After the death of his father, 19-year-old Haitang was taken home by his father's old friend Shen Yanzhou. For five years, he protected her meticulously, but always maintained a restrained distance - he would appear outside her door every thunderstorm night, but never crossed that threshold.
When Haitang was twenty years old, she realized her true feelings. She tried her best to get closer, but he pushed her away again and again with "You're still young" and "You can't tell the difference between dependence and liking". Until one rainy night, she knocked on his door. Everything started to get out of hand.
A tampered will revealed a lie that had been hidden for five years - Shen Yanzhou's restraint was not because of lack of love, but because of a non-existent promise. During the six months of exchange in Germany, Haitang also grew from a girl who needed to be taken care of to an independent researcher.
That spring, under the crabapple tree. He finally said the words he had been waiting for five years.
