Reprinted Youth (再版的青春)1
A Fantasy Romance Novel (Volume One)
A screenplay version of this novel is also available.
Film adaptation rights: NT$2,000,000 (Two Million New Taiwan Dollars)
For licensing inquiries, please contact:
54088rabbit@gmail.com
I. Theme of the Film
This film is an original, thought-provoking story with depth and considerable box-office potential. Although it can be produced on a modest budget, its compelling storyline has the potential to achieve outstanding commercial success.
The film explores the following themes:
(1) It examines the values held by successful professionals in the high-tech industry, encouraging audiences to reflect deeply on the true meaning of life. The purpose of life is not to compete for fame and fortune or accumulate wealth through one's career, but rather to discover enjoyment and a sense of achievement in one's work—what Buddhism describes as "working with joy and willingly accepting the accompanying responsibilities."
(2) It analyzes career choices and regional development. Whether one lives in a metropolitan city or returns to one's hometown, the key to success lies in personal planning and the ability to put those plans into action. One does not necessarily have to follow urban trends or relocate to a major city in order to find opportunities for growth.
(3) It illustrates the respective roles of men and women in an era of gender equality. Both partners should respect each other's career plans. Women in the workplace possess professional skills and strong career ambitions. When confronted with the difficult choice between marriage and career, men should not expect women to abandon their professions and sacrifice themselves entirely for marriage and family. Instead, both partners should show understanding and respect for one another, communicate openly, build mutual consensus, and create a win-win future together.
(4) During the courtship stage of a relationship, sincerity, modest words and actions, and healthy communication help establish mutual trust. The appearance of a third party often signals a challenge that both partners must face together. Only after overcoming such trials can they truly determine whether they are emotionally and spiritually compatible and whether they are capable of building a family together in the future.
II. Unique Features and Synopsis
1. Unique Features
Although this story adopts the concept of time travel, allowing the protagonist, Tsai Shih-Nan, to return to the past and regain his youth while retaining memories of his previous life, its storyline is fundamentally different from today's popular time-travel dramas.
The plot follows ordinary logic and realistic human experience. After returning to the past, the protagonist does not acquire any supernatural abilities, nor does the story contain bizarre or occult fantasy elements.
By chance, Tsai Shih-Nan returns to the past and once again becomes his younger self. Having previously survived a serious illness, his outlook on life has changed dramatically. He decides to leave behind the competitive metropolitan lifestyle driven by fame and wealth, return to his hometown, redesign his future, treat himself with greater kindness, and embrace a slower, more peaceful way of life.
Reprinted Youth is a wholesome and uplifting youth romance with profound themes. Combining a fresh, lively style with elements of fantasy, together with the breathtaking scenery of Xiaoliuqiu Island and Sun Moon Lake, the film has strong international appeal.
If adapted into a motion picture with dubbing and subtitles in multiple languages—including Japanese, Korean, and English—it could not only enter the international film market and provide domestic audiences with both visual enjoyment and emotional inspiration, but also compete at major international film festivals and bring greater recognition to Taiwanese cinema.
2. Synopsis
Tsai Shih-Nan, a middle-aged engineer and devoted technology enthusiast, has worked his way up to become a department manager at a technology company. During fifteen years of employment, he has accumulated considerable wealth. However, he remains single, with neither a wife nor children.
After suffering an acute stroke caused by overwork and narrowly escaping death, his outlook on life gradually changes.
His college sweetheart, Lin Dai-Hua, returns from California to reunite with him. Since both are still unmarried, their old romance is rekindled, and they promise to marry and build a future together.
Fate, however, has other plans.
While leaving Taipei with a large amount of cash and driving back to his hometown of Xiaoliuqiu, Tsai Shih-Nan accidentally passes through a time wormhole.
He arrives on September 22, 1999, the day after the devastating 921 Earthquake, and finds himself restored to the handsome appearance of his twenty-eight-year-old self.
Determined to begin life anew, he decides to fall in love, get married, start a family, and use the money he possesses to build an entirely new future.
What he does not know is that Lin Dai-Hua also drives through the same wormhole at the same moment and arrives in the same time period. Unfortunately, she is involved in a traffic accident and loses her memory.
Tsai Shih-Nan later reunites with Chang Ya-Hui, a woman he had once met through an arranged blind date. Their previous misunderstandings are resolved, and Ya-Hui is touched by Shih-Nan's sincerity and growing affection toward her. Shih-Nan, meanwhile, regards Ya-Hui as a trusted confidante.
At this point, Shih Mei-Lin enters his life.
Shih-Nan falls in love with her at first sight.
Although Mei-Lin asks him to pretend to be her boyfriend, he reluctantly agrees, unintentionally neglecting Chang Ya-Hui, who has loved him wholeheartedly and selflessly.
Under Mei-Lin's careful direction, a drama of a fake romantic relationship unfolds before both the Tsai and Shih families.
Meanwhile, Tsai Shih-Nan renovates his ancestral home into a Japanese-style guesthouse and purchases a sightseeing fishing boat to establish a brand-new business.
As time passes, the pretend romance between him and Mei-Lin gradually becomes genuine.
The only obstacle remaining is Shih-Nan's hesitation over Mei-Lin's request that he return to Taipei with her to pursue their careers together.
Later, after recovering her memory, Lin Dai-Hua comes to find Tsai Shih-Nan, only to discover that he has already fallen in love with someone else.
Faced with the devoted Chang Ya-Hui, the captivating Shih Mei-Lin, and his unforgettable first love Lin Dai-Hua, what choice will Tsai Shih-Nan make?
The answer unfolds as the audience follows his journey.
III. Character Profiles and Main Character Relationship Chart
(1) Character Profiles
Main Cast
Tsai Shih-Nan (蔡世男)
Male Protagonist
Age: 44 / 28
At the beginning of the story, he appears as a middle-aged man. After returning to 1999, he becomes his 28-year-old self again.
1. Personal Background
Born on Xiaoliuqiu Island, Tsai Shih-Nan was an excellent student from childhood.
He graduated from the Department of Computer Science and Information Engineering at National Tsing Hua University and worked as a software programmer at an electronics company in the Hsinchu Science Park.
At the age of forty, he was promoted to Senior Design Engineer, earning an annual salary of more than NT$2 million.
During his university years, he experienced one romantic relationship, but it ended without success. Even after entering middle age, he remained unmarried.
He normally lived in the company's dormitory in Hsinchu. He drove a seventeen-year-old Toyota Corona. He had accumulated savings in his bank account and owned two rental properties in Taipei's East District.
He neither smoked nor drank alcohol, but he was a man who was "so poor that he had nothing left except money."
He was the financial pillar of his family.
2. Appearance
Tsai Shih-Nan has refined and handsome facial features, fair skin, and neatly styled business hair.
He is 180 centimeters tall, with an elegant and scholarly appearance.
At work, he wears shirts and dress pants. At home, he dresses casually.
During middle age, he has developed a slight belly and some gray hair, giving him the charm and maturity of an experienced man.
3. Personality
He is frugal, disciplined, and maintains a positive and optimistic attitude toward life.
However, years of overwork cause him to suffer an acute cerebral vascular blockage.
After narrowly escaping death, his values undergo a complete transformation.
He decides to treat himself better, sells his properties, resigns from his job, returns to his hometown of Xiaoliuqiu with his savings, starts a new business, and embraces a slower-paced lifestyle.
Because of this transformation, when Shih-Nan accidentally travels through time and returns seventeen years into the past, he decides to live again according to his own wishes—to seriously pursue love and build a family.
Shih Mei-Lin (施美琳)
Second Female Protagonist
Age: 26
1. Personal Background
She is a Taiwanese-American mixed-race woman.
Her family operates a large hotel business at Sun Moon Lake.
She studied fine arts and is also of Taiwanese-French mixed heritage.
