neotiate

went into this without any prior knowledge on what the show would be about, all i knew was that there'd be a cheating husband with a wife who would seek revenge as that was what was written as the title for it on youtube. but, the series had so much more to offer than that. despite having a basic plot it also included many different twists which left me genuinely shocked, because at some point i would believe that i figured everything out, but the next minute or so would prove me wrong. i also like that throughout the series i would constantly be on edge, worried about her husband (underserving of that title) or her husbands mistress finding out about her plans. not many series have managed to keep me on edge like this which is why i gave this series a higher rating. i also appreciate the casting which doesn't just consists of a-list actors/actresses or people with pretty faces, but rather individuals who, i personally, have not seen before and also manage to bring out their characters well. the pacing is just right and i also like how yu ning is written here. she doesn't just let her husband get away with what he did and she also stands up for herself, which is of course the bare minimum but in cdramas fl's tend to let themselves be treated like doormats, so seeing her stand up against her mother in law made me feel proud.

(spoiler ahead!!)
my only issue with this series is the ending, it wasn't too rushed but i feel like it could've been a bit better. i'm glad we got to the yu ning and her daughter living well, as well as li mo getting proposed to by zhu kai but i wish we could've seen what happened with mi ja, because she is the most crucial person not just towards the end, but throughout the entire series, we just don't know it. she's the one who help yu ning out yet we don't see her ending. i also don't like her reasoning behind why she followed chen cheng around after breaking up, maybe it's because we only saw their relationship briefly without any proper timeline with dates but how long did they date for? and was it long enough to warrant her following chen cheng around? it all just seems kind of forced, but her character could have been better if they just made the last episode longer, or at least dragged things out a bit better. overall, this is a great watch if you enjoy compelling twists with a plot against a cheating husband.