So I am done. The old man was fantastic in that final episode. His soliloquy was bordering on Shakespearean. The actor is undoubtedly classically trained. Superb delivery. LOL. I'm trying to remember who he was in Sword Snow Stride. Who knew... the former of king of Xiyan is a bit of a trickster. But in earnestness, it was always on his heart to reunite the country and he finally found someone in his family who had a genuine vision for the future of the land and wasn't just about maintaining the status quo. The reuniting of the land will hopefully bring about lasting peace and it's a worthy agenda to get behind.
The last few episodes are some of my favourite because this is why I show up for historical/period shows. I care less about historical rigour than for historical authenticity. I watch historical drama mainly for politics, the tragic vision of life and the complexity of human nature. If we're meant to have a romance, it needs to be big or epic... larger than life. Especially if it's based in very ancient mythology. It's tonally jarring otherwise. That's my opinion for whatever it's worth.
I'm probably in minority in that I would have preferred a little more of the tribal politics that we saw towards the end. It would have contributed a lot more to the world building and helped me get my head around the names of the clans and the geography a lot sooner.
Try as I might, I can't muster a whole lot of sympathy for Tushan Jing. Maybe it's the actor. Maybe it's the way he's written. Or his entire function in the storyline. Yes, he does contribute in some small part to the rise of Cang Xuan but with the way the narrative unfolds here, his character is very much tethered to Xiao Yao and honestly he's helping Cang Xuan because of her as well.
I like the fact that apart from a few exceptions, that most people in this show are pretty hard headed about the world that they live in. It's much easier to get behind the way that they deal with marriages and courtship for the most part. I came to respect Xinyue a lot more towards the end as well as we gained insight into her thought process. She thinks and acts like a woman of her time. There's a pragmatism that I find surprisingly refreshing especially in contrast to A'Nian. Even Xiao Yao learnt something from her.
As far as the desire line is concerned, there's little doubt that Cang Xuan is the male lead. The story started with him and the show ends with him at its centre. I suspect that the show overdid the romance to the point that his arc took a back seat to the harem doings. Gaining the throne came at a huge price to him. But timing didn't work in his favour either. Sure, he could put all his eggs in the Xiao Yao basket but he had the bigger picture in mind. Somebody has to rule the country. Someone has to make changes for the better. Someone has to think of the greater good. It's a zero sum game no doubt as it was in Scarlet Heart. But his love for Xiao Yao is also great. It is self-sacrificing love. He prioritize her safety and happiness over his feelings. This is a sign of a good leader.
Then there's my favourite guy. Or nine-headed serpent. The antihero. The promise of an epic romance. A promise of tragedy. After Episode 37, I kind of understood why he would have to shuffle off this mortal coil at some point. If he didn't Xiao Yao would be forever torn between two men. I also think he's the adult in the room. Because he's the outsider, he knows there's no chance for him and it would hurt her in the long run -- her reputation in tatters most likely. If she had remained as Wen Xiaoliu, I think he would have fought much harder to keep her. I wished she had stayed as Wen Xiaoliu but she wanted to help Cang Xuan and Dad also intervened. But he too is a man with responsibilities and commitments. I respect that. I appreciate it too that he wants her to be stronger. Dang it's the classic push and pull that goes nowhere. It's a darn shame because I would love for them to go travelling in that clam shell and make babies in it.
I feel a fanfic coming on. It's not a strong urge at this point and I'm working on other projects. I'm also considering a re-watch. I wish I had watched this while it was airing so that I could have blogged the entire show like I did with Love Like the Galaxy.
@DramaAjumma By cousins, are we talking CX and XY? I'm not sure pleasing is the word I'd use, but they are so…
As far as I'm concerned it's unequivocally clear that Xiang Liu is still very much in love with Xiao Yao and everything he does post-conferment regardless of appearances is for her good. Even though there's a part of me that regrets that he's given up being her suitor, in an unironic way I love him more for it. It makes him the bigger man so to speak.
Perhaps I'm erring on the side of kindness to characterize Jing as naive in the way that he's dealing with his own family. Perhaps it is more the case that he overstated his ability to disentangle himself from his family commitments in the designate time period. He wanted the girl so he acted quickly. In the short term he won. Human beings are complex in their motivations. It's true that family obligations (certainly in a Confucian society) mean a great deal to him. But knowing that, he still jumped the gun as it were. So how do we interpret that? Was it an act of overreach as a result of his own insecurity about "the competition"? It is often thought that Jing is "the nice guy" of the lot but is he really? He mightn't use physical violence to deal with people and he says the right things to win the girl's heart but does that equate to "kindness"? These are the many thoughts I have as I'm interacting with other viewers and pondering over the show's many threads.
On the subject of Cang Xuan and Xiao Yao, in a way their present relationship is built on the currency of the past but it's blossomed into something else at least on his part. In his case, timing worked against him but he has feelings for her beyond that of siblings. I don't have an issue because historically royal families in-breed so even while it's a taboo today for all kinds of reasons, I would posit that if he had recognized her and acknowledged her earlier, things may have worked out differently. Maybe.
Xiang Liu always been second option for Xiao Yao. Whenever she stuck with Jing, she looking for Xiang Liu as escapism.…
I'm not sure that I agree with the characterization that Xiang Liu has always been a "second" option. She certainly liked him enough to pour her heart out to him in those early days in a way she didn't with anyone else. She liked him enough that Jing felt threatened on numerous occasions so that he even acted (in my view) quite impetuously.
As other people have said, at least in Tong Hua's universes, the women often love more than one man at a time for different reasons. I think that happens in real life too.