She was born and raised in Paris, France, and works as a fashion designer at a clothing company in Taipei.
2. Appearance
She has deep and distinctive facial features, an elegant and beautiful appearance, delicate fair skin, and long brown hair.
Standing at 175 centimeters tall, she possesses a model-like figure with a glamorous and attractive appearance.
Her fashion style is always trendy and sophisticated.
She can be described as an exceptionally beautiful woman.
3. Personality
Her mixed-race background and upbringing in Paris have made her highly independent.
She has strong career ambitions and a bright, cheerful personality.
However, she is also very determined, with clear opinions about love and hate.
Lin Wen-Bin (林文彬)
Supporting Male Character
Age: 36
1. Personal Background
He earned a Master's degree in Business Administration from London Business School in the United Kingdom.
He is the Taiwanese distributor for several major international cosmetics brands.
After returning to Taiwan, Wen-Bin takes over the family business, establishes a cosmetics factory, and creates his own cosmetics brand.
Through continuous effort, he gradually builds a successful reputation.
He is an ambitious young entrepreneur with ideals and aspirations.
2. Appearance
He has sharp eyebrows, sharp eyes, and a prominent nose.
His facial features are well-defined and masculine.
His appearance is energetic and confident, giving people an impression of sophistication and boldness.
He wears a business hairstyle, is 175 centimeters tall, and usually dresses in suits or high-end casual clothing.
3. Personality
He is mature, steady, highly ambitious in business, disciplined, and meticulous.
Because of his successful career and attractive appearance, he has always maintained a positive image in the business world.
However, he is also quite proud and unwilling to admit defeat.
IV. Story Outline
Tsai Shih-Nan, a technology geek, works as the director of the Programming Department at a high-tech company in the Hsinchu Science Park.
Every day, he is consumed by work and wastes away his youth. After sixteen years of working, he has become a man who is "left with nothing but money."
Due to years of overwork, he suffers an acute stroke and is rushed to the hospital for emergency treatment. He is saved in time by the neurologist Lin Ching-Hua, the younger brother of Lin Dai-Hua.
Coincidentally, his first love, Lin Dai-Hua, returns to Taiwan from Silicon Valley, California, to visit her family.
Her parents insist on arranging a marriage match for her, hoping to find her a suitable companion.
Ching-Hua tells his elder sister Dai-Hua that Tsai Shih-Nan is currently hospitalized due to an emergency illness and remains single.
Like Shih-Nan, Dai-Hua also feels that her youth has been wasted because of her career.
She begins to consider the possibility of rekindling her relationship with Shih-Nan.
Dai-Hua visits Shih-Nan in the hospital and stays by his side.
Both of them have thoughts of marriage.
Dai-Hua tells him that after returning to Taichung to persuade her parents, she will resign from her job in Silicon Valley and return to Taiwan to start a business with Shih-Nan.
From then on, they will stay together for the rest of their lives.
The two of them make a verbal commitment to each other.
Tsai Shih-Nan sells his properties in Taipei, takes a large amount of cash, and drives away from Taipei.
At the same time, Dai-Hua drives back toward Taichung.
Their vehicles pass through a time-travel wormhole one after another and return to September 22, 1999, the day after the devastating earthquake occurred.
However, neither of them knows that the other has also traveled through the wormhole.
On the way, Lin Dai-Hua is involved in a traffic accident.
She suffers a head injury and loses her memory.
Because both her vehicle and identification documents are destroyed in the accident, the police are temporarily unable to determine her identity.
Tsai Shih-Nan returns to Xiaoliuqiu and unexpectedly encounters Chang Ya-Hui, the elementary school art teacher whom he once met through a marriage arrangement.
The elementary school where Ya-Hui works suffers computer network damage caused by the earthquake, so she asks Shih-Nan to help repair the system.
When Tsai Shih-Nan returns home, he discovers that the modern concrete house he had remembered has reverted to its original form.
It is still the old, worn-out traditional three-section courtyard house built with bricks and tiles.
His mother, Chiu Hsiu-Tuan, and his younger sister, Tsai Shih-Fen, are surprised to see him return driving a new car and carrying two large suitcases.
Shih-Nan vaguely explains that his company laid off employees after the earthquake and says that he plans to return home and start his own business.
Tsai Shih-Nan repairs the computer network at Chang Ya-Hui's elementary school.
Afterward, Ya-Hui invites him to her dormitory for lunch and drinks.
The misunderstandings between them from their previous blind date are resolved.
They gradually get to know each other better and become friends.
Ya-Hui has always had a favorable impression of Shih-Nan.
Although their previous marriage arrangement several months earlier ended because Shih-Nan was unwilling to marry into the Chang family and live with her parents, she still respects him.
After Tsai Shih-Nan becomes drunk, Ya-Hui sends him home.
After talking with Shih-Fen, she learns that Shih-Nan had recently suffered an emotional setback because Dai-Hua's father had openly mocked him for trying to "marry above his social status".
His relationship with Dai-Hua collapsed, and he suffered a severe emotional blow.
Ya-Hui finally understands why Shih-Nan reacted negatively when her own father previously suggested that he marry into the Chang family during their blind date.
Because of this, Ya-Hui admires Shih-Nan's "unyielding and stubborn spirit" and hopes to rekindle their relationship.
The son of a fishing company owner, Yu Szu-Hai, spends his days idle and causing trouble.
He has gained a notorious reputation in the local community.
One day, he and his subordinate Li Ming-De encounter Tsai Shih-Fen and Yu Su-Ru, who are being harassed by three local gangsters led by Hei-Gou on the streets of Donggang.
The two men step forward and teach the three troublemakers a lesson.
On his way home after purchasing drawing boards and art supplies, Tsai Shih-Nan sees Yu Szu-Hai bothering his younger sister Shih-Fen.
Remembering that Yu Szu-Hai would later be imprisoned for drug trafficking and bring misfortune to Shih-Fen and her child, Shih-Nan decides to intervene and change this "tragic history."
Shih-Nan tells Shih-Fen not to associate with Szu-Hai and sternly warns Szu-Hai not to approach her.
This makes Shih-Fen angry.
Meanwhile, Szu-Hai cannot understand why Shih-Nan becomes furious with him at their very first meeting.
Tsai Shih-Nan remembers that after his younger sister Shih-Fen married Yu Szu-Hai, Szu-Hai's irresponsible behavior brought suffering to her.
Therefore, he must do everything possible to prevent them from being together.
Chiu Hsiu-Tuan asks Shih-Nan why he became so angry with someone he had just met for the first time.
Shih-Nan cannot reveal the true reason behind his actions.
He only tells his mother that the gambling-addicted Yu Szu-Hai will eventually risk everything because of gambling debts and become involved in drug smuggling, causing harm to Shih-Fen and her future family.
Hsiu-Tuan repeats Shih-Nan's explanation to her daughter Shih-Fen.
Shih-Fen feels that her brother is worrying too much and even thinks he is strangely predicting that she will become involved with Yu Szu-Hai.
Shih-Fen is doubtful about her brother's accusation that Szu-Hai participates in illegal lottery gambling.
She tells her friend Yu Su-Ru what her brother said.
Su-Ru then tells her brother Szu-Hai that Shih-Nan somehow knows he has been betting on the lottery.
After understanding why Tsai Shih-Nan was angry with him, Yu Szu-Hai decides to quit gambling and leave behind his gang-related lifestyle.
He begins working as a second officer on his family's fishing boat.
He hopes to change Shih-Nan's negative impression of him through his actions.
Because he falls in love with Tsai Shih-Fen at first sight, he is willing to change himself for her.
Chang Ya-Hui accompanies Shih-Nan to go fishing by the sea.
Shih-Nan tells Ya-Hui that he does not want Yu Szu-Hai to get close to his younger sister Shih-Fen.
