Freefoxx

Yeah I couldn't figure that out, either. The obvious answer about Mr. Wang and Dr. Cheng is that Turtle read about their misdeeds in Lu Zhong's account of the conspiracy. But Mr. Zhao's involvement took place after Lu Zhong was dead.

Something that seems significant...Mr. Zhong tells Lu Zhi that he'd been instructed to kill him by Lu Yuanbao. But this isn't true - Lu Yuanbao told him to bring him back alive, and only hinted at killing him if he showed signs of resentment. Is Mr. Zhong preparing something against Lu Yuanbao, and going to involve Lu Zhi?

Great catch!

Mr. Zhong is such an enjoyable character. Dispensing grandfatherly advice in one moment, ruthlessly covering up murders in the next!

Actually a very good comparison. I've greatly enjoyed both dramas. I think this one is technically superior in terms of the filming and visuals, but both had exceptional plots. Here, instead of seeing a plot unfold from the plotters' perspective, it's from the perspective (seemingly) of the prospective victims and the neutral officials investigating it.

I think you're on to something here. But I believe the fisherman is Mr. Xue/Lu Jinxin. Based on my super scientific sleuthing LOL, I think the beard on his chin is too short and not wispy enough to be the magistrate's (and looks much more like Mr. Xue's that we see later in the episode). And the fishermen have previously referred to Lu Zhi as being long dead, so I don't think either of them could be Lu Zhi.

My guess is that the magistrate is in fact Lu Zhi, and that he's orchestrating the murders performed by the bushy-bearded guy, who for all we know may just be a hired killer. His performance when interrogating the food salesman seemed designed at making Mr. Song think he's an incompetent fool (despite Captain Leng previously describing him as a "cat official"). Otherwise I think your theory is spot on. I'm also wondering if the fortuneteller is the adult Turtle. But it seemed like his memory was jogged by seeing the food salesman, not the magistrate.

There's one other thing that I'm wondering about. Could it be that we're being misdirected, and Lu Yuanbao's murder isn't what's being avenged by the killer? There are intimations throughout the drama that he did something awful in his house (someone references an explicit rumor to that effect early on, and there's also a cryptic reference made by Siniang to women from the brothel not returning after visiting his house). Plus the Turtle boy references that his mother died when he was young. I'm half wondering if maybe there's something to all this. Maybe Lu Yuanbao and his retainers collectively did some bad stuff, fell out among themselves (causing his death), and now someone's trying to track down the survivors as revenge.

This was so funny, especially because her outfit was literally the classic "I'm a man" getup from every drama ever

I get the impression (and I could be wildly off base here, just speculating) that Mr. Xue's butler and the second man are not responsible for the murders, but for some separate plot that's also connected to the Lu mansion fire. It seems like they are aware that something nefarious is going on at the abandoned mansion, and are trying to manipulate the yamen to get their hands on the property and figure out what's going on.

My money, at this point, is on either Lu Zhi or his friend Cheng (we don't know for sure that was his skeleton) surviving and being responsible for the murders as some kind of revenge plot.

This is really well-said. I also enjoy how the drama depicts the protagonists as decent people living in a world where decency wasn't determined using the same standards we apply today. And, for that matter, people without much decency living in a world that didn't always constrain their tendencies. There is something particularly (and bleakly) hilarious about the comment Sangeng makes after brutalizing and falsely accusing someone while drunk: "Haven't you ever seen a bailiff at work?"

Some of the little details, even things that aren't of much importance to the plot so far, really help establish the realism of the setting. The details about Judge Song, which you've shared, are great examples. The calligraphy contests, the importance of dream interpretation (a real fixation for late Ming literati), and the omnipresent malfeasance surrounding land ownership (another fixture of late Ming rural life) all help make this drama extremely realistic.

Really funny and entertaining drama so far

What makes Zhou Gaolang a really interesting supporting character is that as brash and rigid as he can be, in the end he always sees the light and does the right thing. He has a pretty sad ending, for someone who never wanted power being emperor is a pretty crappy consolation prize for losing his family.

I agree, and the way her death lines up with Madam Ye's (down to the exact words they said) really showed this.

Really good performances by both actors in this scene. You can completely understand and sympathize with both of their perspectives.

Good catch about Ma Wencai. It's only mentioned briefly but he holds a civil office (assistant provincial surveillance commissioner) in addition to his military command.

The ML actor is 24 and FL actress is 30. Characters' ages aren't specified but I'd assume 20s.

This is a very good review. Your point about the unnecessary and propagandist political overtones is well-made and, sadly, very true. I really disliked the focus on the (historically inaccurate) Taiwan narrative as it felt like a heavy-handed endorsement of the CCP's disturbing behavior on that front, with the Kangxi character's forceful opinions essentially mimicking the CCP's current line on Taiwan. I think any evenhanded assessment of this drama has to call out this deeply problematic content for what it is.

I wonder to what extent this content was "genuine" on the show's part, and to what extent it was an effort to insulate the production from censorship due to its historical context. After all, the leadership (being portrayed in a generally positive light) in this drama consisted of a bunch of aristocrats from a non-Han group who had rather rapidly conquered "China proper" and who, over time, have been one of the most demonized groups by the CCP. So maybe the propaganda content helped make the Qing seem a bit more palatable in this context?

With that said, a good amount of the drama's content (both river and court) can be separated from this plotline and all in all, comes off as a high-quality production and a surprisingly good political drama. The Jin Fu/Chen Huang/Yu Zhenjia storylines set "in the field" were very compelling, due to the strong performances you mention but also to really solid cinematography and a high production value. The drama did a good job conveying the weight and mammoth scope of the engineering projects and situating them in their societal context.

Personally, I wasn't bothered by the portrayal of the bureaucracy, although I generally agree with your point about its depiction in period dramas. It seems like the dramas are struck in a Ming-novel conception of official venality and petty vindictiveness, when the reality was far more complex. Honestly, though, outside of Serenade of Peaceful Joy and Ming Dynasty in 1566, I don't know of many "high imperial" dramas that do a particularly effective job in rendering the realities of officialdom without resorting to excessive tropes (Ma Boyong adaptations are also pretty decent on this point, but the political action is always subordinate to the main thriller content). With that said, I appreciated that this drama at least spent time developing the characters of the grand secretaries and (while greatly oversimplifying their characters, compared to the historical realities) rendering the Kangxi court's dynamics in reasonable detail. The rising tension between the increasingly world-weary ministers and the increasingly autocratic, short-tempered Kangxi was exceptionally well-done, IMHO, and the drama would have benefited from a bit more exploration of this conflict. The opera scene and subsequent veiled threat to Gao Shiqi was an extraordinarily well-performed and acted scene and it's unfortunate more wasn't done with this plotline.

Even with these reservations, I'm not sure of another drama that's rendered real-life history and politics in this much detail since Ming Dynasty in 1566; this one is easily superior in terms of visuals and the plot is a bit more gripping, but the older drama (filmed in a less restrictive time) is less tinged by contemporary politics and much the better for it.

Rewatching this and I forgot just how good it is. Epic scope, surprisingly decent CGI to match it, and really good performances. Deserves higher ratings IMHO.

Not as part of the main plot but it's possible; one of the male leads has some interactions with a female supporting character that could be either a subplot or the lead-up to some romance later on.

Anyone know when in 2023 this is anticipated to air?

This is extremely good. High production value and the storyline has proven quite engaging. The dialogue is superb, very witty. And the cast is made up of some really good, veteran actors who've honed their skills in similar enough roles to really inhabit their characters here.