Never-Ending Summer (炽夏)

Adapted from the novel Fall (坠落) by Tian Cu Yu, Never-Ending Summer follows Zhou Wan (Bao Shang'en), a tenacious honor student who is desperate to save her severely ill grandmother. Unable to get help from her mother who abandoned her, she deliberately approaches her mother's step-son, the unruly Lu Xixiao (Daniel Zhou), in an attempt to raise money. What begins as a calculated scheme slowly transforms into genuine feelings as they become each other's rock. However, cruel reality and misunderstandings drive them apart after graduation. Ten years later, they reunite in the workplace. Unable to forget his past heartbreak, Lu repeatedly lashes out at Zhou, only to find his love for her has never changed. As they search for the truth behind a factory accident, their brave and sincere hearts bring them back together for good.

• The 29-episode series (approx. 45 min each) can be broadly divided into four main story arcs:
  • Act 1: Calculated Approach & Budding Romance (Episodes 1-10 approx.): During their senior year of high school, Zhou Wan deliberately approaches her step-brother Lu Xixiao with the ulterior motive of securing money for her grandmother's surgery. Despite her initial scheming, their time together — filled with summer nights, motorcycles, and rooftop conversations — gradually replaces calculation with genuine feelings. Zhou Wan's careful emotional walls begin to crumble as she finds herself falling for the rebellious young man she intended to use.
  • Act 2: Misunderstanding & Separation (Episodes 11-14 approx.): As graduation approaches, Zhou Wan's guilt over her initial deception consumes her. A series of misunderstandings and the weight of her secret drive the young couple apart. The glorious summer of their youth shatters, and they part ways, each carrying deep wounds and unresolved feelings into adulthood.
  • Act 3: Workplace Reunion & Revenge Game (Episodes 15-24 approx.): A decade later, Zhou Wan and Lu Xixiao cross paths again in the professional world. Now a composed, cold-eyed adult, Lu appoints Zhou as his special assistant, ostensibly to exact "revenge". He toys with her and tests her loyalty, all while concealing an unshakable obsession. Zhou Wan, now a resilient career woman, denies her lingering love even as she cannot let go of his gentleness. The two become entangled once more in a push-and-pull of love and resentment.
  • Act 4: Uncovering the Truth & Reconciliation (Episodes 25-29): As they continue to clash and gravitate toward each other, the pair gradually uncovers the truth behind the misunderstandings that tore them apart years ago. A factory accident forces them to work together, and as they investigate its cause, their brave and sincere hearts finally allow them to overcome the past. In the finale, they achieve a hard-won reconciliation, proving that true love can survive even the longest separation.