Ya-Hui suggests that he rebuild the earthquake-damaged old house into a Japanese-style guesthouse for tourists and let Shih-Fen manage the business.
In this way, Shih-Fen will become too busy to date Szu-Hai and will naturally distance herself from him.
Shih-Nan thinks this plan is practical.
Tsai Shih-Nan discusses with his mother Chiu Hsiu-Tuan the idea of renovating their old home into a guesthouse.
Hsiu-Tuan agrees but worries that Shih-Nan does not have enough money.
Shih-Nan tells her that he has sufficient funds.
This makes Hsiu-Tuan suspicious because she believes Shih-Nan has only worked for half a year and could not possibly have accumulated much savings.
Shih-Nan reveals that his real reason for building the guesthouse is to keep Shih-Fen too busy to date Yu Szu-Hai.
He asks his mother Hsiu-Tuan to help persuade Shih-Fen to resign from her nursing job and devote herself entirely to managing the guesthouse.
Chang Ya-Hui not only helps Shih-Nan design and supervise the construction of the guesthouse, but also helps him explain the source of his funds when Tsai's mother and sister become suspicious.
She tells them that the guesthouse is a joint investment between her and Shih-Nan.
Knowing that Ya-Hui comes from a wealthy family, Tsai's mother believes this explanation.
Both mother and daughter greatly appreciate Ya-Hui's virtue and gentleness.
They believe that Ya-Hui possesses the traditional quality of bringing prosperity and support to her husband, and that she is the ideal candidate to become the Tsai family's daughter-in-law.
After recovering from her injuries, Lin Dai-Hua is discharged from the hospital.
The police take her to a homeless shelter for temporary placement.
Because she has lost her memory, Dai-Hua begins a new life like a blank sheet of paper, free from past attachments and burdens.
After the Tsai family's guesthouse opens, it threatens the business of a nearby European-style hotel owner, Chu Fu-Liang, who is also a local underworld figure.
Chu orders his three men, including Hei-Gou, to find an opportunity to set fire to the Tsai family's guesthouse and eliminate this business competitor.
On the opening day, Yu Szu-Hai, his younger sister Yu Su-Ru, and his subordinate Li Ming-De go to the Tsai family guesthouse to offer their congratulations.
When Tsai Shih-Nan sees Szu-Hai, he remains cold and sternly warns him again.
Shih-Fen quickly takes the three visitors inside to show them the courtyard.
When Yu Szu-Hai and the other two are about to leave the Tsai family's guesthouse, they notice Hei-Gou and the other two men lingering nearby suspiciously.
Szu-Hai, being cautious and strategic, asks Li Ming-De to bring some men and secretly stand guard around the Tsai family home to prevent theft or trouble.
Szu-Hai's arrangement successfully stops Chu Fu-Liang's plan.
They catch Hei-Gou and the other two men while they are preparing to set fire to the house.
Chu Fu-Liang is later arrested by the police for instigating arson.
After experiencing these events, Shih-Nan's opinion of Yu Szu-Hai changes dramatically.
He takes the initiative to invite Szu-Hai and Li Ming-De to dinner.
Shih-Nan encourages Szu-Hai to build a successful career.
The two men eventually become close friends.
With Yu Szu-Hai's strong assistance, Tsai Shih-Nan purchases a sightseeing fishing boat and successfully obtains the necessary license.
He combines sea fishing and whale-watching tours with the guesthouse business.
As a result, the Tsai family's guesthouse becomes extremely popular and constantly filled with customers.
Fashion designer Shih Mei-Lin has a disagreement with manager Chao Chun-Ting over the direction of fashion design and sales performance.
At the same time, her mother pressures her to bring a boyfriend home; otherwise, she will arrange a blind date for her.
Feeling frustrated and troubled, Mei-Lin requests leave from her company and travels alone to Xiaoliuqiu to relax.
She stays at the Tsai family's guesthouse and joins Shih-Nan's fishing boat with other guests for whale watching and night fishing.
Mei-Lin notices that Shih-Nan takes time away from his busy schedule to sketch at the bow of the boat.
Her curiosity is aroused, and she starts a conversation with him.
She discovers that painting was once Shih-Nan's dream during his youth.
The two share a common interest in art.
With her mixed-race background, Shih Mei-Lin has elegant and beautiful features and a bright European-style charm.
They have a pleasant conversation.
Mei-Lin leaves a deep impression on Shih-Nan, making him look forward to meeting her again.
When Shih Mei-Lin returns to her luxurious home at Sun Moon Lake, her mother Shih Yu-Hua brings up the marriage issue again.
Mei-Lin remembers that Shih-Nan might be willing to help her.
She considers temporarily having him "play the role of her boyfriend" to relieve the pressure from her family.
Therefore, she tells her mother that she will bring her boyfriend home to meet them soon.
Yu-Hua remains doubtful.
Mei-Lin returns to the fashion company and submits her spring collection designs.
General Manager Su Ming-Yu is very satisfied with her new spring fashion designs and looks forward to their future market response.
During her weekend holiday, Mei-Lin returns to Xiaoliuqiu for the second time.
She takes the initiative to call Tsai Shih-Nan and ask to meet him.
Shih-Nan rides his motorcycle to pick her up.
At the harbor area, he is unexpectedly seen by Chang Ya-Hui.
Ya-Hui becomes suspicious and instinctively feels that the red-haired girl may be Shih-Nan's new girlfriend.
Ya-Hui brings her paintings to the Tsai family's guesthouse to help Shih-Fen decorate the walls.
She mentions seeing Shih-Nan arriving at the harbor with the beautiful woman on his motorcycle.
After discussing the matter, Shih-Fen decides to wait until her brother returns and find an opportunity to question him.
Shih-Nan accompanies Mei-Lin to visit several scenic locations.
When they pass by the Lover's Temple, Shih-Nan shows Mei-Lin a wishing plaque.
It is the wish he once made to the god of love, hoping that he would meet Shih Mei-Lin again.
The romantic atmosphere surprises and touches Mei-Lin.
At a seaside pavilion near Beauty Cave, Mei-Lin takes the opportunity to share her troubles with Shih-Nan.
She tells him how her mother has been pressuring her to go on blind dates.
Because Shih-Nan has experienced a similar situation before, he develops a sense of empathy and protective tenderness toward her.
At the right moment, Mei-Lin makes her request.
Shih-Nan is surprised when she asks him to "temporarily act as her boyfriend."
However, he responds politely, expressing understanding and respect.
Despite his disappointment, he tries not to show it.
While he is still hesitating, Mei-Lin suddenly gives him her first kiss as a gesture of gratitude.
She hints that if their interactions go smoothly, there may be a possibility in the future that their "fake relationship could become real."
This leaves Shih-Nan with room for imagination.
After some hesitation, he agrees.
Mei-Lin immediately reveals her "complete script" and discusses the details with Shih-Nan.
The two establish several agreements regarding how they will perform this pretend relationship.
After Shih-Nan sends Mei-Lin back to her hotel, he watches her youthful and beautiful figure disappear into the distance.
He remembers that he accidentally traveled through time and returned from sixteen years in the future to the present.
Although he had made a promise with Lin Dai-Hua first, circumstances have changed.
He cannot help feeling some guilt.
However, after thinking carefully, he realizes that at this moment Lin Dai-Hua should still be studying in the United States.
When they agreed to separate in the past, they had already reached an understanding.
Therefore, his sense of guilt may simply be unnecessary worry.
Late that night, when Shih-Nan returns home, his mother asks 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 his mother is surprised that he suddenly has a girlfriend, she still says she will warmly welcome Mei-Lin.
When Tsai Shih-Fen learns that her brother will bring his girlfriend home, she feels sorry for Chang Ya-Hui.
