Anoif

Lol, btw this drama is super realistic…. I was just discussing with other MDL members when it started airing that it really reflects the culture of the finance sector. Also they got a lot of tiny details and niche technical terms accurately… it’s likely that the author herself is/was in corporate finance or she is very close to someone who is. I personally thought it’s one of the best modern C-dramas I’ve watched…..

Yea, it was tastefully done but they still maintained the realism to it. So the costumes weren’t the most beautiful ones I’ve seen for for females…. coz this one has no wuxia or xianxia elements to it. I liked it though coz I think they paid attention to the colour palettes of everything, so it all comes together very nicely on-screen. Like the make up matches the costumes and they match the colours of the sets and also all the side characters regardless of male or female… even the soldiers armour was very cool and it actually looks believable.

I thought it was a great drama!! Just I don’t think the centrepiece theme is a mainstream hit kinda thing, so she took a risk there I spse. Not everyone would appreciate it but I think it’s underrated…. Because in reality it kinda applies to modern times now albeit in an indirect manner. Think women nowadays have very conflicting identities and roles to play amongst other stigmas.

For example Story of Yanxi Palace follows the formulaic hits whereby it is about women fighting, harem schemes, and stubborn FL which had other similar predecessors over the years. While the more recent hits have very young casts with a lot of romance as it’s main theme with just pure strong FLs. Who Rules the World, The Long Ballad, LLtG, etc. This is unlike any of those, and neither is it revenge driven like NiF. She is very brave but not invincible, strong but unafraid to compromise, gives everyone the benefit of the doubt even if they have wronged her… but it wouldn’t suit audiences. So she isn’t like the popular FLs over the past 2-3yrs…. Her character is a lot more complex which is difficult for the younger female audiences to relate to. Ah… I realised all the gaming related ones always make it big esp in China. Nearly all of them, but it’s unimaginable for ZZY to star in something like that 🤣. Maybe she should have starred in like a female-centric Joy of Life kinda thing. That has never been done… 🤔 and I think it would work actually. Unfortunately most modern dramas are neither as popular nor highly rated in China. Think the best one is probably Ode to Joy? I’ve never watched it too, somehow even I’m not intrigued. There are only certain types of dramas/formulas that work for Mainland audiences, and the censorships limit them even further…. Hence the douban rating… The MDL rating is closer to reality and also gives a better benchmark when you compare it to other C-dramas.

Have you started watching? I was basically like another person below who commented coz when I started watching I basically couldn’t stop. 🤣like eyes glued to the screen. I have to say I still find ZZY mesmerising on-screen. I think it’s coz of her perfectly proportioned face as well…..? On top of her demeanour. And of course, it’s obvious she got talents in acting. But I discovered Zhou YiWei via this series though, apparently he is like an underdog… he’s good, but nobody really knows who he is. Hope he has a lot more dramas…

No idea why she chose this novel adaptation as her first TV series. It wasn’t bad, I actually liked it a lot but it was obvious that the plot was never going to be a massive hit because the main themes have been used too many times in C-dramas and I’m not so sure viewers are interested in the females’s perspective. It could have been because of the script, it was a very well written script esp versus the novel. She received a lot of flak/criticism because of the original novel’s FL being a 16-yr old, but they altered the drama a lot to tone it down which I felt was right…. They did maintain that she was 16-yrs old though. In the novel they really highlighted the fact that she is still a child, a teenager… like very childish, sheltered and fragile. I actually found the novel version of her quite annoying….. Also, choosing a younger actress first also doesn’t make sense because the entire time span of her novel was only about 10 yrs I think if I remembered correctly.

There was nothing unique but I have to say I found it very well executed, dialogues, screenplay, storytelling and the plot was very logical + reasonable albeit purely fictional. However also likely because of this, it ended up being very long, because it was actually very easy to follow the plot, no loopholes. They could have shortened it if they wanted to but with C-dramas editing standards it might have been disastrous. Also they had a big budget so the casting was done well for nearly all the supporting characters making it more than just about watching the leads… The only thing which was unique is the dilemmas faced by the FL because of things that she was born with which she can’t change and also how things were set up after….. so perhaps ZZY also noticed this as being a centrepiece of the drama which has never been explored in other C-dramas before, at least not that I remember, not from a female’s perspective. There’s actually more to it than just being a strong female and invincible. In reality, back in the day when royal families and noble classes existed…. it becomes a mess for women esp if you are a blend of both… and the plot further complicates that identity…. and also sadly this was the part that faced criticism because the recent expectations of viewers are like the tough FLs regardless of whether it makes sense or not, just pure strong FL, feminism etc.

