I liked last 5 episodes after he married to her.
Starting was good . Then middle part of drama was boring . All the time chasing ,chasing and chasing . Then was trying to disband the Cui's army and the reason was not satisfactory . Why the king wanted this ? The Cui's army was always work for the welfare of people and never been hindrance in the work of king . The prince and the daughter of Cui family were having same target and when everything was happening good then suddenly prince father kept the condition to marry with her . She was not agreed at first only because of her father she accepted the proposal.I liked the episodes after their marriage scenes .
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Would be perfect if drama is about 25 episodes
LIKEShi Qi Lang and Ah Ying pretty witty and conning each other - hilarious as their intelligence are on par
When Cui and Zhen Xu army negotiating with each other and started throwing foods
Poor Pei Yuan who constantly spit out his water whenever Li Ni said nonsense stuffs
Did Mister Mu decide to be a cameo? - lol when I see this person appearing
Whenever Shi Qi Lang closes his eyes, he loses his bet
DISLIKE
Too many unnecessary scenes making this drama boring
Ah Ying's thoughts which me angry at times
MUSIC - personal fav
乐游原 Le You Yuan - 希林娜依高 Xi Lin Na Yi Gao
如果爱记得 Ru Guo Ai Ji De - 刘宇宁 Liu Yu Ning
命定是你 Ming Ding Shi Ni - 阿兰 A Lan
REWATCH VALUE
Five for now
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This review may contain spoilers
Heartfelt historical romance with a bickering couple and a storyline full of righteousness and valor
I hope everyone can find their Wonderland of Love <3I saw this recommended on a TikTok with "strong FLs in C-dramas" and it definitely did not disappoint! This was also my first drama with the ever-popular Xu Kai and I think they really highlighted his acting skills (especially the grief/crying scenes). If you like very romantic historical dramas, you're in for a treat. There's a lot of scenes between the main leads (LOTS of kissing too hehe) while they deal with an unstable court regime, a missing crown grandson, and invaders along the border. I thought that the opening music matched the couple's energy: heroic and righteous from beginning to end.
The storyline starts with both leads having a playful back-and-forth with their armies on the line during a time of rebellion and turmoil, as the emperor's family is almost all annihilated and a general took control. Midway through, the environment shifts from the battlefield and war to court intrigue and tricky politics. I do think the war strategies were at the forefront of the conflict in the show compared to any palace drama, which was refreshing and fun.
PROS:
❀ Main couple with stellar chemistry and dialogue
I loved the scenes between A'Ying and Li Ni, from the very beginning where they were after the same thing (provisions for their respective armies) to the end where they worked together as a couple to squash rebels. Their chemistry was fire from the very beginning and the flirting never stopped from there, lol. The couple dynamics were giving stubborn general's daughter x playful nobleman. Neither of them were invested in the fight for court power but were thrown into the game due to the incompotent people around them, such as Li Ni's cowardly father and brothers. I love how they were on the same frequency for most of the drama, knowing what the other thought and going along with their plans. They both respected each other's wit and characters immensely, and the dialogue always emphasized that. In terms of an equal relationship, this one takes the cake. ALSO, I'm very happy with their ending as a couple and how the show took time to reach that conclusion.
As individuals, I thought their characterizations stayed true throughout the story. Even though Li Ni didn't want to crown prince role and favored a simple lifestyle on the border, he recognized what he needed to do after the huge betrayal scene. Even still, he remained stalwart and upstanding even in the midst of scheming ministers. A'Ying is like the rest of her family - tsundere at heart. She may seem quite cold at times, but she actually has a soft heart. Together, they get along best when they fight/bicker (lol). Shout out to the choreography of them fighting/battling together, because that was always a feast for the eyes.
❀ Interesting side characters that added a lot of depth
From the torn Crown Princess (what a heartbreaking character!) to the brother-in-arms from Loulan Pass (my favorite comic relief), I really appreciated the extra characters. The only ones I didn't like were the second leads, lol. More on that in the con section. Oh also, Taozi and Erduo were the cutest :)
❀ Giving Art of War energy
I enjoyed the heavy emphasis on military strategy over any palace intrigue. A lot of the plans talked about knowing when to attack and when to retreat, which people to use as your allies, when to ambush the enemy, etc. I thought it kept the storyline exciting and the action non-stop.
❀ Them costumes though...
Flashy and gorgeous. Especially Li Ni's outfits... that man looks fine in everything. Also loved his hairdo as well lol. They did an amazing job with making A'Ying look heroic in her military gear too! It created a great juxtaposition when she dressed up as a noble lady.
CONS:
✕ Second leads were kinda weird
I forgot their names so I'm just going to label them as 2ML and 2FL. Both had odd characterizations that were reductive and trite. Also both of them started out decent but ended up getting super obsessed over our main leads which made for lazy writing. Both stand no chance in the romance game.
The 2ML was A'Ying's adoptive brother who wanted to get together with him, but she only saw as an older brother. I thought their separation would allow him to come back even more heroic and helpful in the Cui Army cause, but he just fell into the dark side.