I will say that I support XY in whoever she wants to be. If she wants to be starry-eyed, then so be it. She's…
I don't think her choices are out of character because they come out of her abandonment issues. That's obvious and reiterated. She likes Tushan Jing for her own valid reasons. In his case timing was everything.
This is one of the rare occasions I don't support the choices of the FL lead but I like the male leads enough to enjoy the show for its own sake. And I also wallow in the tragic vision and the zero sum game that it presents. Everything is at least consequential here.
4 
I love Joy of Life too.
https://40somethingahjumma.substack.com/
Just use the search tool.
I'm a mother of two young women, it's something I think about from time to time.
The old man was fantastic in that final episode. His soliloquy was bordering on Shakespearean. The actor is undoubtedly classically trained. Superb delivery. LOL. I'm trying to remember who he was in Sword Snow Stride. Who knew... the former of king of Xiyan is a bit of a trickster. But in earnestness, it was always on his heart to reunite the country and he finally found someone in his family who had a genuine vision for the future of the land and wasn't just about maintaining the status quo. The reuniting of the land will hopefully bring about lasting peace and it's a worthy agenda to get behind.
The last few episodes are some of my favourite because this is why I show up for historical/period shows. I care less about historical rigour than for historical authenticity. I watch historical drama mainly for politics, the tragic vision of life and the complexity of human nature. If we're meant to have a romance, it needs to be big or epic... larger than life. Especially if it's based in very ancient mythology. It's tonally jarring otherwise. That's my opinion for whatever it's worth.
I'm probably in minority in that I would have preferred a little more of the tribal politics that we saw towards the end. It would have contributed a lot more to the world building and helped me get my head around the names of the clans and the geography a lot sooner.
Try as I might, I can't muster a whole lot of sympathy for Tushan Jing. Maybe it's the actor. Maybe it's the way he's written. Or his entire function in the storyline. Yes, he does contribute in some small part to the rise of Cang Xuan but with the way the narrative unfolds here, his character is very much tethered to Xiao Yao and honestly he's helping Cang Xuan because of her as well.
I like the fact that apart from a few exceptions, that most people in this show are pretty hard headed about the world that they live in. It's much easier to get behind the way that they deal with marriages and courtship for the most part. I came to respect Xinyue a lot more towards the end as well as we gained insight into her thought process. She thinks and acts like a woman of her time. There's a pragmatism that I find surprisingly refreshing especially in contrast to A'Nian. Even Xiao Yao learnt something from her.
As far as the desire line is concerned, there's little doubt that Cang Xuan is the male lead. The story started with him and the show ends with him at its centre. I suspect that the show overdid the romance to the point that his arc took a back seat to the harem doings. Gaining the throne came at a huge price to him. But timing didn't work in his favour either. Sure, he could put all his eggs in the Xiao Yao basket but he had the bigger picture in mind. Somebody has to rule the country. Someone has to make changes for the better. Someone has to think of the greater good. It's a zero sum game no doubt as it was in Scarlet Heart. But his love for Xiao Yao is also great. It is self-sacrificing love. He prioritize her safety and happiness over his feelings. This is a sign of a good leader.
Then there's my favourite guy. Or nine-headed serpent. The antihero. The promise of an epic romance. A promise of tragedy. After Episode 37, I kind of understood why he would have to shuffle off this mortal coil at some point. If he didn't Xiao Yao would be forever torn between two men. I also think he's the adult in the room. Because he's the outsider, he knows there's no chance for him and it would hurt her in the long run -- her reputation in tatters most likely. If she had remained as Wen Xiaoliu, I think he would have fought much harder to keep her. I wished she had stayed as Wen Xiaoliu but she wanted to help Cang Xuan and Dad also intervened. But he too is a man with responsibilities and commitments. I respect that. I appreciate it too that he wants her to be stronger. Dang it's the classic push and pull that goes nowhere. It's a darn shame because I would love for them to go travelling in that clam shell and make babies in it.
I feel a fanfic coming on. It's not a strong urge at this point and I'm working on other projects. I'm also considering a re-watch. I wish I had watched this while it was airing so that I could have blogged the entire show like I did with Love Like the Galaxy.
Perhaps I'm erring on the side of kindness to characterize Jing as naive in the way that he's dealing with his own family. Perhaps it is more the case that he overstated his ability to disentangle himself from his family commitments in the designate time period. He wanted the girl so he acted quickly. In the short term he won. Human beings are complex in their motivations. It's true that family obligations (certainly in a Confucian society) mean a great deal to him. But knowing that, he still jumped the gun as it were. So how do we interpret that? Was it an act of overreach as a result of his own insecurity about "the competition"? It is often thought that Jing is "the nice guy" of the lot but is he really? He mightn't use physical violence to deal with people and he says the right things to win the girl's heart but does that equate to "kindness"? These are the many thoughts I have as I'm interacting with other viewers and pondering over the show's many threads.
On the subject of Cang Xuan and Xiao Yao, in a way their present relationship is built on the currency of the past but it's blossomed into something else at least on his part. In his case, timing worked against him but he has feelings for her beyond that of siblings. I don't have an issue because historically royal families in-breed so even while it's a taboo today for all kinds of reasons, I would posit that if he had recognized her and acknowledged her earlier, things may have worked out differently. Maybe.
As other people have said, at least in Tong Hua's universes, the women often love more than one man at a time for different reasons. I think that happens in real life too.
This is one of the rare occasions I don't support the choices of the FL lead but I like the male leads enough to enjoy the show for its own sake. And I also wallow in the tragic vision and the zero sum game that it presents. Everything is at least consequential here.