"Republished Youth"1
A Fantasy Romantic Fashion Love Film
【Table of Contents】
《1》The Main Theme of This Film 2
《2》The Features and Synopsis of This Film 3
《3》Character Introductions and Main Character Relationship Chart 5
《4》Story Outline 12
《5》Film Script 23
【1】The Main Theme of This Film
This film is a creative and profound story capable of provoking reflection, possessing considerable box office potential. Though low in budget, the story is captivating enough to achieve great success with limited resources.
The story explores the following themes:
(1) It examines the values and lifestyle of elite technology professionals, deeply reflecting that the meaning of life does not lie in “competing for fame and profit or accumulating wealth” in the workplace, but rather in whether one can find joy and a sense of achievement in work itself, which is what Buddhism refers to as “doing gladly and accepting willingly.”
(2) It analyzes the choice of professions and regional development opportunities. Whether in metropolitan areas or one’s hometown, the key to success lies in one’s own planning and execution abilities. One does not necessarily have to conform to big cities or social trends in order to have prospects for development.
(3) It clarifies the respective gender roles of men and women in an era of gender equality, emphasizing that both sides should mutually respect each other’s career planning. Women in the workplace possess professional skills and ambition. When facing the dilemma between marriage and career, men should not unilaterally demand that women give up their careers and sacrifice solely for marriage and family. Men should show understanding and respect, and both sides should build consensus through communication to create a win-win situation together.
(4) In interactions between men and women, sincerity, plain and honest behavior, and healthy communication help establish mutual trust. The appearance of a third party often means both sides must face a test together. After experiencing many trials, they are better able to see clearly whether they are truly compatible in mind and body and whether they can join hands to build a family together in the future.
【2】The Features and Plot Synopsis of This Film
【1】Features of This Film
Although this drama borrows the concept of “traveling through time and space,” allowing the male protagonist Tsai Shih-Nan to return to the past and regain his youth while retaining memories of his previous life, the plot content is still vastly different from the currently popular “time-travel dramas.” The plot design conforms to ordinary people’s laws of experience. The protagonist does not gain any “supernatural powers” simply because he returns to the past, nor are there any absurd supernatural storylines involving ghosts or spirits.
By a twist of fate, Tsai Shih-Nan returns to the past and once again plays the role of his younger self. Because he previously suffered a serious illness, his values changed, and he decided to leave the fame-and-profit-driven metropolis and return to his hometown to replan his future career, treat himself kindly, and enjoy the slow-paced life of a recluse.
"Republished Youth" is a youthful idol drama with healthy and positive themes, profound meaning, and a fresh and lively style combined with fantasy elements. Together with the charming scenery of famous tourist attractions such as Xiaoliuqiu and Sun Moon Lake, if adapted onto the screen with multiple language dubbings and subtitles such as Japanese, Korean, English, and others, it could not only enter the international film stage and provide audiences from various countries with a beautiful visual feast and spiritual inspiration and cultivation, but also compete in various international film festivals, allowing Taiwanese cinema to shine brightly.
【2】Plot Synopsis
Middle-aged technology geek Tsai Shih-Nan worked at a technology company and rose to the position of chief designer. Over fifteen years, he accumulated a considerable fortune, yet remained alone and unmarried, naturally having no family or children.
Because of overwork, Shih-Nan suffers an acute stroke and narrowly escapes death. After standing at death’s door, his outlook on life gradually changes. His university-era girlfriend Lin Dai-Hua returns from California to look for him. Both are still single, and their old romance rekindles, leading to a promise to marry and build a business together.
However, fate plays cruel tricks. Tsai Shih-Nan, carrying a large amount of cash and leaving Taipei, accidentally passes through a space-time wormhole on his way back to his hometown of Xiaoliuqiu. He returns to September 22, 1999, the day after the “921 Earthquake.” He regains the handsome appearance of his twenty-eight-year-old self and resolves to fall in love, get married, start a family, and begin an entirely new life using the funds in his possession.
But he does not know that Lin Dai-Hua also drove through the wormhole at the same time and returned to the same timeline, only to lose her memory because of a car accident.
Tsai Shih-Nan reunites with Chang Ya-Hui, a woman he had once met through matchmaking. Their misunderstandings are resolved, and Ya-Hui admires Shih-Nan and takes the initiative to show affection. Shih-Nan regards Ya-Hui as a confidante.
At this moment, Shih Mei-Lin appears, and Shih-Nan falls in love with her at first sight. Although Mei-Lin asks Shih-Nan to “play the role of her boyfriend,” he reluctantly agrees, neglecting Chang Ya-Hui, who sincerely and selflessly devotes her love to him.
Under Shih Mei-Lin’s direction, a drama of “pretending to be a couple” unfolds between the Tsai family and the Shih family. Tsai Shih-Nan renovates the old family house and opens a Japanese-style guesthouse, purchases a sightseeing fishing boat to establish a new business, and his staged romance with Shih Mei-Lin gradually turns from “fake love” into “real love.” The only obstacle lies in Tsai Shih-Nan’s hesitation over Mei-Lin’s request that he return to Taipei to strive together for their careers.
Later, the memory-restored Lin Dai-Hua comes to find Tsai Shih-Nan, only to discover that he already has a new lover. Faced with the deeply devoted Chang Ya-Hui, the love-at-first-sight Shih Mei-Lin, and the unwilling-to-give-up Lin Dai-Hua, what path will Tsai Shih-Nan choose?
The audience is invited to follow the story and help Tsai Shih-Nan find the answer together.
【3】Character Introductions and Main Character Relationship Chart
(1) Character Introductions
【Main Cast】
Tsai Shih-Nan (Male Protagonist)
44/28 years old, appearing at the beginning as a middle-aged man, but returning to the age of twenty-eight in 1999.
【1】Personal Information
Born in Xiaoliuqiu, he was academically gifted since childhood. He graduated from the Department of Computer Science and Information Engineering at National Tsing Hua University and worked as a programmer in an electronics company in the Hsinchu Science Park. At the age of forty, he was promoted to chief designer, earning an annual salary exceeding two million NT dollars.
He experienced one romance during university, but it ended without result. Even after entering middle age, he remained unmarried. He usually lives in the company dormitory in Hsinchu, drives a seventeen-year-old Toyota Corona, has savings in his bank account, and owns two rental properties in Taipei’s eastern district. He neither smokes nor drinks, but is so poor that all he has left is money. He is the financial pillar of his family.
【2】Appearance
He has refined and handsome facial features, fair skin, slicked-back hair, and a height of 180 centimeters. He is elegant and scholarly in appearance. At work he wears shirts and dress pants, while at home he dresses casually. In middle age he has a slight belly and some gray hair, exuding the charm of a mature man.
【3】Personality
Frugal and self-disciplined, with a positive and optimistic attitude toward life. However, because of overwork, he suffers acute cerebral vascular thrombosis. Ever since narrowly escaping death, his values have completely changed. He decides to treat himself better, sell his house, resign from his job, and return to his hometown of Xiaoliuqiu with his savings to start a business and enjoy a slow-paced life.
