Summit of Our Youth Episode 18 Recap
> Summit of Our Youth Recap
Lin Zhihua, still recovering in the hospital, inquired about the data breach. Gu Xuejiao reassured him that the B&C Motors assailants only damaged their physical computers, as all data had been securely uploaded to the cloud. She also revealed that Ms. Zheng from B&C Motors, who had previously made unwanted advances toward Lin Zhihua, was Lin Jiadong's aunt.
Lin Zhihua questioned why Gu Xuejiao continued to keep Lin Jiadong on the team given this connection, but Gu Xuejiao explained that while Lin Jiadong was often indecisive and easily manipulated, she didn't believe he was directly involved in the attack. She added that the incident, rather than hindering them, had surprisingly strengthened their team's cohesion and spirit. Gu Xuejiao had prepared a meal for Lin Zhihua, but he playfully rejected several dishes, citing health concerns or bad omens.
Gu Xuejiao then offered him a balanced meal she had personally cooked, which he praised. As they leaned in for a kiss, a female student in the adjacent bed playfully interrupted, reminding them they were in a public hospital room and teasing them about their obvious affection. Gu Xuejiao, in turn, playfully chided the student for not focusing on her homework, even offering to get her exam prep books.
Realizing the mounting pressure of the upcoming competition and her backlog of classwork, Gu Xuejiao decided it was time to return to campus. Their romantic moment was again playfully interrupted by the student, prompting Gu Xuejiao to finally make her departure. Meanwhile, Lin Zhihua discreetly slipped out of his hospital room and headed to B&C Motors. Despite the staff's attempts to stop him, he barged into a meeting where Ms. Zheng was present.
Without a word, he projected security footage from the previous night's incident onto the conference room screen. Ms. Zheng's face immediately fell, and she ordered her assistant to shut off the projector. Lin Zhihua calmly warned her that if B&C Motors continued their underhanded tactics, the video would be released across all major social media platforms. He implied that while Ms. Zheng might disregard her own reputation, B&C Motors as a company would certainly care about the public backlash.
Back in his hospital room, Lin Zhihua, concerned the young patient in the next bed might report his unauthorized outing, offered to help him with his homework. The boy, however, quickly used his phone to find the answers online. Lin Zhihua then noticed a book on the boy's table, disguised with a different cover, which turned out to be "Messi's Legendary Journey."
He jokingly threatened to tell the boy's mother, but then proposed a deal: if the boy kept his secret, Lin Zhihua would reveal when Messi would win his next title. To establish credibility, Lin Zhihua accurately predicted the result of an upcoming World Cup qualifier match, a revelation that astonished the young fan, solidifying their unlikely agreement.
With the competition drawing near, Gu Xuejiao and her team enthusiastically gathered in the lab, eager to watch the World Cup qualifiers after their internal practice match. Their excitement quickly turned to dismay when Lin Zhihua informed them their firewall source code had been leaked. Upon checking her computer, Gu Xuejiao confirmed the breach, suspecting that lingering data from their previously damaged computers had been recovered and exploited. Lin Jiadong's team then arrived, openly mocking and challenging them.
Gu Xuejiao confronted Lin Jiadong about the leak, though he denied involvement. Realizing the severity of the situation, Lin Zhihua quickly contacted Lin Zhiyue, asking her to investigate other teams' collaboration details with B&C Motors. He then proposed new competition rules to Professor Tan, hinting at a "mystery guest judge" to oversee the competition. Before the competition began, Lin Zhihua, acting as Professor Tan's assistant, announced the revised rules.
Due to an "unforeseen circumstance" affecting Gu Xuejiao's team, both teams' firewalls would be disabled. The new challenge involved infiltrating a specific computer within the university's local area network, using hundreds of idle classroom PCs, which were currently being used for a "Citizenship & Conduct Assessment," as a distributed server matrix. Shortly after the challenge began, Lin Jiadong's team successfully breached Professor Tan's computer.
Just as Professor Tan was about to declare Lin Jiadong's team the winner, Gu Xuejiao's team executed a brilliant counter-attack, projecting a live World Cup football match video onto every computer screen in Capital University's classrooms. Gu Xuejiao appeared on screen and explained that while Lin Jiadong's team had precisely targeted one computer, her team had exploited a vulnerability he created to compromise all computers in the entire building.
The result, with students across campus cheering for the football game, clearly demonstrated Gu Xuejiao's decisive victory. After the competition, Lin Zhihua went to the teaching building to disable the live feed, where Gu Xuejiao joined him. They shared a sweet embrace and nearly kissed, but Lin Zhihua accidentally triggered a video feed, inadvertently broadcasting their private moment to the entire laboratory, much to the amusement of their teammates who quickly began recording.
