Download The Early Spring Episode 7

The Early Spring Episode 7 begins with Shang Zhitao meeting her senior Yao Bei for a farewell meal. Yao Bei has decided to accept a long-term transfer to Hong Kong after discovering that her boyfriend Wang Zhiyong has become involved with a new intern. While packing her belongings, Yao Bei finds an old sticky note she wrote five years earlier, describing her dream of renting an apartment with floor-to-ceiling windows in Beijing's Chaoyang District. Looking at how differently her life has turned out, both women become emotional and raise their glasses to Beijing, remembering the difficult nights when they cried about wanting to leave but still woke up the next morning and continued fighting. Back at Lime, Zhang Ling asks Shang Zhitao how she managed to obtain the Qipai source files from Luan Nian. Shang Zhitao admits that getting them was extremely difficult and that she agreed to help Luan Nian prepare a presentation deck in exchange for the files. Zhang Ling immediately realizes that Luan Nian's team must be preparing to target another major client, Yueteng Auto. Shang Zhitao does not reveal the full details, but Zhang Ling is impressed by what she accomplished and praises her for getting the impossible-looking task completed. The situation becomes clearer when Mr. Lin arranges a dinner with Zhang Ling and Luan Nian. Before Luan Nian arrives, Zhang Ling assumes that senior management must have pressured him into handing over the Qipai source data. Mr. Lin explains that Luan Nian does not easily surrender his work and that he made the decision himself after successfully recovering the Yueteng Auto opportunity that Zhang Ling's team had previously lost. He tells Zhang Ling that Lime needs both of their strengths and that neither manager should view the other as an enemy. When Luan Nian arrives, he immediately asks Zhang Ling to cooperate with him on Yueteng Auto. He assumes that Zhang Ling has accumulated valuable client information through months of meetings and social dinners. Zhang Ling objects to Luan Nian's casual description of his work, but Mr. Lin quickly intervenes and encourages both managers to focus on the company's interests. Luan Nian agrees to share credit according to each person's contribution. The three men raise their glasses and formally agree to work together on the Yueteng project. Meanwhile, Lumi advises Shang Zhitao that she should stop spending so much of her time making spreadsheets and handling data if she wants to advance into the company's core business operations. Shang Zhitao disagrees, explaining that analyzing the data helps her understand how projects actually work and allows her to see the overall direction of a campaign. Her confidence in the value of her work becomes increasingly clear. When Zhang Ling asks Shang Zhitao to come over and thank Luan Nian for providing the source files, Shang Zhitao becomes nervous. She tries to avoid meeting him by claiming that she needs to collect a package. Instead of actually going to collect a package, she asks a cleaner for an empty cardboard box and uses it as an excuse to escape. Luan Nian quickly realizes what she is doing and follows her. Luan Nian catches Shang Zhitao in the stairwell and confronts her about constantly avoiding him. Shang Zhitao calmly explains that she is simply trying to maintain a basic professional distance between them. She reminds him that she does not intend to behave differently depending on whether she needs something from him and asks him to stop threatening her with dismissal. She promises that whenever he genuinely needs her professional assistance, she will still do her job properly. Luan Nian becomes frustrated by her attitude and criticizes her for being too timid, cautious and submissive. He tells her that someone with such a personality will have difficulty surviving in the competitive advertising industry. Shang Zhitao finally pushes back and tells him that the way he speaks to her is inappropriate. Luan Nian then turns the argument toward their personal relationship and asks whether feelings, especially liking someone, can really be controlled. Shang Zhitao answers firmly that they can. Her answer leaves Luan Nian completely silent. He does not argue with her and simply walks away, visibly affected by the response. Shang Zhitao remains in the stairwell, trying to maintain the emotional boundary she has decided to establish between them. Mr. Lin later gathers the two departments together and formally announces their cooperation on the Yueteng Auto project. Luan Nian is appointed to lead the joint effort. Annie is unhappy that Zhang Ling has effectively surrendered the client opportunity to Luan Nian and worries that Zhang Ling may eventually regret allowing him to take the lead. Zhang Ling, however, remains calm and appears more interested in making the collaboration succeed than competing for credit. During the project meeting, Luan Nian explains the work plan and highlights several risks that the team needs to avoid. One of the most important tasks is creating a comprehensive supplier database. Lumi volunteers to gather supplier information but explains that she needs someone who is highly skilled at creating and organizing spreadsheets. Shang Zhitao immediately volunteers. Lumi praises her Excel ability and jokes that her spreadsheet skills