Because of this transformation, when Shih-Nan accidentally travels through time and returns seventeen years into the past, he resolves to live again according to his own wishes, seriously pursue love, and build a family.
Shih Mei-Lin (Second Female Protagonist)
26 years old
【1】Personal Information:
A Taiwanese-American mixed-race woman whose family operates a grand hotel at Sun Moon Lake. A graduate of the Fine Arts Department and of Taiwanese-French mixed heritage, she was born and raised in Paris, France, and works as a fashion designer at a fashion company in Taipei.
【2】Appearance:
She has deep and striking facial features, delicate beauty, fair and tender skin, long brown hair, and stands 175 centimeters tall with a model-like, seductive figure. Her appearance is dazzling and eye-catching, and her clothing and style are always fashionable and trendy. She can truly be called an exceptional beauty.
【3】Personality:
Her mixed-race identity and upbringing in Paris have made her highly independent and strongly career-oriented. She has a sunny and cheerful personality, but is also opinionated and clear-cut in love and hate.
Lin Wen-Bin (Supporting Male Character)
36 years old
【1】Personal Information:
He obtained a master’s degree in business administration from a business school in London, England. He is the Taiwanese agent for several major branded cosmetics lines. After returning to Taiwan, Wen-Bin took over the family business, established a factory, and created his own cosmetics brand, gradually making a name for himself as an ambitious and idealistic young entrepreneur.
【2】Appearance:
He has sharp eyebrows, sharp eyes, and a hawk-like nose. His facial features are well-defined and angular. His appearance is sunny and gives people the impression of being dashing and bold. He wears slicked-back hair, stands 175 centimeters tall, and dresses in suits or upscale casual clothing.
【3】Personality:
Mature and steady, with a strong ambition for business success. He is disciplined and rigorous. Because of his successful career and handsome appearance, he has always maintained a good image in the business world, but he is also extremely proud and unwilling to admit defeat.
Lin Dai-Hua (Second Female Protagonist)
28 years old
【1】Personal Information:
Shih-Nan’s junior schoolmate and first love from university, two years younger than him. She loves music, possesses an artistic temperament, and is highly career-oriented.
Like Shih-Nan, Dai-Hua also returns from 2016 to the past. Unfortunately, she loses her memory because of a car accident, allowing Shih Mei-Lin to gain the advantage first. She wishes to rekindle her romance with Shih-Nan and enter marriage and family life with him, but fate cruelly refuses to grant her wish.
【2】Appearance:
She has delicate facial features, a height of 170 centimeters, a well-proportioned figure, and shoulder-length long hair. Her appearance is graceful and elegant, with the temperament of an artist. She wears goose-yellow skirt suits, possessing both intelligence and beauty.
【3】Personality:
A refined young lady born into a distinguished family, blessed with talent and privilege. Both academically and professionally she belongs to the “winner group in life,” but in matters of love she suffers greatly because of her competitiveness and stubborn persistence.
Because of her competitive nature, she cannot forget her old romance with Shih-Nan and does everything possible to hold on to him. However, after time and circumstances change, Shih-Nan’s heart no longer belongs to her, leaving her only able to swallow the bitter fruit of heartbreak in sorrow.
Chang Ya-Hui (First Female Protagonist)
24 years old
【1】Personal Information:
A graduate of the Fine Arts Department at National Taiwan Normal University, she is an art teacher at a local middle school in Xiaoliuqiu and possesses talent in painting. She once met Tsai Shih-Nan through matchmaking and had a good impression of him. After Shih-Nan returns to the island to start a business, the two rekindle their connection through their shared interest in painting.
Her mother is Japanese, and she has been influenced by Japanese culture since childhood, enabling her to speak fluent Japanese.
【2】Appearance:
She has beautiful facial features, a height of 165 centimeters, and a well-proportioned figure. She wears shoulder-length short hair and has a graceful appearance with an artistic temperament. She usually wears pink and white dresses, but when painting or fishing she wears overalls and ties her hair into a ponytail.
【3】Personality:
Gentle in temperament and skilled at reading people’s emotions, she proactively shows care and warmth toward Shih-Nan.
Even after learning about her rival Shih Mei-Lin, she remains true to her original intentions, continues caring for Shih-Nan, and even helps him design a Japanese-style courtyard. She enjoys drinking a little red wine and becomes Shih-Nan’s confidante with whom he shares his troubles.
Mrs. Tsai feels Ya-Hui is very good and well matched with her son, while Shih-Fen prefers Ya-Hui’s sincerity and honesty.
Tsai Shih-Fen
22 years old
【1】Personal Information:
Shih-Nan’s younger sister. A graduate of a nursing vocational school, she works as a nurse at the Xiaoliuqiu Township Health Center, earning a monthly salary of a little over twenty thousand NT dollars.
After Shih-Nan renovates the family house into a Japanese-style leisure courtyard guesthouse, she resigns from her nursing job at his request and focuses on managing the guesthouse.
She and Yu Su-Ju were elementary school classmates and close friends. Yu Ssu-Hai likes Shih-Fen and reforms himself by quitting gambling in order to pursue her.
【2】Appearance:
She has sweet facial features, an apple-shaped face, stylish short hair, a height of 160 centimeters, a full figure, and rosy skin. She wears a nurse’s uniform while working and dresses in skirts and dresses at home, radiating youthful energy.
【3】Personality:
Lively, hardworking, and family-oriented. She is good at coming up with ideas and gets along well with her older brother Shih-Nan. She likes to act spoiled and banter with him, yet still respects his authority in making family decisions.
Compared with Mei-Lin, Shih-Fen sympathizes more with the disadvantaged Ya-Hui, believing that the tender and caring Ya-Hui, who actively helps the Tsai family in many ways, is the woman her brother should choose.
Yu Ssu-Hai
25 years old
【1】Personal Information:
A junior high school graduate who behaved badly in his youth and became notorious for associating with gangsters in Donggang. Shih-Nan has a deep prejudice against him.
In order to pursue Tsai Shih-Fen, Ssu-Hai reforms himself completely and earns Tsai Shih-Nan’s approval, who no longer obstructs his relationship with Shih-Fen.
【2】Appearance:
He has thick eyebrows, large eyes, a square face, large ears, and thick lips. Standing 175 centimeters tall with a broad and muscular build, bronze skin, and tattoo patterns visible on his arms, he also has a habit of chewing betel nut.
At work he wears sleeveless undershirts, overalls, and rain boots, while on dates or outings he wears floral shirts and trousers.
【3】Personality:
Bold and straightforward, still carrying some habits of the underworld brotherhood. However, he is not a simple-minded brute. When problems arise, he remains calm, strategizes skillfully, and mobilizes his subordinates in a planned and organized manner.
Tsai Chiu Hsiu-Jui
48 years old
Tsai Shih-Nan’s mother
【1】Personal Information:
Widowed before the age of thirty, she raised Shih-Nan and his sister through sewing work. She usually grows vegetables and raises chickens and ducks, and excels at cooking homemade Taiwanese dishes. She is a traditional hardworking and frugal housewife.
