A Taiwanese Tale of Two Cities (雙城故事)

Good night, restless souls.

How are you feeling today?

Depressed? Satisfied? Or calm?

Regardless, let me tell you a story.

A long time ago, there was a girl named Nian-nian.

When we met, she was still a little girl.

She was born in Dadaocheng, an old community in Taipei.

This street that was rich with the aromas of flowers, tea

and medicinal herbs, was her home.

It was probably her dream as well.

This is Nian-nian's dad.

And this is his precious traditional Chinese medicine clinic.

Ever since Nian-nian was a child, he taught her about all the herbs

and acupuncture points.

This is Nian-nian's mom.

She's never been pregnant before.

Yes, that's right.

She's her stepmother.

When her dad remarried, Nian-nian was only 11 years old.

This is Nian-nian's biological mom.

This room was filled with her dreams and expectations

of San Francisco.

That year, after she decided to leave Nian-nian and her dad,

Nian-nian moved into this room.

She decided to pursue her mom's dreams whom she can never see again.

Why did she love San Francisco?

Because they went on their honeymoon there.

Nian-nian's biological mom fell in love with the place.

Nian-nian was conceived there.

Speaking of San Francisco,

did I say that this story was about two girls?

"Come to National Taiwan University. Then pursue your dreams in America."

Have you heard this saying before?

Don't guess how old I am. I've always been an old soul.

This was Jo when she was five years old.

Her parents were elite students back then.

They graduated from National Taiwan University

and studied abroad in the States.

The met there, fell in love there

and had Jo in San Francisco.

Jo, who was born and raised in the States,

thinks of herself as an American.

But, her Taiwanese parents had different expectations of her.

Children cry because of their emotions,

but some cry because of hatred.

This hatred comes from betrayal.

Betrayal comes in many forms.

Jo, in San Francisco, lost her dad,

while Nian-nian, in Taipei, lost her mom.

TO NIAN-NIAN, FROM MOM

Have you ever been betrayed by someone who was supposed to love you?

Restless souls,

how does your heart feel today?

HESHENGTANG

Taipei.

If you were my boyfriend, I would've broken up with you a long time ago.

-What the hell? -Come over here.

-What? Are you filming this? -Come here.

-Look at this. You're ridiculous. -No, don't...

-Look. -You're the one who came rushing out.

-You're the one who broke the rules. -What?

You shouldn't have come out of there.

-Going forward -"Going forward"?

Where should I go then?

I can't go forward in life.

-You're the one who came rushing out. -You need to pay me.

How are you going to pay me?

-Can you tell me? -Why do I have to pay?

-I don't want to argue with you. -I don't, either.

-The road is like this. -Why can't you go that way?

-Now what? -This is how the road is.

-What road? -You broke the rules.

CHENGEN GATE

SUN YATSEN MEMORIAL HALL

Nian-nian.

Nian-nian.

Are you asleep?

Nian-nian.

SAN FRANCISCO, TAIPEI

If you're not asleep, say something.

I have a slice of ginseng in my mouth. Be quiet.

Come.

Give me your hand.

You know,

you're like a four-year-old Korean ginseng.

It's critical that we take good care of you now.

Your health has finally improved.

Don't do anything rash now, do you hear me?

It's been six years, okay?

You've taken such good care of me. I have lots of nutrition.

I should be ready to go out and see the world.

Here.

You shouldn't sleep with that in your mouth. Get up.

No, I'm going to sleep now.

-Get up. -I'm going to sleep.

Get up.

Look at you.

Did you forget that you have to go to bed at 11:00 p.m. every night?

You should've been home earlier.

Look.

How can you sleep with your bag on your back?

Take it off. Get changed.

You're an adult now.

Hey.

You can't sleep with that in your mouth.

Okay.

Yongquan, Chengjin, Futu acupuncture points...

This name that I gave you really bothers me.

The name Nian-nian just makes me want to nag at you all the time.

You're an adult now

-and you still can't go to bed on time. -Laogong,

-Ximen, Xiabai, Ruzhong... -Good night.

Tianchuang, Lianquan, Fengfu...

Nian-nian always relaxes like this.

Then, she falls asleep.

But, Nian-nian's dad was wrong.

He didn't pick this name.

Nian-nian's biological mom did.

MINGTIAN GROCERY STORE

MINGTIAN

NO. 227, MINLE ST. MINGTIAN GROCERY STORE

CLOSED

MINGTIAN BAR, MINGTIAN GROCERY STORE

MENU

-Hello, do you want some tea? -Thank you.

-Hey, Lun! -What?

-Watch the shop for me, will you? -All right.

TAIPEI XIAHAI CITY GOD TEMPLE

Sir.

-How much? -Don't be silly.

Then, take this.

-Tea leaves. -All right. Hang on.

This is for you.

Wax apples? Thanks.

Bye.

YONGLE MARKET

-Ma'am. -Hey, Tian-ming.

-This is for you. -Thanks.

This is for you. Thanks.

CHINESE STICKY RICE

-Good morning, Auntie Yue. -Hey.

Tian-ming, this is for you.

-I bought too much. -You're too kind.

I have something for you too. Here.

Sticky rice? That's awesome!

Call me pretty girl, don't call me "Auntie"!

Bye, pretty girl.

If you're bored with your repetitive life,

if you have nowhere to put your talent to use,

if you're a hundred times more intelligent than your boss,

come apply for the Best Job of the Pacific.

Work for a whole year among the biggest resorts around the Pacific.

You can live your life to the fullest!

Please go to our official website for details.

Taipei time, check.

San Francisco time, check.

Look behind to treat five taxations and seven injuries.

First stop, the Golden Gate Bridge.

Swing the head and lower the body to relieve stress.

Lombard Street and the Twin Peaks.

The Fisherman's Wharf...

San Francisco, I'm coming!

I think...

we should invigorate his chi and strengthen his spleen

with Bu Zhong Yi Qi herbal soup.

His spleen has been weak for too long.

No treatment will work.

He's had diarrhea and has been vomiting lately.

We should give him the Pinellia Combination

to calm his stomach and lower the adverse chi.

He needs to rest after surgery.

Mr. Zhao's pulse is weak and fluctuating.

If you keep trying to calm his body, he will get too weak.

We should try to improve his immune system

so that he can live with the disease.

You...

We should never slack off after surgery.

We need to continue to work toward recovery.

We need to get rid of the disease once and for all.

Mr. Zhao, let them argue. I'll make some tea for you.

I have Lotus Plumule tea. It can help soothe heartburns.

-He can't have it. -He can't have it.

That's to cure your insomnia during menopause.

Now, everyone knows I'm going through menopause.

Come on.

We should focus on strengthening his chi.

That's what our teachers said in class during the cancer treatment lectures.

Have your teachers seen Mr. Zhao before?

Textbooks are just for reference. Experience is most important.

Also,

Mr. Zhao is my patient.

I'll make the decision.

You always say that. You always make the decisions.

Why am I even here?

People say that

you need to use 80-degree water to make ginseng tea.

And 70-degree water for green tea.

-This machine is really convenient. -You're an expert.

There are always disagreements between the two doctors in our family.

Mr. Zhao.