8/10 is my rating. This is a 2020; Chinese Romantic drama with 28, 35-48 minute episodes.

First I provide a unique synopsis then review

Synopsis
Xia Lin Xi (Xiang Han Zhi) and Jiang Zheng Han (Wang An Yu) were not fast friends when they first met in high school. In fact, top student and class President Lin Xi is charged, by their teacher, with reeling in Zheng Han to comply with some rules. She accomplishes her original missions then sees there is not only a deep intelligence but a hidden side to Zheng Han that reveals he is intelligent and kind. This makes Lin Xi determined to fully convert Zheng Han to help him realize his academic potential. Study dates become akin to real dates and the two draw close enough as more than friends that Li Xi's tiger mom notices. Nearly overnight and without many words Zheng Han is on a bus out of Lin Xi's life. Not one to go down without a fight, Lin Xi chases after Zheng Han only to have her pleas fall on deaf ears. Fast forward several years and the two former friends are now in the same college, the college they had promised each other they would attend together. But, having mended her broken heart, Lin Xi also barricaded it shut and is not ready to give Zheng Han the chance to explain. Being among the Gods and Goddesses of the campus neither lack for potential boyfriend or girlfriends and as their relationship has moved backwards it seems Lin Xi at least may make another choice. Through college and then early professional careers it becomes apparent that their love was not just a passing high school crush.

Review

This story begins "How I met Your Mother Style" with the start being the end of the story and the rest how they got there. I am not a fan of that style as part of the allure to me is not knowing, beyond that it ends happy, just how things will end up. So that was a slight detractor. It is a rather simple, predictable, yet heartwarming romance. Rich girl and down on his luck guy, good girl and bad boy, are the overall vibes. It is a good romance, not over the too great but good if you appreciate straight forward stories.

It ends happy. I recommend it if anyone is a fan of either actor or if they like coming of age, rich girl/poor guy tropes. I would not watch it again but am not sorry I watched it once.

Spoilers

I thought her cousin was mean to the lead girl"s best friend and it was a struggle determining how she would have fallen in love with him. They did really turn it around though and their romance wound up being very sweet.

It is one of the rare occasions when I did not feel sorry the 2nd lead did not get the girl. Not only did he not take no for an answer he tried to use the parents to get her tied into an arranged marriage. He went behind her back getting her in trouble with her already difficult mother. He threw his friendship with lead guy out the window and was willing to tarnish his former friend's future prospects to try to take him away as an option for the lead girl and to save his family's failing company. There is a tiny bit of redemption with him in the end but not nearly enough to overcome all the crappy things he had done. He even completely crushed the girl who had lovingly stood by his side by suggesting she become a secretary with benefits for a rival company. I was completely glad lead girl did not get with him and did not feel sorry when he was sad.

Lin Xi's mom was a tiger mom who projected all her failings and worries of future difficulties onto her daughter. She could not get along with Lin Xi's father because she was a harpy, so she projected that onto Lin Xi's relationship with Zheng Han. Yes Zheng Han did pretend to be a teacher but he delivered and Lin Xi's math skills improved. But her mom did not to hear why a high schooler might have done that, or that he was a good tutor, she simply wanted to hate on him because he was not who she wanted her daughter to marry. At the wedding she was still acting harsh to him when she should have apologized. Sending Lin Xi to study abroad served no purpose but for her to exert power over her daughter, She was an abusive person who was all criticism and no praise to the extent her family was emotionally terrified of her,

The father in law and son in law relationship that developed between Lin Xi's dad and Zheng Han was beyond cute. He was the only kind parent in Lin Xi's life. Her dad helped the couple as much as he could without incurring his wife's wrath. As her father was the one Lin Xi could go to for emotional support it was clear that Zheng Han would also support her. With a mother like she had she would need the two caring men as a buffer.

I do not like the leaving for your or my own good trope and it was particularly annoying in this because Lin Xi literally had no benefit.

It had so little intrigue and a very simple plot, so that it dragged a lot in the latter episodes. They could have easily told the story in 20 episodes so the fact that it was 28 is part of the reason it was so slow in parts.

#ForeverLove
#XiangHanZhi
#WangAnYu.