However, their mother believes that they should respect Shih-Nan's own choice and not interfere.
She tells Shih-Fen to let Shih-Nan handle his own romantic problems.
That night, Shih-Nan, filled with uncertainty and anxiety, dreams about his intimate interactions with Mei-Lin.
In the dream, Mei-Lin also complains that he has not performed his role as a fake boyfriend well enough.
Near noon the next day, Shih Mei-Lin appears at the Tsai family's guesthouse looking elegant and composed.
The Tsai family prepares a banquet to welcome her.
Mother and daughter take turns asking Mei-Lin how she met Shih-Nan.
Mei-Lin confidently tells them that they met through a friend's introduction in Hsinchu.
Although the story is completely fabricated, Shih-Nan cooperates with her perfectly.
As a result, the Tsai mother and daughter believe the story is true.
That night, Shih-Fen invites Mei-Lin to share a room.
Following the script, Mei-Lin openly says that she is used to sleeping in the same bed with Shih-Nan.
Her words surprise the Tsai mother and daughter.
They begin to believe that the two have already "made it official" and become an intimate couple.
However, Shih-Fen refuses to give up.
After the two enter the room, she secretly listens outside the door, trying to hear what is happening inside.
She vaguely hears Mei-Lin asking Shih-Nan to help her pull up the zipper of her dress.
When Tsai's mother passes by, she quickly pulls Shih-Fen away.
On the bed, Shih-Nan and Mei-Lin lie facing each other.
A thin blanket separates them.
After a long internal struggle, Shih-Nan finally calms himself down and maintains his gentlemanly restraint.
The next morning, Shih-Nan sends Mei-Lin away.
Before leaving, Mei-Lin gives him a cassette tape.
Shih-Nan feels lost and disappointed.
He feels that he does not seem to be experiencing a real romantic relationship.
Tsai Shih-Fen takes the initiative to tell Chang Ya-Hui that her brother brought Mei-Lin home.
She feels that her brother is being unfair by abandoning an old love for a new one.
However, Ya-Hui calmly says that Shih-Nan has never confessed his feelings to her.
She realizes that Shih-Nan already had someone he truly loved.
Therefore, he did not deceive her feelings.
Nevertheless, Shih-Fen still feels angry and unhappy that Ya-Hui has been neglected.
The tech-obsessed man Cai Shih-nan works as the director of the programming department at a technology company in Hsinchu Science Park. He spends every day immersed in work, wasting away his youth. After sixteen years of working, he has become a man who is “left with nothing but money.”
Due to years of overwork, he suffers an acute stroke and is rushed to the hospital for emergency treatment. He is fortunately saved in time by neurosurgeon Lin Ching-hua (Dai-hua’s younger brother).
Coincidentally, his first love, Lin Dai-hua, returns to Taiwan from Silicon Valley, California, to visit her parents. Her parents insist on finding her a suitable partner through matchmaking so that she will have someone to accompany her in life.
Ching-hua tells his sister Dai-hua that Cai Shih-nan is currently hospitalized due to an emergency illness and is still single. Dai-hua, who has also sacrificed her youth because of her career, begins to consider the possibility of rekindling her relationship with Shih-nan.
Dai-hua goes to the hospital to accompany Shih-nan. Both of them have thoughts of marriage. Dai-hua tells him that after returning to Taichung and persuading her parents, she will resign from her job in Silicon Valley and return to Taiwan to start a business with him. From then on, they will stay together for life. The two make a verbal commitment to each other.
Cai Shih-nan sells his properties in Taipei, carries a large amount of cash, and drives away from Taipei. At the same time, Dai-hua drives back to Taichung. The two cars, one behind the other, pass through a time-travel wormhole and return to September 22, 1999—the day after the great earthquake occurred.
However, neither of them knows that they have traveled through the wormhole into the same period of time.
On the way, Lin Dai-hua gets into a car accident. She suffers a head injury and loses her memory. Because the vehicle and Dai-hua’s identification documents are destroyed by fire, the police are temporarily unable to determine her identity.
Cai Shih-nan returns to Little Liuqiu and unexpectedly meets Zhang Ya-hui, an elementary school art teacher who once went on a blind date with him.
The elementary school where Ya-hui works suffers computer network damage caused by the earthquake, so she asks Shih-nan to help repair the system.
When Cai Shih-nan returns to his hometown, he discovers that the modern concrete villa he had renovated has reverted back to its original state. It is once again the old, worn-down brick-and-tile traditional courtyard house.
His mother, Chiu Hsiu-tuan, and his younger sister, Cai Shih-fen, are surprised to see Shih-nan returning in a new car while carrying two large suitcases.
Shih-nan vaguely explains that the company laid off employees after the earthquake and says that he plans to return home and start his own business.
Cai Shih-nan helps Zhang Ya-hui’s elementary school repair the damaged computer network. Afterwards, Ya-hui invites him to her dormitory for lunch and drinks.
The two clear up the misunderstandings from their previous blind date and gradually get to know each other better, becoming friends.
Ya-hui has always had a good impression of Shih-nan, although their blind date several months earlier ended because Shih-nan refused to “marry into the Zhang family.”
After drinking too much, Cai Shih-nan becomes intoxicated. Ya-hui sends him home and talks with Shih-fen.
She learns that Shih-nan had previously suffered emotional trauma because Lin Dai-hua’s father had mocked him face-to-face, saying that he was trying to “reach above his social status” by pursuing Dai-hua.
This emotional setback deeply hurt him.
Ya-hui therefore understands why Shih-nan reacted negatively when her father had proposed that he “marry into the Zhang family” during their blind date.
Because of this, Ya-hui admires Shih-nan’s stubborn dignity and unyielding spirit, and she hopes to rekindle their relationship.
The son of a fishing company owner, Yu Sihai, is a notorious local troublemaker who spends his days idling around and causing problems.
One day, he and his subordinate Li Ming-de happen to encounter Cai Shih-fen and Yu Su-ru on the streets of Donggang. The two girls are being harassed by three local gangsters, including a man nicknamed Black Dog.
Yu Sihai and Li Ming-de step in and teach the three hooligans a lesson.
On his way home after purchasing painting boards and art supplies, Cai Shih-nan sees Yu Sihai pestering his younger sister Shih-fen.
Remembering that Yu Sihai would later be imprisoned for drug trafficking and bring misfortune to Shih-fen and her child, Shih-nan decides to intervene and change this “tragic history.”
Shih-nan tells Shih-fen not to associate with Sihai and sternly warns Sihai to stay away from his sister.
This makes Shih-fen angry, while Sihai cannot understand why Shih-nan loses his temper at him during their very first meeting.
Cai Shih-nan recalls that after his younger sister Shih-fen married Yu Sihai in the original timeline, Sihai’s irresponsible behavior brought suffering to her.
Therefore, he must do everything possible to prevent the two from being together.
Chiu Hsiu-tuan asks Shih-nan why he became so angry at Yu Sihai, whom he had only just met.
Shih-nan cannot reveal the true cause behind his actions, so he only tells his mother that Sihai’s gambling addiction will eventually drive him into illegal activities. Because of gambling debts, he will resort to smuggling drugs, causing harm to Shih-fen and her future family.
Hsiu-tuan tells Shih-fen what her brother said.
Shih-fen feels that her brother is worrying too much and is even strangely predicting that she will have a relationship with Yu Sihai.
Cai Shih-fen remains skeptical about her brother’s accusation that Yu Sihai participates in illegal gambling.
She repeats her brother’s words to her close friend Yu Su-ru.
Su-ru then tells her brother Yu Sihai that Shih-nan somehow already knows that he participates in lottery betting.
After learning why Cai Shih-nan is angry with him, Yu Sihai decides to quit gambling and abandon his gang lifestyle.
