Chinese dramas and films

The second season of the medical drama "The Heart 2" (问心2, 赤子之心 2, 死者之书 2, New Heart 2) premiered on June 18, 2026. The series aired on CCTV-8 in prime time at 19:30, and is also available on streaming platforms Tencent Video and iQiyi.

The project consists of 40 episodes, each approximately 45 minutes long. Season 2 has amassed impressive pre-release numbers: over 820,000 advance registrations on Tencent Video alone, and a combined total of 3 million across all platforms.

The first season, which aired in 2023, garnered more than 10 billion online views and scored 8.5 out of 10 on Douban.

The medical drama follows the staff of the cardiology department. The lead roles are played by Mark Chao ("Lady Liberty", "The Cat in the Box"), Mao Xiao Tong ("Light Beyond the Reed", "The Ingenious One") and Jin Shi Jia ("Under the Skin", "Sword Rose").

Mark Chao portrays Zhou Xiaofeng, deputy head of the cardiology department at Dongli Hospital. His character, a reserved and strict physician, becomes a work partner with the impulsive Dr. Lin Yi (played by Jin Shi Jia). However, their differing medical philosophies soon lead to friction. Mao Xiao Tong plays Fang Xiaoran, Zhou's younger sister, who works in the intensive care unit. Together, they are known as the "iron triangle" of Dongli Hospital.

The storyline of Season 2 picks up two years after the events of the first season. Zhou Xiaofeng returns to Dongli Hospital after a two-year medical mission in Guizhou province, where he treated children with congenital heart defects. In recognition of his service, he is unexpectedly promoted to acting director of the cardiology department, becoming the youngest in the hospital's history. The promotion brings new challenges: managing a team, competing for resources, and balancing administrative duties with his calling as a physician.

Read more: 5 Tencent Video series returning with new seasons

Fang Xiaoran has grown over the past two years from a "little ray of sunshine" into an independent ICU attending physician. She continues to warm those around her but now understands her own desires and needs more clearly. Lin Yi  has been promoted to head of the cardiac surgery department. However, the shadow of a hereditary cardiomyopathy still hangs over him: his younger brother Lin Rui is gravely ill, and Lin Yi himself could lose the ability to work at any moment due to his genetic risk. This drives him to work more recklessly and aggressively, leading to conflicts with Zhou Xiaofeng. The relationship between the former allies turns into rivalry, as their professional beliefs diverge – a central plotline of the season.

New characters also appear in Season 2. Zhang Jianing plays Ouyang Da, a pharmaceutical representative who exposes the murky side of the medical device industry. Ouyang Da also turns out to be Zhou Xiaofeng's ex-girlfriend, whom he broke up with over a decade ago. Huang Jue portrays Sheng Nian, the new head of cardiac surgery, whose pragmatic approach clashes with Zhou's idealism.

The script for Season 2 is based on more than 40 real clinical cases from top-tier hospitals. The creators tackle acute social issues: the ethics of organ transplantation, allocation of scarce medical resources, doctor-patient communication difficulties, and the problems of only children caring for elderly parents. The action unfolds across three types of medical facilities – top-tier hospitals, district hospitals and private clinics – offering a panoramic view of the healthcare system's stratification.

The first episode immediately struck a chord with viewers. At its centre is a pregnant woman with twins, one of whom is diagnosed with pulmonary artery atresia. Doctors recommend terminating the pregnancy to save the mother and the other twin, but the couple had lost a ten-year-old daughter to heart disease two years earlier. The mother begs Zhou Xiaofeng to save her child, and he decides to perform a risky intrauterine procedure. However, the operation requires a specialised balloon catheter of a very small size, which the hospital does not have. The company where Ouyang Da - Zhou's ex-girlfriend - works has a suitable device, but it has not yet been certified. Three days before the operation, the foetus's condition deteriorates sharply, and the surgery must be performed within three hours, without waiting for paperwork. This tense plot twist moved viewers to tears and immediately sent the hashtag "问心2第一集就好哭" ("The first episode of 'The Heart 2' makes you cry") to the top of trending searches.

To ensure maximum authenticity in portraying medical work, the actors underwent internships in cardiology, cardiac surgery and ICU departments before filming, observing complex surgeries and studying medical terminology and protocols.

Screenwriter Zhou Yifei revealed that for the first season she spent a month working in a hospital, fully synchronising her schedule with the doctors. For the second season, she visited second- and third-tier city hospitals as well as district hospitals, adding more than 200 doctors to her contact book.

In total, over 200 medical consultants worked on the series, reviewing the script, correcting medical terminology, teaching actors how to properly hold instruments, designing emergency procedures and checking drug dosages.

Filming took place in Ningbo, Zhejiang province. Production began on September 27, 2025, and officially wrapped on February 2, 2026.

The atmosphere on set was warm and friendly. Mao Xiao Tong and Jin Shi Jia, who had worked together on the first season, felt from the very first scene that they had "come home".

During winter filming, Jin Shi Jia's electric hand warmer stopped working, and Mao Xiao Tong gave him a beautiful hot water bottle, which he still keeps and has not dared to use.

The height difference between the actors created some comic moments on set: the 189cm-tall Jin Shi Jia and the 163cm-tall Mao Xiao Tong had to use special props for kissing scenes - Mao stood on a box while Jin spread his legs wide to get the right frame.

Huang Jue jokingly admitted that on the very first day of filming an operating room scene, he felt like "buying a plane ticket and flying away". Mark Chao noted that the hardest part of filming was finding the balance between professionalism and humanity, avoiding both excessive theatricality and overly dramatic performances.

The average rating for the first two episodes on premiere day was 1.1806%, with a peak of 1.4997%. On iQiyi the popularity score reached 3,936, and on Tencent Video it stood at 19,970. Some critics noted that these opening figures are average for CCTV-8 premieres, but many analysts stressed that the ratings of new series are evaluated over the first three days, and the project has growth potential.

The series' musical score also attracted attention. The closing theme "赤子" ("Pure Child"), performed by Zhou Shen, was released on June 17 and topped the Tencent Music chart on its first day. Also featured are "奔向云" ("Running to the Clouds") sung by Chen Haoyu, as well as "人间聚散" ("Meetings and Partings in the Human World") and "爱是唯一的路" ("Love Is the Only Way").