I’m back so here’s the daily dose of highlights from Love O2O.

1. Embarassed Weiwei

It’s so cute that she plopped that paper hat on his head as soon as he walked in. She didn’t give him a chance to greet her properly or to ask what the heck was going on with her.

She was faking her bubbliness because she felt shy and embarrassed about their kissing earlier.

credit: letsflytoasiarenata’s tumblr

But the cap is funny. My first reaction was “Huh? Did people were paper caps while dusting in China??” Maybe Weiwei’s channeling the maid in Ms. Marple in “The Case of the Perfect Maid.”

But as I said earlier, Nai probably needed this timeout to stew on what he did earlier in the office.

Remember?

But seeing him look like a model walking the runway brought Weiwei to her senses.

Even when sporting that ridiculous paper hat and carrying a trash bag, Nai looked like a god so she stopped him from completing his punishment… errr… menial chore.

She told him to wash up because she’d take him out to eat. If I were Nai, I’d wonder why she kept pushing me around that afternoon, literally and figuratively speaking.

Here’s Nai in the “The Case of the Perfect House Servant.”

2. Dinner for two

To follow.  I lost my original post. lol.

3. The rain

Love O2O: Ep 18 Rain Gifs

4. “Bribe me”

Love O2O: Ep 18 On Bribing Nai

5. “Seducing the Despotic Company President”

lol. This read like a Harlequin pulp fiction. The first time I watched this, I was confused. I thought Netflix had erroneously uploaded an outtake. lol.

WW: Mr. Xiao…(she loses concentration). Director, she’s seducing him for an internship? Isn’t that a bit illogical?
Director: Ah yah, Weiwei, who cares if it’s illogical. That’s in the original work. Our production will be a hit! Get to the main action in 10 minutes. Just follow the script. (then ordering the production team) Let’s take it from the top. Lighting! Episode one, scene three, “Seducing the despotic company president.” (then addressing Weiwei again) Weiwei, when you come in, just lean on the door and strike a pose.
WW: (nods)
Director: Good. Camera, over there. It’s your turn. Hold on.

WW: Mr. Xiao. I hear your company is hiring interns. Do you think I’m a good fit? Hmm?
XN: I’ll have to try to find out.

Director: Cut! Nice kiss. Again, from a different angle.

Weiwei smiled while she dreamt of being kissed.

Who wouldn’t? In her dreams, she was seducing Nai and being kissed by him. But when she woke and realized how “perverted” her dream was she lost it. Covering her face, she asked, “Why did I have such an embarrassing dream?”

She ran to the window and opened the curtains to pray to the gods, “Erase it from my mind.”

I stand by my earlier analysis:

To me, her dream also demonstrates her REPRESSION. In the office when she kissed him, she suppressed her desire to return the kiss for a variety of reasons: her shyness, her halitosis (lol) and the awkward time and place. Then in her dream state, her inhibitions resurfaces. In her sleep, her repressed feelings come out and she relives that embarrassing moment.

However, this time, she’s takes charge of her inhibition. Her unconscious mind “corrects” her kiss encounter with Nai.

She couldn’t kiss him in the privacy of his office, and she couldn’t kiss him out in the streets in public out of fear of other people witnessing them. But in her sleep, she conquers both her inhibitions by kissing him in the office, in full and public view of the production crew filming their kiss. lol. Did you see that?

It’s funny that in her dream, she loses her inhibitions and becomes an exhibitionist of sorts.

In sum, she fantasizes about seduction but she represses her desire as unacceptable and embarrassing for a young lady like her.

source: Love O2O: On Hickeys and Weird Dreams

Her dreams were easy to interpret because they were her repressed desires. She liked to kiss Nai. However, if she kissed him back, she would be considered as a forward, bad, and sluttish.

I also mentioned that in reality, she didn’t want to kiss Nai when they were out in public, but in her dreams, she was an actress kissing the actor with the crew watching them.

In reality = a embarrassed prude; in her dreams = a nonchalant exhibitionist.

6. Couple clothes

Just like the color of her phone which she chose because Nai had a gold phone, she chose her black and white outfit to match Nai. She had seen him Nai wearing black and white ensemble when she looked outside her window.

Remember? She didn’t know what to wear to work. “What should I wear to work? Thankfully before I came, I went shopping with Mom (like she was buying a trousseau, remember?).” The white collared blouse with the ribbon wasn’t the same as the white collared blouse on the rack (I checked) and the black skirt wasn’t on the rack either.

She was unconsciously patterning herself after him. She didn’t realize her mistake until after she met him downstairs. She asked herself, “Why do we look like we’re wearing matching outfits?”

