The Early Spring Episode 5 — English Subtitles

The Early Spring Episode 5 begins immediately after the events of the previous night. Shang Zhitao is heavily intoxicated and unable to clearly tell Luan Nian where she lives. Although he tries to suppress his own feelings, Luan Nian ultimately carries her into his apartment and settles her on the sofa. At the same time, Sun Yu returns home injured after a disastrous work event. Sun Yuanzhu notices her limping and immediately goes downstairs to help her. She explains that a female guest at her event had falsely claimed to be single, only for her boyfriend to suddenly appear and cause a scene. When Sun Yu tried to calm the woman down, she was accidentally pushed over and twisted her ankle. Back at Luan Nian's apartment, Tan Mian calls and insists on coming over, but Luan Nian refuses to let him visit. Meanwhile, Sun Yu and Sun Yuanzhu become increasingly worried about Shang Zhitao when she fails to answer repeated phone calls. They have no idea that she is safely staying at Luan Nian's home. The next morning, Shang Zhitao wakes up on Luan Nian's sofa and is shocked to discover where she is. Luan Nian calmly explains that she was too drunk to give him a usable address, leaving him with no choice but to bring her home. Shang Zhitao immediately becomes embarrassed and worries that she may have behaved badly while drunk. Luan Nian teases her by revealing that she confessed her feelings while intoxicated and even demanded that he repay her by marrying her. Shang Zhitao is horrified and insists that she would never say something like that while sober. Luan Nian then unexpectedly suggests that the two of them could actually try dating. Shang Zhitao assumes he is testing or teasing her and immediately rejects the idea. She insists that she has strong self-control and does not allow inappropriate thoughts to influence her actions. Luan Nian deliberately moves closer to her and challenges her claim that feelings can simply be controlled. His sudden closeness makes Shang Zhitao panic, and she quickly escapes into the bathroom. Trying to calm her racing heart, she writes the word "STOP" on the fogged glass door as a reminder to control her feelings. When Luan Nian knocks and brings her a towel, he notices the unfinished word on the glass and quietly smiles to himself. After Shang Zhitao finishes washing up, Luan Nian approaches her again. Their tension finally breaks when he kisses her. Shang Zhitao initially tries to avoid him, embarrassed and overwhelmed by the situation, but her own feelings prove stronger than her attempts at self-control. She eventually responds to his kiss, making it clear that the attraction between them is mutual. At that moment, Sun Yu calls to check whether Shang Zhitao is safe. Hearing Luan Nian's voice in the background, Sun Yu immediately realizes where Shang Zhitao is. She is relieved that her friend is safe and tells her that the rain outside is heavy enough that she does not need to rush home. Luan Nian also explains that he has been drinking and cannot drive. After making sure Shang Zhitao understands the situation and is sober enough to make her own decision, the two spend the night together. The following morning, Shang Zhitao wakes before Luan Nian. She quietly watches him sleeping for a moment before getting dressed and leaving without waking him. She leaves behind a short handwritten note thanking him for the previous night. When Luan Nian wakes and discovers that she has already gone, he reads the note in silence and then sends her a message. Shang Zhitao sees the message after leaving the building and cannot stop herself from smiling. Later, Tan Mian visits Luan Nian to return his jacket and car keys. He immediately notices that Luan Nian seems unusually different and begins teasing him about what happened. Luan Nian tries to act normal, but Tan Mian quickly realizes that Shang Zhitao must have spent the night there. At the same time, Shang Zhitao returns home and tells Sun Yu about the previous night's events. She tries to describe it simply as an unexpected encounter between two adults rather than something that should be treated as a serious relationship. Shang Zhitao speaks highly of Luan Nian, praising his intelligence, creativity and exceptional professional ability. However, she also says that despite his success, he seems lonely in his private life. Sun Yu warns her that feeling sorry for a man can be the beginning of falling deeply in love with him. Shang Zhitao refuses to admit that she is developing real feelings and insists that she can keep her emotions separate from reality. Tan Mian gives Luan Nian similar advice from the opposite perspective. He tells Luan Nian that Shang Zhitao is different from the women who normally approach him. She does not flatter him, chase him or treat him as a