beenclean

she is actually not that young with her real age, it's just that Asians prefer young-looking and fresh-looking women rather than mature-looking women who look like they put on a lot of makeup. For me, who have quite some knowledge about Chinese culture and their ancient clothing, her clothes and hair are totally fine. It's you who don't get the way people in China used to dress back then.

the drama was an adaptation from a novel and in the novel she suicided too. she had no other choice but that because LCY would never leave her alone knowing she is still alive and she cannot bear the pain of trusting a wrong person then leading him to kill off her family and raid her country. a suicide is inevitable unless she changes her personality to become a stronger and more sensible person and hence instead decides to come back to the palace and actually revenge LCY.