Previously on Blossoms Shanghai, Ah Bao (Hu Ge) tells Li Li (Xin Zhilei) that he’s betting on her restaurant to fail. And for these block of episodes, it seems like it’s going to go that way in Huanghe Road with other madames sabotaging her. The madames rush into her restaurant expecting that she falls apart. But as it turns out, Uncle Ye (You Benchang) gives her some help. These episodes also lets viewers get to know side characters like Tao Tao (Chen Long) and his dalliances. Well, it’s just the one dalliance as he and Uncle Ye give Ah Bao about choosing Li Li over Miss Wang (Tang Yan).

Ah Bao, once again, acts as one of the drivers of change within Blossoms Shanghai‘s fictional world. Another one of those characters is Uncle Ye, who Wong shows contemporaneously and through flashbacks. And sure, he gets his screen time but episode 10 is mostly and thankfully about Li Li and her arc. Regardless of what country a show is coming from, I like an episode mostly about one event. The climax of that event, by the way, is Li Li dropping a document to the Madames. Dramatic, indeed, and then it pulls back out, reminding us that The Grand Lisbon is just another restaurant.

Business disruptions are commonplace in this show, as Ah Bao hosts a just dinner like Li Li’s, a much smaller affair to celebrate her victory but in Tokyo Nights, Ling Zi (Ma Yili) helping. Well, she didn’t know she was helping, and she’s mad that she didn’t know Ah Bao’s manipulating her. Understandably yet unfortunately, she takes a back seat for these episodes, in service of plots about men. She also plays a cock block for Tao Tao, already married to Feng (Zhen Chen) but has wandering eyes. Those eyes are diverting towards Ah Sao, a woman coming to Shanghai like many others.

I write about Blossoms Shanghai and Tao Tao’s wandering eyes but my fingers aren’t writing that with judgment. Besides, ambiguous romantic morality is Wong Kar Wai’s bread and butter, exploring ideas common in television. He and actor Chen Long flesh out the latter’s character Tao Tao’s feelings sympathetically, capturing a man’s malaise. Yes, what he’s doing is bad, but sometimes, men have thoughts. Tao Tao not knocking on Ah Sao’s door is classic Wong, capturing that yearning like if Proust took up photography. Sure, Wong is treading ground he’s walked on, which, the longer this goes, the more cutesy it gets which is slippery.

The Tao Tao plot arc may be one of Blossom Shanghai‘s slipping moments to viewers with rigid morals. The same goes for the main love triangle between Ah Bao, Li Li, and Miss Wong. The expansion of this love triangle makes Uncle Ye step in for the second time this season. Him being a romantic mentor feels strange but then he reminds viewers of Miss Wong’s risky behaviour. I may have hinted that I’m ambivalent towards Miss Wong but she doesn’t deserve what’s coming towards her. Ah Bao’s gift of cheap pearl earrings have consequences and we’ll see how ti affects Miss Wong.

Blossoms Shanghai‘s newest episodes are available to stream on the Criterion Channel.