So it turns out that you have been suffering all this time. In that case I will forgive you. Lin Ge Chapter 14 Xiangyu Zai Shangye is a short semiromantic story that uses the framing of a culture clash to tell its story. The natural progression of the main relationship means that it grows beyond its fairly cliched beginnings to become a series that has some delightful moments. It is fairly clear that there was going to be more of a romantic focus to the story but as it is unfortunately only eighteen chapters it never fully realises its potential. The story has a clear and simple concept with the main conflicts being well paced starting with small mistakes before progressing into a more emotional conflict. This natural progression prevents the plot from feeling contrived while making the characters feel more endearing and relatable. It is clear that the author had a vision for how the story would have continued demonstrating a consistency that makes up for the limitations of length. The lack of conclusion is only reason that I would avoid calling this a love story as it doesnt manage to fully develop the main relationship. It does however set the groundwork for a romance well. Since it takes an episodic approach to storytelling Xiangyu Zai Shangye uses small moments woven together to develop its characters. These add depth allowing the reader to see how the characters change without forsaking comedy or falling too deeply into the clich territory. While it does utilise a number of clichs synonymous with the romance genre they are handled well demonstrating a clear focus on the language barrier and how culture clashes can affect relationships. This is also maintained by the focus on Lin struggling to adapt to a different culture adding a new perspective to some of the more recognisable tropes. The culture clash is handled tentatively with the author never favouring one culture over the other which is often a pitfall that authors fall into with this kind of story. There are also some more complex topics explored especially around the side characters. While they arent the main focus their stories are given depth and feel developed especially when compared to characters that play similar roles in romance stories. The main characters complement each other with contrasting personalities that allow them to grow over the course of the story. There is a noticeable preference for Hiroko with him being the main focus of the narrative. This makes sense as the early story revolves around his emotions and actions but it would have been nice to have had more of Lins perspective. Despite this the reader gets a strong sense of who the characters are and they carry the story well. In typical supporting character fashion there is a couple whose relationship reflects that of the main characters. Oftentimes these characters can feel like they are on the periphery only jumping in at the last possible moment to offer some sage advice before disappearing again. Xiangyu Zai Shangye handles them well letting the reader see how they look out for each other in more subtle ways as opposed to having one of the main characters just saying that they do. It gives them a depth which makes their relationship interesting to read. It also feels like its own story rather than simply being tacked on at the end. The art style conveys the story well capturing the emotions of the main characters in an easytoread way. It feels light and familiarly comfortable but also conveys the more tense moments competently. It also has some nice moments of panelling that arent oversaturated or repeated to the point of losing their impact. The only noticeable disruption in reading Xiangyu Zai Shangye is the switching between Japanese and Chinese to demonstrate when Lin was struggling to communicate. While it demonstrates how he interprets the world around him the author is inconsistent in how they demonstrate it. Sometimes they would tell the reader that he was speaking in Japanese and other times they would use Japanese instead. While it definitely isnt a major problem it would have been nice to see a little more consistency. Despite not reaching a completely satisfying conclusion Xiangyu Zai Shangye is a fun and cute story that looks at relationships and how they can change people. By centring its story around a culture clash there is a distinct and interesting perspective placed over the more clichd moments. I would recommend this story to people who like cute romanceleaning stories and dont mind that it doesnt have the most satisfying conclusion.