AleksandraSucur

probably the daughter in law, his son's wife

In the novel, he was very angry when discovered she advised her uncle and father to recruit talents resulting in her father gathering a discrete military force which, combined with Bi Zhi's troups, warded off Bianzhou's attack. It was the proof she was wary of him even after his touching love confession and strong intimacy they've shared, and keeping it a secret behind his back, wounded him deeply. If I remember it well, he discovered this when she has already given birth to their daughter and was returning from Luoyang to see her and their baby, turning back the horse and the scene happened after she went to him, confronting him directly. But that anger didn't last much, it only led to a better understanding of their feelings and trust.
The drama (unfortunately, imo) deviates a lot from the novel, many scenes in the drama never happened (eg. she never threw a ledger onto him), while omitting at least three very important things from the novel, making the characters less consistent than they were in the novel and the entire story more superficial and fluffy

👍

you are right, there are multiple "bedroom scenes" in the novel, but they were serving the purpose to describe the character: his sex-drive wasn't about sex, but about the process of his healing. He lost his father and brother as a child, and as a child, he ought to take the leadership and honour a heavy oath to revenge them and restore their projects, so his character is shaped within these parameters. He is rigid bc. of that, but what could make him more flexible is not shopping around as in the drama, but venting that frustration in a way he vented in the novel.
No need to be explicit, we would have understand....

It's not compulsory to read it 😂
I rarely read the novels which served as source materials for dramas myself. I've tried several times and dropped that effort (mainly due to the length and bad translation). But this novel's translation was acceptable and I've checked it not because I was curious about it, but because I've noticed too many things were off, with several characters not being consistent any more.

I've seen that one years ago, great drama.
I've never expected this drama to be "epic", I have nothing against bland romcoms, only with illogical, incoherent stories.
This drama started great, because the scriptwriters hooked the audience relying on some novelty elements they've taken from the original material and then... well, totally disappointed that expectation by turning the plot into a bland romcom.

To tell you the truth, I've decided to read the novel because felt smth was amiss with Wei Yan... I understand they've wanted to avoid all the Xiongnu subplot, but they certainly could have done far better job to convey the very same character with Chen Ping of Bianzhou as his father...
You are right, we now must lower our expectations. But I still feel it's a pity, the story had so much potential... it's not a masterpiece but had its own originality (and it is this originality that actually hooked people), I personally like they've dropped the rebirth element (although it was useful for novel's ending), but I dislike very much it is the FL who is desperate to get closer to the ML. She is smart both in the novel and in the drama, her smart and audacious actions solve so many ML's problems, why would she suddenly ask for "rewards" and start to play games with ML? It makes her character illogical as well.

My thoughts exactly. They could have convey his passion without making him do explicit deeds and remain within the censorship standards. Instead, they've turned him into a clueless even dumb man, which he is not...
We are not interpreting him wrong, don't worry. Little hints (discomfort when she was too near to him, "don't seduce me") are insufficient, in drama he looks like he fears her (and contacts with women in general), but that's not true. He is principled (in general) and suspicious of her (in particular), but he is certainly smart and psychologically perceptive enough not to fear who is in obvious disadvantage, and this applies to both men (enemies) and women.
Therefore, the problem is entirely in screen adaptation of his character, the scriptwriters made him illogical.

there's no time for that, we are at the mid-point of the drama, the conquest arc will certainly suffer.
Imo, the screenwriters were not "building-up their relationship" but they were "circling around" needlesly procrastinating the relationship to happen, impeding in a way for it to build up. Even in the novel, it is a process (as it is in real life), but not as such a dumb push and pull game...

Yes, and that's why I feel it's a pity, given the original material, it had much greater potential.

