Uma_shakti

This cdrama healed me in ways I didn't even expect :D Absolutely comfiest and coziest romance story, slice-of-life with gorgeous acting, beautiful visuals, lots of sunlight and warm airy shots, springtime, summertime, sunrises. Loveable main leads and overall un-bumpy plot. Just a purely delightful watching experience :3

I didn't know you could mix romcom and murders, but this show did a hilariously good job at it :D Eerie romance with coroner jokes (I wish there were more of them!), cute couples, and entertaining cases. Just an overall good show, do recommend.

This drama kills it in the plot department. That is, if you're a fan of the revenge genre and don't mind having close to no romance in the show. But the type of non-romantic relationship depicted by the OTP (played by Liu ShiShi and Shawn Dou) is my most favorite - the zhiji/soulmate bond that transcends the ordinary romantic shenanigans and is as wholesome as it can be, when two fairly broken people meet on a similar path of plotting and playing their chess games in the capital.

We have two powerful and smart main leads, ambiguous and very morally grey, which is again, my fave type of characters. They still lean on the good guys' side, and the bad guys are so much worse that ML and FL stand out quite considerably. But they're still willing to play a little dirty to win the game and make the bad guys pay for what they've done.

Some other plot-lines include female empowerment (there are A LOT of cool, smart, and independent female characters in this show), mental health (espeically the PTSD after various traumatic events), and our girl Ye Ping'an does a great job at treating those psychological states using hypnosis and a type of regression therapy (and I've never seen any character in historic Cdramas do that, so kudos to screenwrites - that's pretty original!)

So it's great writing all over, very smart characters (all of them are scheming and quite intelligent), cool women, equally great and interesting men. It's been a while since I've watched such wholesome people on screen. And the soulmate trope is just pure perfection. Do recommed!

I finally got to watch the famed BL classics - it was such a treat in all aspects! The (b)romance, the villains, the plot - I actually got so involved in the story and characters that the relationship between MLs didn't stand out too much - it was just very natural and organic, in full accordance with their personalities.

Also, I have to say - they rarely make such good villains these days :D The psycho/serial killer type who are very smart, cunning, ruthless, have their distinct agenda, heavy on vendetta and powerplay, not just randomly killing some ppl because they're bad (traumatic childhood as a bonus for more depth of the characters). They made watching the cdrama truly entertaining.

All the main characters are very well-written. Wei Ying and Lan Zhan surely steal the show numerous times with both their relationships and personal stories, but watching other characters and clan staff, the evil guys and whatnot was also very-very good. I'll be having more thoughts on Lan Zhan/We Wuxian as a couple, they are definitely one of the best BL boys out there and I loved how the director depicted all the hot stares, glares, hand touches without anything too direct to show their relationship unfold (I might actually like this subtle way of depicting bl romance the most :)

10/10 both as a BL drama and simply a very well made cdrama all in all (the visuals look slightly dated, but it's understandable). Plot-wise and character-wise it's a gem even if you aren't into BL stuff.

To my surprise, I thoroughly enjoyed this show from beginning to end. Mostly thanks to its cute and silly humor, but things did take a darker turn towards the end, reminding me more of Joy of Life. I did my best not to compare the two shows, but JOL did use the isekai trope better. With Xu Qi An, we've seen more of that in the beginning, later he got totally assimilated into the world of Dafeng and, being special and all, didn't use his knowledge from the modern world as much.

Still, it was a pleasure to watch - funny, quirky characters and great friendships. Decent amount of plotting and backstabbing. The plot had its holes, but the overall atmosphere and humor were still good enough to keep on watching. The Astronomy guys were such an uncanny bunch with their love for food and alchemy. It was also refreshing to see the ML just making female friends with no romantic interest - just colleagues and co-fighters.

Also, I have to mention that guy who turned his back to everyone and never showed his face - it was hilarious, I laughed every time he showed up))) the execution of the character was very funny.