And thank goodness, for the first time it doesn’t have some revenge theme going on…. Like recently everything I’ve watched and rewatched has been about revenge…. Which I mostly can’t relate to. I mean I can for something like NiF…. But like geez man, wot on Earth is up with all these revenge themes…. 😒

So basically all the motivation and rationale behind the schemes of the antagonists and protagonists were sensible which is quite rare for C-dramas. I can actually relate to it and understand why someone would have acted that way. This doesn’t always occur for C-dramas actually…

Think the synopsis here is a bit odd and messy. Try reading the one in Wiki before you decide I spse. I’ve watched this multiple times because there are many likeable characters and solid actors… even the antagonists… I thought ZZY did really well.

Watched this for the zillionth time, I still think the cast did a really awesome job… they put a lot of effort into the casting…..

😒😒😒 how ridiculous, just because she is much older than the original character but it’s called acting for a reason……
Also, the original novel itself wasn’t exactly great, the drama was actually very well written… an improvement and enhanced version of the source material.

LiQin!!

It’s the first time I felt they made a sad ending for the sake of it…. But why though, so damn weird… at the very least she would have survived, and everything could be easily explained by the merits of the Shen family, all the males are generals and even she contributed so much to the state.

Yea… but I think it’s faster… ah but no subs… ☹️

Everything else aside… the sets, backdrop and props are really very beautiful…. They were intricately put together.

Such a shame that the plot wasn’t elaborated well I.e the logic/rationale/motive behind was unconvincing and flawed for some of the arcs (but great for some, love the Shen family, don’t recall watching a military family arc in C-dramas before 🤔), the introduction of schemes/plots were sporadic, the storytelling could have been much better and also woven more tightly together, although the framework/backdrop of this series should have made for a pretty awesome drama… It had a lot of potential… I.e the whole assassin organisation, the aristocratic clans which were surprisingly based on real historical clans..

The balance of drama wasn’t too bad actually, much better than Princess WeiYoung! (a bit sad that this fared worse, I wonder if it’s coz of the pairing of the main couple, but I liked this pairing a lot 😍)... LiQin really brought the role to life…. Probably one of my most favourite FLs. Another plus of this drama is that it has a lot of likeable characters…

So it wasn’t an over-emphasis on romance, neither lacking, but the whole antagonist side wasn’t solid enough to carry the entire series given it was so long. The ending doesn’t really make sense…. was a bit forceful, I wonder why they did that… censorship? Govt. doesn’t want to encourage/glorify heroic outlaws….? Anyway, still think it was worth the watch.

Yea! Totally agree. Haha yea, society is rather “confused” now because of the narrowing gap between 2 genders…. So women are able to support themselves and more than themselves which makes them more masculine and males have become more feminine because they don’t actually need to go to war or hunt anymore…. A lot of them are actually really good at domestic chores too. 🤣🤣🤣 Equality has it’s own ramifications I spse….

I really thought the plot was very unique…. Like how the author blended modern times and super traditional. It gave it such a cool and unique vibe…. I personally enjoyed this one much more than the first one/prequel coz I found this series so different compared to the typical C-drama… like wuxia, xianxia, political, time travelling etc… this one had it’s unique character….

Throughout the series I really wondered if such families still exist in Mainland… I meant after all they have so many citizens and China is hugeeee. Anything is possible… 🤣 or maybe just my wishful thinking.

It was messed up towards the end… seriously too many villains. And somehow all villains in the series seem rather incoherent/random although after it ended I thought about it…. It actually is just like any other C-dramas, at the end of the day it is down to one ultimate antagonist….

No idea why but throughout the whole series it gave me the vibe of “geez…. So many random villains, it’s a bit much isn’t it……. 😒”…. Like it was so off-balance. I think it’s coz there were political villains, romantic and family villains running around in all directions….. 😌🤦‍♀️ Pure chaos and it was just exhausting. Couldn’t really immerse myself in it, only thing that kept me going was I found Tiffany Tang very pleasant looking. Like she has a very pretty and sweet face, and she was tall… so it made her character very convincing. Also a plus that her acting was decent/alright.

I saw a lot of new releases on Duboku.,, maybe check it out….?

Will not marry him… even if perhaps it takes a long time to stop loving him…. Maybe never… like star-crossed lovers… but if relationships are not somewhat balanced, it almost never lasts… partnerships are important,… the gap is obvious for someone who is 15 vs 20… but it isn’t for a couple who is 35 vs 40…. If I’m a female version of LY yea, just marry him….. if I’m CSS…. Forget about it unless the other party has really changed… permanently… because there of mutual understanding and growth..
imagine when there are kids involved…. The answer is to “just trust him”…….? Why though…. I actually think CSS is just as capable as HBY, just that she is younger….