are probably among the best in the company. After the meeting, Shang Zhitao visits Luan Nian's office to ask about the supplier research. Luan Nian deliberately leaves the office door open, making it clear that he wants to avoid any further workplace rumors. He explains that the supplier-evaluation project is important because relying too heavily on a small number of major suppliers can leave a company vulnerable. A standardized evaluation system will allow Lime to compare suppliers fairly, reduce risk and identify smaller companies with strong potential. Luan Nian also warns Shang Zhitao that the assignment will be tedious and politically sensitive. It may consume so much of her time that she will temporarily be unable to participate in other major projects. He gives her an opportunity to withdraw before she commits herself. Shang Zhitao refuses to back down and confidently says that she can handle it. Luan Nian is quietly impressed by her determination and tells her that she is brave. Before leaving his office, Shang Zhitao returns the missing key from Luan Nian's antique typewriter. The small gesture carries emotional significance because it is the piece she accidentally broke when they first met. Luan Nian holds the repaired key in his hand while watching Shang Zhitao return to her workstation. Through the glass wall, she notices him looking at the key and smiles to herself. Shang Zhitao throws herself into the supplier-research assignment. She visits different locations, gathers information and spends long hours organizing everything into spreadsheets. She studies templates from senior employees and works late into the evening. Through the glass wall of his office, Luan Nian notices that she is still working. Shang Zhitao also notices that he has not left. Seeing that someone as talented as Luan Nian is still working so hard motivates her to work even harder. A thunderstorm approaches late at night. Luan Nian messages Shang Zhitao and offers to drive her home. She initially intends to refuse, but he does not give her much opportunity to argue. During the drive, he notices that she has taken off her high heels because her feet hurt. He learns that she has been visiting suppliers all day in those shoes and criticizes her for making the job unnecessarily difficult for herself. Despite the pain in her feet, Shang Zhitao continues organizing supplier information in the car. Luan Nian tells her that she should submit an official overtime claim rather than simply working without recording the extra hours, and he agrees to approve it. His advice again shows that his concern for her is often expressed through practical workplace guidance rather than openly affectionate words. During the drive, Sun Yuanzhu calls Shang Zhitao and offers to come pick her up. She tells him that she is already on her way home and does not need a ride. Almost immediately afterward, Luan Nian receives a call from his mother, who wants to arrange a blind date for him. Irritated by Shang Zhitao's emotional distance and apparently affected by her earlier statement that feelings can be controlled, Luan Nian impulsively agrees to the arrangement. When they reach Shang Zhitao's apartment, heavy rain has created puddles across the entrance. Her feet are still hurting, and she struggles to walk in the rain. Luan Nian notices her limping and lifts her over a large puddle so that she does not have to step into the dirty water. He then offers to walk her upstairs. Before Shang Zhitao can respond, Sun Yuanzhu arrives carrying an umbrella. Shang Zhitao immediately turns toward him and accepts his help. The two of them walk away together under the umbrella. Luan Nian watches them from behind, visibly irritated. The sight of Shang Zhitao leaving with another man causes his jealousy to surface, and he angrily throws his own umbrella aside before returning to his car. Luan Nian's mother later calls again to confirm the blind date. Although he had initially agreed to it, he suddenly changes his mind and cancels the meeting. His frustration makes it increasingly obvious that Shang Zhitao's presence is affecting his decisions even when he refuses to admit how strongly he feels about her. Unable to understand his own emotions, Luan Nian goes to Tan Mian for a drink. Tan Mian immediately recognizes that something is wrong. He tells Luan Nian that he is caught between two fears: he is afraid that someone will become too attached to him, but he is equally afraid that the same person might stop wanting him. Tan Mian compares Luan Nian's behavior to someone trying to care for a plant by pouring boiling water over its roots. He points out that Luan Nian repeatedly turns genuine affection into cold compensation and then wonders why the person he cares about keeps moving away. Episode 7 deepens the emotional conflict between Shang Zhitao and Luan Nian. Shang Zhitao is determined to control her feelings and maintain a strict professional boundary, while Luan Nian is increasingly unable to hide his jealousy and attachment. Their cooperation on the Yueteng Auto project brings them into close professional contact, but their unresolved feelings make even ordinary workplace interactions emotionally charged. By the end of the episode, Luan Nian is forced to confront the possibility that his own fear of intimacy may be pushing Shang Zhitao further away.