“Eat Run Love”; sounds like the perfect recipe for love and happiness. It is what our handsome lead, Gan Yang (Chen Fei Yu), lives by as well. An enterprising university student and an avid runner, his sole passion is to design state-of-the-art sports shoes.
It is love at first sight when he runs into Ding Zhi Tong (Zhuang Da Fei) on campus. Zhi Tong, a final year student, is well known for her academic achievements. She works as a part-timer at a convenience store and has applied to several financial firms for a job opportunity. Every time Gan Yang spots Zhi Tong, there is a spring in his step, and wearing his heart on his sleeve, he actively pursues her only to be turned down over and over again.
Zhi Tong has no time for love, being weighed under insurmountable debts. All she wants is to get rich and provide a comfortable life for her mother. However, it is hard to resist the charming Gan Yang, and it is just a matter of time until Zhi Tong confesses her feelings.
Just as things start going well for the couple, Gan Yang finds himself in a crisis and decides to break-up with Zhi Tong. The couple meet six years later, and a lot has changed. Zhi Tong’s mission is to destroy the very dream Gan Yang had nurtured. Can this couple, who were practically soulmates, forgive and forget? Or will Gan Yang sacrifice himself for the sake of Zhi Tong’s happiness?
Here are three reasons why “Eat Run Love”; should be on your watchlist this summer.
The steadfast and passionate Gan Yang
Gan Yanglives to run and design shoes. Though still at university, he, along with his friend, dedicates himself to research and developing sophisticated running shoes. Gan Yang’s mother has single-handedly established the family’s shoe business, and he wants to revolutionize it with new ideas and technology.
Gan Yang is also popular around campus, but remains oblivious towards all the female attention coming his way. One day, when he comes across Ding Zhi Tong (Zhunag Da Fei), an aloof senior, he is smitten. But Gan Yang’s friend has also put his name on the campus dating app called “Matching.”; It seems Gan Yang, under the name of Forrest, has his soulmate amongst the many applicants. Turns out, it is none other than Zhi Tong, who has been registered on the app by her best friend. As Gan Yang cutely and sometimes awkwardly pursues Zhi Tong, he is constantly turned down.
But how long can she hold back? Gan Yang is attentive. He takes care of her needs, getting her medicine for her period pain and cooking her nutritional meals, since she is thrifty when it comes to her daily expenses. He only wants to see Zhi Tong happy and carefree.
Just as the couple feel they may have a future together, Gan Yang faces his biggest challenge. His mother’s company goes bankrupt and is under huge debt. Facing his family’s crisis, both personal and financial, he decides to end his relationship with Zhi Tong. It’s a decision which causes him acute misery, but he has his reasons. He doesn’t want to encumber her with his massive burdens.
Gan Yang loves Zhi Tong, but forces himself to keep away from her. He tells his friends that as long as she is well and happy, that is all that matters to him.
Six years go by, and Gan Yang has come a long way. Now the boss of a thriving L&T corporation, he is an innovative and astute entrepreneur. His success is a sore point with his competitors. Even though he can outsmart his adversaries, when one of them turns out to be the love of his life, Zhi Tong, he finds himself cornered.
As he tries to reach out to her and give her an explanation on what happened, Zhi Tong makes it clear she is not interested in him or his life. Her agenda is to ink the deal and get promoted. But Gan Yang is ready to sacrifice himself and even his business for her sake.
Chen Fei Yu’s Gan Yang in “Eat Run Love”; may be a far cry from his Li Xun in “Lighter and Princess,”; but the one thing the two have in common is their altruism. Chen Fei Yu is delightful as the understanding, caring, and utterly loving Gan Yang. He is a feminist who wants his woman to excel and thrive in her success.
The unrelenting and driven Ding Zhi Tong
Ding Zhi Tong is burdened by her family’s overwhelming financial debt. A brilliant student, she is focused on getting a well-paying job so that she can payback the money they owe their relatives. Zhi Tong is frugal, and everything for her comes at a price. She fends for herself and doesn’t like taking favors or being obliged to anyone. One can’t blame her. After her father’s death, Zhi Tong and her mother were ostracized by their greedy relatives, who are constantly tailing them for money. A debt-free life is what she seeks.
