Right?! I was screaming why him. And to have them not mention it again was crazy. I was like "someone tell…
Yes, believe me I was so mad at them for that. Because it felt like they could have done something to save their closest friends. I was looking forward to her revenge like a typical drama. With how smart and patient she was, she wouldn't have failed like Cunqie did.
That was me looking at it logically. If the Shens had tried to escape or prepare after a warning, the Emperor's spies would have traced the leak back to the only other family who knew and would warn them. The Lins would have been labeled as co-conspirators both families would have been completely wiped out. From what I understand, the reason the Lins were safe was bc they arranged a marriage with Xingtang's powerful family.
That is why it was so morally and ethically wrong, and why that dirty choice weighed on the Lin grandfather and Jinqi’s conscience for the rest of his life. They knew they bought their survival with betrayal. If they were cold, unfeeling or didn't care(like Jinqi's sperm donor cause that man wasn't a father), there would be no grave for the Shens or the painting wouldn't have any meaning.
But to your point, even if the Lins had broken their silence and risked everything to warn them, I am not sure the Shen men would have yielded anyway. Grand Academician Shen likely would have viewed fleeing as a cowardly confession of guilt. And the rest of the family would follow suit cause look at what the women did. The only one that hesitated was Lanxiang's bio mom.
I looked at their names and family plaques too and that tracks. The Shen Family Plaque read "惟善德馨" (Wéi Shàn Dé Xīn): Meaning "Only virtue brings true fragrance". It reflected their commitment to moral integrity. They chose to follow this motto right to their execution. Shen Jialan (沈嘉兰)—the orchid (Lan) express hope that a person will grow up with grace, humility and high moral standards.
The Lin Family Plaque read "蔚其家声" (Wèi Qí Jiā Shēng): represents the pursuit of family honor, social status, and a flourishing lineage. Combined, Wèi Qí Jiā Shēng translates to "making the family's reputation magnificent and flourishing." It is the ultimate Confucian aspiration to not only preserve but actively elevate the social and moral standing of one's household for future generations. Which makes Jinqi resigning and not pursuing more glory even more meaningful.
The grandfather looked at everyone depending on him and decided staying alive was more important than staying clean. This is mirrored in Lin Jinqi’s (林锦岐) name—where Jin is luxury/glory and Qi is a crossroads. He was born into a family that achieved glory through a dark betrayal, leaving him permanently trapped at a moral crossroads.
Even Jialan becoming Xu Lanxiang (许兰香)—shifting from an "Orchid" to "Orchid Fragrance"— she learns to balance both. She loses her family's rigidity, adopts the Lins' pragmatism to survive, but uses her brilliance to save the Lins from themselves and conquer them from within.
Right?! I was screaming why him. And to have them not mention it again was crazy. I was like "someone tell…
She loved him more than any man yes but I don't think it was the same way he felt about her. Maybe it was because of the past, afraid he would get a concubine, afraid to lose him in battle or due to politics, idk what it was or why but it wasn't the same to me personally.Maybe I'm projecting on her but I see myself in that part her holding back and being a bit distant. But that is completely okay and realistic, I was just surprised they wrote/directed/produced it that way. It's a contrast to other drama characters(like Ming Yi for example) so I noticed that. Anyway, marriages are said to work when the man loves the woman more and is a little sacred of her. And Jinqi is that😂
Right?! I was screaming why him. And to have them not mention it again was crazy. I was like "someone tell…
True. I meant in reference to that specific situation. See how Nanke saving Xiaolian changed how they see each other. Dramas use that to setup a budding romance or crush but not in this case. I'd even say it is the opposite. He fell more in love with her the more he saw how smart she was and saved him too.
Right?! I was screaming why him. And to have them not mention it again was crazy. I was like "someone tell…
No, the Lin family can never pay back their debt to her. She dis way more for him than he did for her.
But first, the Lin family had little to do with the destruction of the Shen clan. Their association only existed because the two grandfathers were close friends. If it weren't for that, there would be no connection at all. When the imperial storm hit, the Lins only severed the betrothal because staying aligned with the Shens meant annihilation for their family. We cannot blame the grandfather for choosing to save his own family over a friend's. Aside from the grandfather's and Jinqi's personal guilt over breaking that bond/agreement, the Lin family technically owed the Shens nothing back then.
But now things changed. The Lins can never pay her back because Lanxiang is the sole reason the Lin family even has a future. The entire household would be dead if it wasn't for her. She is the one who stepped in and saved them all from being murdered by Cunquie(twice). She saved Jinqi’s life multiple times. She transformed his relatives, making the family richer and smarter, and she is the reason Xiulai successfully gained her freedom from an abusive marriage and Xiuru's daughters to inherit.
Her wisdom saved Jinqi from political execution. Her 'different paths' speech forced him to realize that blindly climbing the ranks under a tyrant was a trap. Because he listened to her and resigned from his post, he avoided court politics. He didn't miss his mother's funeral, he saved his family from an imperial purge and he got more peaceful years to watch his family grow. On top of saving his life, she gave him children to carry on his lineage.
When she tells Xiulai's children what she lives for, she mentions herself, her parents and her daughter, she omits Jinqi. There was an invisible wall between them. She loved him but not the same way he did. Jinqi’s love was all consuming and bound by guilt but Lanxiang couldn't give him her entire soul. She carried horrific memories and Jinqi forcing their marriage with an imperial decree didn't help. The same power that ended her family was now dictating her marital life.
