Sparrow 麻雀 Episodes 14-15 Recap

Episodes 14-15 Recap

Chen Shen reads the detailed report on Zhou Li, Bicheng’s old friend from school. She and other wanted people are to be sent to Cao He Jing prison. As it turns out, Xiaonan also has an upcoming acting gig in that area – so much for coincidences. Chen Shen visits the prison and confirms that Zhou Li is there, but he also recognizes it will be very difficult to save her from the high-ranked Wang Wei. He needs to do something for the prison there in order to expect a return favor.

He finds opportunity when he catches Ms. Sun having an extramarital relationship with Dr. Jiang. Ms. Sun is a friend of Zhongliang’s, and Dr. Jiang is the prison doctor in charge of administering their health checkups. Chen Shen threatens Dr. Jiang with pictures he took of him with Ms. Sun, and Dr. Jiang acquiesces to letting Chen Shen bring someone into the jail for a moment during the checkup. According to Chen Shen’s plan, Dr. Jiang is not to enter the cell while Bicheng is to dress as the doctor.

That day, Bicheng pretends to be sick and asks Shanhai to tell the office she can’t go to work due to illness. After he leaves, she then goes with Chen Shen to see Zhou Li. The plan seems to go well at first, and she does get to meet her friend, but then in the afternoon Shanhai realizes that she’s missing. Meanwhile, after Bicheng leaves the jail, she starts crying, and Chen Shen comforts her. He tells her that tears are only a way to express anger at oneself for being so helpless, but is there any use for that anger?

Originally, Bicheng had convinced herself that just meeting Zhou Li once more would be enough. However, she finds out that Zhou Li has a husband and a child now, and that her family doesn’t know she’s been captured. Bicheng cannot simply do nothing about the impending scenario, so she decides to take matters into her own hands and try to save Zhou Li herself without relying on Chen Shen or Shanhai.

She tells Dachun that Zhou Li and the other prisoners are going to be transferring jails, and they plan to intercept the transfer car halfway on the road. One of Zhongliang’s assistants, 扁头 Bian Tou, is assigned to transfer the prisoners. However, on that day, his mom suddenly gets admitted to the hospital, so the task is now Chen Shen’s. This is completely unexpected and Bicheng now worries for Chen Shen’s safety. She warns him he must not go, and he then understands what Bicheng plans to do. Chen Shen tells her to stay at the office to minimize suspicion, and he’ll try to figure out a plan.

this hand-on-the-wall move is so common in Asian dramas

She asks him to please extend the time of transferring inmates for as long as possible so that she can notify Dachun and his team to stop their plan. This conversation is overheard by Er Bao, one of Zhongliang’s assistants. He tells Zhongliang he heard the words “Qiao Jia Shan”, which is the name of the place where the interception is supposed to happen.

In the midst of Bicheng’s panic, she goes and tells Shanhai “I think I have committed a great mistake.” I am facepalming right now. Please Bicheng, for the sake of the viewers’ sanity, please try to control your emotions a little more next time. At the prison, in order to prolong time for as long as possible, Chen Shen provokes Zhou Li, who mocks him for becoming a Chinese traitor, and he also disrupts the wires of the car.

Meanwhile Shanhai is also trying to get the news to Dachun that the plan has changed, but the road is blocked by Er Bao and his men. Shanhai fights the men and kills them, but one of them manages to get one of his coat buttons. Eventually he is able to tell Dachun right before they start executing the plan. One of Dachun’s men, who happens to be the husband of Zhou Li, is especially devastated.

Thoughts

The short recap parts at the beginning of each episode always confuse me. This is of minor importance, but seriously, I’ll be five minutes in the episode, wondering if I’m watching the right version or if I’m rewatching the same thing over again, because so much of the plot is regurgitated at the beginning.

Ah, love. Excusing Bicheng’s “disguise” as a doctor, which really consisted of putting on a white gown and wire-rimmed glasses, I thought Zhou Dongyu did an amazing job in the crying scene. The dubbing of her voice kind of ruined the emotional impact of the scene, but nonetheless her sorrow felt genuine. No matter how frustrated I am with her irrational decision to put herself and others in danger in order to see Zhou Li, I also understand that she loves her friend and wants to help her as much as possible. It’s similar to Chen Shen’s decision to save Qiuxia, even if he was risking his identity in the process. And Chen Shen as well loves Bicheng so much that he’d be willing to help coordinate her last meeting with Zhou Li.

Pictures and gifs credit to the 电视剧麻雀 Weibo.