Cute Bodyguard Episode 21 Recap
> Cute Bodyguard Recap
Following Gu Rong's suggestion to move out and his plan involving the incoming martial arts students, Su Jingjing's mother gently advised her husband that their daughter had grown up and needed to live her own life, a path they couldn't choose for her. She was working on being an open-minded mother and encouraged him to do the same. She vouched for Gu Rong's good character, assuring him that Gu Rong would never let Jingjing be wronged, trusting her own judgment.
She also brought up the practical issue of incoming students, questioning how they would be arranged if Jingjing and Gu Rong didn't move out, emphasizing their responsibility for the students' safety. Jingjing's father agreed with her reasoning, concluding that since their daughter was grown, they should let the young people live as they wished. He then suggested taking a break after a long day.
Jingjing moved her belongings into Gu Rong's house, finding its minimalist style left her unsure where to place her small toys and trinkets. Gu Rong declared that from then on, the house would transform into "Su Jingjing style," promising to see her presence in every corner. He emphasized that she would be the hostess, and he would listen to her.
Delighted, Jingjing envisioned a "super big closet" and excitedly planned to fill every corner of the house with her blind boxes and figures, a suggestion Gu Rong enthusiastically approved. That evening, Jingjing realized she hadn't brought pajamas and asked Gu Rong for a spare set from his closet. She then appeared in his workspace, dressed in one of his shirts, and proposed they work overtime together.
She explained she had no other choice, as his closet only contained suits and shirts. Gu Rong was visibly flustered, grabbing his charging cable with trembling hands. Jingjing found his behavior very odd, but he dismissed it. Noticing his charging cable was too short, she decided to leave his workspace, but Gu Rong called her back to stay.
At work, Xie Te offered Gu Rong a red ginseng drink, something he rarely indulged in, subtly implying it was to help with the supposed new cohabitation with Su Jingjing. He urged Gu Rong to take care of his body. Gu Rong declined the drink, insisting Xie Te share it with Ai Mi. Despite Xie Te’s protests, Gu Rong opened a bottle and made him drink it, offering to buy more if needed.
He then encouraged Xie Te to go find Ai Mi, who was waiting for him. Shortly after, Ai Mi arrived at the Gu Group, bringing homemade ginseng chicken soup for Xie Te. She spotted Jingjing working diligently during lunch break, remarking that she had never seen Jingjing work so hard in their two decades of acquaintance, noting Jingjing was probably the only one working in the entire Gu Group at that hour.
Xie Te and Ai Mi walked together, with Xie Te expressing how wonderful being in a relationship felt, proclaiming himself the happiest man in the Gu Group. Ai Mi subtly hinted at marriage, asking if she'd look even prettier in a wedding dress, to which Xie Te enthusiastically agreed. Ai Mi also playfully suggested she might "take" him if he didn't propose soon, admitting she couldn't directly ask.
Xie Te, however, missed the hint, checked his watch, and abruptly left for a meeting, telling Ai Mi she could go inside and browse dresses herself if she liked. Later, Du Yuchuan announced that Lin Yaozhong had confirmed his cooperation with the Gu Group for the Fanfun Mall's anniversary theme activities. Everyone applauded, and Du Yuchuan personally congratulated Jingjing, confirming her design proposal could now be fully implemented.
To ensure the success of the collaboration, all colleagues involved in the project were required to sign a confidentiality agreement, strictly prohibiting any disclosure of key content before the event began. Meanwhile, some colleagues gossiped about Su Jingjing, noting her ability to be both Mr. Gu’s girlfriend and to get along well with Director Du, attributing her success to being "sociable" and having connections rather than pure capability.
They complained that truly capable people were overlooked while those with connections got ahead. Jingjing was working on the anniversary poster, feeling dissatisfied with its rigid, 2D appearance. Du Yuchuan approached her, questioning why a poster had to be 2D and suggesting she think about breakthroughs in vertical design, advising her that creative bottlenecks were often self-imposed limitations. He encouraged her to consider projection effects for images.
