JulesL

Thank goodness for trailers! I was left on the edge of my seat after the last scene of ep 6!

Me too! At the end it just wanted to protect XS.

Well said. Looking back, I agree — Wei and Du couldn’t escape their punishments, and they didn’t really want to. Everyone, including their families, understood that. That’s why I wish they had been able to kill He Bi and the high priest themselves; it would have made their sacrifices feel more worth their own deaths. As you surmised , what frustrates me most is that the merchants’ crimes weren’t exposed the way they should have been.

On a side note, as I mentioned to PBGoddess, it’s interesting that in this story the merchants are cast as the villains, when it’s usually the gentry who are shown trampling over everyone else.

It was interesting that in this case, the show spotlighted the merchants in a more negative light - compared to most dramas shoeing how the gentry can be pretentious and looking down on everyone else just because they are supposedly from a nobler class. LLF did show bias which he did apologize for but but I think it was SWM who immediately jumped to conclusions which triggered LLF. I felt that SWM should have apologize as well!

Very entertaining so far — Dilraba’s character is giving full Lara Croft energy, and they even slipped in a “Mr. and Mrs. Smith”–style sexy fight scene. Honestly, I wasn’t expecting so much action and chemistry in just 4 episodes, but here we are — and I’m not complaining.

You’re right — I would have preferred to see Wei and Du attempt to pursue justice through the law first, rather than resorting immediately to a killing spree. I thought that they acted outside the system because they didn’t want the sister’s ordeal to become public, leaving them feeling they had no choice but to take matters into their own hands.

With that in mind, I had hoped LLF might show some leniency, or at least acknowledge the pain and desperation behind their actions. But in the end, premeditated murder is still premeditated murder, and it would go against everything LLF stands for if he simply ignored that.

Agree - it's so sad for the girl disciple that in the end, she also lost the old coroner.

Seems like the old coroner Geng was already ahead of SWM when it came to finding out who the murderers were...

Agree - I wish they were able to punish the last two villains themselves - if they are going to pay for their crimes, I wish they got full satisfaction out of it!

I know but LLF in the end did not speak in support of them to the Princess. Compared to the other cases, I felt that he was reverting to being black and white.
He's willing to overlook the crimes of others and even turned a blind eye to things. However, I guess he drew the line when it came to killing people, even if the people killed were evil.

I found the whole nobles-versus-merchants storyline with the High Priest dissatisfying.
Even after uncovering the truth, LLF and SWM still couldn’t come up with a proper way to show mercy. Both of them even had strong backers who were willing to let things go.
Just when LLF started to show more humanity, he slipped right back into seeing the world in rigid black-and-white terms.

Yeah exactly - he found ways to justify the outcome like praising the poets' loyalty and brotherhood :D
I am finally shipping those two! I was not really into them the first 2 seasons but now that LLF is more humble and sweeter, he seems more worthy of XJ now - haha!

The stories so far have been intriguing, but I especially enjoyed the later ones that steered clear of all the political maneuvering with the Princess and the Emperor. Those episodes felt richer—full of unexpected turns and thoughtful layers that kept things engaging and surprising.

And I really love seeing LLF quietly bend the rules when emotion outweighs protocol. He finally has a warmer, more human side.

True - I usually don't go by MDL rating because there's so many people that would downrate a drama for no good reason.

Same here! I also was attracted to the title 😃

The food looked amazing and I can just imagine the smell of spices!

I am glad that you enjoyed the drama! Wish it got more visibility :)

This was an entertaining watch and definitely underrated. It was great seeing Chang Long in a lead role—he really has potential, especially since he can pull off everything from the goofy guy to the unlikely hero with a harem.

Some of the acting was a bit stiff, including the female lead, but not enough to take me out of the story. The plot stayed interesting, with plenty of twists and fake-outs that kept things moving. The ending was good - I like the way they finished the competition with a twist!

Overall, I enjoyed the show and hope to see Chang Long in more leading roles going forward.

“Mansel” 🤣 Love that term!
Him shouting he’s protected by “divine power” 😅

I think it’s all politics and military backing. The princes is the king’s aunt and she appears to have her own army and supporters. On the surface at least, the king needs to show her respect. She can do certain things but her direct power seems limited. She can assert her authority on a smaller scale but she likely relies on her people in court to do the bigger stuff like getting someone into a position of true power.

Yes!

I love watching Lu Lingfeng’s fight scenes. He’s just so cool! Sun Wu Ming on the other hand, would have died again if it wasn’t for Ying Tao …

This last story was great with the plot twist!