The brilliance of the drama is that it didn't take the easy way out with a fairytale romance or revenge. Lanxiang didn't seek revenge because she knew the Emperor was the true villain. Instead, she got her justice by clearing her family's name, exposing the corrupt, and completely conquering the family that abandoned her, not through violence but by becoming their savior.
Ahhh, wtf, I was expecting Jinqi to save her, why did Han Scholar came in between?!
Right?! I was screaming why him. And to have them not mention it again was crazy. I was like "someone tell her he came looking for her and almost destroyed the brothel she was in". Even the girls she saved didn't mention it. But that also means he won her love fair and square. She didn't feel indebted to him.
So no one care about the second aunt family cause it didn’t show any of their death also old master and basically…
They were basically irrelevant😂But I think since it is Lanxiang narrating/writing her story, she only let us see the things she thought were more important which were the women's stories (even Xingtang and Du Cuique) and the men that she loved/respected/related to the women she loved (Lin Jinlan, Yuan Shaohui/ Marquis Yongchang, Scholar Han). From the second branch, Xiuwan and Jinqiao were the ones she cared for. It would have taken more episodes to cover everyone. I am amazed they allowed them to have 47 episodes but I guess it is because it is such a beautiful, meaningful, uplifting story.
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That was me looking at it logically. If the Shens had tried to escape or prepare after a warning, the Emperor's spies would have traced the leak back to the only other family who knew and would warn them. The Lins would have been labeled as co-conspirators both families would have been completely wiped out. From what I understand, the reason the Lins were safe was bc they arranged a marriage with Xingtang's powerful family.
That is why it was so morally and ethically wrong, and why that dirty choice weighed on the Lin grandfather and Jinqi’s conscience for the rest of his life. They knew they bought their survival with betrayal. If they were cold, unfeeling or didn't care(like Jinqi's sperm donor cause that man wasn't a father), there would be no grave for the Shens or the painting wouldn't have any meaning.
But to your point, even if the Lins had broken their silence and risked everything to warn them, I am not sure the Shen men would have yielded anyway. Grand Academician Shen likely would have viewed fleeing as a cowardly confession of guilt. And the rest of the family would follow suit cause look at what the women did. The only one that hesitated was Lanxiang's bio mom.
I looked at their names and family plaques too and that tracks. The Shen Family Plaque read "惟善德馨" (Wéi Shàn Dé Xīn): Meaning "Only virtue brings true fragrance". It reflected their commitment to moral integrity. They chose to follow this motto right to their execution. Shen Jialan (沈嘉兰)—the orchid (Lan) express hope that a person will grow up with grace, humility and high moral standards.
The Lin Family Plaque read "蔚其家声" (Wèi Qí Jiā Shēng): represents the pursuit of family honor, social status, and a flourishing lineage. Combined, Wèi Qí Jiā Shēng translates to "making the family's reputation magnificent and flourishing." It is the ultimate Confucian aspiration to not only preserve but actively elevate the social and moral standing of one's household for future generations. Which makes Jinqi resigning and not pursuing more glory even more meaningful.
The grandfather looked at everyone depending on him and decided staying alive was more important than staying clean. This is mirrored in Lin Jinqi’s (林锦岐) name—where Jin is luxury/glory and Qi is a crossroads. He was born into a family that achieved glory through a dark betrayal, leaving him permanently trapped at a moral crossroads.
Even Jialan becoming Xu Lanxiang (许兰香)—shifting from an "Orchid" to "Orchid Fragrance"— she learns to balance both. She loses her family's rigidity, adopts the Lins' pragmatism to survive, but uses her brilliance to save the Lins from themselves and conquer them from within.
But first, the Lin family had little to do with the destruction of the Shen clan. Their association only existed because the two grandfathers were close friends. If it weren't for that, there would be no connection at all. When the imperial storm hit, the Lins only severed the betrothal because staying aligned with the Shens meant annihilation for their family. We cannot blame the grandfather for choosing to save his own family over a friend's. Aside from the grandfather's and Jinqi's personal guilt over breaking that bond/agreement, the Lin family technically owed the Shens nothing back then.
But now things changed. The Lins can never pay her back because Lanxiang is the sole reason the Lin family even has a future. The entire household would be dead if it wasn't for her. She is the one who stepped in and saved them all from being murdered by Cunquie(twice). She saved Jinqi’s life multiple times. She transformed his relatives, making the family richer and smarter, and she is the reason Xiulai successfully gained her freedom from an abusive marriage and Xiuru's daughters to inherit.
Her wisdom saved Jinqi from political execution. Her 'different paths' speech forced him to realize that blindly climbing the ranks under a tyrant was a trap. Because he listened to her and resigned from his post, he avoided court politics. He didn't miss his mother's funeral, he saved his family from an imperial purge and he got more peaceful years to watch his family grow. On top of saving his life, she gave him children to carry on his lineage.
When she tells Xiulai's children what she lives for, she mentions herself, her parents and her daughter, she omits Jinqi. There was an invisible wall between them. She loved him but not the same way he did. Jinqi’s love was all consuming and bound by guilt but Lanxiang couldn't give him her entire soul. She carried horrific memories and Jinqi forcing their marriage with an imperial decree didn't help. The same power that ended her family was now dictating her marital life.
The brilliance of the drama is that it didn't take the easy way out with a fairytale romance or revenge. Lanxiang didn't seek revenge because she knew the Emperor was the true villain. Instead, she got her justice by clearing her family's name, exposing the corrupt, and completely conquering the family that abandoned her, not through violence but by becoming their savior.