Now that I've read the novel, I must join persons who are dissatisfied with the turn the screenwriting has taken, after the exciting introduction episodes (which were so because the writers mantained the main plot elements from the original). Ofc, the writing team ought to simplify the plot and eliminate many side characters and subplots and I was fine with the introduction of Xiaotao character as a love interest for Wei Liang, bc. their impairment offered a good comic relief... but the drama lost a great deal of what is truly interesting in the original story: 1) passion (which inevitably includes or maybe even starts with a physical attraction) which distinguished ML's falling for Manman. He is passionate as a character, in general, that's why he is so freakin' obsessive of the past. Passion, sometimes dark, sometimes bright, moves him in his conquests and plans, he never gives in to anybody (except to her: loving her is what heals his pain and subdues his demons, vulnerabilities, suspicions and uncertainties) 2) engaging warlords' power conflicts and territorial dismemberment - so excellently described in the novel - which preceded the fall of the Han dynasty and made perfectly logical the rise of a (passionate, never give-in) person like Wei Shao and the foundation of a new dynasty and 3) political aspects of Su Ehuang scheming...
I'm always worried when I see there are many scriptwriters, more they are, less digestible is the script and TPoL is no exception. These persons literally butchered all 3 points above, transforming such a good story in a light-hearted drama for idle housewives, with dumb circling around the same thing: she wants to get closer to him, makes him go to a trip together, usual misunderstandings (we've seen in thousands other dramas), shopping on the market (woman buys, confused man carries what she bought as her personal attendant), let him worry for her ecc... expecting the audience will believe that continous circling around can be a good premise for a deep connection between the two. At least 6 last episodes were simply annoying, at the level of any bland romcom in costume, the only thing that made the story go was the direction, visuals and acting and it is the only reason for such a good reception

No, he didn't say that ("he wouldn't went to war in next 10 years"), you are distorting his words. He said (when pressed by his uncle to revenge): "I've expected 14 years, so I can expect another 10" (to eliminate Qiaos) and this sounds as a different thing to me.
She didn't stab him behind his back, she just showed him she can't be played as he would very like, but that will never happen, for one reason only: she is smart, smarter than him and what makes her smarter is the ancient Chinese saying (actually, from Sun Tsu): know yourself and your enemy. She knows herself (and her family) and she knows him (and his family) better than vice versa

Nana, if you are so sure my arguments are detached from reality, why don't you offer counter-arguments instead of manipulating what I've said?
I haven't compared XX century military tech with ancient times, I've used a better known example to counter-argue your statements: "her clan has no way to survive" and "the enemies have simple arrows that can't even reach Wei's army, so it is definitive that they cannot survive", because these two statements are NOT TRUE, even from the historical point of view and I can certainly say this, having studied the History of Warfare. Ballista's upgrades occured as soon as you caught one and copy-pasted it (which indeed happened). The weapon upgrading occurred quickly even in the very remote past (actually, much faster than my "nuke" example) and some "superior weapons" easily turned to be useless in certain battling theaters. It was more difficult to adapt the weapons to the thicker fortification (a Great Wall as a deterrent in ancient China or, in high-middle age and renessaince Europe, when every other nation wanted Italian engineers to build their defensive walls...), but all that ceded as well when there was enough (external and internal) pressure or willingness to die just to conquer...
Actually, when you say: "The primal example of a kingdom trashing others with military technology superiority in ancient times is the Qin Dinasty domination" you are utterly wrong, because it was not the technology superiority but the technique of their employment and overall strategic goals that made the difference, not the tech in itself. In other (ancient) war scenarios, inferior tech assured the victory over the technologically superior enemy. You should really study more, I think you like it
When you engage in a war, you simply don't know how it will end, because you truly do not know how it will end, simply bc. there are so many variables you can't predict, that was my point.