Later, at Lin Zhihua's home, they celebrated by eating luosifen. Lin Zhihua, initially put off by the strong smell, eventually tried the dish, and Gu Xuejiao playfully fed him. As they leaned in for another kiss, a visibly troubled Gao Rui suddenly appeared in the living room in his pajamas, explaining he was staying for a few days as he was feeling "emo." While Lin Zhihua and Gu Xuejiao quietly discussed Gao Rui's mood, Lin Zhiyue arrived at the door.
Gao Rui, flustered, opened the door and awkwardly tried to discuss an earring he had found and offer Lin Zhiyue his new phone number, before quickly retreating to his bedroom. Lin Zhiyue then handed Lin Zhihua the list he had asked her to investigate, containing information about other teams' dealings with B&C Motors, without explaining its contents to Gu Xuejiao. As they talked, Gao Rui reappeared, now dressed in a suit.
Recognizing Gao Rui's obvious romantic intentions towards Lin Zhiyue, Lin Zhihua and Gu Xuejiao quickly devised a plan, feigning a need for soy sauce and sending Lin Zhiyue and Gao Rui out together to buy it. On the way to buy soy sauce, Lin Zhiyue was busy with several business calls. After she finished, Gao Rui nervously brought up "that night," expressing his guilt and offering to take responsibility for her.
Lin Zhiyue finally understood his misconception and clarified that nothing intimate had transpired between them. She explained that he was simply too drunk, so she had taken him to a hotel for his safety, and the money she left was purely for his cab fare home, not "hush money" as he had assumed. She also stated that as Lin Zhihua's sister, she felt a responsibility to look out for him after he had been previously injured due to Lin Zhihua.
Gao Rui, thoroughly embarrassed by his misunderstanding, requested to be dropped off at the next intersection. Before exiting the car, he returned an earring to Lin Zhiyue. Watching his hasty and flustered departure, Lin Zhiyue could not help but smile and laugh to herself. Sun Tiantian invited Gu Xuejiao to dinner to celebrate their advancement to the finals of the National College Intelligent Security Competition.
The official announcement had confirmed the finalists: Capital University, led by Gu Xuejiao, and UFE, which included Zhou Shiyun. Sun Tiantian expressed her desire to attend the final but admitted her boba shop was too busy. While chatting, Sun Tiantian teased Gu Xuejiao, predicting a dramatic showdown given their high school rivalry, but Gu Xuejiao dismissed the notion, emphasizing her team's "powerhouse" status compared to UFE's "dark horse" and her captaincy over Zhou Shiyun's role as a team member.
Nevertheless, Gu Xuejiao acknowledged Zhou Shiyun's impressive performance in reaching the finals and stressed the importance of not underestimating her. While Gu Xuejiao went to the front counter to get more beer, she encountered Gu Mingze and Zhou Shiyun. Gu Mingze remarked that the final's challenges were rumored to be exceptionally difficult, but Gu Xuejiao confidently asserted they would overcome any obstacle.
Zhou Shiyun praised Gu Xuejiao's team for their clear commands and seamless teamwork, stating she was glad to face them in the final but made it clear that despite their past, she would not hold back. Gu Xuejiao confidently reciprocated the sentiment. After Gu Mingze and Zhou Shiyun sat down, Zhou Shiyun, with a hint of underlying resentment towards Gu Xuejiao, directly asked Gu Mingze whom he would support in the final.
Gu Mingze, caught between his sister Gu Xuejiao and Zhou Shiyun, hesitated to choose a side. He initially claimed he would cheer for both, and when pressed by Zhou Shiyun to pick only one, he faltered before saying he would support her. To further avoid the awkwardness of the situation, Gu Mingze feigned a prior engagement on the day of the final, stating he would be unable to attend the competition.
The long-awaited final competition finally arrived, featuring intelligent cars provided by B&C Motors. Initially, Gu Xuejiao's team established a commanding lead. However, Zhao Feifei on UFE's team soon detected a critical anomaly: UFE's command injection speed was inexplicably outpacing their firewall's processing capabilities. Gu Xuejiao's team quickly panicked as their data became sluggish. Lin Zhihua, observing from the sidelines, promptly deduced that the remote control signal was the root of the problem.
Shortly after, Lin Jiadong sent diagnostic logs, confirming that over fifty percent of their main commands were being lost due to a hardware issue, which appeared to be with the host-provided equipment. When Lin Zhihua confronted the organizers, they refused to allow any hardware replacements mid-match, stating that teams were responsible for resolving their own technical difficulties.
Thinking quickly, Lin Zhihua instructed Lin Jiadong to find an optimal external location to act as an auxiliary support for Gu Xuejiao's team's operations. By rigging a makeshift signal booster, Gu Xuejiao's team managed to stabilize their connection and regain control. With the signal issue resolved, Capital University rapidly reclaimed its dominant position in the competition, quickly turning the tide in their favor.