【2】Appearance:
Although advanced in age and lacking special maintenance, it is still apparent that she was beautiful when young. She has ear-length short hair, stands 160 centimeters tall, possesses a full figure and tanned skin, usually wears long sleeves and long pants, and wears a bamboo hat while working. She possesses a simple and mature beauty.
【3】Personality:
Gentle in temperament and open-minded in thinking. Her concern for her children naturally comes with some nagging.
She feels somewhat worried about the love triangle developing around her son Shih-Nan. She likes the understanding Shih Mei-Lin, but also likes the gentle and simple Chang Ya-Hui.
Major family decisions are made by Shih-Nan, and she supports him unconditionally. Her greatest wish is for both of her children to find good futures: for Shih-Nan to succeed and for Shih-Fen to have a happy marriage.
Yu Su-Ju
22 years old
Yu Ssu-Hai’s younger sister
【1】Personal Information:
She and Tsai Shih-Fen were elementary school classmates and best friends. She works as an accountant at her father’s fishing company. Li Ming-Te, Ssu-Hai’s trusted subordinate, likes her very much.
【2】Appearance:
She has a sweet appearance, acne on her face, a ponytail hairstyle, golden-dyed hair, and rosy skin. She is 158 centimeters tall and wears shirts and trousers, radiating youthful energy.
【3】Personality:
Gentle, quiet, hardworking, and family-oriented. She is obedient and well-behaved, usually quiet and lacking strong opinions. She helps her older brother Ssu-Hai pursue Tsai Shih-Fen.
She has feelings for Li Ming-Te (Ah-Te), who is often beside her brother. Ah-Te pursues her, and the two become a couple.
【Supporting Cast】
Shih Yu-Hua
48 years old
Shih Mei-Lin’s mother
【1】Personal Information:
She married a French man and lived in Paris with her husband for many years. Her father operates a tourist hotel at Sun Moon Lake and belongs to a distinguished scholarly family in the region. After her husband’s death, she returned with her children to settle in her parents’ home.
【2】Appearance:
She has beautiful facial features and, although middle-aged, still retains graceful charm. She is 160 centimeters tall with a well-proportioned figure. She pays close attention to dress and manners, giving people an impression of elegance, dignity, and refinement.
【3】Personality:
Gentle and open-minded, without prejudice regarding social status. Influenced by her father, although she does not oppose Mei-Lin’s pursuit of a career, she believes Mei-Lin should find a good husband as soon as possible.
She has a good impression of Shih-Nan, finding him sincere and practical. Yu-Hua respects her daughter Mei-Lin’s choices.
Li Ming-Te
24 years old
Yu Ssu-Hai’s follower and subordinate
【1】Personal Information:
A vocational high school graduate who once followed Ssu-Hai in gangster activities around Donggang. Later, he followed Ssu-Hai into Ssu-Hai’s father’s fishing company, working his way up from second mate and eventually obtaining a chief engineer’s license.
He is Ssu-Hai’s trusted confidant and business partner, and Ssu-Hai intends to match him with his younger sister Su-Ju.
【2】Appearance:
He has proper facial features and tanned skin, giving people a sunny and simple impression. He is 170 centimeters tall with a balanced medium build, but his muscles are solid and he has no tattoos. He completely resembles a fishing village youth rather than a gangster.
At work he wears white shirts, overalls, and rain boots, while on outings he wears white shirts and suit shorts.
【3】Personality:
Honest and simple in temperament, kind-hearted and soft-tempered. He dislikes showing off violence or aggression and lacks the heavy underworld aura of gangsters. He is a simple fishing village young man.
He likes Yu Su-Ju, and Su-Ju has very positive feelings toward him. The two gradually become lovers.
Su Ming-Yu
35 years old
General Manager of a Fashion Company
【1】Personal Information:
The general manager of a fashion company, a strong career woman with mature charm. She values Shih Mei-Lin greatly and admires the graceful Lin Wen-Bin, always hoping to match Mei-Lin and Lin Wen-Bin together.
【2】Appearance:
She has beautiful facial features, stands 165 centimeters tall, and possesses a curvy and full figure. She pays close attention to clothing and etiquette, giving people an impression of elegance, dignity, and refinement.
【3】Personality:
Calm-minded, skilled in communication and decision-making, highly perceptive in judging people, and adept at social interaction.
Li Ko-Ni
35 years old
Fashion Company Designer
【1】Personal Information:
A designer at the fashion company who secretly admires Lin Wen-Bin and envies Shih Mei-Lin. She schemes behind the scenes, reports on others, and looks for opportunities to attack Mei-Lin. Her goal is to replace Mei-Lin’s supervisory position and steal Lin Wen-Bin for herself.
【2】Appearance:
She has a glamorous appearance, stands 170 centimeters tall, possesses a well-proportioned figure, is skilled at dressing up, and wears fashionable avant-garde clothing to attract the attention of men.
【3】Personality:
A beautiful woman with a venomous heart and deep scheming tendencies. In the workplace, any colleague more capable than her becomes an imagined enemy.
She is skilled at acting cute and pretending to be pitiful to gain sympathy, and she takes advantage of every opportunity to create conflict and attack her rivals. She is a troublesome and frightening woman.
【4】Story Outline
Technology geek Tsai Shih-Nan works as the head of the programming department at a technology company in the Hsinchu Science Park. Every day he is busy with work, letting his youth slip away. After working for sixteen years, he is so poor that all he has left is money.
Due to accumulated overwork, he suffers an acute stroke and is rushed to the hospital for emergency treatment, where brain specialist Lin Ching-Hua manages to save his life in time.
Coincidentally, his first love Lin Dai-Hua returns to Taiwan from California’s Silicon Valley to visit family. Dai-Hua’s parents insist on finding her a marriage partner to accompany her. Ching-Hua informs his elder sister Dai-Hua that Tsai Shih-Nan has been hospitalized due to an acute illness and is still single. Dai-Hua, whose youth has likewise been wasted because of work, begins to entertain the idea of rekindling her old romance with Shih-Nan.
Dai-Hua accompanies Shih-Nan in the hospital room. Both have thoughts of marriage. Dai-Hua says that after returning to Taichung and persuading her parents, she will resign from her job in Silicon Valley, return to Taiwan, and start a business together with Shih-Nan so they can remain together forever. The two make a verbal promise.
Tsai Shih-Nan sells his Taipei properties and drives away from Taipei carrying a large amount of cash. At the same time, Dai-Hua drives back toward Taichung. The two sedans pass through a space-time wormhole one after another and return to September 22, 1999, the day after the great earthquake. However, neither of them knows that the other has also passed through the wormhole.
Lin Dai-Hua gets into a car accident midway through the trip. She suffers brain trauma and loses her memory. Because both the sedan and Lin Dai-Hua’s identification documents are burned, the police are temporarily unable to determine her identity.
Tsai Shih-Nan returns to Xiaoliuqiu and coincidentally meets Chang Ya-Hui, the elementary school art teacher who once attended a matchmaking meeting with him years before.
Because the elementary school where Chang Ya-Hui works suffers computer wiring failures after the earthquake, she invites Shih-Nan to help repair them.
