Encounter with You (转身遇到你): A Look at Tong Yao's Shelved Drama

While looking around for information about Encounter with You (转身遇到你), I realized there's very little available in English, and some of the Chinese information about this drama also seems to be incorrect. I hope to fill that gap, ensuring international fans have a more accurate picture so they can decide if they want to invest time into this series.

Encounter With You was filmed in 2015 and aired on a regional channel in China around 2016, with its first broadcast on Tianjin Metropolitan Channel (天津都市频道)¹. The series never received an official widespread release until iQiyi picked it up this year. While it's unclear whether iQiyi initially intended to target international audiences, the drama's global accessibility with multiple subtitle options likely reflects Tong Yao’s rising global recognition.

The drama tells the story of Wan Xinxin (played by Tong Yao), who impulsively marries into a wealthy family after an unexpected pregnancy. But her rich husband soon betrays her. Determined to reclaim her independence, the fiery-tempered Xinxin divorces him and walks out. On her journey, she crosses paths with the kind-hearted Hua Ming, and over time, a subtle affection blossoms between them.

But just as a new future seems possible, complicated entanglements from the past return. Qin Gang's mother and Hua Ming's ex-wife resurface, threatening the fragile balance of their new relationship. Amidst this storm of clashing loyalties, will Xinxin be able to find happiness and a second chance at a family?

I also took time out to subtitle the trailer in English, and you can watch it here:

I still need to finish up another series before I can start Footprints of Change (足迹), but after that, I'll finally begin watching Encounter with You. I did take time out to watch the first few minutes of the first episode and found it quite entertaining. In this series, Tong Yao plays against type, especially when you consider her body of work before its 2016 release. This performance probably harks back to her role in A Unique Militiaman (民兵葛二蛋), where she was equally brash and rash. She's more flashy than in her previous roles, playing it big for comedy and demonstrating her impulsiveness, but she takes care to infuse real emotion into Xinxin. In that short amount of time, she shows that in spite of the character's irresponsibility, viewers can already like and root for her. I’m genuinely curious to see how it unfolds.

That said, this series was originally released nine years ago when the Tong Yao and Yu Yi were not as well known as now. So the production values aren't great. The lighting is flat and the sets don't look as realistic. While this doesn't bother me, it might bother some who are used to the generally higher production values of many modern series.

The series is actually doing relatively well on iQiyi and I feel compelled to correct an erroneous article that suggest that Encounter with You had a catastrophic release on the platform. The author incorrectly interpreted Maoyan’s dashboard data, assuming the number “7993” represented raw views, when in fact, such figures in Chinese entertainment reporting are typically measured in units of 10,000 (万). 

graphic from the incorrect interpretation

Despite the misleading claim of a poor debut, data from Maoyan² reveals that Encounter with You had a remarkably strong opening. The drama peaked at a robust heat index of 7209.96 within its first three days, securing a spot as the 25th most popular show across all platforms in China. This surge in interest translated into an estimated 79.93 million cumulative effective plays during its premiere window, making it a successful launch, particularly for a shelved drama with minimal marketing.

better data & proper interpretation

I personally checked Maoyan yesterday (16 Sept) , and the show remains ranked within the Top 30 on the online streaming heat chart, with a real-time heat index of 4864.63. This is a strong performance for a drama that’s only been available for nine days. The fact that it’s still holding a Top 30 spot after nine days points to sustained audience interest, which is a more than respectable outcome for a nine-year-old series.

Update - 17 Sept Afternoon: After further tracking, the show's performance pattern on Maoyan has become clear. Its Absolute Heat Index consistently resets to the mid-4500s each day, demonstrating a strong and stable level of audience engagement. The Daily Ranking exhibits a predictable 'sawtooth' pattern, fluctuating from the mid-20s to just past 30. The daily rise aligns perfectly with the release of two new episodes each afternoon, followed by a gradual decline.

This pattern is a classic indicator of a healthy performance for a series with a staggered release schedule, powered by a dedicated viewership. Based on this consistent data, I am satisfied that the debut of this shelved drama has been unexpectedly successful in China, and I will conclude my monitoring here.

If you're curious about the rest of Tong Yao’s work, I'm creating a complete guide to her filmography. It's my passion project filled with my personal reviews, character deep-dives, and links to detailed posts like this one and more. It’s a work in progress, but I invite you to take a look: Tong Yao Film & TV Guide for Fans.

Footnotes:

¹Baidu - information on the series
²Maoyan - A leading Chinese platform for real-time movie and TV show popularity rankings and data.