Ah ok… so this is the part whereby I disagree….. especially given both the characters are so young…. I’m sorry but why is HBY superior? Education is a lot of things but it isn’t everything… just like money….

Ok, they both get captured….. but then so wot….? To begin with if you step back and think about it…. Then just don’t get married…. Lol. Why does HBY have to marry her…. If you just want to do woteva you deem fit….. actually you don’t need to be so adamant…. Just find a female version of LY, not like CSS forced you…. Just learn to let go and leave her alone…

Actually she broke the taboo of NiF and also this series…. Yea PengKuan is dead…. But for every problem there is more than one solution…… men’s ego…. And being proud… always makes them believe they have the “one-and-only, best” solution……. If you think about logically… sitting in a jail vs jumping off a cliff…
I get the whole “protector vibe” thing…. Yes he is worried they torture the both of them…… but as though jumping off a cliff /building isn’t….. 😒 it’s probably worse than death……

I can concede though coz men and women exist and are made for different reasons…… just like how the responsibility of childbirth always falls on a female…. So it will never be entirely equal but fairness and respect is key, key to civilisation, progress and evolution.…

Really?? But if I explicitly tell a person DON’T go and don’t leave…. And the next thing he does is leave…… and makes me witness him jumping off the cliff…………. I do think I will be like CSS though…… I mean I can totally resonate, sympathise and totally understand why you did every single thing which she actually did explicitly say in the drama……. BUT…….. I probably would rescind my intentions to marry and also will try and weane off my feelings…. Because I’m not so sure I will accept it although I fully understand it.

Think more than anything it becomes a trust thing… so I definitely trusted you but I spse it was a one-way thing and not only did you not trust me…… which is fine… you basically have never considered anything I’ve said…… which…… if you just forgive him then why won’t it happen again? At some point down the road, who says you won’t pack your bags and say bye again….. 🤷‍♀️ For all the good intentions you have….. It is actually the same fundamental issue as infidelity….. which is the whole trust thing… just that infidelity =bad intentions/unkind and Mr.HBY=kind intentions…. Sighs, which means if I’m CSS, every time you do something as you wish under the name of kindness I will have to accept and also be willing to change myself for you….. just coz you have valid reasons I.e like you forced my entire family to do your military exercises……. 😔🤣

LY was different though….. and I liked that the author drafted a character like LY. So this is the bit whereby the author’s trademark theme is out “As a girl, who should I pick as a husband?” Which was basically the core theme of The Story of Ming Lan…. And it was explored deeper there……..

Don’t get me wrong…. I totally get the whole “I love you a lot” thing and I realised this can’t be controlled by a lot of people… but love does not equate to being in a relationship which also doesn’t equate to marrying someone and doesn’t equate to having kids with someone……

I do believe he has the ability to cry and also to apologise all along, yes agree….

But one subtle detail depicted in the drama is that he has always decided all along without putting himself in her shoes. He continued to do it even during those 5 yrs whereby everything was well-planned by him behind the scenes albeit the kind and loving intentions… and yes I agree it’s very touching and all… but the funniest comment he actually made was he actually knows she wouldn’t like it if she found out because she’s told him before….

So to me, I actually felt he was just being his usual self including punishing himself…. He seems to love doing that from all the anguish and guilt he carries….. The ever confident valiant general…. Deciding everything on his own as usual… which could be due to many factors but I personally think arrogance is one of them….. so to me hence why when he literally begged her…… it was kinda different for someone who is proud… and when I read the excerpt I could see for the first time how she could hold her head up higher than him…. Because I think that is very difficult for someone insecure to do…

Yea, it was Yuan Shen that told her in the novel but the Eng translation that one of the members posted I think just said he told her “everything” he did.

So for me one of the biggest irks was that one of the obvious message conveyed in the drama was that CSS changed a lot unknowingly+unintentionally for this one person… and this one person was still just the same anyways……. Even though she has clearly told him what she wot she expects, dislikes and fears…….

Couldn’t agree more but it has a legion of die hard fans man…. I didn’t rate it lowly, like I gave it a 8.5, it did have a super intricate and brilliant plot… but after I completed it I legit had a 😒 expression. I thought it was overrated….

It’s a good trick seriously.. 🤣 the best use of advancement in technology… so you watch some, those that catch your eye and you FF some… I did that in my first watch I think… and I think by the time I got to Part 2 I couldn’t get my eyes off the screen. It was glued.

EL and ELoD is really the classic.. 😍

Sorry… Fast-forward…