Tsai Shih-Nan returns home and discovers that the renovated concrete Western-style house has reverted to its original state and is once again the old dilapidated brick three-section courtyard house.
His mother Chiu Hsiu-Tuan and younger sister Tsai Shih-Fen are astonished to see Shih-Nan return driving a new car and carrying two large suitcases. Shih-Nan vaguely explains it away by saying the company laid off employees after the earthquake and says he plans to return home and start his own business.
Tsai Shih-Nan repairs the computer wiring at Chang Ya-Hui’s elementary school. Afterwards, Ya-Hui invites Shih-Nan to the teachers’ dormitory for lunch and drinks.
The two resolve the misunderstandings from their earlier matchmaking meeting, gain a deeper understanding of each other, and become friends.
Ya-Hui has always had a good impression of Shih-Nan, although several months earlier their “matchmaking meeting” had fallen through because Shih-Nan “was unwilling to marry into the Chang family.”
Tsai Shih-Nan becomes drunk, and Ya-Hui escorts him home. After talking with Shih-Fen, she learns that Shih-Nan had previously suffered emotional devastation after his ex-girlfriend Lin Dai-Hua’s father mocked him to his face for trying to marry above his station with Dai-Hua.
Only then does Ya-Hui understand why Shih-Nan reacted negatively when her own father requested that he marry into their family during the matchmaking meeting.
As a result, Ya-Hui admires Shih-Nan’s stubborn and unyielding spirit and intends to rekindle their relationship.
Yu Ssu-Hai, the son of a fishing company owner, usually loafs around idly and is notorious locally for causing trouble.
One day, while Ssu-Hai and his subordinate Li Ming-Te are on the streets of Donggang, they encounter Tsai Shih-Fen and his younger sister Yu Su-Ju being harassed by three hooligans led by Black Dog. The two men step in and teach Black Dog’s group a lesson.
While returning from buying drawing boards and painting supplies, Tsai Shih-Nan encounters Yu Ssu-Hai pestering his younger sister Shih-Fen. Remembering that in the future Yu Ssu-Hai would eventually be imprisoned for drug trafficking and bring misery upon Shih-Fen and her child, Shih-Nan becomes determined to intervene and alter this “tragic history.”
Shih-Nan tells Shih-Fen not to associate with Ssu-Hai and sternly warns Ssu-Hai to stay away from her, provoking Shih-Fen’s dissatisfaction. Meanwhile, Ssu-Hai cannot understand why Shih-Nan becomes furious at him during their very first meeting.
Tsai Shih-Nan recalls how his younger sister Shih-Fen suffered after marrying Yu Ssu-Hai because of his failures and irresponsibility. He knows he must do everything possible to prevent the two from being together.
Chiu Hsiu-Tuan asks Shih-Nan why he lost his temper at Yu Ssu-Hai, whom he had just met for the first time. Unable to reveal the real reason to his mother, Shih-Nan merely says that the gambling-addicted Yu Ssu-Hai will eventually take desperate risks by smuggling drugs because of gambling debts, thereby implicating Shih-Fen and her future children.
Hsiu-Tuan tells Shih-Fen what Shih-Nan said. Shih-Fen thinks her brother worries too much and even predicts she will date Yu Ssu-Hai.
Tsai Shih-Fen is skeptical of her brother’s claims that Yu Ssu-Hai participates in illegal lottery gambling, so she repeats his words to her friend Yu Su-Ju. Su-Ju then informs her brother Yu Ssu-Hai, saying that Shih-Nan somehow already knows Ssu-Hai is involved in underground lottery betting.
After Yu Ssu-Hai learns why Tsai Shih-Nan was angry with him, he resolves to quit illegal gambling, stop associating with gangs, and work as a second mate on his family’s fishing boat. He hopes to change Shih-Nan’s prejudice against him through his actions because he has fallen in love with Tsai Shih-Fen at first sight and is willing to change for her.
Chang Ya-Hui accompanies Shih-Nan fishing by the seaside. Shih-Nan tells Ya-Hui that he does not want Yu Ssu-Hai getting close to his younger sister Shih-Fen.
Ya-Hui suggests converting the earthquake-damaged old family house into a Japanese-style guesthouse to attract tourists and placing Shih-Fen in charge of operating it, thereby keeping her too busy to spend time with Ssu-Hai.
Shih-Nan feels the idea is workable.
Tsai Shih-Nan discusses renovating the old family home into a guesthouse with his mother Chiu Hsiu-Tuan. Hsiu-Tuan agrees but worries that Shih-Nan lacks the funds.
Shih-Nan says he has sufficient capital, which arouses Hsiu-Tuan’s suspicions because she believes that after only half a year of work, he could not possibly have accumulated much savings.
Shih-Nan explains that his true purpose in building the guesthouse is to keep Shih-Fen too busy to date Yu Ssu-Hai. He asks his mother Hsiu-Tuan to help persuade Shih-Fen to resign from her nursing job and focus entirely on managing the guesthouse.
Ya-Hui not only helps Shih-Nan design and supervise construction of the guesthouse, but when the Tsai mother and daughter question the source of Shih-Nan’s funds, she also helps him explain it away by claiming that the two of them jointly invested.
Knowing of Ya-Hui’s wealthy family background, Mrs. Tsai believes this explanation. Both mother and daughter highly approve of Ya-Hui’s virtue and gentleness, believing she possesses the qualities of a supportive wife and is the ideal daughter-in-law for the Tsai family.
After Lin Dai-Hua is discharged from the hospital following her injuries, the police place her in a homeless shelter.
Having lost her memory, Dai-Hua lives a carefree new life like a blank sheet of paper.
The Tsai family guesthouse opens for business, threatening the nearby European-style hotel owned by local gangster boss Chu Fu-Liang.
Chu orders Black Dog and two other subordinates to find an opportunity to burn down the Tsai guesthouse and eliminate this business competitor.
On opening day, Yu Ssu-Hai, his younger sister, and subordinate Li Ming-Te visit the Tsai family to offer congratulations. Upon seeing Ssu-Hai, Tsai Shih-Nan still greets him coldly and sternly warns him again, causing Shih-Fen to quickly lead the three inside to tour the courtyard.
As Yu Ssu-Hai’s group prepares to leave the guesthouse, they notice Black Dog and his companions loitering suspiciously outside.
Thinking ahead carefully, Ssu-Hai instructs Li Ming-Te and several men to secretly stand guard around the Tsai property to prevent theft.
Ssu-Hai’s preparations successfully stop Chu Fu-Liang’s scheme in time, and Black Dog’s group is caught just as they are about to set the house on fire.
Chu is subsequently arrested by the police for instigating arson.
After these events, Shih-Nan’s opinion of Yu Ssu-Hai improves greatly. He takes the initiative to host a banquet for Yu Ssu-Hai and Li Ming-Te, encouraging Ssu-Hai to build a successful career. The two become good friends.
With Yu Ssu-Hai’s strong support, Tsai Shih-Nan purchases a sightseeing fishing boat and successfully acquires the required license. By combining sea fishing and whale watching with the family guesthouse business, the Tsai guesthouse becomes packed with customers.