He goes to work as a second officer on his family’s fishing boat, hoping to prove through his actions that Shih-nan’s negative impression of him is wrong.
Because he falls in love with Cai Shih-fen at first sight, he is willing to change himself for her.
Zhang Ya-hui goes fishing with Shih-nan by the seaside.
Shih-nan tells Ya-hui that he does not want Yu Sihai to get close to his younger sister Shih-fen.
Ya-hui offers him an idea: rebuild the earthquake-damaged old house into a Japanese-style guesthouse and develop it as a tourism business.
She suggests letting Shih-fen manage the guesthouse, so that she will become too busy to spend time with Sihai and naturally distance herself from him.
Shih-nan thinks this plan is feasible.
Cai Shih-nan discusses with his mother Chiu Hsiu-tuan the idea of rebuilding their old home into a guesthouse.
Hsiu-tuan agrees but worries that Shih-nan does not have enough money.
When Shih-nan says he has sufficient funds, Hsiu-tuan becomes suspicious, believing that Shih-nan has only worked for half a year and could not possibly have accumulated much savings.
Shih-nan reveals the true reason behind his plan to build the guesthouse.
He wants Shih-fen to become too busy to date Yu Sihai.
He asks his mother Hsiu-tuan to help persuade Shih-fen to resign from her nursing job and devote herself entirely to managing the guesthouse.
Ya-hui not only helps Shih-nan design and supervise the construction of the guesthouse, but also helps explain away his financial situation when Cai’s mother and sister question where his money came from.
She tells them that the two of them invested together.
Since Cai’s mother knows that Ya-hui comes from a wealthy family, she believes this explanation.
Both mother and daughter highly approve of Ya-hui’s gentle and virtuous personality, believing that she has the qualities of a woman who can bring good fortune to her husband.
They consider Ya-hui the ideal future daughter-in-law for the Cai family.
After recovering from her injuries, Lin Dai-hua is discharged from the hospital.
The police take her to a homeless shelter for temporary placement.
Because Dai-hua has lost her memory, she begins a new life like a blank sheet of paper—free from past attachments and worries.
The opening of the Cai family guesthouse threatens the business of a nearby European-style hotel owner, Zhu Fu-liang, who is also a local gang leader.
Zhu orders his three subordinates, including Black Dog, to find an opportunity to set fire to the Cai family guesthouse and eliminate this new business competitor.
On the opening day, Yu Sihai, his younger sister Yu Su-ru, and his subordinate Li Ming-de go to the Cai family guesthouse to offer their congratulations.
When Cai Shih-nan sees Sihai, he still shows no friendliness and sternly warns him again.
Shih-fen quickly takes the three visitors inside to show them the courtyard.
When Yu Sihai and the others are about to leave the guesthouse, they notice Black Dog and his two companions lingering nearby.
Their suspicious behavior catches Sihai’s attention.
With careful planning and foresight, Sihai orders Li Ming-de and his brothers to secretly stand guard around the Cai family home to prevent theft or any possible danger.
Sihai’s arrangement successfully stops Zhu Fu-liang’s scheme.
They catch Black Dog and the others while they are preparing to set fire to the house.
Zhu Fu-liang is later arrested by police for instigating arson.
After experiencing these events, Cai Shih-nan’s opinion of Yu Sihai changes completely.
He takes the initiative to invite Sihai and Li Ming-de to dinner.
Shih-nan encourages Sihai to build a successful career, and the two become close friends.
With Yu Sihai’s strong assistance, Cai Shih-nan purchases a sightseeing fishing boat and successfully obtains the required license.
He combines sea fishing and whale-watching tours with the Cai family guesthouse business.
As a result, the guesthouse becomes extremely successful, with visitors constantly coming and going.
Fashion designer Shi Mei-lin and manager Zhao Jun-ting have a disagreement over the direction of fashion design and sales performance.
At the same time, Mei-lin is pressured by her mother to bring her boyfriend home. Otherwise, her mother will arrange a blind date for her.
Feeling frustrated and troubled, Mei-lin applies for leave from the company and travels alone to Little Liuqiu to relax and clear her mind.
She stays at the Cai family guesthouse and joins other guests on Cai Shih-nan’s fishing boat for whale watching and night fishing.
Mei-lin notices that, despite being busy, Shih-nan takes time to sketch at the bow of the boat.
His act of drawing attracts Mei-lin’s curiosity, and she takes the initiative to start a conversation.
She learns that painting was once Shih-nan’s dream when he was young.
The two discover that they share a common interest in art.
The mixed-race Shi Mei-lin has delicate and elegant facial features and a bright European-style charm.
They have a pleasant and enjoyable conversation.
Mei-lin leaves a wonderful impression on Shih-nan, making him look forward to meeting her again.
Shi Mei-lin returns to her luxurious family home in Sun Moon Lake.
Her mother, Shi Yu-hua, brings up the same topic again—asking her about marriage.
Mei-lin suddenly remembers that Shih-nan may be willing to help her.
Perhaps he could temporarily “play the role” of her boyfriend in order to reduce the pressure from her family.
Therefore, she tells her mother that she will bring her boyfriend home for a meeting soon.
Yu-hua remains doubtful.
Shi Mei-lin returns to the fashion company and submits her spring collection design drafts.
General Manager Su Ming-yu is highly satisfied with Mei-lin’s new spring designs and looks forward to their future market response.
During her weekend vacation, Mei-lin returns to Little Liuqiu for the second time and takes the initiative to call Cai Shih-nan to arrange a meeting.
Shih-nan rides his large motorcycle to pick her up.
At the harbor area, he is unexpectedly seen by Zhang Ya-hui.
Ya-hui becomes suspicious and instinctively feels that the red-haired girl may be Shih-nan’s new girlfriend.
Ya-hui brings her paintings to the Cai family guesthouse for Shih-fen to decorate the walls.
During their conversation, Ya-hui mentions that she saw Shih-nan arriving at the harbor with a beautiful girl on his motorcycle.
The two women discuss the situation for a while.
Shih-fen decides to wait until her older brother returns and find a chance to question him.
Shih-nan accompanies Mei-lin to visit several scenic spots.
When they pass the Lovers’ Temple, Shih-nan shows her a wishing plaque.
It is the wish he once made to the God of Love, praying that he would meet Shi Mei-lin again.
The romantic atmosphere surprises and touches Mei-lin deeply.
At a seaside pavilion near Beauty Cave, Mei-lin takes the opportunity to share her troubles with Shih-nan.
She tells him that her mother has been forcing her to go on blind dates.
Because Shih-nan has experienced a similar situation himself, he develops a sympathetic and protective feeling toward her.
At the right moment, Mei-lin makes a request.
Shih-nan is stunned when Mei-lin asks him to “pretend to be her boyfriend.”
However, he still politely expresses his understanding and respect for her situation.
Although he tries to remain composed, his disappointment is obvious.
While he is hesitating and struggling with the decision, Mei-lin suddenly gives him her first kiss as a gesture of gratitude.
She also hints that if their interactions go smoothly, there may be a possibility that their “pretend relationship” could eventually become real.
This leaves Shih-nan room for imagination.
After some hesitation, he reluctantly agrees.
Shi Mei-lin then reveals her entire “script” and discusses the plan with Shih-nan.
The two establish several agreements regarding how they will perform this pretend relationship.
Shih-nan sends Mei-lin back to her hotel.
Watching her youthful and beautiful figure disappear into the distance, he remembers that he unexpectedly traveled through time from sixteen years in the future back to the present.
Although he and Lin Dai-hua had an earlier commitment, circumstances have changed.
He cannot help feeling somewhat guilty.
But after reconsidering, he thinks that at this moment Lin Dai-hua should still be studying in the United States.
When the two of them agreed to separate in the past, they had already reached an understanding.
Therefore, his sense of guilt may simply be unnecessary worry.
