MadelineMaureen

Sword and Beloved
Blood River
Whispers of Fate

https://kisskh.at/77567-fight-for-love/statistics
Scroll to the bottom and see how the age groups are broken down.

But also other than the children the average age of the actors in this is 30. So with more idol type dramas, which this technically falls under, I've noticed that the majority under the age of the main leads will have a more negative viewing experience. We also end up with a lot of "old hag" comments aimed at any FL over the age of 25.
So in conclusion...idol drama + older cast = younger watchers not as interested/disappointed

Maybe give it a few days. See if anyone has made an edit of it on Youtube to give a better overview of chemistry/character dynamics to better assess if this one is actually in fact for you.
The first few episodes they are introducing a boat load of characters and also setting up a mystery/investigation plot. So it's extremely understandable to struggle to get into it if it's not something you're used to watching. Looks like you mainly stick with more fantasy driven Cdramas so dipping a toe in and finding the water isn't warm enough yet is valid.

All the platforms initially had the novel synopsis as their synopsis as no one knew how the production would work around the rebirth plot. The production discarded the rebirth altogether so the synopsis are slowly getting updated/edited to fit the drama plot over the novel premise.

I attempted to see what episode you are on, but you don't even have this one longed in your "plan to watch" so potential spoilers ahead. Definite spoilers for those who have yet to start.

She saves the life of the eldest sister-in-law when she tries to hang herself.
She apologizes to to the deceased for lying to their family and states she will confess everything and formally apologize once she's completed her mission.
She protects Wei Yun(ML), his mother, sisters, and the coffins/bodies of the dead with her physical body so they aren't touched by Cao Yan or his men. Until her brother is able to get the grand tutor to intervene.
She kneels for days outside the palace to get Wei Yun(ML) released...in the snow/freezing cold.
She advocates repeatedly for the sister-in-laws to be given a choice to stay or leave the Wei family. Without judgement to those who want to or are being forced to leave by their families.

She was not in love with Wei Jun(Eldest Wei brother), he was her ally in investigating the death of her father. She is not in love with Wei Yun yet, because she does not know him and can't 100% trust him yet. From the moment he saw her she was already on a mission to clear her family's good name and get justice for her father and brother.
A 40 episode count usually equals slow burn romance aka the warrior child of a general dead set on a mission is not going to stop 2weeks into said mission and hem and haw about potentially hurting someone's feelings when the lives of hundreds of thousands are on the line.
She is an extremely loyal person, but she does not trust easily. AKA we haven't even finished the first quarter of episodes so why would guilt/conflicted emotions even come into play yet. She showed she was okay with her reputation being completely ruined when she first spoke to Wei Jun and was willing to help him in any way. She has no shame as long as those she is loyal to are safe.

Not entirely sure why you can't watch the express episodes on a laptop or tablet or screen cast it from within the apps features. I just know that mirroring the whole phone to a tv bypasses the tencent app's casting lock.

I have a very long blocked list of users who will lurk in the comment section of shows they've dropped.

Don't get me wrong, I've hate watched a few dramas in my day and gone to the comments to find others experiencing the same dislike of one aspect or another of a show. But those comments are usually under spoiler tag and long because of explanations as to "why thing not good".

I don't mind the polite short and cute "wasn't for me, so i'm dropping." comments, or the "wow the synopsis isn't at all what the show actually is." type stuff. I generally dislike when people rate the whole show based on a few episodes of a show on their dropped list.

I think I have 2 on my drop list that I rated low. One because I watched up to episode 10/16 and it was just not good and I watched the last episode or so to see if it had gotten any better, it hadn't. So because I didn't watch ALL 16 i didn't put it in my completed.

The only way to investigate who the traitor is, is to have access to the bureau which is run by the Wei's. If the Marquis of Zhenguo title shifts to another family all personnel from the current "administration" will be shifted around or no longer within that bureau.
There is a spy within the department, that is most likely just a pawn to someone else above them. She is trying to find the loose thread(pawn) in the tapestry to unravel who is behind everything. The first breadcrumb, so to speak, is connected to the Wei's.

So far it's enjoyable, hits the right emotions, and is progressing at a good pace for a 40 episode drama. Cinematography is above average, which is nice. Some lighting choices could be better, but it's 40 episodes so multi-cam lighting is bound to happen.
Performances from the cast are great. Victoria gets to utilize her ballet training in the fight choreography. Ryan has already had to show a lot of different sides to his character and he is pulling off the younger and innocent side extremely well at the moment as it builds into the characters more mature side.
The dynamic between the sisters-in-law is also nice to see. It's not so much at the forefront yet but they are building a nice base for everyone.
The supporting actors are WORKING. There is a character in the first few episodes that had me plotting torture/killing methods(you will know who I'm talking about if you choose to watch)
Chemistry with all the actors is currently vibing.