WW: What a coincidence! Should I change? They’ll think we’re matching on purpose.
Nai: It’s okay. Let them think that. Let’s go. (extends a hand out to her)
WW: Okay. (clasping his hand)

😀 She thought Nai wasn’t the type to go for couple clothes because once (in Episode 6) his friends teased him for not wearing the matching outfit they won from their video production, and Nai dismissed their jokes, saying “We’re an old couple now.  We don’t care about superficial stuff.”

I said back then that he was trying to avoid wearing the green hairpin because it was a sign of being cuckold by his wife. He didn’t really mind wearing couple outfits and letting the whole world know that he was dating Weiwei. #proudboyfriend

7. Walking to work together.

I thought it was funny that she was fine walking around the city with him like this, but she didn’t want to enter the building together.

8. Cooking frogs

Love O2O: Episode 17 Cooking Frog

9. Meeting Ashuang

Weiwei tugged her hand from his grip but he held on. They looked at each other.

Ashuang: Boss, this can’t be our new employee?
Nai: She’s an intern.

Ashuang was trying to assimilate that when he caught side of the clasped hands.

Ashuang: Boss, are you two…
Nai: (confirming with his eyes and a smirk)

Meanwhile, Weiwei just avoided looking anywhere but down at the ground.

WW: Is this the style of your company?
Nai: He’s from the programming division. Try to stay away from them. Ashuang used to be gynophobic. He’s immune, in front of you, though. (he says this curiously)
WW: Such over-the-top acting! He must be in a drama club.

Ashuang reported to the others that the boss brought his “wife” with him to work.

10. The difficult task

Mozarta wanted Nai to help out his wife.

Nai: If there are no other issues, get back to work.
Mozarta: Even a vicious tiger wouldn’t eat its cubs. Are you really okay with having your wife bullied?
Nai: Just see it as a Newbie Village task. If I guide her myself, it will just be more difficult.
Mozarta: Hat’s off, hat’s off. (Meaning, he has mad respect for Nai. He was actually being sarcastic here.) Ruthlessness is the mark of a true husband, indeed.

He left Nai looking at Weiwei.

Later, he would approach Weiwei to check up on her.

But despite Nai leaning in over her shoulder, Weiwei didn’t notice him because she was hard at work figuring out a solution to the problem. He told her, “I have an appointment at noon. Join Old Man Yu and the boys for lunch.”

Weiwei replied, “Okay, I’ll have lunch with the Chief of Newbie Village.”

He patted her hair affectionately.

He couldn’t help her but the old gang would come to her aid if she needed a sounding board.

11. The keys

Love O2O: Ep 18 The Keys

12. The dinner at work

These phrases come to mind when I see this gif:
— A killer smile
— Just kill me, will you?
— I’m dead!
— Kill me, heal me.

Love O2O: Ep 18 Dining and W(h)ining

13. Watching over her

I love how she works all-night on her own without complaining.

The following day, she writes her report while he keeps an eye on her.

She finishes her report. But before she walks it over to Ashuang, they exchange looks.

He’s been watching her from afar and now he looks proudly at her for her competence and independence.

When she returns to her station, Friend #1 Old Man waits for a signal from her. She gives a “V” (for victory?) sign and Friend #1 smiles.

She glances over at Nai but Nai is busy working already.

Of course, if we didn’t Nai any better, this scene could be interpreted as he didn’t care what happened to her meeting with Ashuang.  But I took this to mean that he was so confident that Weiwei would submit an excellent job that he didn’t need to know the result of the meeting.

When Ashuang reads her report, he nods and says, “No wonder she’s Dashen’s girlfriend.” He confirms Nai’s confidence in Weiwei.

14. Her lunch date with Erxi

Weiwei sees that it’s almost lunch time so she texts Nai. He reads it and glances at her.

She makes this little gesture to say that she’s going out.  

He doesn’t look happy as he reads her text again.

Her text says, “It’s twelve now. Don’t forget to eat. Also, I won’t be eating with you today. I’m going to pick up Erxi.”

He replies, “Go and come back soon. Don’t be late in the afternoon.”

She salutes him as if to say, “Aye, aye, Captain!” and he returns the salute with a wink.

credit: sha1ya4

lol. I don’t think his reminder to her not to be late meant that he was an unreasonable and tyrannical employer checking on her attendance and hours. However, I think he wrote that he would miss her whenever she wasn’t there where he could easily look up and see her. So, I’m cutting him a bit of slack here. It was only her second day of work and he was still adjusting to having her around him.