Late at night, when Shih-nan returns home, his mother asks 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 Shi Mei-lin home.
Although Cai’s mother is surprised that her son suddenly has a girlfriend, she still says that she will welcome and treat Mei-lin properly.
When Cai Shih-fen learns that her brother plans to bring his girlfriend home, she feels sorry for Zhang Ya-hui and believes Ya-hui has been treated unfairly.
However, Cai’s mother believes that everyone should respect Shih-nan’s own choice and should not interfere.
She tells Shih-fen to let Shih-nan handle his own relationship problems.
That night, Shih-nan, filled with uncertainty and anxiety, dreams of intimate interactions with Mei-lin.
In the dream, Mei-lin also blames him for failing to perform his role as her fake boyfriend properly.
The next day near noon, Shi Mei-lin appears at the Cai family guesthouse looking elegant and composed.
The Cai family prepares a feast to welcome her.
Mother and daughter take turns asking Mei-lin how she met Shih-nan.
Mei-lin confidently tells them that they met through a friend’s introduction in Hsinchu.
Although the story is fabricated, Shih-nan cooperates with her perfectly.
The Cai family mother and daughter therefore believe their story to be true.
That evening, Shih-fen invites Mei-lin to sleep in the same room.
Following their planned script, Mei-lin openly says that she is used to sharing a bed with Shih-nan.
Her words surprise Cai’s mother and daughter, making them believe that the two of them have already “crossed the line” and that their relationship has become intimate.
However, Shih-fen still refuses to give up.
After the two enter the room, she secretly listens outside the door, trying to hear what is happening inside.
She vaguely hears Mei-lin asking Shih-nan to help her pull up the zipper of her dress.
At that moment, Cai’s mother walks by and quickly pulls Shih-fen away.
Inside the room, Shih-nan and Mei-lin lie facing each other on the bed.
A thin blanket separates them.
After a long internal struggle, Shih-nan finally calms himself down and maintains his gentlemanly composure.
The next morning, Shih-nan sends Mei-lin away.
Before leaving, Mei-lin gives him a cassette tape.
Shih-nan feels lost and disappointed, sensing that what he is experiencing does not really feel like being in a true romantic relationship.
Cai Shih-fen takes the initiative to tell Zhang Ya-hui that her brother brought Mei-lin home.
She feels that her brother has abandoned Ya-hui for someone new and thinks he has treated Ya-hui unfairly.
However, Ya-hui calmly says that Shih-nan has never confessed his feelings to her.
She realizes that Shih-nan already had someone he truly loved in his heart.
Therefore, he did not deceive her feelings.
Nevertheless, Shih-fen still feels angry and unhappy that Ya-hui has been neglected.
In his room, Cai Shih-nan listens to the recording Mei-lin gave him.
He becomes hesitant and conflicted when he hears that Mei-lin wants him to return to Taipei with her and build a career together.
Shih-fen enters the room and has a serious conversation with her brother.
She believes that Shih-nan should not treat Ya-hui this way.
Shih-nan admits that if Mei-lin had never appeared, he and Zhang Ya-hui might indeed have developed into a romantic relationship.
After hearing this, Shih-fen finally feels somewhat relieved and begins to understand her brother’s feelings.
Cai Shih-nan travels to Sun Moon Lake to meet Shi Mei-lin’s family.
During the dinner gathering, Mei-lin’s grandfather Tian-sheng and her uncle Yu-long ask Shih-nan about his future career plans.
Shih-nan honestly tells them that he intends to stay in Little Liuqiu.
The two elders feel that Shih-nan lacks ambition.
They believe that the couple should work hard together in the city and develop their careers.
At this moment, Yu-hua steps in and skillfully eases the tension.
Afterwards, Mei-lin criticizes Shih-nan for being too honest.
She tells him that he should carefully consider whether he is willing to build a career with her before returning to Taipei to find her.
Shi Mei-lin returns to her fashion company.
General Manager Su Ming-yu comes to her office and asks her to attend a dinner gathering with partner companies.
She tells Mei-lin that she should meet Lin Wen-bin, the general manager of Beauty Cosmetics Company.
Ming-yu praises Wen-bin as a talented young businessman in the corporate world.
She says he has proper manners, maintains an excellent reputation, and has never been involved in scandals.
In terms of background and family conditions, he is an excellent match for Mei-lin.
Mei-lin immediately understands the hidden meaning behind her manager’s words.
She does not want to create more complications for herself.
Therefore, she tells Ming-yu that she already has a steady boyfriend, Cai Shih-nan.
Although his conditions may not be as impressive as Lin Wen-bin’s, she does not believe in relationships based on social status or family background.
She also says that she will never change her feelings easily.
However, Ming-yu does not give up.
She tells Mei-lin that she should meet more outstanding and successful men.
That way, she will have more choices when deciding on a future partner.
Shi Mei-lin informs Shih-nan through her phone that the company will soon hold a spring fashion show.
After the event, she plans to return to her residence with him and celebrate her birthday together.
On the navigation bridge of his sightseeing boat, Shih-nan agrees over the phone.
Late that night, Shih-fen enters Shih-nan’s bedroom and sees him chatting online with Mei-lin through an instant messaging keyboard.
Shih-fen carefully explains why she has come and talks seriously with her brother.
She asks him how he plans to face Ya-hui’s sincere and devoted feelings in the future.
Shih-nan says that Ya-hui is a good friend with whom he can share his thoughts.
He admits that he has also struggled emotionally.
If he had not later met Shi Mei-lin, he and Ya-hui would indeed very likely have become a couple.
After hearing her brother say this, Shih-fen finally understands him emotionally.
At the dinner gathering with partner companies, General Manager Su Ming-yu introduces Shi Mei-lin, the design director, and two other designers to the guests.
Designer Li Ke-ni is attracted by Lin Wen-bin’s elegant and confident presence.
She frequently looks at Wen-bin with a smile and deliberately finds opportunities to start conversations with him.
Several senior business executives take turns offering toasts to Mei-lin.
However, Mei-lin has a low tolerance for alcohol and soon becomes unable to handle the drinking.
Lin Wen-bin steps forward and helps her by drinking on her behalf.
The next day, Su Ming-yu once again tries to persuade Mei-lin.
She asks Mei-lin to consider accepting Lin Wen-bin.
However, Mei-lin already has her own decision and does not change her mind.
Afterwards, Lin Wen-bin calls Mei-lin and invites her to meet.
Mei-lin agrees to the meeting because she wants to understand what Wen-bin’s true intentions are.
When they meet, Wen-bin expresses his great appreciation for Mei-lin’s professional abilities.
He wants to recruit her as the creative director after the establishment of a strategic alliance between their companies.
He openly tells her that he is willing to provide financial support to help her establish her own company and pursue entrepreneurship.
Mei-lin understands that Wen-bin is using these offers as a way to win her over and secure her commitment.
Therefore, she politely declines.
However, Lin Wen-bin refuses to give up.
Afterwards, Lin Wen-bin sends a bouquet of fragrant lilies through a flower shop.
A signed card is attached to the flowers.
After Mei-lin receives them, she places the bouquet on the coffee table in her office and continues working.
When Li Ke-ni enters the office to submit her design drafts, she notices the flowers.
Feeling jealous, she cannot resist asking about them.
At first, Mei-lin calmly says that they are from Lin Wen-bin, who invited her to dinner.
Then she remembers how Ke-ni deliberately approached Wen-bin and tried to start conversations with him during the dinner gathering.
Suddenly, Mei-lin comes up with an idea.
She gives the flowers to Ke-ni and asks her to attend Wen-bin’s dinner invitation on her behalf.
Ke-ni agrees and happily takes the bouquet away.
Li Ke-ni goes to the dinner appointment instead of Shi Mei-lin.
