The Early Spring Episode 3 — English Subtitles

The Early Spring Episode 3 begins at Lingmei, where Luan Nian confronts Shang Zhitao about the missing records from their recent business trip. Shang Zhitao insists that she sent the travel records to both Luan Nian and Lumi, but Luan Nian says he never received them. He then reveals that another employee in the company also uses the English name Luke, creating the possibility that Shang Zhitao accidentally sent confidential company information to the wrong person. His warning immediately terrifies her, and she begins worrying that she may be fired. Fortunately, Lumi arrives with good news. The advertising proposal has officially been approved and the production is about to begin, so there is no intention of dismissing Shang Zhitao at this critical stage. Lumi reassures her that she should not take Luan Nian's harsh words too seriously. Although he frequently speaks in an intimidating manner, Lumi explains that Luan Nian is actually a straightforward professional who cares about the people working under him. Later, Shang Zhitao meets her senior schoolmate Yao Bei for lunch. She admits that she is worried about whether she will survive her probation period at Lingmei. Yao Bei encourages her and reminds her that simply getting into such a prestigious advertising company is already a major achievement. Their conversation turns to Shang Zhitao's former boyfriend, Xin Zhaozhou. Shang Zhitao explains that they broke up before graduation because Xin Zhaozhou wanted to return home and pursue a civil-service career, while she wanted to remain in Beijing and pursue her own ambitions. Yao Bei tells her that she is young and should not be afraid of falling in love again. When Yao Bei suddenly has to leave for a client meeting, she discovers that Shang Zhitao has secretly paid the bill. She jokingly scolds the new employee for spending money when she has only just started working. Before leaving, Yao Bei gives Shang Zhitao some encouragement, telling her that getting a seat at Lingmei already means she has beaten most of the competition. She urges Shang Zhitao to keep fighting and make the most of the opportunity she has earned. Shang Zhitao and Lumi then travel to a remote rural location for the upcoming commercial shoot. Lumi suffers from severe menstrual cramps during the journey, and Shang Zhitao immediately tries to take care of her. She prepares warm goji tea and suggests that Lumi rest, but Lumi insists that they need to continue because Luan Nian may arrive later that evening. Seeing Shang Zhitao become nervous at the thought of working with Luan Nian again, Lumi reassures her that although his words can be sharp, he genuinely looks after his team. When they arrive at the village, the accommodation turns out to be far worse than expected. The bedding is dirty and the rooms are in poor condition. Fortunately, Shang Zhitao had anticipated the possibility of bad accommodation and brought her own clean bedding. Lumi is impressed by her preparation and praises her for thinking ahead. Shang Zhitao then goes to another nearby village to fetch hot water and prepares instant noodles for Lumi while she is feeling unwell. The two women briefly manage to turn the miserable accommodation into something more comfortable. Meanwhile, Luan Nian decides to travel to the filming location himself. With the weather becoming increasingly unstable and heavy rain approaching, he wants to supervise the production personally. Back at the location, Liang Xin sends Zhao Xinqi from another division to assist the team. When Lumi's condition becomes too painful, Shang Zhitao takes her to the hospital and leaves the project materials with Zhao Xinqi, asking her to coordinate with the production team until they return. Instead of waiting for Shang Zhitao and Lumi, Zhao Xinqi begins coordinating the shoot herself. When Shang Zhitao returns, Zhao Xinqi starts assigning her various tasks and sends her back and forth to purchase backup props. The situation becomes worse when the lead actors complain about the terrible accommodation and refuse to appear for filming. Rather than taking responsibility for solving the problem, Zhao Xinqi orders Shang Zhitao to go with a local villager into the mountains to search for better accommodation. Luan Nian arrives at the filming location and immediately notices that neither Lumi nor Shang Zhitao is there. When he learns that Zhao Xinqi has sent a new employee into the mountains just as severe weather is approaching, he becomes furious. He questions why Zhao Xinqi did not handle the task herself and criticizes her for pushing her own responsibility onto a newcomer. The weather deteriorates rapidly. Heavy rain creates the risk of landslides and falling rocks, while Shang Zhitao's phone loses its signal. Luan Nian orders the filming to stop and tells the team to contact the authorities. Despite the danger, he gets into his car and drives into the mountain area himself to search for Shang Zhitao. Meanwhile, Shang Zhitao is riding a motorcycle with the local villager while looking for another place for the actors to stay. She gradually realizes that the route is becoming increasingly isolated and unfamiliar. The driver's behavior also makes her uncomfortable. She asks him to turn around, but he continues forward. The muddy mountain road becomes dangerously slippery, and the motorcycle suddenly loses control, sending both of them down a steep slope. At the same time, Luan Nian reaches the area and discovers signs of the accident. Before he can safely reach Shang Zhitao, a massive landslide begins moving down the mountain. Rocks crash around his vehicle, trapping