MagnoliaCream

i bawled in this scene

when she said she is a living corpse, I expected a lot of bad decisions from her character. a person not in peak form is likely to make mistakes

I think Mark is tops in SQ's heart. But he is such a flirt and SQ didn't know where she stood with him, I think she started looking at NYS as a prospect. She teased him about getting married. Though it was a joke, "where there's smoke there's fire".

thanks, i edited it

she is worried about her child, conflicted, hurt, tired and in poor health. so, while I admit her flaws, I can't judge her. she has, at least, tried her best. if only she can get rid of that hatred and finally heal

yeah, she and Mark suit each other

ha ha ha! I think Shu Qin would have been willing to be his real girlfriend if he only showed a little interest. But his heart belongs only to TJ and Shu Qin knows it. I hope TJ does not hurt him too much while she is on her path to healing

she embodies the saying, "still waters run deep". it's mostly her eyes betraying her emotions

his anguish is so raw and intense, his very soul stripped bare, something rarely seen, if at all. so a lot of people would probably not know how to respond to it.

Imagine a 21-year-old girl who not only just lost her only relative but also had to deal with the scandal surrounding his death as well as losing her home. Her grief would have been unthinkable. She did say she died when her dad died. Then imagine that girl, with only one friend standing by her, giving birth under these circumstances. The jumble of emotions - joy, pain, despair, fear, hatred - would have messed up anybody's heart and brain. I won't be surprised if she is still experiencing postpartum depression 6 years hence.

This is why Jing is such a complex character. It's understandable that she put up defenses around herself such as pride, fierce possessiveness of her son and unwillingness to communicate and trust. As Yusheng admitted, he does not know what she is thinking. Thus, he is treading very carefully while courting her, not to mention that he is also mindful of his gravely ill dad.

One can only hope that Yusheng would have enough love and patience to get through her defenses and that her love for him and Pingping would prevail over her insecurities, pain and hatred.

One thing I've noticed in Chinese dramas is that they take time to build up; in some cdramas, I had to plow through 10 or more episodes before I got drawn in. This drew me in the first episode. The leads' first meeting after 7 years is unique for a drama - no dramatic scenes, both leads pretending to ignore each other but very much aware of the other's presence. The undercurrent of emotions was mesmerizing. I was immediately intrigued by these deep characters.

Exactly. he is rational and as much as possible would think things through, not act on impulse. He would rather not do something if he thinks he can't think straight, like operating on Pingping.

when her dad died, TJ considered her and Yusheng as "children of enemies". in her grief, she wanted to cut off all ties from Yusheng

ML is a gentleman thus would not shoo his dad off Pingping's bedside. He did it tactfully. He was most probably more mindful of the spirit of the rule which was to keep Pingping calm. If he had said anything about TJ's ruling to his dad, his dad would probably get angry and agitate Pingping. As for the looming custody battle, I don't think Yusheng takes it seriously. If his end plan is to marry TJ, the matter of custody will eventually become irrelevant.

imo the ML is methodical rather than weak. He has a plan for getting back with TJ and does not want to further alienate her while he is working on it . She is actually a hard person to deal with because she is proud, she does not want hand-outs and she hates his family. For 7 years, she has believed she and Yusheng are children of enemies. That was probably the main reason she did not tell him about Pingping; she did not want to have anything to do with his family. She is not somebody one can push around. Yusheng knows that very well and he does not want to force her to make a decision she would regret later. He instead wants to melt the barrier she has put up between them.

He told her that instead of thinking they are children of enemies, she should think they are Pingping's parents. He knows it will take awhile for her to change her perspective. In the meantime, he is investigating what happened at the construction site. I think he is hoping he will learn something that will help them gain closure.

same here. the breakdown scene is so intense you can't help feeling his anguish at what Jing suffered, probably guilt for hating her without bothering to know the reason why she abandoned him plus the torment at what his own dad did

it's the first time i had to stop viewing a drama just so i can get more tissues. even when i rewatched this episode, tears just fell down without me being aware i was crying

yeah, at first I thought he was in a higher year coz he was the only one concerned about the university entrance exams. but perhaps it was because he was aiming to get into a prestigious university? what's confusing is the high school reunion; i'm assuming it was only for those in the same year

The Sword and the Brocade is my favorite of his previous dramas

it is so worth watching. the acting is incredible