Jingjing grasped his advice, thanking him and promising to revise the design immediately and work through the night to complete it. Du Yuchuan mentioned they could start arranging a small exhibition section the next day and looked forward to her revised poster. The next day, Jingjing was hands-on during the exhibition setup, meticulously arranging chairs and lights and carefully handling the blind boxes. Du Yuchuan observed, reminding her that as a designer, she didn't need to do everything herself.
Jingjing insisted on being involved to ensure everything was perfect and to feel a sense of participation in her own designs. Du Yuchuan gave her final instructions for the entrance area, stressing simplicity and attention to detail. However, when they attempted to display the main poster, it was missing. A colleague explained it was a temporary backup because Jingjing's complex 3D poster had only been completed that afternoon and hadn't been replaced yet.
Du Yuchuan scolded the colleague for such a "stupid mistake." He then told Jingjing, since her design was now complete, to retrieve it from the backup copy on a flash drive on his desk. This act of being sent to retrieve the poster would later make Jingjing the primary suspect in a design leak. Jingjing went to fetch it. Gu Rong accompanied Jingjing during her late-night work, promising to stay by her side no matter what.
Jingjing invited him to work overtime with her. They woke up at 9 AM, surprised by the time. Jingjing playfully accused Gu Rong of turning off her alarm and demanded he take responsibility for her. Gu Rong responded with affection, asking who else would be responsible for her if not him. Their moment was interrupted when Gu Rong's subordinates arrived, having been unable to reach him, and awkwardly tried to pretend they hadn't seen him there.
Jingjing wondered why Gu Rong didn't explain the situation to them, but Gu Rong simply dismissed it, saying there was nothing to explain as they lived together. Suddenly, Xie Te burst in with alarming news. He showed Gu Rong promotional materials for the Dimon Group's mall theme exhibition, which were now widely spread. More critically, their themed dolls and the secret figure of blind boxes designed by Lin Yaozhong for Fanfun Mall's anniversary were almost identical.
Gu Rong immediately instructed Chief He to summon all directors for a meeting and to collect all promotional materials from Dimon. He also told Liu to gather all project staff in the conference room and asked Director Du to prepare a backup proposal for the meeting. Gu Rong reassured Jingjing that everything would be resolved. During the meeting, the directors expressed concern over Dimon’s swift actions, noting that some of their regular blind boxes were already in mall machines.
They discussed the strict measures taken to protect Lin Yaozhong’s design, which had been kept in Director Du’s office since its air shipment from Singapore. They demanded to know who had accessed Director Du's office and requested the surveillance footage. The footage revealed only Jingjing entering Director Du’s office at the critical time. The directors confronted Jingjing, who admitted to being there but only to retrieve a digital copy of the poster.
They accused her of denial despite clear evidence, stating her actions had offended Lin Yaozhong and severely impacted the Gu Group. They demanded a public apology from Jingjing to reassure consumers and prevent a drop in Gu Group’s share price. Jingjing acknowledged their suspicions but insisted the immediate priority was to find the truth, refusing to admit to something she hadn't done.
Gu Rong defended her, promising to find stronger evidence rather than letting them unfairly blame a "little girl" without proof. He also asserted that if someone had to take responsibility, it would be him, as he was the one who sent Jingjing to Director Du's office. He maintained that a single surveillance footage didn't prove anything. A director reminded Gu Rong that as CEO, his priority was the company's best interest.
Gu Rong firmly stated that as CEO, he could not jump to conclusions and affirmed that the Fanfun anniversary would proceed as planned, as Gu Group always had a contingency plan. Soon after, Xie Te reported that Senior Gu, Gu Rong's grandfather, had suddenly fainted. Gu Rong immediately went to his grandfather's side. His grandfather, upon waking, dismissed concerns about going to the hospital, claiming it was just high blood pressure and that he knew his own body best.
