CasualCDfan

She doesn't NEED to get revenge against CXZ since he's not the bad guy here. He saved her life, while others left her to die. If she gets revenge after knowing his true nature and intentions that would literally make her a villain. Once you go down that path of revenge, you don't come back from it. What they need is for both of them to stop playing their cat and mouse game and lay everything out in the open and talk about how they feel.

What I love about this dynamic is that they’ve been admiring each other even while trying to kill each other. That’s why CXZ was so disappointed when Ziyu (whom he thought was Lu Wen) quit their game so anticlimactically. Here’s the twist: when Lu Wen fully returns, I believe she’ll be even more drawn to CXZ than innocent LMT ever was. While she might have had a bit of puppy love for Ziyu, the man she truly admired in secret was her arch-nemesis, CXZ.

If he remain unaware, it would amount to character assassination. I think he'll figure out she's Lu Wen sooner than later also. I hope they don't dumb down CXZ just to make LMT shine more.

No one said he was *completely* justified. But some of his lies were justified since he believed she was the enemy’s concubine. He also saved her life, didn’t take advantage of her sexually despite having the power to do so, and tried to arrange a good future for her.

This isn’t not a double standard. CXZ used LMT because he believed she was the enemy. Yet despite his lies (which are bad) he still protected her and didn’t try to hurt her out of malice. However, if LMT tries to hurt CXZ despite knowing his intentions and seeing that he’s not a bad person, that would make her a villain.

CXZ has never been in love before. For the first time, he’s found love and a place of peace. Their home has become his sanctuary, where he can escape his troubles and the wars, and quietly share meals with his "wife." Naturally, he’s afraid of losing it all—it’s a completely normal human reaction. I believe LMT feels the same way about their home, which is why I don’t think she would try to hurt him out of revenge.

My prediction is that LMT won't follow through with her revenge against CXZ because she's also in love. If LMT were to carry out her revenge, even though CXZ may lied to her and manipulate her (he had his reasons), it would turn her into an ungrateful person and a villain. So, I'm confident that those hoping for LMT to become a bitter, vengeful psychopath simply because CXZ isn't perfect will end up disappointed.

Drama creation. At this point the drama is doing its own thing.

I don't remember this being a big plot point in the novel. This seems to be a drama creation.

As is often the case with novel-to-drama adaptations, everything had to be watered down to satisfy China's censorship requirements and appease fans who don't like morally grey male characters.

In the novel, LMT's partial hatred for CXZ (I don't believe she ever hated him) makes more sense than the drama (although we don't know how much she truly hates him at this point). In the book, he took her chastity—though to be fair, he was under the influence of a potent aphrodisiac wine she had made to enhance his libido. After his deceit was exposed, he avoided taking full responsibility, choosing instead to gaslight her by arguing that he hadn’t explicitly lied but merely allowed her to believe he was her husband.

He then shifted the blame for them sleeping together onto her because of the wine she served him. In an attempt to make amends, he offered to take her as a concubine. LMT was so furious she stopped calling him husband and then left him without personally saying goodbye.

If the drama insists on taking the route of having LMT seek revenge on CXZ (though it's still unclear if that's truly the direction they're heading), they should have at least preserved the original storyline from the novel. It offers a stronger foundation for her to take revenge on him. While the drama version of CXZ is a lying jerk, he showed a lot more consideration to LMT compared to his novel counterpart. If they take LMT down the path of vengeance against CXZ, it would be based on relatively weak motivation.

Drama CXZ had countless chances to exploit LMT sexually, but he chose not to. Despite this, she initiated a lip-biting kiss. Now, both are revealed as liars and manipulators. Given that CXZ saved her life and truly cared for her, even if he was dishonest, I don't believe she has the moral high ground to seek revenge. If the writers go this route, they'd be turning LMT into a villain.

That said: I don't believe the drama will have LMT go through with her vengeance against CXZ.

Novel reader here. Spoilers below.

ML is a Prince tasked to suppress the bandits. While she sees herself as Robinhood, he sees her as a bandit disrupting the social order.

Second Fight

Middle of ch. 167

She thought about how she now bore the title of the King of Huaiyang’s wife, yet she couldn’t even see his shadow. Meanwhile, he was at the streamside, wearing thin clothes, his chest exposed, flirting with others.

What was she thinking back then? How did she end up choosing such a peacock to marry?

With that thought, she straightforwardly said to Cui Xingzhou, "Although I don't know how I ended up marrying you, the fact remains that you’re carrying the title of being Liu Mian Tang's husband. How can I let you put a green hat on me like this? Unless you sign the divorce papers with me first, then you can flirt with as many girls as you want!"

