Reset Episode 8 Recap
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Old Jiao and his friends gathered for a meal, lamenting their struggles to find stable work due to their limited education. One of the friends was preparing to return to his hometown. Old Jiao, whose daughter Jiao Jiao was nearing her high school entrance exams, expressed his deep concern about earning enough for her tuition and living expenses.
He confided that he couldn't go back home yet, as Jiao Jiao was unaware that the construction site where he worked had been shut down, and he didn't want to distract her from her studies. A friend inquired if Old Jiao was still residing in the garage, noting the impending summer heat and lack of windows or running water. Old Jiao confirmed he only used it for sleep.
Another friend then proposed that Old Jiao join him and his nephew in delivering take-out in the older district, highlighting the high demand from young people. Old Jiao hesitated, citing his lack of formal education and poor communication skills. However, his friend assured him that the job simply required running errands and knowing the routes, emphasizing that endurance was key. He also mentioned that a second-hand electric scooter, costing around 700 to 800 yuan, would be necessary.
Later, a friend brought up Old Jiao’s Good Samaritan Award, speculating he had received 20,000 yuan. Old Jiao quickly refuted this, stating he lived day-to-day and dared not spend a single extra penny. Subsequently, Old Jiao’s landlord approached him, explaining that the Neighborhood Committee had issued a directive prohibiting the rental of garages.
He urgently informed Old Jiao that inspectors, including the Fire Department, were scheduled to conduct checks that very day, and severe fines would be imposed if residents were discovered. The landlord insisted Old Jiao pack up and move out immediately. Old Jiao offered his meager savings, pleading for two more days to secure alternative accommodation.
The landlord, however, explained that the money only covered the previous month's rent, and while he would waive the current week’s rent, Old Jiao had to leave at once due to the imminent inspection. Acknowledging the hardships they both faced, the landlord returned some of Old Jiao’s money.
As Old Jiao silently gathered his few belongings, including Jiao Jiao's school certificates, the landlord offered him an old travel bag, explaining that his wife had forgotten to unpack it after a trip. Inside the bag, Old Jiao discovered some sanitary pads. Soon after, Jiao Jiao called Old Jiao, who earnestly urged her to concentrate on her studies. He promised to work diligently to provide for her, including items like pads and face wash.
Jiao Jiao, however, expressed her desire to drop out of school to find work, hoping that together they could pay off their family’s debts. Old Jiao grew agitated, firmly instructing her not to mention the debt and insisting she attend school. Jiao Jiao abruptly ended the call. Sighing, Old Jiao set off for the bus stop, planning to seek help from a co-worker across the river.
Along the way, he noticed the woman with the pressure cooker struggling to ascend the stairs to the station. Inside the bus, Li Shiqing and Xiao Heyun studied the two remaining suspicious passengers. They found it peculiar that these individuals had consistently appeared indifferent to unfolding events, prompting Li Shiqing to wonder if they were accomplices. Xiao Heyun, however, found this unlikely, given they weren't sitting together.
Concluding that inspecting the suitcase would be too difficult, they decided to focus their attention on the woman carrying the plastic bag. Li Shiqing approached her, feigning menstruation and asking if she had any sanitary pads. The woman coldly denied having any. Li Shiqing then questioned the woman about the pot she was carrying and its contents, remarking on its apparent weight. The woman simply replied, "Meat."
Li Shiqing expressed surprise at the idea of carrying stewed meat in a pressure cooker. Xiao Heyun, however, explained that his own family often transported meat in pots and that his mother used to bring him pots of meat during his university days, deeming it quite normal. He also noted the woman's lack of reaction when Li Shiqing had gestured towards her bag, reinforcing his belief that she was not the suspect.
With the woman seemingly cleared of suspicion, Li Shiqing and Xiao Heyun concluded that Old Jiao was the most likely bomb carrier. Xiao Heyun proposed a risky strategy: at the next bus stop, they would seize the moment to throw Old Jiao's suitcase out of the bus. Li Shiqing voiced her apprehension about making another mistake, but Xiao Heyun reminded her that if they failed, the next loop would likely reset even earlier, affording them less time to act.
As the bus neared Yanjiang East Road, Old Jiao unexpectedly opened his suitcase. Li Shiqing and Xiao Heyun watched with bated breath as Old Jiao retrieved some sanitary pads and offered them to Li Shiqing. Realizing their misjudgment, Xiao Heyun quickly shoved Li Shiqing out the back door, urging her to run, while he sprinted towards the woman with the pressure cooker.
As he reached her, the woman calmly pulled the top knob of the pressure cooker, and the bus violently exploded once more. In the subsequent loop, Li Shiqing jolted awake to the familiar sound of a coin dropping into the fare box. She immediately noticed that the woman with the pressure cooker had already boarded the bus. This time, crucially, the loop’s starting time had not advanced.
Xiao Heyun, however, was in a profound sleep, unresponsive to Li Shiqing’s desperate attempts to rouse him. Other passengers came to assist, observing Xiao Heyun's faint breathing. Eventually, Xiao Heyun stirred, explaining he had suffered from sleep paralysis; he could hear their voices but was unable to move. They realized that once the bomb was on the bus, the loop’s starting time would no longer move back.
Li Shiqing contemplated the gravity of their situation, speculating that if the time was no longer advancing, the loop might be concluding, making this their final chance to escape. This also meant it was the last opportunity for everyone else on the bus to survive. Grappling with the immense moral dilemma, Li Shiqing questioned whether they should truly abandon the other passengers. She confessed her deep-seated fear of death and her past daydreams of exploiting the loops for personal indulgence.
However, she concluded that saving everyone on the bus represented the most "over-the-top" and "self-liberating" act she could conceive, explaining that these passengers were no longer mere strangers to her. She apologized to Xiao Heyun and declared her resolute decision to remain on the bus. As the bus pulled into Yanjiang East Road, Xiao Heyun attempted to pull Li Shiqing off, but she resisted.
Li Shiqing quickly asked the driver to momentarily delay departure, fabricating a story about having dropped a USB drive, and began searching near the woman with the pressure cooker. Seizing an opportunity, Xiao Heyun lunged and firmly pinned the woman's bag, aiming to prevent her from detonating the bomb. Unexpectedly, the woman produced a knife and stabbed Xiao Heyun. As Li Shiqing rushed to his aid, the woman violently pulled her back and stabbed her in the neck.
Xiao Heyun desperately cried out for the other passengers to intervene, but they remained frozen in terror. The precious opportunity slipped away, and the bus exploded once more. Li Shiqing awakened in the next loop, overcome by the chilling memory of her brutal death, tears streaming down her face. Xiao Heyun gently embraced her, assuring her that the ordeal was over.
He took her hand, his decision firm: they would get off at the next stop and make no further attempts to intervene. As the bus reached Yanjiang East Road, Xiao Heyun guided Li Shiqing towards the exit. However, at the very last moment, Li Shiqing made an impulsive decision to try one more time. She turned back and rushed to grab the pressure cooker. Xiao Heyun immediately lunged to intercept the woman, who once again brandished her knife.
A frantic struggle ensued, culminating in Xiao Heyun stabbing the woman in the abdomen. The woman collapsed, horrifying the other passengers. Xiao Heyun, covered in blood, pulled Li Shiqing off the bus. Yet, even as they exited, the gravely injured woman, with her last ounce of strength, managed to pull the knob, and the bus exploded.
