Twelve Letters Episode 5 Recap
> Twelve Letters Recap
In 1991, Ye Haitang and Tang Yixun returned to the Sunshine Bookstore and opened the mailbox, finding an unexpected letter inside. Ye Haitang realized it was the letter she had previously sent, which had disappeared, now returned without its envelope. Tang Yixun thoroughly searched the mailbox, confirming there were no hidden mechanisms. The unusual occurrence left them puzzled, pondering if the mailbox could automatically send and receive mail.
Meanwhile, in 2026, Yu Nian and Ye Haitang's son, Shen Cheng, were at a similar red mailbox outside Northern Shipping. Shen Cheng had just deposited a letter, which mysteriously vanished. He dismissively accused Yu Nian and the security guard, Zhang Quan, of performing magic tricks. Zhang Quan, a security guard for Group 3, defended himself, stating he was merely fulfilling his duties and that such strange phenomena were real, not magic.
Yu Nian tried to explain the scientific impossibility of a letter simply disappearing, but Shen Cheng remained skeptical, challenging them to make his phone disappear. Yu Nian countered that specific conditions—midnight and a cat's presence—were required. As the weather grew colder, Yu Nian suggested they go home. At Yu Nian's home, the two continued to discuss the mysterious events.
Yu Nian revealed that, according to police records, a man named Yu Zhiyong, her father's registered name, had died over twenty years ago, implying her current father was using an assumed identity. They reviewed the clues they had gathered: identical biscuit tins, train tickets to Pushui found among her father's belongings, and the strange 1991 love letter Ye Haitang had received. Yu Nian theorized that her father and Ye Haitang might have had a romantic relationship in the past.
To confirm their suspicions, Yu Nian decided to write another letter to Ye Haitang, seeking answers about the mailbox and Yu Zhiyong. Back in 1991, Ye Haitang also wrote a letter and attempted to mail it, but it did not disappear from the mailbox. She deduced that the letters only traveled under specific conditions: precisely at midnight, and only when a "chrysanthemum cat" ran past the mailbox.
In 2026, Yu Nian prepared some of her father's old objects to send with their next letter. Shen Cheng, still determined to expose what he believed to be a trick, placed his phone inside the mailbox to record, along with his own blank letter and the old objects. At midnight, after Yu Nian lured the cat with cat food, Yu Nian's letter was sent, but Shen Cheng's blank letter and the old objects remained in the box.
Shortly after, a reply from Ye Haitang mysteriously appeared. Shen Cheng, though amazed, was frustrated that his phone had failed to capture the event. The reply from Ye Haitang, dated 1991, recounted her finding a strange love letter and her own letter disappearing and reappearing. She asked who they were and if they knew how the mailbox worked. The letter confirmed that the two sides were indeed communicating across time.
Meanwhile, Tang Yixun decided he wanted to return to school and asked Ye Haitang to help arrange a meeting with their teacher, Tan Xin. During his meeting with Tan Xin, Tang Yixun also voiced his concern for their friend, Li Chadong, who had isolated himself after his pool hall and arcade were vandalized by a gang, and requested that she visit him.
Tan Xin went to see Li Chadong, bringing money to help him rebuild and deliberately using harsh words to provoke him, aiming to reignite his fighting spirit. Despite his initial despair, Li Chadong was moved by Tan Xin's support. He resolved to rise again, telling his two younger associates, including Tang Yixun, that they would rebuild the business. He acknowledged that Tan Xin had lent them the money, emphasizing that he would repay her.
In 2026, after receiving Ye Haitang's letter, Yu Nian and Shen Cheng realized the mailbox truly connected different timelines. To further prove their claim and obtain more information, they decided to send another letter to Ye Haitang, including a verifiable future event: the waterspout phenomenon at Meiwan Wharf on September 23, 1991, and the subsequent renaming of the wharf to Longshui Wharf. They also noted that time seemed to pass faster in 1991 than in 2026.
At midnight, in 1991, as the chrysanthemum cat once again passed the mailbox, Ye Haitang opened it and found Yu Nian's letter. She rushed to Tang Yixun, and together they read the contents. They were astonished by the date, November 12, 2026, realizing it was 35 years in their future. They decided to wait for September 23 to verify the waterspout event. Later, at home, Tang Yixun carefully copied the love letter Ye Haitang had received.
He noticed his own unique handwriting style, especially the character "Xun," was strikingly similar to the one in the love letter. This led him to suspect that the love letter Ye Haitang received might have been written by his future self. The strange events prompted Tang Yixun to deeply contemplate the mysteries of time and emotion, eagerly anticipating what the future held.