When Cui Xingzhou was young, he was full of youthful vigor and never imagined that one day, after getting married, the same woman would be repeatedly asking for a divorce every now and then.

Seeing Mian Tang’s cold little face now, he found it amusing instead of getting angry. He looked her up and down and said, "Didn’t your grandfather tell you that only when you have real strength can you speak with authority? Have you forgotten everything? You were beaten terribly when sparring with me, your martial skills are not as good as mine, so what gives you the confidence to shout about wanting a divorce every day?"

These words sounded like something a cocky teenager would say, just asking for a beating.

Mian Tang was instantly infuriated by his words, grabbing his collar and snapping, "Nonsense! Wasn't it me who pinned you down with acupressure points on the island? What kind of strength do you have? A few small Japanese pirates, and you still haven’t defeated them yet! If you can't do it, I can help you, Your Highness. After all, you’ve been defeated by me several times before. It’s only fair that I compensate you..."

Cui Hangzhou burst into laughter, glaring at the defiant woman before him. "Still not convinced? Dare to take a walk with me in the woods, just the two of us?"

Mian Tang also started laughing. She tore off a strip from her dress with one hand, shortening it, and raised her chin defiantly at Cui Hangzhou. "Let's go, who's afraid of whom?"

In an instant, the two masters agreed to settle things in the woods, leaving behind a few maids and guards staring wide-eyed at each other.

No one knew exactly how the fight in the woods ended that day, but the two of them didn't come out until the sun had set behind the hills.

The handsome face of Prince Huaiyang was covered in scratches, and the lipstick on Princess Huaiyang's lips was mostly gone.

However, they walked out of the woods hand in hand. Although the princess was swinging her hand with a look of reluctance, the prince held on tightly, refusing to let go.

A fierce physical fight had ultimately turned into an equally intense battle of lips and tongues, with him pinning Mian Tang to the ground.

The young princess's somewhat inexperienced response immediately reminded the prince of their first time together, filling him with a rush of excitement, as if he had once again tricked an innocent girl into his grasp. He couldn't bear to let go of her lips.

Unfortunately, he still remembered that there were people waiting outside the woods, and there were military duties that needed his attention in the camp. So, in the end, he just held the teary-eyed Mian Tang, softly coaxing her all the way.

After helping Mian Tang onto the carriage, he used a cloth to wipe the dirt from her little face. "We agreed beforehand, the loser accepts the consequences. Tonight the big ship will be tested on the water, so I can't return to the manor. Could you bring me some food at the camp tomorrow?"

Mian Tang didn't reply; her lips and tongue were still numb from exhaustion.

Hadn’t this man not drunk that fiery grass wine? How did he end up with the strength of a raging bull?

First Fight

End of ch. 63

As soon as he dashed into the dense woods, a sudden slash of sword energy came at him from an angle. He quickly sidestepped, but the sword strikes kept coming one after another.

The intensity and lethal precision of the attacks were no joke—each strike was aimed to kill.

Although Cui Xing Zhou had often sparred with his beloved consort before, he had never encountered such a life-threatening style of fighting from her.

"Scoundrel! Prepare to die!" Liu Mian Tang's sharp cry accompanied another thrust of the sword.

This time, Cui Xing Zhou, growing impatient, caught her sword blade with his hand, which was protected by an iron-mesh glove. With a quick motion, he pulled her into his arms, his face a mix of shock and anger as he said, "You... want to kill me?"

Mian Tang had initially intended to capture whoever was chasing her as a hostage to question them about the number of pursuers.

But she hadn’t expected the soldier who pursued her to be so skilled—disarming her barehanded and pulling her into his grasp.

As she lifted her head, she finally got a clear look at his face... My goodness, how could there be such a handsome man in the world? His high nose, with thin lips curved slightly upward as if naturally inclined to smile, softened the cold, murderous aura in his eyes.

The first thought that flashed through Liu Mian Tang’s mind was not about how to counter his moves or escape but rather: Has this young man married yet? He’s certainly good-looking, but he doesn’t seem the type to be content. There’s something about him that hints at a roguish charm—any woman who marries him is bound to be exhausted.

Cui Xing Zhou noticed Mian Tang staring at him in a daze, as if she was frightened. This caused him to relax his grip slightly, just as he was about to speak to her. But suddenly, she smiled at him.

Unintentionally, Cui Xing Zhou's own lips curved into a smile, but in that brief moment, he felt a sharp jab as slender fingers struck a pressure point on the side of his neck. Half his body went numb, and he started to tilt to one side.

