Episode 4 Recap - In a Class of Her Own (2020)

Episode 4 recap

In which our heroine acquires another hot roommate and starts the path to learning 

Episode 4 begins with the man in black being chased - he enters the Academy and the guards are prevented from searching inside by a feisty old teacher.

Ep 4: Feng Cheng Jun and Xue Wen Xi in suspense

Meanwhile Xue Wen Xi and Feng Cheng Jun are bunking down for the night. She refuses to let him take off his clothes and insists on keeping the light on. Feng Cheng Jun doesn’t like the smell of his blanket so edges over to share Xue Wen Xi’s. They both freak out when a dark shape looks to enter the dorm room and they pounce on the intruder with the blanket.  Lei Ze Xin aka Lei Ao emerges from the blanket with his famous death glare and his catchphrase - “do you want to die or do you not want to live?” 

Xue Wen Xi then sees that he’s the Big Brother who helped her get her money from the thugs and is happy to see him. He’s happy to see the Little Brother who helped him escape from the guards too and thanks her.  Not happy at all to see Feng Cheng Jun however, when he finds out that Feng Cheng Jun is the son of the governor (and pegs him as a hypocrite and worse).  Lei Ze Xin is happy for Xue Wen Xi to stay in his dorm but wants to kick Feng Cheng Jun out. She ends up kicking his injured knee by mistake and he throws them both out. 

Resigned, they sit on the porch outside and there’s a cute scene where the optimistic Xue Wen Xi admires the starry night and tells Feng Cheng Jun that they should take the bitter with the sweet. It’s a very chummy scene and other students look on and (a) take bets with Yu Le Xuan as to whether “Wen Bin” and Feng Cheng Jun will be kicked out of their room forever, with Yu Le Xuan giving 10-1 odds that they will be back in the dorm within three days and (b) wonder what they’re so engrossed in conversation about.

Ep 4: Feng Cheng Jun and Xue Wen Xi admire the stars together💕

Yu Le Xuan (🐼: deep waters, this guy) is almost wistful as he correctly identifies that they have found soulmates in each other. (🐼: In Chinese there are many words for soulmate or best friend.  One is 知己 (literally “knows self” - ie. someone who knows you as well as you know yourself).  The other is 知音 (literally “understands the melody” - ie. someone who is in tune with the melody in your heart). Rare and beautiful indeed). 

Ep 4: Yu Le Xuan plays detective

Yu Le Xuan invites “Wen Bin” to lodge in his rooms for the night and she accepts, taking Feng Cheng Jun along as well despite the invite being to her alone. (🐼: So cute, this duo).  

All three share a bed and Yu Le Xuan suspects something is not quite right with “Wen Bin” and leans over to lift the blanket.  She purposely moves her arm and he lands awkwardly on Feng Cheng Jun’s chest. 

Cue hilarious awkwardness:

Feng Cheng Jun: "Brother Le Xuan, what are you doing?"

Yu Le Xuan: "Ummmm, just straightening the blanket."

Ep 4: Yu Le Xuan and Feng Cheng Jun "Ummmm..."

In the morning, there’s a funny scene in which Feng Cheng Jun and Xue Wen Xi are in the bathrooms with other students, who are having a foot soak. The others say, have a soak too. They then comment that Xue Wen Xi’s legs aren’t hairy. Come to that “he” also doesn’t have any facial hair. They all conclude that “he” must be malnourished (🐼: impeccable logic, that):

Ep 4: Xue Wen Xi's classmates: "He's got no facial hair." "He must be malnourished..." 

Ep 4: Xue Wen Xi: "Ummmm..."

Principal Feng (he of the weird mustache, no relation to Feng Cheng Jun) later tells the class what they need to do to pass and to qualify to sit imperial examinations. There are many courses and electives and only four years to achieve everything (and there’s also a system where points can get docked if a student misbehaves - "nobility points"). Xue Wen Xi wants that monthly stipend but doesn’t think she can pass.

Meanwhile two old men discuss the black robed man who has been distributing flyers that bear revolutionary messages from a banned ten thousand word book and ominously say loose ends ought to have been tied up as it’s proof that someone knows the truth about a past murder...

We then see Lei Ze Xin wiping the ancestral tablet of his own older brother and promising that he will clear his brother’s name.

He’s later joined by Yu Le Xuan - and the two are clearly good friends. (🐼: Their bromance is super cute - friendship goals!) Yu Le Xuan picks up the tab for Lei Ze Xin's drinks, and we hear them talking about how Lei Ze Xin's brother had, along with Teacher Xue Ding Kun and other students, authored a revolutionary text advocating for equality for all. Somehow, a conspiracy costed Lei Ze Xin's brother’s life and that of the others in the group and Lei Ze Xin is determined to uncover the mystery and avenge his brother.  (Incidentally, we also find out that Lei Ze Xin is the son of the commander of the Imperial Brigade, so he’s not likely to be kicked out of Yunshang Academy despite his penchant for wagging studies and being too handy with his fists).

Ep 4:  Yu Le Xuan and Lei Ze Xin - friendship goals 💛

Cue another cute scene as Feng Cheng Jun and Xue Wen Xi sneak back into dorm room 2, which is empty. They bunk down for the night Xue Wen Xi warns Feng Cheng Jun not to get to close to her as that would be dangerous. He gulps, remembering that she’d said she gets violent during sleepwalking and maintains his distance.  But morning arrives to this:

Ep 4: Does this count as Xue Wen Xi making the first move? 

Xue Wen Xi is about to beat up the sleeping Feng Cheng Jun when she realises she was the one to get all cosy with him. (🐼:Hahaha!) He wakes, slightly terrified that she might have disfigured him in the night. (🐼:Trust me, we’re all glad she didn’t do anything to that cute face).

They head to classes and Xue Wen Xi excels in abacus lessons - as she explains it, when there’s anything involving money, she becomes a genius. She doesn’t want to major in accounting though, preferring medicine. 

In art class Feng Cheng Jun excels as usual. Xue Wen Xi, not so much. She makes an absolute mess with the inks, admires Feng Cheng Jun’s talent, and (🐼: girl after my own heart) promptly draws a turtle. Art teacher is not impressed. 

Ep 4:  Art class with Feng Cheng Jun and Xue Wen Xi

Thoughts 

🐼: Interesting to find that Lei Ze Xin has a back story involving mysteries and vengeance. I’m all for him running around in black and giving everyone that death glare. I’d quite like him to return to Dorm 2 soon though as I’m ready for more Feng-Lei-Xue antics and bickering.