The show is a solid 9/10 if you're into this type of genre (and don't mind childish-like humor, which I actually adored). Great casting, ost, characters, and the storyline is qood. The FL was a bit irritating at first, but matured later, and she and Xu Qi An actually made for a cute couple.

oh these are amazing! thanks so much

God that last episode - such a tear-jerker(( Spending their last days together knowing that he will die soon, it's pure torture. Stellar acting by Liu Yuning and Zhao Lusi, I mean, they're amazing actors. The message, in the end, is kind of hopeful, despite their devastating romance. Justice prevailed, all the bad guys got what they deserved, life went on, and Su Muzhe became the traveling trader she always wanted to be. I loved this show from beginning to end.

I just want to say that the visuals of the show are truly stunning - the sets, the scenes, the lighting, the geometry of it all. It's so cinematographic! Like Fibonacci sequence encoded in most of the scenes. Pure eyegasm :3

Also, Zhao Lusi and Liu Yuning are very beautiful sufferers and criers XD It's a form of art to be able to portray suffering and still look so amazing while doing it (be it physical or mental one).

Ahah, so true))) Yan Zijing torturing and blackmailing some bad guys for his woman? Like, super hot XD

I'm actually intrigued to see how she will deal with the Zheng family 'issue'. Because Yan Zijing is coming after them and she's smart enough not to get in his way. Their paths are crossing all the time, I'm wondering (and slightly worrying) what the screenwriters have prepared next :)

ep.21 - oh, I love all the girlpower dynamics and jewelry-making! With so many pretty women around, some backstabbing is bound to happen. I really like the direction the show is taking - Su Muzhe is all about business and making a name for herself, she's so refined and elegant now. I'm very intrigued to see how she'll win over Yangzhou (at least, I hope that's what will happen). I'm also wondering about their future interactions with Yan Zijing - they're both in the same biz, they'll probably be meeting a lot, ah.

Yes, I've noticed, too! The stars were pretty in the sky. That's the only type of foreshadowing I want to see in this show XD

Ahah, yes, so true))) The beloved cdrama tricks. Spitting blood will never go out of fashion it seems XD

Ep. 19-20
Our girl is such a survivor, I loved the whole sequence of her traveling alone across the desert and the wintery snows. It's beautiful and so in tune with her loneliness, sadness, and heartbreak. Yes, some of the things are a bit far-fetched, but it's a cdrama, so I'm letting it slide and just enjoying the ride:) It was cool that Duan Wu could meet with Yue Yunxiu, so she's not completely alone on her journey.

The drama is drama-ing hard in the ep.20 with the rain scene. Both Liu Yuning and Zhao Lusi are such amazing actors, they deliver everything so believably!

I totally agree with you. ZL and LYN are such powerful actors - I just believe whatever they portray, be it lovey-dovey scenes, sweet romance, or that devastating heartbreak of the last few episodes. I'm happy that got paired together (and hopefully we'll get some less tear-inducing scenes in the show:)

Hopefully we'll find out soon enough :)

Ah, yes, now I get it :) Fully agree with you.
And the emotional damage has already arrived with ep 18, ah. But I'm very curious to see where the screenwriters will take YZJ and Duan Wu next. Both their characters are quite multi-faceted and I like how falling in love didn't make them suddenly stop being who they are. It's quite realistic in this aspect

Yes it's his character's story arc so I don't imagine he will just drop everything he's been working so hard to achieve and go live with his wifey somewhere nice (although, I would have gladly watched it XD)

I've never felt that revenge was on Duan Wu's plate on the same level as YZJ, but I may be mistaken. I felt she was more into living and making a name for herself, that trading stuff she wanted to do. Anyway, I'm looking forward to what happens next.

Woah, I didn't even think that far, thanks for your guess, I also think it's very possible. I sensed that something was fishy when the General got stopped so conveniently from going and helping YZJ with his plan - like someone in the upper circles of power got a warning note and they acted fast. Luckily, Zhang Jinran still decided to go, but the whole story with the bandits seems a bit more complicated than I initially thought.

I could feel the sweetness in my mouth XD Haven't had so much fun with a (supposedly) non-romantic drama in a long time, but here we are))) Cuteness overload.