By then, Mian Tang had already seized the weapon from his hand, planted one foot on his chest, and pressed the sword tip against his throat, commanding, "Stay still! Don’t move!"

Cui Xing Zhou looked up at her, still somewhat defiant, his thin lips pressed tightly together. Seeing his stubborn expression, Mian Tang couldn’t resist picking up the sword scabbard with her other hand and lightly tapping his face, teasingly saying, "You're quite handsome. Now, tell me, how many of you are there? If you’re honest, I won’t ruin that pretty face of yours."

Her tone and demeanor were so roguish that she resembled a mountain bandit who had just robbed a helpless villager.

Cui Xing Zhou could no longer hold back. He shouted to the three men peeking out from behind the trees, "Lu Zhong, all of you, come out! What the hell is going on here?"

Beginning of ch. 64

The two of them had just been fighting with such fluidity and grace that it was mesmerizing to watch. However, the three brothers were somewhat stunned by what they had just witnessed.

They knew that in terms of sheer skill, the King of Huaiyang was far superior to their leader. But, for some reason, all it took was a smile from their leader, and the King of Huaiyang, like a block of wood, crumpled to the ground with a loud thud after being struck on a pressure point.

Now, seeing the King of Huaiyang being teased as their leader patted his face and called out in frustration for help, the three brothers exchanged bewildered glances, unsure of what to say.

Yet, Liu Mian Tang was curious about how this handsome military officer knew Lu Zhong and the other three brothers. She turned to Lu Zhong and asked, "Who is this officer?"

With some difficulty, Lu Zhong replied, "Leader, he is the King of Huaiyang..."

At that moment, these words were like a death sentence for the King of Huaiyang.

Mian Tang was startled, and the tip of the knife in her hand involuntarily moved forward, grazing the King of Huaiyang's neck and drawing a few droplets of blood.

Seeing the sword tip about to plunge deeper, Lu Zhong quickly shouted, "Leader, the man you married... is him."

Upon hearing this bizarre exchange, Cui Xing Zhou finally understood that Mian Tang had regained her memories of Yang Shan but had forgotten the three years they had spent together.

Honestly, when Mian Tang heard Lu Zhong's words, she was so shocked that she almost drove the knife straight into Cui Xing Zhou's throat. Once she realized that Lu Zhong wasn't joking, she ordered him to get some rope and tie up the King of Huaiyang, then drag him to a cave.

Mian Tang found it hard to believe that she had actually married her sworn enemy, the King of Huaiyang. Her first thought was that this must be some trick by the King.

Since waking up from her coma on Kou Island, Mian Tang had felt like she was living in another world, but she never expected something even more absurd was waiting for her.

She had actually married Cui Xing Zhou! So, for a moment, this husband who had suddenly fallen from the sky left her in disbelief...

Cui Xing Zhou, too, was both shocked and furious at this moment. Shocked because Mian Tang's head injury from when she fell into the water had caused such a dramatic change—she had completely forgotten the three years of wonderful memories they had shared. Furious because Lu Zhong and the others, these idiots, had followed Mian Tang's orders to the letter, tying him up tightly with an oil-soaked hemp rope. Especially Lu Yi, who even pulled the ropes tighter when he was tying him up.

Yeah, she became Lu Wen towards the end and fought with him twice. lol

Also, LMT/Lu Wen literally tried to murder the ML after she supposedly violating some truce agreement. On the other hand, the ML not only saved her life, he didn't take advantage of her sexually when he could've (in the novel it's another story lol). I'd say they're even.

I'm sure she won't forgive easily. She didn't in the novel. One thing I appreciate about the drama is that they're bringing Lu Wen out early. I'm looking forward to seeing how those two will clash.

Given the fact that LMT was left for dead, CJ has done the opposite of hurting her. He saved her life. He lied to her because he thought she was his enemy's concubine. Then he started falling for her and even planned on ensuring she had a happy future, even without him. But of course his feelings for her complicated his plans. So, I'm not sure what you're going on about trying to paint the ML as some scumbag. He's not, although he's not perfect.

I understand their decision for the drama. But him losing control in the novel was an interesting character moment.

It should be a happy ending. But don't expect a satisfying one. CDramas are allergic to giving their viewers a satisfyingly happy ending. If they don't, you can always read the novel. It's much better. 😆

Again, you're ignoring the special wine and the fact that he's falling in love for the very first time in his life. When you're in love, you become vulnerable. You do certain things out of character. But you're free to interpret it as you wish. I'll stick with the novel's portrayal instead of this diluted drama version.