Haven't read the novel but the Princess and the Xue Han Mei(who is also listed under the name Zhao Yue) are not out of the realm of possibility for flipping sides. They are both caged birds that are easily overlooked by others, yet still close enough to power to move pieces on the board.

So for context that you might have missed someone within the Wei family is responsible for not only the death of her father, but the loss of the battle that ruined his reputation post death. They(Wei family) are the ones in charge of the bureau that has the blueprints for the weapon that the other country has had made and used against them. They are the only ones with access to this information that is being fed to the enemy. She needs to infiltrate the family herself now that her ally she could trust to look into it is dead.

When I say Wei family I'm encompassing all the branches not just Wei Zhong and his children. That's including servants, cousins, etc. Someone within the Weis is a traitor/spy and she does not know who she can actually trust amongst them. She sought the help of Wei Jun, because of his reputation. Also in the original story(rebirth) she knows that he is killed the same way her father was and can be trusted not to be the one behind it.

I don't know how accurate the self reported ages of MDL users are, but looking at the age to rating stats breakdown....alright kids...I'm a say this as nice as possible.

Let the adults enjoy the adult show with adult actors, please and thank you.

The teenage demo is the one heavily influencing the drop in ratings.

keep in mind going forward that any synopsis with a rebirth/born-again based-on-a-novel story will have to change this plot. Trust me when I say the way they are currently adapting the source material is way better than getting through 40 episodes only for them to be like "it was all a dream" "she's been in a coma this whole time & nothing was real & everyone you grew attached to is actual dead or a figment of her imagination."There have only been a handful of shows that do a wake from a dream at the beginning of the show aka premonition rather than reborn that work. You know how in Legend of the Female General she is stabbed through the chest then falls off a cliff? in the novel her soul ends up in another woman's body after having been killed....so as of right now this show is doing decent job at keeping things grounded & still true to the original story/character arcs.

Sorry, please don't take offense. very side note don't know if it was auto correct or a dyslexic word mash(i do this a lot), but that being said...
Eavesdropping. Eave, as in, the part of the roof that meets or overhangs the wall of a building. People would stand under the eaves of houses to listen in on private conversations.
In spoiler tag, because again, not trying to call out just trying to inform.

Ryan gets a lot of antis on this site for some reason. Same with Victoria. The review bombers aren't giving actual tangible reasons for their dislike and they are rating episodes that haven't even aired yet so I just don't even pay attention to that number tbh. I know I'm enjoying it and if anyone asks in the comments just make sure to recommend it and answer questions. That's really all we can do as there isn't really a good vetting process for getting rid of false reviews/ratings.

Talking in the comments I've realized not everyone knows how to circumvent Wetv/tencents screen cast ban on the express episodes.
If you have a Samsung phone and a smart TV or connected device like a roku, or firestick you can mirror your whole device to the tv rather than just the app.
Go into your Settings and search "Smart View" and then pair your TV/Roku/Firestick. Your phone screen should show up on your TV. Go into your Tencent app like normal and play it like you normally would aka make the video full screen/landscape. Your phone screen will go dark in a few seconds or you can tap the power button and it will go dark immediately.
Just make sure you have your video set to 1080p. Control the video through your phone screen not a remote. The only thing that you can adjust with the remote is the volume without the device disconnecting.
Really hope this helps. As Tencent doesn't have an app for TVs I hope now more people can enjoy the shows how they are meant to be viewed rather than on a tiny phone screen.

drop down the quick menu on your Samsung. in the very bottom left corner should be a button that says "Smart View" subtitled "mirror screen" it has a "play" symbol with a broken circle around it with dots. if its not there go into the search bar after hitting the cog symbol(top right) and search "Smart View" & pair your device. I really hope this helped.

I've been able to watch them on my TV through mirroring the whole phone/device not the tencent/wetv app. once I put the video into full screen it will be full/wide screen on my TV. again dont screen cast in the app...use your devices mirroring setting.

are you using your phones app or the tencent app to mirror? try your phones mirroring to your TV. bypass the tencent app mirroring.
I wish I could show pictures or a screen recording to show you what im talking about.

I have smart view on my phone so I just stream it to my roku/tv. so if anyone has a Samsung you should be able to mirror your screen with the smart view on your drop down screen/settings.