The movie is still living in the shadow of the trip to Tokyo, and also what happened in Taipei while NJ was away. Before we catch up some more with Yang-Yang, Ting-Ting and A-Di, it’s important to reflect on those past scenes.

Both NJ and Ota did something very kind — perhaps unconsciously so — during the Tokyo episode. For NJ, it was finally voicing to Sherry “I’ve never loved another woman.” This finally answered Sherry’s questions, but it did something more important — it gave her sufficient space to withdraw. Now, knowing how NJ really feels, she could make her own silent exit and wipe away 30 years of perceived rejection and disappointment.

Likewise, Ota did something extremely kind for NJ. Instead of letting him reveal his company’s plans to sign him to a business deal, he stopped NJ and told him that he is a good man. Whether he knew what the company really had in mind or just perceived it based on past experience, Ota allowed NJ to leave Tokyo with a clean conscience. He did not tell the corporate lie.

In both cases, NJ and Ota had enough care to give emotional space — and to reveal the thing that the other person needed in this moment but could not see.

Returning to the action, we first see Yang-Yang at the pool, carefully taking off his shoes, but nothing else, and jumping in a pool. The camera does not follow him underwater, we have no idea what he’s up to — but we can guess from the bathroom episode that he’s likely trying to hold his breath as long as he can. And we have no idea why he’s doing this.

Up next we see Ting-Ting returning home. She spots Fatty, who slowly turns away from her, trying to avoid a scene. Ting-Ting slowly walks past, but then stops and turns toward him, yet another example of her courage. Ting-Ting’s quiet, shy demeanor gives off the impression of timidity, but her behavior is remarkably straight forward.

She tells Fatty that there is no need to avoid her, and is about to tell him that they can still be friends when he explodes at her, attacking her cheerful attitude, her attachment to romance stories, and generally her positive outlook on life. Fatty angrily mocks her for this, then tells her to go away and never speak to him again.

This anger is more than just guilt lashing out, clearly something happened with Lily that brought out his hurt. The film effectively makes Ting-Ting the character we fear for most, especially because no one is looking out for her. It makes the audience feel a desire to befriend or parent her, to advise her to stay away from Fatty.

Back in the apartment, we see that A-Di has arrived with a bank check for the money he borrowed from NJ. Here, he launches into a long story about how his friend ripped him off, then an overly dramatic (and factually incorrect) story about how he got into the apartment and found a rock, which turned out to be antique jade. He says he went to a broker and asked just for the money he was owed, but speculating that it is worth much more.

All the while, Ting-Ting has entered the apartment and walked silently and sullenly to her room, with no one to talk to about the pain in her life.

To close the segment, Yang-Yang comes into NJ’s room, spots A-Di and hands him a photo. He tells him that it’s for him. A-Di takes a look and says, what is this? The back of my head? Yang-Yang responds: you can’t see it, so I’m helping you.

NJ laughs and says “so that’s what it’s all about.”

Yes, Yang-Yang is the film’s eight year old philosopher/artist. But Edward Yang has somehow placed him in this role without him becoming cloying, which is one of the film’s great achievements. Edward Yang observes him just like everyone else, with restraint and distance, making us curious about Yang-Yang without revealing too much at once. This makes his observations land much harder.