I'm dying 👌😂😂😂

at the beginning of ep.3. (ep 2 ended with her giving him the seal of Panyi). He chased her away with the words: "tell your to wash their necks, I am coming for them" (i.e. he is now after their necks)
While Nana continues to think she is guilty for protecting herself and her clan from such an obsessed madman... But she will heal his traumas and hatred very soon, she can't play konghou but she plays WeiShao as no other would be able to do ☺️

you won't read it because you don't have arguments, my dear.
In the period 1945-'49, no other country had nukes and then other three years were necessary for the third country (UK) to develop one... It takes time for others to catch up but they will eventually catch up. How can you tell Wei's rivals can't develop even more powerful ballistas (ballista is the exact term, not catapult) shooting arrows even to further distances during the period in which Wei needs to irrigate its land and gather necessary provisions? Technology development is just a matter of time, while "military superiority" doesn't necessarily mean your 1. and 2. I can make you a long list of "military superior" armies defeated by way weaker countries/people, but as you won't read that list, there's no point for me to make that effort

1. How do you know "her clan has no way to survive"? Because Wei have stronger weapons ("the enemies have simple arrows that can't even reach Wei's army, so it is definitive that they cannot survive")? You are so WRONG! In real world, the U.S. has the strongest weapons, so why there's no country which would unite with them and be "stronger together" (and there was no country willing to do so even during the years before Soviet Union caught up with nuclear tech)? You can't win the war with just weapons and you can't easily convince the people to accept the rule of the stronger, as Wei Shao learned both in Xindu and Panyi. As it is said in this great drama, "the best way to win is to win the hearts". Besides, if you "want to unite the people" under one rule by force, you also need smth practical like... military provisions. Wei doesn't have them and won't have them until they clean the dam and the river start to irrigate their draughty land. Wei may take few fortified cities with their weapons but stands no chance to proceed into a vaster territory, military expeditions are not speed highways, you remain stuck in certain choke points where you can't use your great weapons surrounded by a hostile civil population for years if not decades...
2. We all love peace, but there's a peace and peace. If you subjugate (or even enslave, as it often happened in the past) other people to your absolute authoritarian power, well, it is perfectly justifiable to say "f*ck peace, go back fighting". It is called the self-defence right. Wei Shao doesn't offer any kind of garantee to her clan, on the contrary, he repeats he'll kill them all except her, aren't they people too with the right to live? Is she wrong to defend her clan, are her actions offensive or are they (self)-defensive?
3. "her people are snakes (...) a bunch of cowards who stab from the back and create wars to profit. Snake nest". While I can partially agree they are cowards (otherwise they would never send a girl to settle their dispute), I'm pretty sure they aren't "snakes", you've got smth wrong - it was not her clan who stirred up the conflict 14 y ago. They helped Wei to build up the dam between Xindu (Wei territory at the time) and Panyi (Yanzhou territory), then the other state (direct rival of Wei, Bianzhou) felt Wei would get stronger with that water course threatening them and sent general Li Su to take over Xindu. Qiao failed to honour the agreement to help Wei, that's all. They didn't help the other side either, it was a neutral stance. There were two reasons why they "betrayed": one is Qiao's permanent lack of skilled generals, the other was Manman as a child that utterly "convinced" her granpa not to go to war. Their "betrayal" was not an evil plot, it was circumstantial...

girl, give up konghou for good, as the only instrument you are talented to play is that weishao wooden block! 😁👌

right, his mom through her niece

I greatly agree with you, with some slight differences. Lets say grandma didn't "save" her grandson, but assured the throne for him, nothing would happen to him if he didn't take the power. As for the alliance between Li Su and the Qiaos... she is smart enough to know Yanzhou lacks military commanders, otherwise Qiaos wouldn't offer this marriage alliance, instead of allying with Li Su. Qiaos don't fight at all, because they can't fight, so Wei Shao would probably conquer Xindu even if they helped Li Su. Besides, they didn't have a solid motivation to help Li Su in general: Li Su's taking over Xindu 14 years ago was the main reason their water canal cooperation with Yanzhou was blown up and they didn't dare to oppose him by helping Wei.
It is true Panyi is the gate to Yanzhou, but military expeditions cost money and lives and what Wei lacks are... provisions. They must first open the dam and make the water flow to their draughty lands. There's no speedy highway for Weis to get all over the Yanzhou, because they also must protect that water course from other enemies...