When Lin Wen-bin realizes that the person who arrives is Ke-ni, he cannot hide his disappointment.
Nevertheless, he maintains his gentlemanly manners and has dinner with her.
Ke-ni takes the initiative to tell Wen-bin that Mei-lin already has a boyfriend and is currently spending time with him.
Wen-bin refuses to accept this.
He believes that his own qualities and achievements are no worse than anyone else’s.
Deep inside, he makes up his mind that he will win Mei-lin’s heart.
Cai Shih-nan arrives in Taipei as scheduled to attend Shi Mei-lin’s spring fashion show.
When he enters the venue, he sees Mei-lin sitting beside a young man in an impressive suit with a polished appearance—Lin Wen-bin.
The young man occasionally looks at Mei-lin with a smile and whispers something quietly into her ear.
Shih-nan feels uncomfortable seeing this scene.
Instead of approaching Mei-lin, he remains in a corner and watches the event for a while before turning around to leave.
At that moment, Mei-lin catches sight of Shih-nan.
She immediately stands up and quickly follows him to the entrance.
Mei-lin urgently calls out to him.
Shih-nan stops, turns around, and sees Mei-lin approaching.
Mei-lin links her arm around Shih-nan’s arm and brings him back into the venue.
She leads him to a seat near the corner of the fashion runway, diagonally facing Lin Wen-bin.
When Wen-bin sees Mei-lin returning while holding another man’s arm, he stands up.
He walks across half of the venue deliberately and approaches Mei-lin and Shih-nan.
Before Wen-bin has a chance to speak, Mei-lin introduces Shih-nan as her boyfriend.
A faint expression of contempt flashes across Wen-bin’s face.
However, he immediately pretends to be a gentleman, takes the initiative to shake hands with Shih-nan, and then sits down beside Mei-lin.
The three people form a situation where two “green leaves” surround one “red flower,” making both Mei-lin and Shih-nan feel extremely uncomfortable.
Wen-bin takes the initiative to chat with Shih-nan and attempts to learn about his background.
Mei-lin signals with her eyes that Shih-nan should speak less.
Shih-nan immediately understands.
Therefore, whenever Wen-bin asks him questions, he deliberately shakes his head and pretends that he cannot hear clearly, avoiding the conversation.
This leaves Wen-bin unable to continue.
Not far away, Li Ke-ni witnesses the entire situation.
Instead of feeling happy about Wen-bin being embarrassed, she unexpectedly feels sympathy for him.
After the fashion show ends, all the models line up on the stage.
The host invites the three designers to come on stage one by one and introduces them to the guests.
Shi Mei-lin, with her outstanding appearance and elegant presence, becomes the center of attention under the spotlight.
(1) After Cai Shi-nan and Shi Mei-lin formed a family, they had a son and a daughter.
(2) The semi-transparent images of the three people suggest that some external force or unexpected factor intervened, causing their images to appear translucent.
(3) The semi-transparent images may indicate that Mei-lin and the two children died simultaneously in an accident. Alternatively, it may suggest that an external force intervened and changed the original destiny in which Shi-nan and Mei-lin were supposed to be together and build a family.
In other words, because of the intervention of an external factor, the two of them ultimately did not get married, and naturally they did not stay together or have twin children.
(4) Shi-nan must quickly discover the possible external factor that interfered with their destiny, or carefully prevent possible accidents that might occur after his marriage to Mei-lin.
For example, during a trip by airplane or by boat, Mei-lin and their children might all encounter an accident at the same time.
Zhang Ya-hui dragged her heavy footsteps back to the teachers’ dormitory. Sitting at her desk, she gazed out the window at the shimmering sea under the moonlight and the scattered fishing boat lights sparkling like stars in the distance.
The family photo that Shi-nan had shown her continued to linger in her mind.
Ya-hui understood clearly that Shi-nan only regarded her as a close friend with whom he could share his feelings. The woman he loved was Shi Mei-lin.
Ya-hui fell into a painful inner struggle.
If Mei-lin and those two children completely disappeared, would that mean she would have a chance to replace Mei-lin in the future?
However, she felt that she should not have such a selfish expectation of benefiting from another person’s misfortune, because she sincerely hoped that Shi-nan would eventually have a happy marriage—even if the heroine of that marriage was not Zhang Ya-hui herself.
After being placed in a homeless shelter for more than half a year, Lin Dai-hua one day accidentally fell down the stairs. She suffered a head injury, lost consciousness due to bleeding, and was sent to the hospital.
After surgery to remove the intracranial blood clot, she regained consciousness and gradually recovered her memories and intelligence.
On the day Lin Dai-hua was discharged from the hospital, she first sent an email to Shi-nan and then returned home to see her parents.
Both of her parents were extremely surprised, because according to their understanding, she should have been studying in California at that time.
Dai-hua gently explained her extraordinary experience.
Her parents listened with confused expressions. Therefore, they took the initiative to call Lin Dai-hua’s dormitory in California to verify the situation.
However, the Lin Dai-hua there had mysteriously disappeared, and the person answering the phone said that there had never been anyone named Lin Dai-hua living there.
Only then did Dai-hua’s parents believe that what she said was true.
Dai-hua asked her father to agree to let her follow her own wishes: stay in Taiwan, reunite with her first love, Cai Shi-nan, build a family together, and start a business together.
Unable to resist his daughter’s repeated pleas, her father gradually softened his attitude.
Cai Shi-nan received an email from Lin Dai-hua saying that she was coming to Xiao Liuqiu to find him.
Shi-nan was extremely shocked. For a moment, he was completely at a loss. He paced back and forth in his room, not knowing what to do.
At that moment, Zhang Ya-hui called his mobile phone to confirm the departure time for the whale-watching trip with her students.
During their conversation, Shi-nan asked Ya-hui for advice. Ya-hui advised him to first explain everything clearly to his family.
Shi-nan told his family that his first love, Lin Dai-hua, was coming to Xiao Liuqiu to find him.
Cai’s mother, Qiu Xiu-duan, had met Dai-hua three years earlier, and she felt that the situation was difficult to handle.
However, since Shi-nan already loved Shi Mei-lin and had met Mei-lin’s family, sooner or later he would have to face Dai-hua and explain everything to her in person.
Two days later, Lin Dai-hua’s brand-new white Corona sedan arrived at the entrance of the Cai family homestay.
She still remembered the Cai family’s old, rundown brick-and-tile courtyard house. She instinctively felt that it was impossible for the Cai family to have achieved such prosperity within only a few short years.
A suspicion arose in her heart:
Could the Cai Shi-nan she was about to meet have also traveled back from the future, just like herself?
After meeting Cai Shi-fen, Dai-hua took the opportunity to ask her several indirect questions.
Through Shi-fen’s answers, she confirmed that Shi-nan, like herself, had come from the future.
After some polite greetings, Shi-nan accompanied Lin Dai-hua as she toured the homestay.
Dai-hua went straight to the point and asked Shi-nan whether he remembered that in 2014 he had been hospitalized due to acute cerebral stroke, and that she had gone to the hospital to accompany him.
Shi-nan nodded and did not dare deny it.
Dai-hua continued, saying that at that time Shi-nan had promised her that the two of them would start over again.
Shi-nan did not deny this either.
However, he gathered his courage and told her that during this period he had met Shi Mei-lin and that the two of them were already engaged. He asked Dai-hua to forgive him for falling in love with someone else.
Upon hearing this, Dai-hua felt as if she had been struck by a bolt from the blue.
She said that after suffering a car accident and a brain injury, she had lost her memory and had lived in a homeless shelter for more than half a year.
Yet Shi-nan had already changed his heart!
Hearing Dai-hua’s heartbreaking accusations toward Shi-nan in the courtyard, the women of the Cai family came out, and Cai’s mother stepped forward to ease the tension.