prize because of his success. Tan Mian encourages Luan Nian to stop behaving like someone who automatically pushes people away whenever they get too close. Before leaving, Tan Mian notices that Shang Zhitao has accidentally left her backpack in Luan Nian's apartment. He jokingly suggests that she may have deliberately forgotten it as a way of creating another excuse to see Luan Nian. Luan Nian takes the joke more seriously than intended and begins wondering whether Shang Zhitao intentionally left the bag behind so that he would have to contact her. That evening, Luan Nian calls Shang Zhitao and asks her to meet him. Sun Yu becomes excited when she hears about the invitation and assumes that Luan Nian is preparing to confess his feelings. She carefully does Shang Zhitao's makeup and helps her get dressed for the meeting. Shang Zhitao arrives at Luan Nian's car and deliberately sits in the back seat, feeling shy about seeing him after what happened between them. Instead of behaving romantically, Luan Nian looks at her carefully and asks whether she deliberately left the backpack at his apartment as a tactic to make him come looking for her. He wonders whether she is trying to attract his attention or play hard to get. His blunt question immediately hurts Shang Zhitao. She explains that leaving the bag behind was simply an accident and that she never intended to use it as an excuse to see him. Shang Zhitao becomes increasingly upset and tells Luan Nian that what happened between them was simply an unexpected encounter between two consenting adults. She makes it clear that she does not want the incident to create any future personal complications. She also asks him not to allow their private encounter to influence his professional evaluation of her work at Lingmei. Luan Nian assures her that her work evaluation will remain separate from their personal situation. However, his continued questioning makes Shang Zhitao feel that he is afraid she might become attached to him. She finally tells him that there will be no further relationship between them and leaves the car. After returning home, Shang Zhitao tells Sun Yu that she and Luan Nian may simply belong to completely different worlds. She decides that romance is not something she should prioritize at this stage of her life. Instead, she wants to concentrate on building her career, improving her English and becoming successful at Lingmei. She tells Sun Yu that bread is more important than love and decides to enroll in an English course. Meanwhile, Tan Mian realizes that Luan Nian has misunderstood his earlier joke. He criticizes Luan Nian for being too blunt and explains that suggesting the backpack was intentionally left behind was never meant to be taken seriously. He tells Luan Nian that he should apologize before he completely ruins the relationship. Luan Nian begins thinking about Shang Zhitao's expression when she left his car. He realizes that his words genuinely hurt her. Wanting to make amends without directly admitting his feelings, he goes to an expensive boutique and attempts to purchase a limited-edition handbag for her. The bag has already been reserved by another customer, but Luan Nian refuses to leave empty-handed. He asks the store to arrange another luxury gift and makes it clear that he wants something suitable for Shang Zhitao. Meanwhile, Shang Zhitao attends an English lesson with Long Zhentian and then goes to a bakery to wait for the discounted bread sold late at night. While she is waiting, she receives a message from Luan Nian asking to meet again. Although she is determined to keep their relationship professional, she agrees to see him because they still have to work together. Luan Nian meets her and gives her the new handbag. He explains that her old bag is worn out and that she should use the new one instead. Shang Zhitao immediately refuses to accept the expensive gift. She tells him that she does not want anything from him and again emphasizes that their night together should be treated as something that happened between two adults and nothing more. She also asks Luan Nian to promise that the incident will never affect her position or evaluation at Lingmei. Luan Nian agrees that her professional performance will not be affected. However, he then asks her a pointed question: if she refuses the bag, does that mean she still wants to continue discussing their relationship? Shang Zhitao is left speechless by his response. Episode 5 becomes a major emotional turning point for Shang Zhitao and Luan Nian. Their attraction finally crosses the boundary they had been trying to maintain, but the following misunderstanding pushes Shang Zhitao to retreat and focus on her career. Luan Nian, meanwhile, begins realizing that his own words and emotional distance may cause him to lose someone he genuinely cares about.