Fashion designer Shih Mei-Lin clashes with manager Chao Chun-Ting over fashion design direction and sales performance. At the same time, her mother pressures her to bring home a boyfriend or else be arranged to attend matchmaking meetings.
Feeling troubled, Mei-Lin requests leave from the company and travels alone to Xiaoliuqiu for relaxation.
She stays at the Tsai family guesthouse and joins other guests aboard Shih-Nan’s fishing boat for whale watching and nighttime fishing.
Mei-Lin notices that during breaks from work, Shih-Nan sits at the bow sketching preliminary drawings, which arouses her curiosity and prompts her to strike up a conversation. She learns that painting had once been Shih-Nan’s youthful dream.
The two share a mutual interest in art. The mixed-race Shih Mei-Lin possesses delicate and beautiful European-style features and radiates a sunny Western charm.
The two converse happily. Mei-Lin leaves a wonderful impression on Shih-Nan, making him look forward to seeing her again.
After returning to her luxurious family home at Sun Moon Lake, Mei-Lin’s mother Shih Yu-Hua raises the topic again.
Mei-Lin suddenly thinks that perhaps Shih-Nan would be willing to temporarily “guest star” as her boyfriend in order to relieve the pressure from her family urging her to marry.
She therefore tells her mother that she will bring her boyfriend home to meet the family soon, although Yu-Hua remains only half convinced.
Shih Mei-Lin returns to the fashion company and submits her spring clothing designs.
General manager Su Ming-Yu is extremely satisfied with Mei-Lin’s newly designed spring collection and eagerly anticipates the market response.
Using the weekend holiday, Mei-Lin visits Xiaoliuqiu a second time and proactively calls Tsai Shih-Nan to arrange a meeting.
Shih-Nan rides his heavy motorcycle to pick Mei-Lin up. At the harbor district, Chang Ya-Hui accidentally sees them together and becomes suspicious, instinctively feeling that the red-haired girl may be Shih-Nan’s new girlfriend.
Ya-Hui later delivers paintings to the Tsai guesthouse for Tsai Shih-Fen to decorate the walls. She mentions seeing Shih-Nan giving a beautiful woman a ride at the harbor.
The two women discuss the matter briefly, and Shih-Fen decides to wait until her older brother returns home to question him.
Shih-Nan accompanies Mei-Lin sightseeing at several scenic spots.
While passing the Lovers’ Temple, Shih-Nan shows Mei-Lin a wish plaque upon which he prayed to the god of love for a reunion with her. The romantic atmosphere surprises and deeply moves Mei-Lin.
At a seaside pavilion near Beauty Cave, Mei-Lin takes the opportunity to complain to Shih-Nan about being pressured by her mother into attending matchmaking meetings.
Because Shih-Nan has experienced similar situations, he sympathizes with her.
At the right moment, Mei-Lin makes her request.
Shih-Nan is stunned by Mei-Lin’s request that he “guest star as her boyfriend,” but he still graciously expresses understanding and respect, though unable to conceal his disappointment.
While he hesitates, Mei-Lin promptly gives him her first kiss as a gesture of gratitude and hints that if the two get along well, there may eventually be the possibility that “fake love could become real love,” leaving room for Shih-Nan’s imagination.
Reluctantly, Shih-Nan agrees.
Shih Mei-Lin immediately explains the “entire script” and discusses it with Shih-Nan. The two reach several agreements regarding how the performance will proceed.
Shih-Nan escorts Mei-Lin back to the hotel. Watching her youthful and beautiful figure walk away, he recalls how he accidentally traveled back through time from sixteen years in the future.
Although he had originally made a promise with Lin Dai-Hua, circumstances and emotions have changed, and he cannot help feeling a little guilty.
Yet upon further reflection, Lin Dai-Hua at this time should still be studying in the United States, and when they originally agreed to break up, both had already reached an understanding, making his feelings of guilt seem unnecessary.
Returning home late at night, Shih-Nan is asked by his mother why he came back so late.
Following the planned “script,” Shih-Nan tells his mother Chiu Hsiu-Tuan that he intends to bring his girlfriend Shih Mei-Lin home.
Although Mrs. Tsai is surprised that Shih-Nan suddenly claims to have a girlfriend, she still says she will warmly receive Mei-Lin.
Upon learning that her brother is bringing home a girlfriend, Tsai Shih-Fen feels indignant on behalf of Chang Ya-Hui.
Mrs. Tsai believes they should respect Shih-Nan’s own choice and not interfere, allowing him to handle his emotional matters himself.
That night, the emotionally conflicted Shih-Nan dreams of intimate interactions with Mei-Lin and of Mei-Lin blaming him for failing to properly play the role of her fake boyfriend.
Near noon the next day, Shih Mei-Lin appears at the Tsai family guesthouse dressed elegantly.
The Tsai family hosts a banquet to entertain her.
Mother and daughter repeatedly question Mei-Lin about how she met Shih-Nan.
Mei-Lin talks fluently, claiming they met through friends in Hsinchu. Although the story is fabricated, Shih-Nan cooperates perfectly with her performance, leading the Tsai mother and daughter to believe it completely.
That evening, Shih-Fen invites Mei-Lin to sleep in the same room with her.
Following the script, Mei-Lin bluntly says she is accustomed to sleeping in the same bed as Shih-Nan.
The remark shocks the Tsai mother and daughter and convinces them that the two have already “consummated their relationship.”
However, Shih-Fen still refuses to give up. After the two enter the room, she presses herself against the door to eavesdrop.
She vaguely hears Mei-Lin asking Shih-Nan to help unzip her dress.
Mrs. Tsai passes by and quickly drags Shih-Fen away.
On the bed, Shih-Nan and Mei-Lin lie face to face staring at one another, separated only by a thin blanket.
After a period of inner struggle, Shih-Nan finally calms down and maintains his gentlemanly restraint.
The next morning, Shih-Nan sees Mei-Lin off.
Mei-Lin hands him a cassette tape.
Shih-Nan feels strangely empty, sensing that this does not quite feel like being in love.
Tsai Shih-Fen proactively tells Chang Ya-Hui that Shih-Nan brought Mei-Lin home. She feels her brother is heartless for abandoning old feelings in favor of new love.
Ya-Hui calmly says that Shih-Nan never confessed his feelings to her. Since Shih-Nan already has someone in his heart, he has not deceived her emotions.
Even so, Tsai Shih-Fen remains upset that Ya-Hui has been neglected.
Inside his room, Tsai Shih-Nan listens to the cassette tape Mei-Lin gave him.
He feels hesitant and conflicted about Mei-Lin’s suggestion that he return to Taipei with her to build a career together.
Shih-Fen enters the room and has a sincere talk with her brother, believing he should not treat Ya-Hui this way.
Shih-Nan admits that if Mei-Lin had never appeared, he and Chang Ya-Hui indeed might have become lovers.
Hearing this, Shih-Fen feels somewhat relieved.
Tsai Shih-Nan visits Shih Mei-Lin’s family at Sun Moon Lake.
During the banquet, Mei-Lin’s grandfather Tien-Sheng and younger uncle Yu-Long ask Shih-Nan about his future plans.
