ChineseDramaFan

This is eye-opening for me. Thank you :)

Hahaha, we all have some sort of evil in us XD

LOL! IKR! I've seen many men behave like strangers towards their wives even they have already had kids. You can't say they don't love their wives because they do. They are just like this - they don't like to show their emotions in public :D

Good one here. I love subtle hints like this.

For me, it's a let down because I had expected after "One and Only", some lost souls searching for thousands of years, eventually finding their destiny. Here, there's no such thing. The two dramas don't even seem to be connected except for the repeated references to the historical one by Shi Yi in her work. So far, 22 episodes in with 8 more to go, it's a chronicle of the daily life of a newly wed couple. There's still no plot, no story, though viewers are made to believe that there's something lurking behind the scene. I guess I'm patient enough to sit out the rest of the episodes to see if there is really a story, sigh!

Ren Jialun seems to have similar hair style for his modern dramas, kind of mushroom (sorry, can't find the right word) shape. He has a very small, boyish face, so he looks better without the bangs. You can see the contrast in one of the scenes in "Miss Crow with Mr. Lizard" when he had his hair combed back. He looked a lot nicer :)

Thank you for your wonderful explanation. Not having read the book, I had no way to compare whether the Zhou ShengChen character has been deviated in the drama or not. Your explanation is very clear that how Ren Jialun acts as Zhou Shengchen here is pretty close to how the character is supposed to be.

Watching the drama, this is the understanding I have for the Zhou Shengchen character too - a genius with not much social, interpersonal relationship experience (like for most genius kids) in particular with women. He's uneasy with women and can even become cold to them, and he always keeps his social distance (I even know men who don't look at beautiful girls when they walk in front of them, and no, they are not monks). He doesn't have the brain power to try to figure out what a woman is thinking because he doesn't care until he meets Shi Yi. He doesn't show his intimacy in public (many Chinese men don't kiss their wives in public as Chinese normally don't like to display their affection in public, is there any wonder Zhou Shengchen is exceptional?). Even after marriage, many Chinese men are still pretty unromantic to their spouses (unlike what we see in romance dramas). In another words, by today's and western standard, Zhou Shengchen is rather boring, unromantic, and may not even make a great boyfriend. With all these character traits in mind, I feel Ren Jialun's acting is 100% perfect to the description of the character. Calling him out for not being intimate or passionate enough simply doesn't fit the character :)

Yes, I'm fascinated by Lu Yunqi too. The actor, Du Yafei, is doing such a great job. Here, as a grey character, he's so good looking with a dash of evilness in him :)

If you like to watch how newly weds go about their life, you may like this one :)

I was so fearful of him in Princess Wei Young. Here, he is sweet like a cuddly teddy bear :)

I have a feeling that it's going to be Zhu Zan because only they both share many things together. Furthermore, she's also in love with Zhu Zan.

Yes, you have a point about the ancestral home that can never be sold and all the antiques should remain within the home. But then, if you look at it from another perspective, aren't all these a burden to whoever inherits it? Like Zhou Sheng Chen who hates to live there, now he has an obligation to take care of everything because he inherits the property. He can't live a life he wants, simple and focus in the things he loves. He also laments that he has to embroil in all these family politics he hates. So depending how you look at it, it can be a blessing or a curse. For me, I'm from the 99% poor people group. I don't care about all this wealth which can turn ugly among family members :)

Hahaha, I love the ancestral home though I wouldn't want to live in one, it's eerie :D I love those antiques in it and I might auction them off to put the money in better use if I happen to be the owner :D

Agree! :D

Yeah, I think by the end of this drama, I don't even remember what has happened because nothing stands out here. Furthermore, I have a brain of a goldfish :D

Ahh... now I see why people hate Ren Jialun's portrayal. I've not read the novel so I can't compare, and don't know it's been changed. I thought the Zhou Sheng Chen character is supposed to be a bashful, unromantic, even boring person. With that in mind, I thought Ren Jialun plays quite well. I didn't realize he's the one to change the character to fit his taste.

So this drama was supposed to show how much these two love and trust each other, all their intimacy with each other, like all the pend up yearning for thousands of years, now released like a flood. So, basically it's the script writing that has deviated from the novel, rendering it incohesive. Then we have only the script writer to blame for allowing the actor to change her script.

I have watched all the released episodes, up to episode 22. I don't think it's the actor's problem. The Zhou Sheng Chen character is supposed to be unromantic and boring, that Ren Jialun delivers 100%. He's supposed to feel embarrassed easily and uneasy with open intimacy. This has nothing to do with Ren Jialun's marriage status, it is how this character is supposed to be. My issue is the lack of plot. What is this drama about? Simply a chronicle of daily life of a married couple? Then I can look at marriages around me, they are more or less the same :)

No, I don't feel it's the actor. I feel it's the poor script, with no story, no plot. The characters are actually pretty well written, but then, we're not here to watch the characters, we want a story.

After my last question, what's the plot, with some wonderful answers, I can safely conclude that, there's no plot, just a chronicle of daily life of a married couple that looks very similar to many marriages I know, nothing outstanding or unique here. The only consolation for me is the rather realistic depiction of a large, traditional Chinese family with extended household which can be very familiar to many Chinese viewers. But then some life dramas also portray life in traditional homes with large extended families. Therefore, there is nothing special here. I was lead to believe it's a continuation of "One and Only" but until now, I don't see any connection except the repeated references to that story by Shi Yi in her voice over work. Its rating wouldn't have been this high if not because of the two big stars. Story wise, it's a let down I'm afraid.

22 episodes in, what's the plot may I ask?