shen Mingzhe's offer to handle the "weakling" to avoid causing a scene. Qiao Anyi, enraged, accused Lu Jinnian of knowing that his sister was married to Jia Mu and punched him, declaring he would teach Lu Jinnian a lesson on behalf of Jia Mu.
Qiao Anhao, alerted by someone about her brother's commotion, rushed over and tried to intervene, explaining it was just acting. Unheeding, Qiao Anyi continued his attack, verbally insulting Lu Jinnian as a "bastard" and angrily demanding why Jia Mu hadn't woken up yet. Qiao Anhao fiercely reprimanded her brother for bringing up Lu Jinnian's painful past and apologized to Lu Jinnian, asserting that it wasn't his fault.
Lu Jinnian, however, simply stated that Qiao Anyi had said nothing wrong, that he was indeed a bastard, and that Qiao Anhao didn't need to comfort him. Qiao Anhao reassured him that to her, he would always be "just you," regardless of what others called him. Observing this intense exchange, Song Xiangsi finally confirmed her suspicions: Jia Mu was still in a coma. Later, during the continued filming, Lin Shiyi pushed Qiao Anhao on the swing.
True to Lin Shiyi's malicious plan, the compromised ropes snapped, sending Qiao Anhao flying towards a cluster of hard stones. In a split second, Lu Jinnian lunged forward, using his own back to cushion Qiao Anhao's fall, preventing her from serious injury. He suffered a severe back injury but, biting back his pain, insisted on continuing to film to avoid affecting the schedule.
He merely requested anti-inflammatory medication, gauze, and safflower oil to dress his wound, refusing to go to the hospital. Qiao Anhao's assistant tearfully commented that Qiao Anhao didn't know how much Lu Jinnian did for her. Qiao Anhao, touched and bewildered by his sacrifice, asked Lu Jinnian why he saved her. He coldly replied that he simply didn't want the filming schedule to be affected.
This left Qiao Anhao deeply confused by his hot and cold demeanor, wondering what he truly thought. At this time, Producer Sun approached Qiao Anhao, offering her a major endorsement opportunity with a European cosmetics company due to her recent rise in popularity. Qiao Anhao politely declined, stating her desire to focus solely on the current drama, and emphasizing that the opportunity was important to her. Meanwhile, Song Xiangsi continued her investigation into Jia Mu's condition, discreetly following Qiao Anyi.
Qiao Anyi, however, quickly noticed her. After some initial confusion where he mistook her for a robber, Song Xiangsi directly asked him about Xu Jia Mu. Qiao Anyi was astonished to learn that Song Xiangsi and Jia Mu were once lovers and realized that she was "the woman in Jia Mu's heart." He then showed her a necklace, asking if it was hers. Recognizing it, Song Xiangsi was deeply moved that Jia Mu had kept it all these years.
She explained that she knew Jia Mu was married and didn't want to destroy his marriage but desperately needed to know what had happened to him. Qiao Anyi then took her to Jia Mu. Upon seeing him in a coma, Song Xiangsi's heart broke. Qiao Anyi explained that Jia Mu's mother, Auntie Han, had fabricated the news of his recovery to stabilize the company, and the doctors believed he might never wake up.
Overwhelmed with guilt and sorrow, Song Xiangsi cried, apologizing to Jia Mu for their past quarrel and expressing her deep regret. She pleaded with Qiao Anyi to allow her to stay and care for Jia Mu until he awoke, promising that once he recovered, she would leave and not disturb his married life. Moved by her sincerity, Qiao Anyi agreed, on the condition that Song Xiangsi would not interfere with Jia Mu's marriage. Song Xiangsi readily promised.
The next morning, Qiao Anhao and Shen Mingzhe discovered that Lu Jinnian was missing, and his phone was turned off. Shen Mingzhe explained that this wasn't the first time Lu Jinnian had disappeared, recalling a previous instance when he won Best Newcomer of the Year. He suspected that Lu Jinnian was hiding because his back wound, sustained while saving Qiao Anhao, had become inflamed. Shen Mingzhe added that Lu Jinnian always avoided hospitals, no matter how badly he was hurt.
Qiao Anhao was distressed, blaming herself for not properly caring for his wound. Realizing the danger of inflammation, they decided to split up and search for him. Qiao Anhao called her brother, Qiao Anyi, for help, emphasizing that Lu Jinnian's disappearance must be kept a secret. Shen Mingzhe also contacted others, but no one had seen him. Qiao Anhao desperately drove around, searching places Lu Jinnian might frequent, but with little luck.