Shih-Nan honestly explains that he intends to remain in Xiaoliuqiu.
The two elders feel his attitude is too passive and believe the two should struggle together in the city to build their careers.
Yu-Hua quickly smooths things over.
Afterward, Mei-Lin blames Shih-Nan for being too honest and tells him to think carefully about whether he is willing to work hard together with her before returning to Taipei to see her again.
Shih Mei-Lin returns to the company.
General manager Su Ming-Yu enters Mei-Lin’s office and asks her to attend a dinner gathering with partner companies.
She says Mei-Lin should get acquainted with Lin Wen-Bin, the general manager of Beauty Cosmetics Company, praising Wen-Bin as a talented young entrepreneur with proper conduct and no scandals, and saying that he and Mei-Lin are very well matched in terms of family and background.
Mei-Lin understands the hidden implication in her manager’s words and does not wish to complicate her life further, so she states that she already has a stable boyfriend named Tsai Shih-Nan.
Although his conditions may not equal Lin Wen-Bin’s, she has no obsession with social status and certainly would not abandon one man for another.
Ming-Yu remains persistent and says Mei-Lin should meet more distinguished gentlemen so she will have more choices when selecting a husband in the future.
Through her cellphone, Shih Mei-Lin informs Shih-Nan that the company is about to hold its spring fashion show and asks him to accompany her afterward to celebrate her birthday together at her residence.
From the control deck of the yacht, Shih-Nan agrees over the phone.
Late that night, Shih-Fen enters Shih-Nan’s bedroom and sees him chatting with Mei-Lin through instant messaging on the computer keyboard.
Shih-Fen tactfully explains her purpose and sincerely asks how he intends to face Ya-Hui, who loves him wholeheartedly.
Shih-Nan says Ya-Hui is a good friend with whom he shares his thoughts and admits he himself has struggled emotionally because if he had not later met Shih Mei-Lin, he and Ya-Hui indeed might have become a couple.
Hearing her brother speak this way, Shih-Fen is finally able to understand him emotionally.
At the dinner gathering with partner companies, Su Ming-Yu introduces director Shih Mei-Lin and two other designers to the honored guests.
Designer Li Ko-Ni becomes captivated by Lin Wen-Bin’s charm, repeatedly smiling at him and deliberately initiating conversations.
Several business executives take turns toasting Mei-Lin with alcohol. Unable to handle her liquor, Mei-Lin is protected by Lin Wen-Bin, who drinks on her behalf.
The next day, Su Ming-Yu once again tries persuading Mei-Lin to consider accepting Lin Wen-Bin, but Mei-Lin has already made up her mind.
Soon afterward, Lin Wen-Bin invites Mei-Lin out by telephone, and Mei-Lin agrees in order to determine what exactly Wen-Bin is planning.
After meeting, Wen-Bin expresses great admiration for Mei-Lin’s abilities and says he wants to recruit her as creative director following their strategic alliance.
He openly says he is willing to invest money to help Mei-Lin establish her own company and support her entrepreneurial ambitions.
Mei-Lin understands that Wen-Bin intends to bind her through these means, so she politely declines.
However, Lin Wen-Bin refuses to give up.
Lin Wen-Bin has a flower shop deliver a bouquet of perfume lilies with a signed card attached.
After Mei-Lin signs for it, she leaves the flowers on the coffee table in her office and continues working.
When Li Ko-Ni enters to deliver design drafts and sees the bouquet, she becomes extremely jealous and cannot resist asking about it.
At first, Mei-Lin casually says that Lin Wen-Bin invited her to dinner. Remembering how Li Ko-Ni intentionally chatted with Wen-Bin during the dinner gathering, Mei-Lin suddenly gets an idea.
She gives the bouquet to Ko-Ni and asks her to attend the dinner invitation in her place.
Ko-Ni agrees and happily leaves with the flowers.
Li Ko-Ni attends the dinner in place of Shih Mei-Lin.
When Lin Wen-Bin discovers that the person who arrived is actually Li Ko-Ni, he cannot help feeling disappointed, though he still maintains his gentlemanly manners and dines with her.
Ko-Ni proactively informs Wen-Bin that Mei-Lin already has a boyfriend and is currently together with him.
Wen-Bin refuses to accept defeat inwardly, believing his own qualifications are second to none, and secretly resolves to win Mei-Lin for himself.
As scheduled, Tsai Shih-Nan travels to Taipei to attend Shih Mei-Lin’s spring fashion show.
Upon entering the venue, he notices a sharply dressed yet overly slick young man seated beside Mei-Lin—Lin Wen-Bin.
The young man repeatedly smiles at Mei-Lin and whispers in her ear.
Shih-Nan feels uncomfortable and decides not to approach Mei-Lin. After watching briefly from a corner, he prepares to leave.
At that moment, Mei-Lin catches sight of him, rises quickly, and chases him to the entrance.
She hurriedly calls out to stop him.
Shih-Nan halts and turns around.
Mei-Lin walks over, hooks her arm around his, and leads him back into the venue, seating him in a corner beside the runway, diagonally opposite Lin Wen-Bin.
When Lin Wen-Bin sees Mei-Lin return holding another man’s arm, he circles half the venue and deliberately approaches them.
Before Wen-Bin can speak, Mei-Lin introduces Shih-Nan as her boyfriend.
A trace of contempt flashes across Wen-Bin’s face, but he immediately pretends to be gentlemanly and extends his hand to Shih-Nan.
He then sits beside Mei-Lin, creating the awkward image of “two green leaves surrounding a single red flower,” making both Mei-Lin and Shih-Nan extremely uncomfortable.
Wen-Bin takes the initiative to converse with Shih-Nan, probing into his background.
Mei-Lin silently signals with her eyes for Shih-Nan to speak as little as possible.
Naturally understanding, Shih-Nan deliberately pretends not to hear Wen-Bin’s repeated questions and merely shakes his head to avoid answering, leaving Wen-Bin unable to do anything.
Meanwhile, Li Ko-Ni watches the entire scene from nearby and unexpectedly begins to sympathize with the neglected Lin Wen-Bin.
After the models finish their runway walk and line up on stage, the host invites the three designers to come onstage one by one and be introduced to the guests.
The strikingly beautiful Shih Mei-Lin becomes the center of all camera flashes.
Su Ming-Yu, Shih Mei-Lin, Li Ko-Ni, Lin Wen-Bin, and others walk out of the venue.
Tsai Shih-Nan’s sedan is already waiting at the entrance.
After speaking briefly with General Manager Su, Mei-Lin waves goodbye to Wen-Bin and Ko-Ni, then quickly walks to Shih-Nan’s car.
Shih-Nan opens the car door for Mei-Lin, and under everyone’s gaze the sedan drives onto the broad avenue, leaving behind a stunned Lin Wen-Bin and a secretly smirking Li Ko-Ni, who is enjoying his embarrassment.
That evening, the two return to Mei-Lin’s apartment.
Shih-Nan celebrates Mei-Lin’s birthday and shows her a gold savings account book.
Understanding his intentions, Mei-Lin explains that marriage is not about finding a lifelong meal ticket. She asks Shih-Nan to respect her wishes and give her several years to develop her fashion career in Taipei.