Lin Dai-hua asked Shi-nan to take her to meet Shi Mei-lin so that the three of them could face the matter and resolve it directly.
Shi-nan reluctantly agreed.
That night, Dai-hua stayed at the Cai family homestay.
Late at night, in their separate rooms, both of them were unable to sleep because of this complicated love triangle.
Shi-nan called Mei-lin on her mobile phone and explained everything:
how he had accidentally traveled through time from the future back to the present;
how his first love, Lin Dai-hua, had also returned from the future to find him;
and the entire chain of events that followed afterward.
He also forwarded to Mei-lin the rescue email sent from 2014 in order to convince her that what he said was true.
After seeing the family photograph attached to the rescue email, Mei-lin had no choice but to believe Shi-nan’s extraordinary experience.
Shi-nan told her that Lin Dai-hua insisted on meeting her and asked Mei-lin to prepare herself emotionally.
Sitting in front of the computer, Mei-lin felt deeply distressed.
But after another thought, she realized that if she was truly destined to spend her life with Shi-nan, then she absolutely could not admit defeat in front of Lin Dai-hua.
The next morning, Shi-nan invited Lin Dai-hua to take a sightseeing yacht and join the homestay guests on a whale-watching trip, hoping that she could relax and clear her mind.
Inside the yacht’s cockpit, Dai-hua called her family to let them know that she was safe.
Then she asked Shi-nan:
“Do you really want to live this kind of life from now on?”
Shi-nan replied that he no longer wanted to return to the city and become an ordinary office worker living an unremarkable life.
Dai-hua could understand Shi-nan’s thoughts.
She only felt that, with Shi-nan’s ability in information software design, staying on Xiao Liuqiu to operate a homestay and drive sightseeing yachts was a waste of his talents.
Dai-hua encouraged Shi-nan to return to Hsinchu Science Park with her and start a technology company.
With the abilities of the two of them, they could develop hardware and software for smart phones, and their future prospects would certainly be promising.
Shi-nan said that he no longer worried about his livelihood, and he no longer had that kind of ambition to pursue a major career.
Dai-hua sensed that Shi-nan’s heart was no longer with her.
As the two of them traveled toward Taipei, their car reached Xindian.
Thunderstorms filled the sky.
Inside the car, Lin Dai-hua wore earphones and listened to classical music.
When the car entered the Fude Long Tunnel on National Freeway No. 3 (the Second Northern Freeway), Shi-nan noticed that Dai-hua’s golden long hair was gradually turning black from the tips upward.
At the same time, his own hairstyle began to change as well.
He realized that they were about to pass through another space-time tunnel.
Shi-nan thought:
If they passed through this space-time tunnel again, he had no idea which era they would end up in.
Therefore, he urgently slapped Dai-hua’s shoulder and used gestures to tell her to brake and reverse the car.
However, Dai-hua deliberately pretended that she had not heard him and continued driving forward.
At that moment, Shi-nan had no choice but to hurriedly push open the car door and jump out.
Shi-nan’s left lower leg hit the ground first.
His body rolled several times across the roadway.
He lifted his head helplessly and watched as Dai-hua’s car instantly disappeared into the tunnel.
Immediately afterward, overwhelmed by pain, he lost consciousness.
In the emergency room of the hospital, Cai Shi-nan lay on the bed with several layers of bandages wrapped around his body.
His younger sister Shi-fen stayed beside him.
Shi-fen called Mei-lin.
At that moment, Mei-lin was in a meeting, so Shi-fen left a message informing her that Shi-nan had been injured and hospitalized.
Zhang Ya-hui had just walked out of the hospital’s obstetrics and gynecology department.
Her expression was full of sadness.
The doctor’s words still echoed in her ears:
“Miss Zhang, the tumor in your ovary has been confirmed as malignant through biopsy examination. In order to completely eliminate the disease, you must undergo surgery to remove your uterus as soon as possible, followed by a complete course of treatment…”
Ya-hui received a call from Shi-fen and immediately decided to go to the hospital to visit Shi-nan.
After the anesthesia wore off, Shi-nan woke up.
He saw Zhang Ya-hui and his younger sister Shi-fen standing beside his bed.
His left lower leg was gone.
Shi-fen told him that she had called Shi Mei-lin.
However, on the phone, Mei-lin’s attitude toward Shi-nan after his disability had become hesitant and reserved.
Ya-hui gently touched Shi-nan’s face.
With deep affection and tenderness, she repeated the doctor’s explanation:
The tissue in Shi-nan’s left lower leg had died, so amputation was necessary, but he was now out of danger.
Shi-nan recalled that when Lin Dai-hua’s car was accidentally about to pass through a space-time tunnel, he had urgently pushed open the door and jumped out.
Dai-hua’s car had instantly disappeared inside the tunnel.
Shi-fen found the story unbelievable.
But Ya-hui completely understood.
Deep inside, she was profoundly moved.
Because at the critical moment when history was about to change, Shi-nan had risked his life and chosen to remain in this time period.
And all of this was because Shi-nan did not want to lose Shi Mei-lin.
Zhang Ya-hui decided to go to Taipei to meet Shi Mei-lin.
She asked Shi-fen for Mei-lin’s address and phone number, and then called Cai’s mother, Qiu Xiu-duan, asking her to send Shi-nan’s diary from his study desk, along with the family photo of Shi-nan, Mei-lin, and their future children, by express delivery to the hospital.
Carrying Shi-nan’s diary, Ya-hui met Shi Mei-lin at a café.
Ya-hui told Mei-lin that Shi-nan had sacrificed one of his legs in order to remain in this time period and stay with her.
Mei-lin was deeply moved after hearing this.
Ya-hui then showed her the diary and the family photo.
As Mei-lin read the diary and looked at the photograph, tears fell onto the picture.
The previously blurred images of Mei-lin and the two children gradually became clear.
Mei-lin began to believe that everything that had happened was the arrangement of fate.
Ya-hui handed Mei-lin the medical diagnosis certificate and a letter, asking Mei-lin to take good care of Shi-nan on her behalf.
Then she turned and walked away.
At that moment, tears shimmered in Ya-hui’s eyes…
Carrying only simple luggage, Shi Mei-lin arrived at the hospital ward.
Shi-fen tactfully left the room, allowing the two of them to be alone together.
Mei-lin returned the diary and the photograph to Shi-nan, along with Ya-hui’s medical diagnosis certificate and the letter.
After reading the letter, Shi-nan said to Mei-lin:
“In the future, when we have those two children, they will recognize Ya-hui as their godmother.”
Mei-lin nodded and smiled.
Inside Shi-nan’s room at the Cai family homestay, Shi-nan sat at his desk writing the website for his family’s homestay business on the computer.
Beside his feet was a prosthetic lower leg.
Shi Mei-lin slid open the paper door and walked in carrying a travel bag.
She came behind Shi-nan, put down the bag, and wrapped her arms around him.
She told him that she had resigned from her job in Taipei and was ready to marry him.
Shi-nan opened his email inbox and showed her the second email sent by Cai Shi-nan from 2014.
Attached to the email was a photograph of Shi Mei-lin sitting in the cockpit of a sightseeing yacht, holding the steering wheel with a confident and spirited expression.
He then opened the first rescue email again.
In the photograph, the images of Mei-lin and the twins were no longer semi-transparent.
After seeing this, Mei-lin smiled and gently kissed Shi-nan on the cheek.
On a calm and sunny sea, a sightseeing yacht carried passengers out toward the open waters.
Inside the cockpit, Mei-lin held the steering wheel and piloted the yacht.
Shi-nan held a microphone and introduced the scenery to the passengers, explaining how dolphins were chasing schools of fish across the sea.
Someone noticed that beneath his shorts, part of Shi-nan’s lower leg was actually a prosthetic limb…
(The End)
