Jian Shuyue

Biodata

Background / History

Jian Shuyue transferred from another province during her school years and became one of her school's recognized beauties alongside Tian Tian. She was Zhou Yi's classmate in both middle school and high school, and Guo Dongmei, Zhou Yi's mother, taught her Chinese. She later attended the same university as Tian Tian and Zhou Xiaofan 4 9 30 32.

She comes from a wealthy family. During her visit to Dongji, Bai Haoxuan accompanies her under family instructions to look after her. Her father is preparing to take up a post in Liaodong, although his position is not specified. Her mother encourages her to consider suitable men in Capital City or promising young officials in Liaodong 14 16 44.

In Zhou Yi's previous life, his friendship with Jian Shuyue and Tian Tian gradually faded until they lost contact. That experience informs the emotional distance he maintains after his rebirth 4 16.

Appearance

• Face and bearing: Strikingly handsome, with a rakish air; Zhou Yi describes her as capable of captivating both men and women 4.
• Eyes: Described as almond-shaped; a schoolmate's poem praises her expressive “phoenix eyes” 16 17.
• Hair: Shoulder-length during the barbecue gathering 9.
• Reunion outfit: A white short-sleeved T-shirt printed with “like,” a light-blue denim skirt, and white flat shoes. Tian Tian wears the same outfit, while Zhou Yi's matching T-shirt prompts teasing from their classmates 13.
• Voice: Clear and pleasant 4 9.

Personality

Jian Shuyue is bold, playful, and competitive in conversation. She responds to Zhou Yi's breakup by laughing and joking that she now has a chance with him, even offering to include Tian Tian in the arrangement. At the reunion, she readily plays along with teasing about their matching clothes rather than becoming embarrassed 4 13.

She enjoys food and convivial gatherings. The promise of a pork-and-sauerkraut feast immediately lifts her mood, and she eats barbecue with animated enthusiasm. She also has a repertoire of drinking lines and joins Tian Tian in trying to outdrink Zhou Yi 9 15.

Her teasing coexists with attentiveness to others. She asks Tian Tian not to interrupt Zhou Xiaofan's work and ends a late-night conversation with Zhou Yi so that he can rest. She is also perceptive enough to recognize that his easy banter conceals a firm emotional boundary 16 27 45.

Although she has never been in a relationship, she advises Zhou Xiaofan that lasting love requires time rather than impulsive attraction. Her own feelings toward Zhou Yi remain unresolved: she denies romantic interest, but is unsettled by Xiaofan's planned date and later wonders whether his workload leaves him time to see Xiaofan 32 44 45.

Abilities & Skills

Social Perception

• Recognizes that Zhou Yi keeps her and Tian Tian at a distance despite their apparent closeness; he privately acknowledges the accuracy of their observations 16.
• Notices changes in his conversational confidence, drinking tolerance, and fighting ability after their years apart 15.

Drinking Tolerance

• Zhou Yi considers both her and Tian Tian capable drinkers 15.
• Their alternating toasts fail to overwhelm him; after two glasses, both women have flushed cheeks and hazy eyes while he remains steady 15.

Relationships

• Zhou Yi — Longtime classmate and close friend, whom she calls “A Yi.” She admires his newfound composure and authority, challenges his emotional distance, and insists to her mother that he is her “best buddy.” No romantic relationship is established 4 14 16 44.
• Tian Tian — Best friend and frequent traveling companion. They share a hotel suite, wear matching reunion outfits, and coordinate their teasing of Zhou Yi 13 15.
• Zhou Xiaofan — University friend and reporter. Xiaofan seeks her help securing an interview with Zhou Yi; her subsequent attraction to him creates complicated feelings for Jian Shuyue 27 30 32.
• Mu Yalan — Mother. She questions Jian Shuyue's attachment to Zhou Yi and presses her to consider marriage, regarding geographical and social distance as obstacles 44.
• Bai Haoxuan — Older cousin, initially introduced to Zhou Yi as her “friend.” He helps supervise her Dongji trip and photographs her interactions with Zhou Yi to report to family 14 16 34.
• Yan Lingling — Close school friend who joins the Dongji gatherings 10.
• Guo Dongmei — Former Chinese teacher and Zhou Yi's mother. Jian Shuyue visits her before leaving Dongji; Guo privately considers her a potential daughter-in-law but worries that Zhou Yi is not a suitable match 32.

Story Role / Major Arcs

Return to Dongji

• Calls Zhou Yi after his breakup with Li Qian and announces a reunion trip with Tian Tian and their old classmates 4.
• Returns to Dongji and invites him to Liu Family Barbecue. His overtime work postpones their planned meal together 9.
• Outside Golden Years, she and Tian Tian refuse Xie Zhaolong's invitation to his private room. He summons thugs to force the issue, but Zhou Yi intervenes and arrests him. Both women are visibly impressed by Zhou Yi's actions 10 11.

Reunion and Emotional Confrontation

• At Wang's Pork Feast Restaurant, her reunion with Zhou Yi becomes an opportunity to reassess the once-shy classmate she remembers. She finds his mature, composed bearing more attractive than his former awkwardness 13 14.
• After dinner, she asks about his willingness to begin another relationship and jokingly proposes Tian Tian. Near their hotel, the two women confront him about the distance he keeps between them 16.

Interviews and Departure

• Watches footage of Zhou Yi rescuing a suicidal girl after Zhou Xiaofan asks for interview assistance. She later attends his interview and reacts indignantly to Lin Fang's hostile questioning 27 30.
• Visits Zhou Yi's parents before returning to Capital City. Zhou Yi catches up with her and Tian Tian for a farewell; his embrace with Jian Shuyue is their first 32 34.

Back in Capital City

• Rejects a prospective match after a lunch meeting and denies her mother's suggestion that she is interested in Zhou Yi 44.
• Continues exchanging late-night messages with him. Despite her denial, she repeatedly imagines him in police uniform and privately worries about his possible meetings with Zhou Xiaofan 45.