Tsai Shih-Nan returns to Xiaoliuqiu while Shih Mei-Lin goes back to Taipei.
The two pursue their careers separately and communicate online through instant messaging at night.
Late one night, after Shih-Nan finishes showering and returns to his room, an email titled “SOS” appears on his laptop screen.
The sender is signed “Gman・T”—which is himself.
The date is September 22, 2014, the very night he accidentally traveled through time.
Curious, Shih-Nan opens the email.
Inside is only a single photograph with no written explanation.
The photo shows himself, Shih Mei-Lin, and a pair of twin siblings standing at the Shui-She Pier of Sun Moon Lake, precisely on the walkway where he and Mei-Lin once strolled together.
The photo’s date is September 22, 2014.
Shih-Nan notices that the images of Mei-Lin and the twins appear semi-transparent.
He stares at the photo on the screen, pondering repeatedly yet unable to understand its meaning.
The next day, Chang Ya-Hui visits the Tsai family residence to ask Shih-Nan to help fulfill the dream of her graduating art students by taking them on a sea-sketching graduation trip aboard his sightseeing fishing boat.
Shih-Nan readily agrees.
Ya-Hui senses that Shih-Nan seems troubled and gently coaxes him into talking.
Shih-Nan opens the email folder on his laptop and shows her the family photo with Mei-Lin.
Ya-Hui examines the photo and the date it was sent. Her heart is violently shaken, yet she is completely confused.
At this moment, Shih-Nan confesses that he actually comes from the year 2014.
He explains how he reunited with his first love Lin Dai-Hua in the future timeline and how the two originally planned to start over together, but he accidentally entered a space-time wormhole and returned to the present, where he later met Mei-Lin.
He recounts the process of how their fake relationship gradually became real.
Chang Ya-Hui is utterly stunned.
Shih-Nan emphasizes that this SOS email sent from himself in 2014 must indicate that some change has occurred, even though the message contains no words.
He urgently wants to understand what the photo is trying to tell him.
Ya-Hui tells Shih-Nan to print the photograph, and the two brainstorm together about why the images of Mei-Lin and the twins appear semi-transparent.
Gradually, they arrive at several conclusions:
(1) Tsai Shih-Nan and Shih Mei-Lin eventually form a family together and give birth to a pair of twins.
(2) The semi-transparent images suggest that some external force or unexpected factor intervenes, causing their images to appear translucent.
(3) The semi-transparent effect may indicate that Mei-Lin and the two children die together in an accident, or that some external force changes the original future in which Shih-Nan and Mei-Lin were meant to form a family together. In other words, outside interference may result in the two never marrying, and therefore never having twins.
(4) Shih-Nan must quickly identify the possible outside force interfering with events or carefully guard against accidents that may occur after his marriage to Mei-Lin, such as a disaster involving Mei-Lin and the children while traveling by airplane or ship.
Chang Ya-Hui drags her heavy footsteps back to the teachers’ dormitory.
She sits at her desk gazing out the window at the moonlit sea sparkling with waves and the twinkling lights of fishing boats working at night.
In her mind still lingers the family photograph Shih-Nan showed her.
Ya-Hui understands clearly that Shih-Nan only sees her as a good friend with whom he can share his thoughts. The woman he truly loves is Shih Mei-Lin.
Ya-Hui falls into emotional conflict.
If the images of Mei-Lin and the children were to disappear completely, would that imply she might one day have a chance to replace Mei-Lin?
Yet she feels she should not harbor such malicious hopes because she sincerely wishes for Shih-Nan to have a happy marriage in the future, even if she herself is not the heroine.
After spending an entire year in the homeless shelter, Lin Dai-Hua one day falls down the stairs, suffering a head injury and losing consciousness.
Following surgery at the hospital to remove blood clots from inside her skull, she awakens and gradually recovers both her memory and intelligence.
On the day she is discharged from the hospital, Lin Dai-Hua first sends an email to Shih-Nan and then returns home to see her parents.
Mr. and Mrs. Lin are astonished because at this time she should supposedly still be studying abroad in California.
Dai-Hua tactfully explains her strange experience.
The Lin parents listen in total confusion and proactively call Dai-Hua’s residence in California to verify her story.
However, the Dai-Hua there has mysteriously vanished, and the people there insist no such person ever existed.
Only then do the Lin parents finally believe that Dai-Hua is telling the truth.
Dai-Hua begs her father to allow her to follow her own wishes, remain in Taiwan, and build a family and business together with her first love Tsai Shih-Nan.
Unable to withstand her desperate pleas, Mr. Lin’s attitude softens.
When Tsai Shih-Nan receives Lin Dai-Hua’s email saying she plans to come to Xiaoliuqiu to find him, he is utterly shocked and completely loses composure.
He paces anxiously around his room, not knowing what to do.
At that very moment, Chang Ya-Hui calls his cellphone to confirm the departure time for the whale-watching trip with her students.
During the conversation, Shih-Nan asks Ya-Hui for advice.
Ya-Hui urges him to explain everything clearly to his family first.
Shih-Nan tells his family that his first love Lin Dai-Hua is coming to Xiaoliuqiu to find him.
Mrs. Tsai had met Lin Dai-Hua three years earlier and feels the matter is difficult to handle.
However, since Shih-Nan already loves Shih Mei-Lin and has met Mei-Lin’s family, he will eventually have to face Dai-Hua and explain everything to her directly.
Two days later, Lin Dai-Hua’s brand-new white Toyota Corona appears outside the Tsai family guesthouse.
She still remembers the Tsai family’s old crumbling brick house and instinctively feels it impossible that within only a few years the Tsai family could have achieved such prosperity.
She cannot help wondering whether this Tsai Shih-Nan she is about to meet may, like herself, have traveled back from the future.
Upon seeing Tsai Shih-Fen, Dai-Hua subtly asks several probing questions and confirms that Shih-Nan also comes from the future.
After exchanging greetings, Shih-Nan accompanies Lin Dai-Hua on a tour of the guesthouse.
Dai-Hua directly asks whether he remembers being hospitalized for an acute stroke in 2014 and how she accompanied him in the hospital.
Shih-Nan nods, unable to deny it.
Dai-Hua continues, saying that at that time Shih-Nan promised the two of them would begin again together.
Again, Shih-Nan does not deny it.
However, gathering his courage, he tells Dai-Hua that during this period he has come to know Shih Mei-Lin and is now engaged to her, asking Dai-Hua to forgive him for falling in love with someone else.
Dai-Hua feels as if struck by lightning.
She says that after suffering a car accident, brain injury, and amnesia, she spent an entire year living in a homeless shelter, yet Shih-Nan changed his heart so quickly.
The Tsai mother and daughter overhear Dai-Hua’s grief-stricken accusations in the courtyard, prompting Mrs. Tsai to intervene and smooth things over.
Lin Dai-Hua demands that Shih-Nan take her to meet Shih Mei-Lin so the three can settle matters face to face.
Shih-Nan can only reluctantly agree.
That night, Dai-Hua stays at the Tsai family guesthouse.
