DefyingDestiny

His bits were chopped off and so PWX always felt nothing could happen but there are alot of ways to be intimate without penetration and apparently one f them was occurring. They never say what exactly was happening or if anything was actually happening but it was heavily implied.

The storytelling of the drama is not doing a good job. The audience is not stupid, at most the audience is impatient but the story lacks the relevant context for the audience to appropriately empathise with the characters.
For example: Princess Wanning in The Double: everyone hated her from beginning to end but along the way you empathise with her and some people even hated the fl for her. But at no point did the character confuse you, you always understood what you were seeing when you watch her.
The steadiness of storytelling is lacking in The Princess Royal. They seem to be running through the scenes without considering the overarching stryline. I personally feel it was also lacking in The Grand Princess and I'm surprised they couldn't fix it in the adaptation.

In the past life, SRQ and LR had a festival day. PWX watched them and followed them home and then he heard them being intimate. He had considered reconciliation till he overheard them and them went to a brothel but couldn't do anything as he thought it would really mean they were over. LR also remembered the festival but less detailed: she remembered trying to recreate the feelings she had going tothe festival in her early marriage with PWX by going to the festival with SRQ.

I cannot feel the sense of direction in the storytelling. What is the director's point of view? What message are they showing? It seems like a very good quality high school production. Everytime looks lovely and all the actors are acting wonderfully but there is no... style. The director's style is missing.

To explain further: I believe "Old PWX" is old and "Old Li Rong" is old but I don't feel their age when they are "young". They come off as "dull"- the oldness of being above 70; it lacks the sense of authority and energy of a 40yr old at the top of the world in alot of scenes... and I understand the characters are trying to act young but I just.... I'm unsatisfied with it.
I love the lead actors and I'm unsatisfied with their work and it's not because they are doing a bad job; so I'm very frustrated.

However I read the novel right after the show started airing. I watched to ep7; read the novel and then caught up to episode 17.
The novel is somewhat a slow-burn story and the really engaging bit happens after the half way mark. As I read it, I hoped the adaptation would make changes to give it more life but they didn't: hence my frustration.
I watched my first Kdrama 20 years ago so you can guess my age✌️

The show is not mature; the story is mature. The presentation of the story lacks the maturity that the story deserves. And that is my challenge. I have watched Linghe and Jinmai and I know they can give it. The boat scene from 25 and most of 26 had the intensity I expect from the show but I haven't felt it for most of the show. I'm particularly bored with the court scenes and politics scenes because I can't feel the "seediness" of the interactions. The show is a telling of a group of two-faced people and it just lacks the vibe.
I made this comment before the boat scenes and episode 26, so I felt a little silly after...

I'm frustrated with this show. All the scenes are so lifeless. Is the director asleep? Everything just happens because it's in the novel, no sense of climax or drama or romance or comedy... it's all so flat!!

Is this a safe space? Can we talk about The Princess Royal? Because that comment section is a bit tense but the drama is not giving what I want it to give and I need to talk

I mean I hate the man but good Lord he had chemistry with everyone. All his scenes were alive. The actor just sends out these vibes that the other characters have to respond to. But I can't state it enough: I hate SYR but Liang Yong Qi deserves all the love.

The choices he makes make him seem quite stupid. I start to wonder if he is actually "smart" or nepo baby smart. Because the logic is not logicking!

Exactly this. It was within her expectation that SRQ would betray her. She lived with him and never gave him real power till she was about to die and she sent him to kill PWX. On the other hand, like most of the nobles, she romanticises love of "commoners"; they feel commoners can marry for pure love and fall fully in love without any other thoughts. So with PWX that he had someone else in his heart- that was his pure love and she was the impurity. She believed that she was tainting his pure love with greed for power and wealth. She thought she was falling for someone that was using her and when he got what he wanted she would be an empty shell like her mother (like Princess Wanning at the end of The Double).

He's annoying the hell out of me. There's something about characters who ignore their responsibilities that triggers me. He's clearly the first son but he's acting like.... I don't have a single good thing to say about him.
I'm sorry if I sounded rude towards you; it's SRG: he puts me in a bad place.

Ambition:
1. He just got back his father's estate
2. He's building his dark web network (with her money-the wife he refuses to divorce)
3. He is masterminding the takeover of the most powerful organisation from their 1st life- the inspectorate office
4. He is a frequent advisor of the Emperor-him an 8th ranked officer because he is the Emperor's son-in-law.

It's been about 6months to a year since they got married and he's only 20.

She believes SRQ's youthful self hasn't gone down that road. She feels the same about her brother who became a maniacal ruler. She's taking steps to stop everyone from becoming the worst version of themselves and she's exploring the possibility that being in a "full" relationship with young SRQ might satisfy the gap that she felt in their former life.
The book doesn't really do a better job of expressing the complexity of their feelings- it just got repetitive and boring. They seem to be giving as much as they got with the dramatisation

Sorry I just rewatched it- Ep 11 37minutes: She said "he doesn't want them to be together" and he's exasperated with her puting words in his mouth and HE says "let's not have anything to do with each other. You go your own way from now on and he will go his!"
In the book, I think the vibe was she said it like casual threat before SRQ entered the picture. After that she only ever mentioned it when she wanted to give SRQ an "identity" but both men said no

He just got his family estate back; he's setting up his dark web network and he's coopting the most powerful organisation of their first life with his wife- the inspectorate office. He's not idle!

But honestly I don't get why people don't like Li Rong. What exactly has she done that is unlikeable? Is it because she is not simping back? Who jumps back into a relationship with their ex? They married for convenience!? He is the one that keeps moving the goal post- let's be allies; get back with SRQ; you are my regret...

Read the novel and honestly the story meanders about their feelings (and even the political plot) for about 2/3 of the story before it starts moving. The bottom 3rd of the story is very interesting; I could barely believe how engaged I was after forcing myself to get through it so I could finish the book before watching the drama. If you can power through it, it might maybe probably get really good.

🧐 I believe he did