When Spring Jasmine Returns

[Childhood sweethearts + reunion after years apart + mutual healing + happy ending + devoted one-on-one romance + no rivalry between women + ensemble cast]

1. Three years ago, Fang Mubo and Bai Song said goodbye at the airport. She told him they were only parting briefly so they could have an even better reunion.

Fang Mu stopped at the security checkpoint and turned to Bai Song, who stood beyond the crowd. “Wait for me to come back.” He understood what she mouthed.

On the airport display: CA1285, Mingcheng → Los Angeles, departing. “I’ll come get you,” Bai Song typed and sent.

Three years later, Fang Mu flies home on a plane piloted by Bai Song.

2. On the night they register their marriage, Fang Mu leans gently against Bai Song’s shoulder. “During those three years in Los Angeles, I knew you came to see me. More than once.”

She looks up, starlight reflected in her eyes. “How about we make a promise? On our golden wedding anniversary, you’ll show me the notes you wrote during those three years. Remember to laminate them so they don’t fade.”

“Okay.” He lowers his head to kiss the crown of hers, swallowing back a sob as his throat tightens.

As the years pass like sand, they go from young and dark-haired to old and gray.

Then, on the morning of their golden wedding anniversary, eighty-year-old Bai Song hands Fang Mu a sandalwood box. The yellowed, laminated sticky notes gleam like flecks of gold in the morning light.

After reading them one by one, Fang Mu smiles softly. “So it really was you I saw in the clinic that year.”

3. At his retirement ceremony, Bai Song says, “In my more than thirty years as a pilot, my proudest achievement is knowing that the woman I love can sleep peacefully aboard a plane I’m flying.”

Content warning: Several side couples, including one with a tragic ending.