CDrama recap – The Romance of Hua Rong – Episode 2!

And we find out why Hua Rong is so confident!–because her father is the righteous general Hua Man Tian…who is also a government official and therefore hugely important. And also! She has inherited the Hua family secret power! With just her fingertip, she can defeat seven men! (Shaggy Bro Lieutenant is completely bamboozled, but Chang Sheng is smart enough to figure out the trick….meaning Hua Rong is due for twenty lashes.)

WHICH HE ADMINISTERS HIMSELF, dang! At least Blue Bro is sympathetic. And Chang Sheng, naturally, administer the lashes in order to go easy on her. After all, she can still walk…

Meanwhile, in typical fashion, Hua Rong gets pulled into (trying) to solve an injustice…which does get solved…when Chang Sheng shows up to back her up. So a young man is being bullied by other servants. Hua Rong chats with him and tells him to stand up for himself. He then tells her about the river grass that make people itchy. Shaggy Bro marches past with a consignment of slaves who will be going off the island to the mainland. Blue Bro then shows up with Chang Sheng’s clothes.

Um.

(It don’t work.)

However, Hua Rong won’t confess. There is, naturally, no evidence. Chang Sheng threatens to cut off her arms and legs then….leading to Hua Rong taking desperate measures. Such as trying to convince Chang Sheng that his blisters make him look friendly and approachable, lol.

So she is condemned to be tied to the discipline stake for three days. The defiant one must be taught a lesson! Also Chang Sheng has noticed that Bullied Kid is paying close attention to his savioress; and also orders that the guards leave that night. Shaggy Bro is pretty much at a total loss here, but Blue Bro explains that it’s a hawk training tactic. (and charges his Bro for the lesson, lol.) Meanwhile, somewhat hilariously, Hua Rong is shouting abuse at Chang Sheng the entire scene.

She’s more or less wound down by that night, however–that much screaming would parch anybody. But Bullied Kid is fortunately johnny-on-the-spot with water and food. He urges Hua Rong to beg for mercy and cry. It works for him, after all! Hua Rong points out the problem with this strategy: it only encourages them to keep bullying you.

Tears are neither a weapon, nor a fundamental way to solve problems.

OH YOU TELL THEM AND PLEASE KEEP THIS IN MIND LATER YOURSELF. If you don’t want to get bullied, the only way is to get stronger. She also counsels Kid to be strong and also to have confidence in himself. Good girl. He hugs her…while crying.

AND LOL, at this point Chang Sheng, watching from a discrete distance, gives a loud AHEM. But, being the hot and cold hero he is, when he does saunter up, he merely tells her to hang on two more days. Cut to: Blue Bro rushing up to report that “that kid” fainted. The fact that all three of the top pirate leadership rush off to respond to this is of mild interest to Throat-Cutting Second In Command Guy.

Buuuut at this point Hua Rong’s secret is out. The Bros. Minds. Are. Blown.

Awwww no, she’s all in girl clothes now. Dangit, I have a feeling it’s all going to go downhill from here. Stupid Chinese gender roles. (But Chang Sheng psyching himself up to try and cover up her exposed….wait for it…shoulders…was pretty cute.) But at least Hua Rong comes up swinging (literally) but figuratively as well. She declares that she is a jiang hu heroine! And it’s totally not a matter of physical ability but heart and courage! “Do you really believe that?” Of course she does–not that he’d know, because it’s something that a dirty pirate would lack!

Chang Sheng, annoyed and insulted, leaves. But at this point it’s also confirmed that Hua Man Tian does have a daughter, who is the same age as “that kid,” and who disappeared a while ago and hasn’t yet been found. Blue Bro and Shaggy Bro, meanwhile, are trying to add A to B and come up with Why The Boss Is Acting So Weird?

Bullied Kid comes by to check on Big Bro–I mean, Big Sis. It turns out that he doesn’t really have a name–only a surname. Hua Rong offers to give him one–and teaches Yue Feng (Carefree Wind) to write his own name. And then pinkie-swears to protect her Little Bro. Awww. And now to business! Escaping the island!

Now, there is a rumor that there is a map of the island, currents, reefs, and channels. They can use that to escape, even if they don’t know the seas themselves.

But it’s in Chang Sheng’s room. Oh boy.

BUT NOW! Throat Cutter has arrived. He wants her.

Hua Rong protests that she belongs to Chang Sheng. And also headbutts him, lol. For all the good that does.

AAAAAND CHANG SHENG ARRIVES WITH A FLYING SIDE KICK JUUUUUST WHEN MOST NEEDED. Can that boy teleport? Because he’s done that a lot this episode.

AND LOL. Hua Rong takes instant advantage of the situation by trying to get Throat Cutter into the most trouble possible: that he planned to betray and usurp Chang Sheng the Pirate Lord’s position. And LOOOOL, also says he told her about his (gesture) tiny plan. “YOU!”

Chang Sheng sentences him quietly to fifty lashes.

And then picks her up and carries her off in turn. Turns out, he knows perfectly well she was lying about Throat Cutter, who might be thinking about such things but is too cowardly/intelligent to actually say it out loud. Hua Rong is, meanwhile, wondering if they are in Chang Sheng’s fabled quarters–and if the map is there.

They squabble over who gets to apply medicine to her bruised (lol) forehead, and romantic music starts playing. And kid, if you haven’t noticed that he’s kneeling before you to do you a service…well…

Actually, though, Hua Rong has noticed that Chang Sheng is pretty kindhearted towards her and discusses whether or not he should let her go.

He says no. She says yes. It’s a bit of an impasse.

(And he blows on her forehead to dry off the medicine. You know, I do that to the dog to annoy her, so I’m not seeing the romance there.)

But now the medicine-annointing is finished and Hua Rong is bumbling about the room in search of a) the map, b) an excuse to be in the room looking for the map. She settles on: “You saved my life! I must repay you!”

“Repay me how? Repay me…with yourself.”

CUT TO BLACK!

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