Wait, My Youth (等等啊我的青春), also known as Salute My Youth, is a 2019 Chinese Series starring Li Jiaqi and Zhao Yiqin, spanning 24 episodes. The series is available with subtitles on Netflix
and Youtube.
Su Cancan starts the series as an ordinary first year at Ningyuan High School with a long time crush on Lin Jia Zhe, a high performing student who barely knows who she is. She inadvertently meets and becomes seatmates with his best friend and reputed troublemaker, Lan Tianye. Their relationship grows as form a radio broadcasting club at their school. The series follows the friends as they enter college and adulthood and experience the highs and lows of romance.
Contains examples of:
- The Ace: Lin Jiazhe is good at school, a talented piano player, and Cancan's class monitor.
- Accidental Kiss: In episode 7, Cancan falls on Tianye in the radio club room and they share one of these, to their embarrassment.
- Acquainted in Real Life: Meili and Xingyi, although Xingyi initially thinks the person he is talking to over chat is Yating.
- All Love Is Unrequited: Yating's feelings for Zhou Lin, as well as Wenxin's feelings for Jiazhe. And ultimately, Jiazhe's feelings for Cancan.
- Aloof Dark-Haired Girl: Tao Yating is reserved, beautiful, and dark-haired, though she eventually gets closer with Cancan and the other club members.
- Belligerent Sexual Tension: Cancan and Tianye have this in their relationship, often teasing each other or exchanging insults. Also, Meili and Xingyi before they realize they have been chatting with each other on the internet.
- Big Damn Heroes: Tianye saving Cancan from people trying to rob her family's store in episode 8.
- Big Damn Kiss: Tianye and Cancan finally share one in episode 15.
- Break the Cutie: Happens to Cancan when she continually fails to pass the postgraduate examination and ultimately decides to break up with Tianye.
- Brilliant, but Lazy: Tianye when it comes to math and science. It's implied he doesn't seem to work hard in these subjects yet has the highest scores in his grade.
- Coming of Age Story
- Cool Big Sis: Chen Ying, one Cancan's roommates, takes this role toward her and her other roommates.
- Expository Hairstyle Change: Most obviously with Cancan, who cuts her hair short when she goes to university, and then grows it longer when she is an adult.
- Green-Eyed Monster: Although it doesn't impede their friendship, Tianye often becomes this toward Jiazhe when he notices Cancan liking or getting close with him.
- Hot Teacher: Zhou Lin, the music teacher.
- Insult of Endearment: Tianye often calls Su Cancan, Zhu Cancan or "Piggy Cancan."
- I Want My Beloved to Be Happy: The reason why Cancan breaks up with Tianye.
- Jerk with a Heart of Gold: Tianye is often aloof and abrasive but more considerate and attentive than he seems.
- Long-Distance Relationship: Tianye and Cancan have to have one of these when Tianye gets into Berklee School of Music in Boston, and Cancan doesn't. It doesn't work out.
- Love Letter: Cancan writes one of these for Jiazhe when they are about to graduate high school.
- Love Triangle: Cancan likes Jiazhe who doesn't seem to like her back, while Tianye likes Cancan who doesn't seem to like him back.
- Meet Cute: Tianye first meets Cancan when he crashes into her when she's trying to change out of her clothes in the woods, leading to a teacher misunderstanding them to be having a secret rendezvous.
- Missing Mom: Yating's mother is rarely around, and she eventually learns that she divorced her father.
- Nice Guy: Fitting for someone who is the class monitor, Jiazhe is overall a helpful and considerate person, such as helping Cancan with the blackboard newsletter when she is doing it by herself.
- Not What It Looks Like: Happens to Cancan and Tianye twice: first when they first meet and Tianye crashes into Cancan in the woods, and second when Cancan has Tianye over in her room and her father walks in.
- Oblivious to Love: Cancan seems unaware that Tianye likes her for much of the series, though he certainly is not open about expressing his feelings.
- Out-of-Context Eavesdropping: When Jiazhe overhears Cancan say "I like you," to Tianye in the first episode, he assumes she is confessing, whereas she really is just saying the title of a song on the tape she is asking Tianye for. This also leads Tianye to assume Cancan likes him, when she really likes Jiazhe.
- Parental Neglect: Tianye's parents are said to be rarely, if ever around, to the point that he doesn't expect his dad to show up at his parent meeting.
- Plucky Girl: Although she’s not immune to getting discouraged, Cancan is largely this, as is her friend Meili.
- Race for Your Love: Cancan when she runs to make it to the Jay Chou concert to meet Tianye.
- Running Gag: Cancan putting important things in places so safe, she can't find them. Lampshaded by Tianye.
- Second Love: Tianye for Cancan.
- Shipper on Deck: Xu Meili tries hard to help Cancan get together with Lin Jiazhe, including helping Cancan contrive situations to get closer to him.
- Wenxin also encourages Lan Tianye about his feelings for Cancan.
- Single Woman Seeks Good Man: Cancan's feelings toward Jiazhe fall under this trope.
- Stern Teacher: Ms. Huang can be strict with her students but clearly cares about them. In fact, it’s revealed the reason why she sits Tianye and Cancan together is so they can help each other in the subjects they each are weak in.
- Stepford Smiler: Cancan displays elements of this when she continues to fail the postgraduate exam, her father's store goes out of business, and she breaks up with Tianye, pretending to be happy and more okay than she is.
- Teacher/Student Romance: Tao Yating develops a crush on Zhou Lin. However, it stays one-sided. In the end, he gets married to someone else.
- Time Skip: After episode 20.
- Tsundere: Tianye is a type A toward Cancan, often.
- Unrequited Love Switcheroo: Happens with Cancan and Jiazhe. By the time Jiazhe is ready to confess to her his feelings, she has already moved on with Tianye.
