They basically turned him into a villain with their own hands. The FL kept telling Li Chuan that he should act like an emperor, yet she never treated him like one herself. She even slapped him and scolded him, saying, "You're not enough." When the woman he loved died, she didn't even let him mourn. She kept insisting, "You're the crown prince, you must marry," and forced him to marry a woman he didn’t love. When he didn’t want to be with a woman he didn’t care for, she said, "You're the emperor; it’s your duty to produce an heir," and pressured him into a relationship he didn't want. She constantly reminded him that he was the emperor, but never truly treated him like one. From the very start of the series, Li Chuan seemed to be in a state of depression and struggling to resolve things within his mind. Everyone has a beast inside them, and they all collectively pushed Li Chuan until they brought out that beast. Then, they blamed everything on him. I’m not trying to justify Li Chuan's cruelty from the past, but besides the ML, no one tried to comfort him even once. I found that a bit sad. And most importantly, even his own sister treated him as if he was “pure evil.” After all they put him through, they thought Li Chuan was inherently bad. But from the beginning, he was someone who was forced into situations, and his emotional breakdown was simply a result of everything they put him through.
Ugh, I haven’t been watching any Chinese dramas lately because they all seem cursed with tragic endings!!!!! Chinese screenwriters act like soul-suckers who take pleasure in draining viewers' spirits and dragging them into despair…
To be honest, I liked the concept of the drama. I didn’t get too bored while watching it. I also liked the relationships between the characters. However, some characters seemed unnecessary to me, and I couldn’t make sense of some scenes. If you have free time, it’s worth watching. 8/10.