He then advised Gu Rong that the incident with Dimon was a "blessing in disguise," indicating someone had malicious intent from the start. He urged Gu Rong to use this opportunity to thoroughly uncover the mole within the company, a sentiment Gu Rong agreed with. His grandfather then inquired if the "old foxes" on the board had targeted Jingjing. Gu Rong reassured him that Jingjing was stronger than they imagined and that he would always stand by her.
His grandfather then reminded Gu Rong that his backup plan was paramount. Jingjing showed Gu Rong the last-minute changes she had made to the anniversary event's alternate proposal, hoping to mitigate some of Gu Group's losses. Gu Rong approved, noting her adjustments to the poster design, content, and immersive section experience, which would not require a massive overhaul, allowing for a simple blind box treasure hunt. She also mentioned having a general idea for a new blind box image.
Gu Rong reassured her about his grandfather's recovery and promised to handle the company's issues, vowing to uncover who leaked the designs to Dimon. Later, Gu Rong asked Xie Te about Dimon. Xie Te reported that Dimon claimed their product had been in production for a month and threatened legal action if Gu Group continued to interfere.
Gu Rong noted Dimon's audacity in "turning the facts upside down," pointing out that their designs were an exact match to Lin Yaozhong's, far too precise to be a coincidence. Xie Te confirmed that Dimon's print shop indeed started printing their packaging a month ago, specifically the day after Gu Group signed their contract with Lin Yaozhong and finalized the design dimensions. This confirmed Gu Rong's suspicion that there was indeed a mole within the company.
Gu Rong held a meeting with Du Yuchuan and Xie Te, outlining two immediate priorities: suppressing the news of the design leak and identifying how the designs reached Dimon. Du Yuchuan offered to take responsibility as the Design Department Director, but Gu Rong dismissed it as not his fault, though he acknowledged Du Yuchuan's management responsibility, stating it wasn't the time to discuss it.
Du Yuchuan explained that all designs were handled personally by the Design Department and Lin Yaozhong, and everyone had signed strict confidentiality agreements, making a leak unlikely unless someone was tempted by "greater benefits." He revealed that Zhang Ting was responsible for the receipt and delivery of the design drafts and liaising with the print shop, making her the prime suspect.
Jingjing, present at the meeting, confirmed Zhang Ting had sent her to Du Yuchuan's office for the USB, but she didn't believe this proved Zhang Ting colluded with Dimon, given her knowledge of Zhang Ting. Du Yuchuan also expressed his disbelief, citing Zhang Ting's excellent two-year track record. Gu Rong requested all of Zhang Ting's hiring information, and Du Yuchuan agreed to provide it.
As they prepared to leave, Jingjing asked Du Yuchuan if the company would punish Zhang Ting without proof. Du Yuchuan reassured her that it wouldn't happen and urged her to trust Gu Rong and focus on the alternative proposal. Meanwhile, other colleagues continued to gossip about Zhang Ting, expressing disbelief that the primary suspect was being protected by both Gu Rong and Du Yuchuan. They lamented that genuinely capable individuals were ignored while those with connections received opportunities.
Later, Du Yuchuan met privately with Zhang Ting, explaining that the Design Department needed to provide an explanation to the board regarding the stolen designs. Zhang Ting immediately deduced he wanted her to take the blame. Du Yuchuan admitted he believed she was innocent but explained that given the situation, and the fact she had sent Su Jingjing to his office for the USB, they felt compelled to sacrifice her.
He warned her that if the charge were finalized, it would be difficult for her to find employment elsewhere. Zhang Ting, understanding his difficult position, agreed to leave but asserted her innocence, stating she had never given the designs to Dimon and that as a person of integrity, she had nothing to hide. She admitted her dislike for Su Jingjing, who she felt had suddenly joined Gu Group and gained many opportunities simply by being Gu Rong’s girlfriend.
However, she emphasized that she would never compromise the company's interests. Du Yuchuan expressed his understanding and offered to recommend her for a new job. Zhang Ting declined, confident in her ability to find suitable employment elsewhere.
