This is an example of someone unable to accept the ratings reality and choose to blame it on imaginary reasons…
since when are mdl ratings objective or accurate? are you new here? Everyone and their mom knows that mdl users rate based on the most insane reasons (ei. idol dramas, ugly leads, annoying voices, endings etc,). I'm just highlighting how this time, its especially insane. Sorry to burst your bubble,the mdl rating system is the most debated subject on this site, its used and abused and people will tank ratings based on their feelings alone.
the chemistry? insaneeee. its also checking all my boxes. slowburn? checked. marriage of convenience? checked. enemies to lovers? checked. rural setting? checked. 10/10
3 episodes is all I can watch. The lead actress’s performance falls short; she doesn’t suit the role and lacks screen presence. Her appearance comes across as small and weak, which doesn’t match the tough girl image the character is supposed to have. also, it’s frustrating to see the another whiny and childish female lead archetypes in 2023. so overdone and backwards bleh
hold on...I came back to read through the comments to see if there are any new interpretations of the ending, and I remembered something that could explain why the straw horse is waiting for her in real life and the last scene from the bonus episode. Didn’t you find it weird how shen nuo disappeared for a YEAR in the game? I think that’s the part where he logged off or got booted out because he actually died in the game. So maybe while they were working him back into the system, he got to linger in the real world and reminisce about their time together.
My concerns with the ending: 1. The timeline doesn’t seem to justify the presence of the straw horse frame. When did shen nuo even have the time to make it and place it there? 2. Early on, when she first met shen nul, he behaved like an NPC, constantly appearing and emoting, quite unusual for a player. 3. It’s surprising that the CEO of a gaming company wouldn’t know the plot and villain of his own game. 4. Shen Nuo appeared to genuinely believe that he was his in-game character, normally people wouldn’t pretend to have emotional baggage based on their in-game character’s story.
So there's probably no perfect explanation to the ending but if I were to make up one, it would be that shen nuo could have been testing a multiplayer version of the game where participants lose their real-life memories. After their reunion on ep 26, she chooses to remain in the game with him and her family. As they age, he awakens before her because he passes away in the game. She lingers longer within the game world, staying with her family. This clarifies the straw horse frame at the reception, that he put there patiently awaiting for her to wake up.
edit: you can also explain the straw horse frame with shen nuo disappearing for a year in the game to "recover". its plausible that he actually died and got booted out. a year in the game is probably enough time irl to make that straw horse??
another theory could be that shen nuo's memories are intact, and is aware of her player status, but he chose to play along knowing she's not an npc. This could be justified by how his reactions to modern references were too passive and the scene where they were rebuilding the wall the bitter grandma broke; where he says “i never thought i would meet you here” hint that he recognizes her from real life.??? idk i'm grasping at straws here.
my last theory (this one is delusional) proposes that the drama serves as a sequel to the book where she transmigrates. After man er returns to the real world following her transmigration she loses her memories, shen nuo then follows her and transmigrates into her world. To help her remember their life together, he recreates a 1:1 game of their life in his world, leading them to fall in love and experience the same story all over again.
Anyways I really don't think this is one of those dramas that had an ending worked into the whole story line. There's probably no hidden symbolism or hidden meaning. And censorship also probably had a hand in this. I enjoyed it nonetheless.
You’ve pretty much covered the good stuff. There’s the past life reveal which is maybe 2 mins other than that…
I had a hunch that there would be no twists and turns and that most of the plot was resolved and if there was anything that was to be revealed it would be obvious. Usually the romance keeps me going when the plot goes stale but they got together too early and I prefer my romance to be slow burn. oh well, thanks for the validation
I feel like I would've finished it if I didn't have to drop it at episode 10 to wait for the rest of the episodes to come out. I remember the first episode to be very strong and I expected that level of intrigue and mystery throughout, but it wasn't that. I don't think I regret watching it either, but I'm struggling to find reasons to pick it up again..
4 
1. The timeline doesn’t seem to justify the presence of the straw horse frame. When did shen nuo even have the time to make it and place it there?
2. Early on, when she first met shen nul, he behaved like an NPC, constantly appearing and emoting, quite unusual for a player.
3. It’s surprising that the CEO of a gaming company wouldn’t know the plot and villain of his own game.
4. Shen Nuo appeared to genuinely believe that he was his in-game character, normally people wouldn’t pretend to have emotional baggage based on their in-game character’s story.
So there's probably no perfect explanation to the ending but if I were to make up one, it would be that shen nuo could have been testing a multiplayer version of the game where participants lose their real-life memories. After their reunion on ep 26, she chooses to remain in the game with him and her family. As they age, he awakens before her because he passes away in the game. She lingers longer within the game world, staying with her family. This clarifies the straw horse frame at the reception, that he put there patiently awaiting for her to wake up.
edit: you can also explain the straw horse frame with shen nuo disappearing for a year in the game to "recover". its plausible that he actually died and got booted out. a year in the game is probably enough time irl to make that straw horse??
another theory could be that shen nuo's memories are intact, and is aware of her player status, but he chose to play along knowing she's not an npc. This could be justified by how his reactions to modern references were too passive and the scene where they were rebuilding the wall the bitter grandma broke; where he says “i never thought i would meet you here” hint that he recognizes her from real life.??? idk i'm grasping at straws here.
my last theory (this one is delusional) proposes that the drama serves as a sequel to the book where she transmigrates. After man er returns to the real world following her transmigration she loses her memories, shen nuo then follows her and transmigrates into her world. To help her remember their life together, he recreates a 1:1 game of their life in his world, leading them to fall in love and experience the same story all over again.
Anyways I really don't think this is one of those dramas that had an ending worked into the whole story line. There's probably no hidden symbolism or hidden meaning. And censorship also probably had a hand in this. I enjoyed it nonetheless.