Deep into the night, the two in separate bedrooms remain unable to sleep because of this love triangle.
Shih-Nan calls Mei-Lin on her cellphone and explains everything—from how he accidentally traveled through time from the future to the present, to how his first love Lin Dai-Hua has also returned from the future to find him.
He also forwards to Mei-Lin the SOS email from 2014 to prove his story.
After seeing the family photograph in the email, Mei-Lin has no choice but to believe Shih-Nan’s incredible experience.
Shih-Nan says Lin Dai-Hua insists on meeting her and tells Mei-Lin to prepare herself mentally.
Sitting at her computer desk, Mei-Lin feels deeply hurt.
Yet upon reflection, if she is destined to follow Shih-Nan in this life, then she certainly cannot lose to Lin Dai-Hua.
The next morning, Shih-Nan invites Lin Dai-Hua aboard the sightseeing yacht to relax by whale watching with the guesthouse tourists.
Inside the yacht’s control cabin, Dai-Hua calls her family to reassure them of her safety and then asks Shih-Nan whether he truly intends to live this sort of life from now on.
Shih-Nan replies that he no longer wants to return to the city and live as an ordinary office worker.
Dai-Hua can understand his thinking, yet feels that with Shih-Nan’s talent in information software design, remaining in Xiaoliuqiu to operate a guesthouse and pilot sightseeing yachts is a waste of his abilities.
She encourages Shih-Nan to go with her to the Hsinchu Science Park and establish a technology company.
With the combined abilities of the two of them, they could surely develop highly successful smartphone hardware and software in the future.
Shih-Nan says that now he no longer worries about food or clothing and no longer possesses such ambition.
Dai-Hua realizes that Shih-Nan’s heart is no longer with her.
While the two are driving toward Taipei and reach Hsintien, thunder and rain fill the sky.
Inside the sedan, Lin Dai-Hua listens to classical music through headphones.
As the car enters the Fu-De Long Tunnel on National Freeway No. 3, Shih-Nan notices Dai-Hua’s golden hair gradually fading back to black from the tips, while his own hairstyle also begins to change.
He realizes they are about to pass through another time tunnel.
Shih-Nan thinks that if they pass through this tunnel, they may end up stranded in some unknown timeline.
He therefore urgently slaps Dai-Hua’s shoulder and gestures frantically for her to brake and reverse.
But Dai-Hua deliberately pretends not to hear and continues driving forward.
At that moment, Shih-Nan hurriedly pushes open the car door and jumps from the moving sedan.
His left calf hits the ground first, and his body rolls several times across the roadway.
Shih-Nan lifts his head helplessly and watches Lin Dai-Hua’s sedan vanish instantly into the tunnel.
Moments later, the pain causes him to lose consciousness.
On a hospital emergency ward bed, Tsai Shih-Nan lies wrapped in several layers of bandages while his younger sister Shih-Fen keeps watch at his bedside.
Shih-Fen telephones Mei-Lin, who is in a meeting, and leaves a message informing her that Shih-Nan has been hospitalized with injuries.
Meanwhile, Chang Ya-Hui has just come out of the hospital’s obstetrics and gynecology department, looking dejected.
The doctor’s words still echo in her ears:
“Miss Chang, the tumor in your ovary has been identified through biopsy as malignant. In order to cure it completely, your uterus must be removed as soon as possible and a full course of treatment undertaken…”
After receiving Shih-Fen’s phone call, Ya-Hui immediately decides to rush to the hospital to visit Shih-Nan.
When the anesthesia wears off and Shih-Nan awakens, he sees Chang Ya-Hui and his younger sister Shih-Fen standing by his bedside.
His left calf is gone.
Shih-Fen says she called Shih Mei-Lin, but Mei-Lin’s attitude toward the now-disabled Shih-Nan has become noticeably hesitant.
Ya-Hui gently strokes Shih-Nan’s face with deep affection and relays the doctor’s explanation: the tissue in his left calf had died and required amputation, but he is now out of danger.
Shih-Nan recalls that when Lin Dai-Hua’s sedan was about to pass through a time tunnel, he urgently opened the door and jumped out, while Dai-Hua’s car disappeared instantly into the tunnel.
Shih-Fen finds the story unbelievable, but Ya-Hui understands completely.
She is deeply moved because at the critical moment when history was about to change, Shih-Nan risked his life to remain behind—and all because he did not want to lose Shih Mei-Lin.
Chang Ya-Hui decides to go to Taipei to see Shih Mei-Lin.
She asks Shih-Fen for Mei-Lin’s address and telephone number, then telephones Mrs. Tsai Chiu Hsiu-Tuan and asks her to quickly courier Shih-Nan’s diary and the family photograph of Shih-Nan and Mei-Lin from the study desk to the hospital.
Carrying Shih-Nan’s diary, Ya-Hui meets Shih Mei-Lin at a café.
Ya-Hui tells Mei-Lin how Shih-Nan sacrificed one of his legs in order to remain behind and stay with her.
Mei-Lin is deeply moved.
Ya-Hui then shows Mei-Lin the diary and the family photograph.
As Mei-Lin reads the diary and looks at the photograph, tears drip onto the picture.
The previously blurry images of Mei-Lin and the two children gradually become clear.
Mei-Lin slowly comes to believe that all of this is destiny.
Ya-Hui hands Mei-Lin the medical diagnosis certificate and a letter, asking Mei-Lin to take good care of Shih-Nan.
She then turns and leaves, tears glistening in her eyes.
Carrying only simple luggage, Shih Mei-Lin arrives at the hospital room.
Shih-Fen tactfully leaves, allowing the two to be alone together.
Mei-Lin returns the diary and photograph to Shih-Nan, along with Ya-Hui’s medical diagnosis certificate and the letter.
After reading the letter, Shih-Nan tells Mei-Lin that the pair of children they will one day have should recognize Ya-Hui as their godmother.
Mei-Lin smiles and nods.
Inside Shih-Nan’s room at the Tsai family guesthouse, Shih-Nan sits at the desk designing the webpage for the family guesthouse on the computer screen.
Beside his feet rests a prosthetic lower leg.
Shih Mei-Lin slides open the paper door and enters carrying a travel bag.
She walks behind Shih-Nan, sets down the bag, and wraps her arms around him from behind, saying she has resigned from her Taipei job and is ready to marry him.
Shih-Nan opens his inbox and shows her a second email sent from Tsai Shih-Nan in 2014.
The attached photograph shows Shih Mei-Lin sitting confidently at the controls of a sightseeing yacht, hands gripping the steering wheel with spirited determination.
He then opens the first SOS email again.
In the photograph, the images of Mei-Lin and the twins are no longer semi-transparent.
After looking at it, Mei-Lin smiles and gently kisses Shih-Nan on the cheek.
Upon the calm and sunny sea, a sightseeing yacht carries tourists out to sea.
Inside the control cabin, Mei-Lin grips the steering wheel while piloting the vessel.
Shih-Nan holds a microphone and guides the tourists, explaining the dolphins chasing schools of fish across the water.
Someone notices that beneath the hem of his shorts, part of his lower leg is a prosthetic limb…
(The End)