The 2FL was a court lady that Li Ni randomly saved and she got obsessed with him ever since, going back to her father to scheme him into marrying her. At first I was like, "ooh she's kind of smart despite being a court lady that was kicked out of her home," but instead of leveraging that plotline to create character depth, her development stunted at falling in love with Li Ni who never ever gave her hints.
This wouldn't even be a con if it weren't for their obsessive scheming getting into the way of the leads. Like let them be!!
✕ A'Ying could get pretty stubborn at times
This is part of her character, but she could give a good sulk like no other. Thankfully, Li Ni is 10/10 at apologizing and I love a good grovel when I see one (even if it's sometimes not needed LOL). This didn't hinder my enjoyment but sometimes I was like, girl can you just let it go :,)) Thankfully their make-up scenes were 20/10!!
✕ Misunderstandings: 3/10
Nothing major that I can think of. It was more like minor understandings in the beginning when they were both figuring out each other's identities and character. Any break-ups and arguments were short-lived between them and they made up pretty often. I loveeeed their romantic dates in the midst of the war and fights breaking out lol.
OVERALL
If you're looking for a valiant couple who work together for the sake of bringing peace to the people, this show is for you. There's plenty of action, and even more romance, to enjoy. The male lead is protective and sweet, the female lead is headstrong and gallant. Both of them stand brave in the midst of chaotic times and strive to protect the ones they love. While the show was 40 episodes, I never felt bored and the satisfying ending made my heart all warm. The symbolism of Le You Yuan (Wonderland) will leave viewers hopeful about their own wonderland of love.
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This review may contain spoilers
Sensible FL while ML being intelligent has his own flaws.
The most sensible & string FL character i hv evr seen in ancient chinese dramas. Both ML & FL complimented each other in terms of looks, intelligence, strategies & fighting. But ML's trust in FL was at his convenience. His priorities changes according to situations. While FL was consistent in her missions, priorities & plannings.
ML was not interested in palace's politics but got himself involved as per his convenience & priorities which was very diplomatic & hypocritic on his part. FL was not wrong to take decisions on his behalf or to pressurize him for taking power into his hands as ML's father & brothers were totally wrong choices for such power which they even proved time to time by misusing it.
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This review may contain spoilers
Drama with clever FL and ML characters.
What I like the most is the character of the two main characters and also their costumes. HAHAHA.so first of all, I initially had no intention of watching this drama until it was quite popular in cdrama. The reason for not wanting to watch? I dont know. I just didn't intend to because I didn't have attention to watch Xukai dramas and I didn't really know the actress (until I finally realize that her acting and visuals at the age of 35 were really good).
So, this is a 40-episode historical drama. The setting is an empire being rebelled by a general named Sujing. There are two teams that want to protect empire, the Lini form western border team (which turns out to be one of those who has an imperial lineage that has been massacred) and Cui Li (Who has a daughter Cui Lin but keeps it a secret, so her daughter is disguised as an adjutant).
Cui Lin and Li Ni both want to save the empire, but neither of them trusts each other. So, they have their own way of saving until they have to work together to overcome various dramas and obstacles.
What I like is that Cui and Li are very smart in scouting and war, Where's Miss Cui's fashion, she's really pretty when she's about to attract, oh my God >_<
In short, Lini managed to save his father from Sujing's captivity, kill Sujing, and appoint his father as temporary emperor assisted by Prime Minister Gu and his daughter. But unfortunately, Lini is the kind of child that the emperor doesn't like so the emperor listens to her 2 stupid older brothers.
There are differences of opinion between Li Ni and Cui. Li Ni wants to return peacefully to the border after searching and finding the real crown prince and asking the emperor to abdicate, while Cui feels that Li Ni has the potential to become a wise emperor. Yeah, their romance is full of intrigue there until finally Lini has to become crown prince and marry the person she loves (Cui). But the Cui family has to disband 100,000 of their military troops which also causes her father to go crazy. (Imagine, in order to save yourself, you have to let go of all the troops that have been built from your acestors and his father is crazy, so on the first night, Cui and Li end up fighting, it's funny even though it's tragic).
And let's discuss what I don't like.
1. 39/40 episodes the emperor is stupid. Li Ni's father wasn't stupid in the final episode but only when he handed over the throne.
2. Lini's two older brothers were so stupid that they were taken advantage of by enemies who started a civil war.
3. Cui's former adoptive brother, a boy who was originally called General Cui's son, didn't thank him enough and was a stupid love with Cui, until he worked together with Sujing to attack the empire and killed many people.
4. Mr. Gu's 4th daughter, who was so stupid that she decided to become a concubine and had a lot of drama.
Please, if the protagonist is as smart as Sujing with Mr. Gu, I'm fine with that. This protagonist is so stupid: (makes your blood run high. What makes you stick around watching? Of course, our two main players. Who else? The characters are really fresh. The girls and boys are equally intelligent. The way they learn from those who are good at warfare and then learn to enter politics is told in a subtle way. They are not made to be so smart that they don't make mistakes, but they are made to learn that their intelligence also has limits to power.
