ilara

This was Yi Fan's story, first and foremost. She's such a captivating character. I think that you have to like her and root for her to truly enjoy this. She's quiet, and she takes a while to open up. But I love that over time she learns to stand up for herself and open up. And I loved watching the show just to see that side of her.

So it makes sense that the romance is a super slow burn. It takes time for Yi Fan to open up, but Sang Yan is the most selfless and enduring character. Maybe that's unrealistic, but I don't mind that much. They did a perfect job drawing the line and learning to become friends again before anything romantic happened. I think that watching just 1 or 2 episodes a day really helped in enjoying the character progression.

And while I loved the romance, I do think that the story pacing could've been better. Some episodes and plot lines were dragged out, while the Hong Kong plot felt rushed. And it did feel like only Yi Fan was really fleshed out, I would've loved to see Sang Yan outside of his relationship. All that is to say that I loved the characters. This is a character-driven story, so for all the slowburn yearning lovers out there, this is for us!