PeachBlossomGoddess

The problem is that short form dramas have eclipsed long form dramas in terms of popularity. The producers think it is bc audiences love makjang and they weave it into every damn plot nowadays.

Yes for sure. He gets angry every time ZL defends the NW bc ZL is his man and ONLY his man. By killing off Mo Yi, he is not only removing an obstacle to the reform but sending a warning to ZL and severing his ties to the NW. FTY never got this even though ZL tried to tell her repeatedly that he cannot be allied with the NW.

The Anzhou merchants already are the biggest winners from the reform. They didn't really need to be pacified. The truth is the NW was the biggest loser from the salt reform and opposed it. ZL was also slowing it down by the pilot program. The emperor wanted to speed up and Mo Yi/the NW was in the way.

I never really saw any spark between them. Many Douban posts question/debate whether she even loves him. I personally don't care, I am not here for the romance but the plot.

FTY had nothing concrete to offer Concubine Wu. But Concubine Wu is a survivor and she sees the opportunity of assuming her aunt's role among the Anzhou merchants. They just need to get her indenture - not easy if it is in Yake or Mdm Yu's hands. Easier if it is in YJX's hands but that kind of stuff is usually kept by the lady of the manor.

She sounds more likable in the novel. In the drama she is not. But she is interesting, which I think is more important to be than to be likable.

"He should have learned from Zhao Ling to not always listen to his wife."
😅😅👏

It is very possible but we still need to see what is in all those ledgers. Sadly for Mo Yi its just too late.

I didn't watch that but I saw the clips - that was a spot on parody!

Mo Yi was not executed for taking bribes, he was executed for the murder of Mdm Wu. What happened was that Mdm Wu brought evidence of Mo Yi accepting yearly "donations" to Mdm Yu. This is grains for the troops - it is debatable whether it is outright corruption and since none of it has even happened yet, it is best case a demotion and shouldn't rise to the level of death penalty. Mdm Yu knows this can't really harm ZL that much so she murders Mdm Wu and pins it on Mo Yi, suggesting that he killed Mdm Wu to cover up him taking bribes. The Anzhou merchants were enraged and demanded justice. Merchants are commoners and the common people were already enraged at the ED's extravagance during the drought and mausoleum issue (even though the ED ultimately backed down). The emperor could feel his throne wobble beneath him and he felt this was another distraction from moving ahead with his salt reforms. It didn't help that Mo Yi had been vocally opposed to the reform. So he decided to appease the public by sacrificing Mo Yi, knowing he was innocent. He could have waited for ZL to clear Mo Yi - he just found it more expedient to give the people "justice".

There were a few holes in the arc. Like it was ridiculous that Ms Wu didn't simply hand the evidence that would have cleared Mo Yi to FTY at the temple. She schemed too hard to get out of the household to not bring it with her? Or was it FTY's cold and condescending attitude that gave her pause and make her have to go home to think about it. And then to send it to FTY via YJX after they have both been slandered? It makes no sense for YJX to dare to send anything to FTY and for FTY to dare to receive it. It was just ridiculous bc they wanted to kill off Mo Yi but still get the evidence that indicts the Yus to FTY and ZL in the end.

I think there may have been some bad cuts or edits so I am going to make some clarifying comments on Ep 30-31 the Mo Yi case:

ZL was at war for 5 years, of course he is battle hardened. But having to kill a friend is completely different. And the guy just let him, even asked him to do it. I don't think he was able to even put it into words what he had to do. And of course he knew she would find out about it, he just couldn't bring himself to be the one to tell her. That's how I read that scene. I do agree with the comments that he should have told her. I think he knew it too but he just couldn't.

I was responding to your comment about him inviting high ranking officials and not to that first point. I was agreeing to your point about General Mo.

There is just no way. The guy is just fantasizing or maybe its a clip that was filmed and never used.

To me, in the Mo Yi case, it is the emperor who lost his way. He is the one that has changed beyond recognition, abandoning those who supported him to the throne. I think it is Zhao Ling's wake up call to get the hell out.

I don't think there is any value to secretly keeping Mo Yi alive. But the emperor could have smuggled him out and killed some other prisoner instead to appease the merchants. I just have a feeling he decided not to do so.

I don't think building alliances had anything to do with Fu #5 - he needs them to go after the Yus. And she has no issue with him forming alliances when it is alliances SHE wants - i.e., the NW. In fact, she goes ahead and forms them for him. The truth is they are both Type A personalities. He is not Minister Wei and does not want to have to ask before he goes to the bathroom. But she wants to be Tian Wanyi, who is clearly the one that wears the pants in the Wei household. They'll have to sort it out but this kind of couple realistically usually ends up divorced.

I do think he should have told her about General Mo. But I think it was such a horrible, traumatic thing for him to have to do he couldn't even form the words.

What she is really pissed off about is that she's since discovered he is no longer her pet dog but the emperor's pet dog!😂😂😂

Well it really depends on whether they fell off a cliff first... bc you no one dies falling off a cliff.

It is makjang for sure, just not FULL-ON makjang😅😂
One of the all time funniest makjang scenes I ever watched was this terrible melodrama that ends with Dilraba and Vin Zhang stabbing each other in the guts with a long sword.