The Trick of Life and Love Episode 20 Recap
> The Trick of Life and Love Recap
After a heated argument in the corridor, Li Qian and Ning Chengming found themselves trapped when the power suddenly went out. Li Qian, tired of the confrontation, initially tried to use her access card, but the system was down. Ning Chengming, however, remained calm and quickly located a manual emergency switch high on the wall of the machine room, where they were confined and signals were blocked.
When neither could reach it alone, Li Qian suggested Ning Chengming lift her, but he refused, proposing instead that she squat down so he could step on her shoulders. Li Qian accused him of retaliation, to which Ning Chengming readily admitted. Despite her protests and struggling to hold him, Li Qian eventually conceded, allowing Ning Chengming to use her as a step to reach the switch and pry open the door with a hairpin.
Meanwhile, Gu Lan expressed her frustration to Li Chen about being deceived by Ma Hao, fearing that Li Jingfan would now see her as nothing more than a brainless eye candy. Li Chen reassured her, stating that Li Jingfan, having personally chosen Gu Lan as his daughter-in-law, would not think ill of her.
Gu Lan then mused that if Li Chen were to dramatize Ning Chengming's disappearance, it would surely involve a cliché trifecta of traffic accidents, amnesia, and a new romance, to which Li Chen admitted she was half right, referring specifically to the amnesia and new romance. Enraged, Gu Lan confronted Li Chen, accusing him of knowing Ning Chengming's whereabouts all along and deliberately allowing Ma Hao to swindle her money for the Guanding Management Buy Out scheme.
Li Chen tried to calm her, explaining his initial confusion when Li Qian brought Ning Chengming home and his duty as her brother to cover for her. Gu Lan, however, lamented her own lack of familial support compared to Li Qian and stressed that if she couldn't resolve her current predicament, she would be forced into an arranged marriage. Li Chen then suggested they marry according to their elders' wishes, enabling them to support each other while maintaining their individuality.
Gu Lan agreed, but only on the condition that Li Chen first severed all ties with his various affairs with other girls, emphasizing that the decision to marry would ultimately be hers. Back in the meeting room, Li Qian and Ning Chengming announced their agreement.
Ning Chengming, in exchange for lifting the non-competition restrictions for the core team (excluding Li Qian) and capping annual layoffs at 20% with N+3 severance, stipulated that Li Qian must remain at Guanding as Assistant President for three years. This position, as Qi Wei later confirmed to a disgruntled Li Qian, was half a level higher than a Vice President, a deliberate move by Ning Chengming who deemed Star & Quark's former president a "trash."
Li Qian's friends, including Yu Qingqing, were curious about the dynamics between her and Ning Chengming, but Li Qian firmly stated that any past romantic feelings were merely her illusion and that their relationship was now strictly professional. Yu Qingqing, expressing concern that Ning Chengming might bully Li Qian, decided to remain at Guanding with her.
Later, while Qi Wei was cooking for Ning Chengming, he light-heartedly mentioned Li Qian's furious expression during their negotiation, causing Ning Chengming to smile, a rare sight that was noticed by Lu Fan, who joined their conversation via video call. Lu Fan criticized Ning Chengming's "complicated" revenge tactics against Li Qian.
Meanwhile, Cao Mei arrived at Ning Chengming's home with food, inquiring about his plans for Guanding and subtly mentioning her efforts to appease board members Uncle Zhang and Uncle Lin. Ning Chengming, however, curtly pointed out their opportunism, having steered clear when Guanding faced difficulties, only to reappear once his acquisition of Star & Quark promised new opportunities and Lirong's investment.
When Cao Mei tentatively asked if his acquisition of Star & Quark was motivated by Li Qian's identity as Li Jingfan's daughter, Ning Chengming merely stated that Li Jingfan's daughter's identity was irrelevant unless it served as leverage. He then surprised Cao Mei by declaring Li Qian would be Guanding's Assistant President, effectively outranking her by half a level.
Cao Mei vehemently opposed this, citing potential shareholder dissent and company instability due to Ma Hao's disappearance, the merger, and the sudden appointment of an unknown executive. Ning Chengming ended the discussion by reminding her of her inability to control the situation with Ma Hao, implying she was to blame, and then dismissed her from his home.
Disturbed, Cao Mei sat in her car, suspecting Ning Chengming was actively trying to diminish her power, perhaps even doubting her loyalty, and ordered her assistant, Lisa, to closely monitor Li Qian's every move. She also tasked Lisa with preparing a personnel structure plan for Star & Quark, hinting at further strategic moves. In the following week, Li Qian's tenure as Assistant President at Guanding proved challenging.
Ning Chengming frequently rejected her meticulously prepared reports, consistently using the phrases "Sampling is improper," "Ideas are confused," and "Hard to implement," demanding endless revisions. He also made her perform menial tasks, such as washing his cup, despite her high-ranking position and the availability of other assistants like Qi Wei, claiming he was simply "unaccustomed" to anyone else. Li Qian, frustrated but resilient, internally challenged him to drink from a cup she might have poisoned.
Yu Qingqing found Li Qian practically living at the company, noting her workload was worse than at Star & Quark, likening it to a "nightmare like school life." Yu Qingqing then speculated that Ning Chengming's placement of Li Qian in a position of power, particularly in legal affairs previously overseen by Cao Mei, was a deliberate attempt to divide Cao Mei's influence and create internal conflict.
This theory was dramatically underscored when Jin Yi, Li Qian's assistant, tearfully announced he had been dismissed by Lisa due to "organizational restructuring." Realizing Cao Mei's immediate retaliatory action, Li Qian called an urgent meeting with Lisa and Cao Mei, and she and Yu Qingqing prepared to confront Cao Mei using a "good cop, bad cop" strategy.