him inside and preventing him from opening the doors. Shang Zhitao, injured and suffering from a sprained ankle, hears the crash and realizes that Luan Nian may also be trapped. Despite her injuries, Shang Zhitao crawls toward Luan Nian's vehicle. Remembering advice about breaking vehicle glass from its weakest point, she picks up a large stone and repeatedly strikes the corner of the window. Luan Nian realizes what she is doing and strikes the glass from inside at the same time. Working together, they finally break the window and allow Luan Nian to escape before the surrounding debris becomes even more dangerous. Luan Nian immediately takes control of the situation. He ties a strong rope around himself and secures it to a tree, then uses the rope to guide Shang Zhitao down the unstable slope to a safer area. Although he is clearly frightened and angry that she was placed in such danger, he concentrates on getting her to safety. Once they find a temporary shelter, he removes his jacket and places it around Shang Zhitao to keep her warm. Shang Zhitao's hands are badly scratched and filled with thorns. Luan Nian carefully removes the thorns and treats her wounds. When Shang Zhitao notices that Luan Nian has also been injured, she insists on treating his wounds in return. She tells him that after surviving such a dangerous situation together, they are now comrades who have shared life and death. Luan Nian watches her carefully as she tends to his injuries, and for a brief moment the hostility between them disappears. Because Shang Zhitao cannot walk properly after twisting her ankle, Luan Nian carries her on his back through the dangerous terrain. She holds a flashlight to help them see. While they are stranded, Shang Zhitao admits that she was terrified when she thought she might die. She had even begun thinking about what she would say to her parents and regretted that she would never have another chance to learn more from Luan Nian at Lingmei. Search teams eventually locate the pair and take them to the hospital. Shang Zhitao later wakes up and overhears a nurse saying that another patient has been rushed into emergency treatment because of internal bleeding. She immediately fears that something has happened to Luan Nian and tries to get out of bed. Before her fear can grow further, Luan Nian walks into the room completely unharmed. The emergency patient was someone else, and Shang Zhitao is visibly relieved to see him. During the journey back to Beijing, Luan Nian conducts a serious review of what happened. He criticizes Shang Zhitao for blindly following Zhao Xinqi's instructions without understanding the project's chain of command or questioning whether the order was appropriate. Shang Zhitao becomes nervous because she assumes he is once again preparing to tell her to resign. Instead, Luan Nian tells her to rest properly, recover from her injuries and contact either Lumi or him directly if she encounters a problem in the future. When Shang Zhitao returns home, Sun Yu helps treat her injuries and complains that her new job has already caused her to get hurt. Sun Yu also criticizes Luan Nian for being an unpleasant and overly harsh boss. To her own surprise, Shang Zhitao immediately begins defending him. She insists that Luan Nian is not as cold as he appears, pointing out that he protected his employees, risked his own life to find her and carefully treated her injuries. Sun Yu notices how passionately Shang Zhitao is defending him and begins teasing her about her feelings. Back at Lingmei, a rival division leader tries to mock Luan Nian over the dangerous filming incident. Luan Nian refuses to let the criticism go unanswered and points out the rival's lack of original ideas, reliance on copied concepts and repeated budget cuts. During the team meeting, he then announces that Division One has successfully secured the annual contract for the Mulanshuo project. The meeting also addresses Zhao Xinqi's handling of the filming disaster. Zhao Xinqi tries to defend herself by claiming that she was managing the director and believed Shang Zhitao was capable of handling the accommodation problem. Lumi immediately challenges her explanation and points out that Shang Zhitao was the person who personally helped secure the director. She also criticizes Zhao Xinqi for repeatedly failing to advance despite her years of experience. Luan Nian takes responsibility for the management failure and makes it clear that the incident will be dealt with at the company level. After the meeting, Shang Zhitao receives confirmation that she has officially passed the initial employment stage. She signs her formal labor contract and becomes an official member of Business Division One. Thrilled that she can finally remain at Lingmei, she decides to thank Luan Nian and sends him a message offering to treat him to dinner. Luan Nian initially refuses her invitation, leaving Shang Zhitao disappointed. But shortly afterward, he sends another message and changes his mind. Instead of allowing her to pay, he tells her that he will take her to dinner himself and asks for her address so he can pick her up. Shang Zhitao cannot hide her happiness as she reads the message. Episode 3 marks a major turning point in Shang Zhitao and Luan Nian's relationship. A dangerous mountain accident forces them to rely completely on each other, revealing a softer side of Luan Nian and deepening Shang Zhitao's trust in him. After surviving the ordeal, Shang Zhitao officially secures her place at Lingmei, while Luan Nian's decision to invite her to dinner signals that their relationship is beginning to move beyond a simple boss-and-employee dynamic.