Turtle

he is such a dilf, the moment i saw him i was stunned 😩

yea but i wish they didn't have to make it a plot point in the first place, why are all the girlies neglected to make plot points happen and so the viewers won't like them, female characters are either bullies or dumb, it makes me sad 😢

this is more encouraging, i started this drama for the sisterly relationship hook, complex female relationships are so rare in dramas, why do they all have to be dumb or a villain or a dumb villain 😭

this is so sad, i actually started this drama cause i wanted a cute sisterly relationships :((, why can't there ever be good second female leads that gets good ending, i just want female friends, is that too much to ask for 😩 😢

maybe? but in the last episode he did ask Shi Qi for her re name and what she liked, and then asked her if she ever loved him. so it seemed like he knew and fell for Shi Qi, that's why he asked.

and omg!! i can finally say it now! she is boring, i didn't wanna be too controversial but for most of the drama she was just so basic 😭, i actually do like her, i think she's cute and deserves the happy ending she got but i wished we got more of her personality, i wished she had painted more? had artists she enjoyed or talked about. i wanted to learn more about chinese ink paintings, they're beautiful!

i'm going to interpret the ending like that too, they orchestrated the ending to fake their death and escape, so they live a happy life without outside influence ☺️

omg i forgot to check the spoiler option, my reply got way too long 😭

thank you for taking time out of your day to respond to me! i still love all your reviews, just in case i want you to know that i'm not blaming you for any of this, your review is still well-written and express the core themes of the show without spoiling. i'm just disappointed that the show didn't live up to my own expectations :(.

i thought with the way the story was progressing, Prince Ning was realizing how precious Shen Qin's love was now that "she" didn't love him anymore and by the end they would switch back faces, the General would still be able to find Shi Qi again and recognize that Shen Qin was no longer Shi Qi and Prince Ning would cherish Shen Qin, apologize to her and they can have their own unique happy ending.

i just didn't expect the drama to go the way it did, it felt so black and white? like the writers didn't have the courage to give the villains a happy ending so all we got was that half-assed scene at the end with the lookalikes. i don't know why they wouldn't just commit to it if they wanted to do it at the end.

and i agree! it really is ironic, i don't think he deserves Shen Qin, i would treat her so much better 😩 i love you Shen Qin, marry me instead!! 💞

i do like the theming and juxtaposition between the two couple, how Prince Ning doesn't recognize Shen Qin even when she constantly is by his side but i guess it just doesn't feel like juxtaposition anymore when they don't even have a relationship. him falling in love with Shi Qi and getting flashbacks to their interactions when he was depressed after finding out Shi Qi's real identity or when he asked her if she loved him in all that time. it feels like the drama is telling us "actually the one he loves is Shi Qi and her pure kind soul, he never loved Shen Qin at all". so what's the point of the juxtaposition??

there's no second couple, it's not that he can't recognize his lover, she was never his "lover", he never loved her genuinely. that's just my interpretation of the scenes tho and i think it sucks, even if he couldn't recognize her how could he genuinely fall in love with Shi Qi?

especially when the main couple romance is so realistic and genuine to be hit with this tropey, "girl, you're the first one to dislike me, all the other women fawn over me...that's so sexy and unique of you"

isn't this such a tired trope? 😭

so i've just finished this show since i read your review and i just have to say you're my favorite reviewer on this site, you always have such detailed and well articulated opinions! thank you for all your hard work! <3

unfortunately i have never felt such frustration from watching a show before watching this one (i am very picky so i'm good at filtering out shows i don't like for shows i'll like, i am not one of those ppl who gives everything a shot, i have to know i'll like it first 😔)

and i thought i would like this one since i love duo protagonists stories, i went in with the expectation that Shen Qin and Shi Qi would both be equally represented , i was wrong but i still enjoyed the beginning episodes because i like Shi Qi and the general. my main focus was still Shen Qin tho, i love my immoral/grey protagonists so i was so excited for her scenes, her personality is also my favorite, manipulative and intelligent!

so you know how that went, they massacred my poor girl, i am speechless. i know the main theme is about personality/souls, seeing who your lover truly is without physical appearance but i expected more from the writing for the second couple, inspired by your description "That said, the second couple's dark chemistry is also alluring enough to make me root for them."

this mislead me entirely, please what dark chemistry, the writers made Prince Ning fall in love with Shi Qi on the flimsiness of reasons. why?? to show how good and beautiful Shi Qi is that everyone falls for her??? it makes no sense that he would like her so in the last episode when he ask "did you ever love me?" 😭

i am speechless

every single interactions of theirs, Shi Qi was uncomfortable and tried not to talk to him, she kept telling him no, ignoring him, hoping he would go away, SHE EVEN HITS HIM?! what love is there to speak of, how does he even fall for her (Shi Qi) when he knows nothing about her, he just constantly believes she is Shen Qin. it's so obvious that since Shen Qi used to always cater to him and love him, it was easy to notice that love missing when Shi Qi was switched to her but to say that somehow develops into Prince Ning loving Shi Qi (her soul etc.), why would the show write that?

sure he can't recognize his lover, but the reveal that the one he loves wasn't actually Shen Qin but Shi Qi after she switched, when he met Shen Qin again and goes crazy and doesn't believe her?? what kind of $&(*^€¥ is this 😭😭?!

he push her away because the person he loves is Shi Qi?? WHAT DO YOU LOVE ABOUT HER MY MAN "oh wow she's so sexy when she....looks uncomfortable and tells me i'm weird and to go away" 😍

i don't know what to say, and then he kills himself because she doesn't love him. wow.

causing Shen Qin to follow him too, unbelievable.

maybe i just came in with the wrong expectations, i didn't know that it wasn't going to be a two couple story but actually a love triangle for Shi Qi 😭

and its also on me for liking Shen Qin and thinking she would get more screen time sobs

its a very enjoyable drama! i would recommend for a quick watch, there's not that many episodes and most episodes are very short

ohh! on the translator website, they said to email them for password help if you get confused

what password?

it's on novel updates and fully translated! epilogue and all the extras too!

I don't watch many cdramas because i usually think they're too slow or filler heavy but this one is perfect! i've been following it since the day it was announced, i love the novel its based on and i'm a regular cnovel reader. i usually prefer novels over dramas but i think this one has so much going for it! good acting, good vfx, good story, and i love it just as much as the novel, maybe a little more because i get everything in a visual packet!

if you have time, you should try reading the novel this drama is based on! some things were changed for the on screen adaptation but the novel is fully translated and free online! if you need more, you can always try reading the author's other novels or wait for another drama based on her books to come out. i think the newest confirmed one is Love in Seven Lifetimes (not sure if this is the actual title, i forgot and am too lazy to go look on MDL rn 😭)