When the bright-eyed Gan Yang tries to woo her, she rejects him repeatedly. Love is not on her list of priorities, and may come in the way of her ambition and goals. But she finds herself falling for the kind-hearted Gan Yang, who loves her unconditionally. He loves taking care of her and giving her the comfort she denies herself. His reasoning is simple – he loves her and likes doing things for her.
Even though it is a long distance relationship after she moves to Shanghai for work, Gan Yang never lets her feel the distance. All he wants for her is to live well and be healthy.
Just when she has cleared her debts and can think of a happily ever after with Gan Yang, she is in for a shock. Gan Yang calls off their relationship, giving her no explanation. Devastated and heartbroken, Zhi Tong pulls herself together and erases every sign and memory of Gan Yang from her life and heart.
A woman toughened by heartbreak, Zhi Tong is cold and mechanical. Her aim is to be promoted to the position of Managing Director of her firm. The post comes with a caveat. Zhi Tong has to convince the elusive CEO of L&T to accept financing from one her clients. She is shocked to discover that the CEO is none other than the one man she hates the most, her ex-boyfriend Gan Yang.
Zhi Tong is business-like and tells him to his face that all she cares for is her success. She remains unrelenting whenever Gan Yang tries to give her an explanation, making it clear she detests him too much to even care for what may have happened to him.
However, his presence impacts her in more ways than one. She inwardly cheers him on for fulfilling his dream, the one she could well destroy. She confesses to her friend that more than hating him, she hates herself for feeling the way she does. But Zhi Tong is stubborn, unmoved, and firm – there is no future for her and Gan Yang.
Zhi Tong comes across as a difficult character. She is a girl with immense pride, and sometimes she can come across as unlikeable given her attitude. But that’s been her conditioning, and Zhuang Da Fei plays her well.
Love’s labor’s lost
Zhi Tong and Gan Yang both come from different worlds, but are also very similar in many ways. Both have been raised by single working mothers and are committed to make their parent happy. The two are also both strongly driven by their passion to succeed. While Zhi Tong wants a thriving career in finance, Gan Yang wants to succeed in the sports shoe industry.
The difference is in their personalities. Zhi Tong is prickly and prudent. On the other hand, Gan Yang is a dreamer and an adaptable person. Their courtship is cute, with Gan Yang making most of the effort. From leaving her cute notes at the airport, since she is usually in transit, he travels across cities day in day out to renovate a home for her.
Zhi Tong’s acceptance of his feelings sometimes come across as her taking him for granted, since all she is focused on is her career. But when he breaks up with her, you feel her pain and understand the place of deep hurt that she is coming from.
When the two meet years later, there is a push and pull between them. She insists he drink at a meeting, being oblivious to the fact that he is intolerant to alcohol, and she gets jealous that Chen Xi (Shang Wan Qing), his childhood best friend, looks out for him.
Even though she is happy he relents to the financing of his company so that Zhi Tong gets what she wants, when his company runs into trouble, she is the one who goes out to help him. Zhi Tong remains adamant, not wanting to hear his explanations. He cleverly devises a pitch to make her understand the struggle and the journey he has had while they were apart.
Though he clearly wants her back, she remains unrelenting. What will it take for Zhi Tong to finally trust Gan Yang and let go of the chains which bind her heart?
“Eat Run Love”; pulls you into the life of Gan Yang and Zhi Tong. There are a few moments and instances which can get annoying, and the writing does get a bit choppy towards the end, with a potential love threat coming Gan Yang’s way. But what is a love story without angst and lots of drama? If you love love and Chen Fei Yu, then “Eat Run Love”; is for you.
Start watching “Eat Run Love”;:
Hey Soompiers, have you watched “Eat Run Love”;? What did you think? Let us know in the comments below!
Puja Talwaris a Soompi writer with a strongYoo Yeon SeokandLee Junhobias. A long time K-drama fan, she loves devising alternate scenarios to the narratives. She has interviewedLee Min Ho,Gong Yoo,Cha Eun Woo, andJi Chang Wookto name a few. You can follow her on @puja_talwar7 on Instagram.
