Drama Source Material ( novel ) Discussion

I think its a miracle he wasnt engaged in domestic abuse and using a concubine to make her life hard like the other novel FL's ex lovers

 サモンタ_サン:

I mean besides hating the FL family and all. Her grandfather and uncle was the reason for his father and older brother’s death.

This is why I dont expect him to treat her well. I actually like Wei Shao and thought he was at least decent enough not to treat her like shit. I also dont think he raped her and she cried bc Wei Shao is bad in bed. She even said his skills is terrible 💀💀

 サモンタ_サン:

I like Wei Shao too I mean at least he didn’t beat her. He never touched her until his mother drugged him.  He’s more intrigued by her I like to say lol and about the in bed part, I mean they’re married. Although she didn’t consent to most of what they did behind doors/curtains, she still has rights to her body. She cried because he was aggressively rough in bed. He wasn’t being gentle enough.

I 100% agree. Maybe I have bias bc of LYN, but I still think he wasn't an asshole like they make him to be. A lot of time, ppl only think from FL perspective without considering the ML's perspective. I mean he treated her like a main wife deserved to be treated and never do underhanded schemes to make her miserable. In Chinese terms, he didnt make her 穿小鞋 "wear small shoes" and defended her in front of his mom. Sure he made her cry, but that was bc he was rough in bed Lol. He have the bed skills of Luo BingHe 2.0 

 サモンタ_サン:

I definitely concur! I like LYN and especially as Wei Shao.  Saw the trailer, read the novel, and no can play Wei Shao other than LYN such a perfect role for him. Love his voice too!! It seems like novel Wei Shao is more nice than drama Wei Shao. And yes, he chose FL over his cousin and ex-lover. I’m sure he treated her like that because he didn’t want to ruin the family name like how would the people see him and his noble family. I’d rather have him ignore her than do schemes on her or use his ex-lover to hurt FL feelings. Other than that Wei Shao isn’t a bad character I concur. Not only did he defended her in front of his mom, he also helped her by accepting the gift she gave his mother so she could stand up. When I read novels and watch dramas, I usually see it from both leads perspective. I’m glad I’m able to discuss this with you. Thought I was the only one thinking Wei Shao wasn’t a bad character. I bought the book translated in Thai, and I’m translating it to English. It’s cut down a little but details are still there.

right?? Idk what people were expecting from him, he's definitely not the flawless/fall at first sight/all hearts for FL type ML.  I even thought he treated her with proper respect. He even went to rescue her when she was captured which he totally wouldn't have to and considering his hatred. He didn't make her lose face in front of the servants and slept with her. Bc if he slept somewhere else, we know for sure in that setting and period, FL is gonna have a hard time standing in the Wei Family. I also noticed he was actually nicer in the novel. In the trailor, he was pretty aggressive compare to how he was in the novel. 

 サモンタ_サン:

Am I the only one who thinks he’s not a jerk like others are saying he is 

I don't think he is bad. He has great enmity with the FL family which is understandable. With the arranged marriage he thought of just making Qiao girl primarily a wife figure and he can choose to have concubines, but he did not do that. And when the the Qiao uncle put his general in danger and made his soldiers die due to schemes of Liu Yan, then finding that FL mistrusted him, I was surprised it did not take him long to forgive her. He also humbly ask her to love him as he loves her and to bear him children and never leave him. With the trust issues and revenge as the focal point, I thought he treated her so well. 

Joining here in 2025~~

My blood boils when reading this novel. I’ve never encountered  ML as stubborn as Wei Shao, and the countless fights and make up between the two of them are driving me insane! However, there’s a line in the novel that really made me ponder on the ML

"Saying such things (refer to when he asked Xiao Qiao to make a pact with him) was something he resented and found contemptible in himself. The Qiao family had used the beauty stratagem against him. He had fallen for it. Though he knew clearly, he could no longer extricate himself."

When I read this, I couldn’t help but think how strange it is. They’ve been married for 2 years, yet they still don’t trust each other. Wei Shao even feels like he made a huge sacrifice and willingly allowed himself to be deceived by the Qiao family. Such a selfish person.

Strangely, reading some of your povs here made me reconsider the ML. I guess he’s not exactly a jerk per se, but I still hate men who are aggressive and selfish. Then again, his hatred isn’t entirely baseless. 

 サモンタ_サン:

@peqa

I concur. 

Well, they don’t trust each other because he hates her family but loves her. She loves him but can’t forgive her family. You can still love someone but not have full trust on certain things, especially when it comes to family feud. If I was in their shoes, I would totally be like them having trust issues. Knowing that he lied once how does one know he won’t do it again.  As for her, she loves her family too much and will never hurt them. He learns to let go to keep her beside him, to do that, he has to love her family cause no matter what, she’s the daughter of the Qiao family. He can’t change that. As for the Qiao family using her as a stratagem, they really didn’t at first but it somehow ended like that. It wouldn’t be called prisoner of beauty. He is the prisoner of her beauty indeed.  At first I saw it as she was the beauty fated to be his prisoner, they’re actually each other’s prisoners. 

"He is the prisoner of her beauty."

Wow, I never thought of it that way. When you put it like that, it really puts things into perspective.

 Kasia Krakowianka:

I wonder if a modern woman who got reborn into that historical moment would hold up with all the sexual abuse like the FL described in the novel? I would not.

But that aside my comment is here because I distinctively read in a few places before chapter 40 (and maybe translation was wrong, but) the FL died as the empress the first time, but the reborn 12-year-old body of the former empress is now a person from 21st century who remembers the 20 years of the empress life.

Can native speaker confirm/deny this?

I don’t agree with the sexual abuse but other than that, he treats her as his wife in that era. He doesn’t go around and sleep with other women having many concubines. Idk. I’m just stating how I feel about his character. He’s not that bad of a husband in that era is what I’m getting at.  

It’s not mistranslated. All of that is correct; however, it was a dream.  She remembered 20 years of the empress’s life  from the dreams she had.

(I’m not a native speaker, but I have the book in a different language and it concurs with the novel)