My favorite character apart from them? The former crown princess of the dead emperor and the mother of the missing crown prince (searched for by Lini). Mirssss, you are willing to ruin your crown princess title and change into Sujing's empress during the rebellion so you can be an eye, poisoning Sujing with lipstick so that you get poisoned, so you don't arouse suspicion, that's amazing, and so calm, my god, that's crazy!This drama is quite good as a historical drama!!!
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Had it on hold in 2023 but came back to finish it in 2025: a Good Drama in 2025
I watched about half of this drama back in 2023 and had it on hold ever since. But there's really nothing good to watch lately. I think from late 2024 till now there really isn't any drama that I can really hook on to. All the ones that were popular just wasn't my cup of tea. Somehow I was a little bored and felt like watching something that I know had good actors/actresses and had a different story to tell. So somehow I came back to this drama and finished it. It's pretty good. I liked it. It's much better than most of the dramas that came out in 2025. I like the osts. There were definitely some slow moments and the pacing did change in the later half of the drama. But just a few skips here and there, I really didn't miss anything (some parts of that Liu Cheng Feng). The later half of the drama had some major events that were so well done. The ML and FL balance each other so much and are such similar types of people. (She's a female general done right lol.) I do like how they are evenly matched. Toward the end even their dilemmas are the similar like they had to make difficult choices because of their position and they struggled a very similar way. The ending is something I didn't foresee. I liked it like that. Overall a very enjoyable watch for 2025.Was this review helpful to you?
Beautiful story of love, respect and commitment
It's a beautiful story with focus on love., respect and commitment between the leads characters. From rhe beginning it's feels a good chemistry between the leads.Strong Female lead and solid male lead. Both main characters recognized and value the strength and singularity of each other.
The plot keep a balance between action and romance.The costumes are beautiful and the story takes place in awesome historical places on real palaces and mansions and temples and it has also great music.
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Sizzling chemistry and a storyline that keeps you intrigued
I’m so happy I gave this show a chance! I’ve seen 6 episodes and can’t wait for more. The pacing of the story is fast and I like how they have given the ML and FL a lot of screentime together since the beginning. The acting and chemistry is on point between the leads. I also have no complaints about other characters but the leads definitely run the show (and that’s how it should be). I was very surprised by how much I liked Xu Kai in this. I have seen him in Yangxi Palace (though I haven’t finished it) and didn’t know that he could portray such a character as Li Ni. Also Jing Tian fits the FL’s role perfectly. The cinematography is beautiful and the costumes take my breath away. Extra points for little comedy to lighten up the overall story.Was this review helpful to you?
A Masterpiece of Romance and Elegance: An Unforgettable Historical Drama!
Top-notch drama! Every aspect of this production is pure perfection. The acting is incredible—Jing Tian and Xu Kai deliver performances that feel so real, it's impossible not to be drawn into their story. Their chemistry is unmatched, making every romantic scene heartfelt and unforgettable.The script keeps you captivated from start to finish, weaving an emotional journey that's both beautiful and heartbreaking. And the cinematography! Every scene is visually stunning, with breathtaking landscapes, carefully crafted sets, and gorgeous lighting that set the mood perfectly.
The music and OST are spot on, enhancing each moment and lingering in your mind long after the episode ends. Wardrobe choices were flawless, bringing the characters to life with authentic historical detail that only adds to the magic. This drama is definitely one of the best Chinese historical dramas ever made. I’m going to rewatch it a thousand times—it’s that unforgettable!
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Best Historical Drama of 2023!
This is perfect!The chemistry is way too strong! Episode 1 started rly good then way up to ep12 and i can't wait for next episodes to air!
Performance: Both main leads are very well suited for their roles. They brought the characters into life. The sword play and fighting scenes were epic!
The roller coaster's of plot definitely brings out mix emotions. They make u laugh, smile, sad, annoyed, angry and cry. Excellent casts not just the ML's but evn supporting characters did well. Kudos to this production!
I dare say that this is the BEST historical drama of 2023!!
Rewatch value- definitely 10!
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There's a sequel Princess Silver?
I just watched from beginning till ending, and it matches another drama called Princess Silver. Does it means the next chapter goes to Princess Silver??? I love the whole actor and actress, I am pretty sad for the concubine who lost her own mind... So I hope my info is correct and everything we can see in the next chapter from the past drama series.Was this review helpful to you?
Almost perfect!
I loved seeing a female protagonist as a fighter and military strategist. The first half or so is super flirty and fun with great romance and cool fight scenes (the chemistry between the 2 leads!) The second half wasn't well balanced like the first (it does get very intense and serious), and there were some parts that were really frustrating.Overall, it's still really good (despite one or two parts making me sob). The ending is very sweet, and I love how the story came together.
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