noor1234

I wanted to see her in a romance - historical or otherwise - her last few roles have been heavy.

Look, IMV, ML does not have the attachment with these women from military like FL does - she's the one who spent 5 years with them. ML was busy surviving a war with his buddies & these soldiers, including Mo and then was asked by king to eradicate corruption. His ear-to-king status provided Wang & Mo opportunity to align with him, even FL encouraged it - even though she shouldn't have. FL should understand that this is far worse for him than ever will be for her. And all the other people should back off expecting things from him. His only allegiance HAS to be the king. Or he'll be dead. Does he really need to explain his actions to FL or anyone else at this point? I'm tired of ML being at the receiving end.

ML is inexperienced & did not deserve any of these promotions & duties given by king. Frankly it's begun to show that one man alone, even with king as a backer, cannot change a corrupt system that bureaucrats are running from top to bottom. Plus, his wife is not a team player unless she's the one leading & her advice is counter-productive. It's very easy to blame ML for all that has happened in capital, factions he has tried to build, but a couple of episodes ago, FL was promising Wang's wife that she'll protect North army's interests - wasn't that faction-making & going behind his back?

Ganlin is a s**t backward town where dreams go to die. After everything that ML has managed to achieve, why should he regress to be non-ambitious simp in a place with bad memories for him - where HALF of people he knew will be dead (Yucheng, Mo, etc.) & grow vegetables or manage salt or be new snr. commander in a place where war can occur at any time - with bandits or enemy & some bureaucrat from capital can come to belittle him?

Why not travel the country to manage salt reforms? Meet new people? FL can open a dumb shop for Xie's in a new place OR he can stay in capital & be a next-generation's Sec. Tian?

What is all this effort by ML for? To go back to where he came from?

King jumped a newbie to 4th rank - From being a semi-literate junior military officer ML was propelled to main court standing next to all these well-educated, seasoned, old bureaucrats & favored to oversee salt reform, corruption, drought relief, mausoleum construction, arrest & detention & killing of disloyal / traitors. I'd say other courtiers would be jealous as to what king sees in this new guy to give him soooooo much responsibility in so little time, when they have been slogging it for years! ML did not really deserve any of these promotions or duties. He's inexperienced & outranked.

Ep.29-30: Finally caught up with these episodes. I liked them (forwarded FL's dad's scenes & FL's histrionics completely). I totally see ML's desperation to form a faction realizing what he's up against - FL is right in telling him that he is wrong to seek factions because of conflict of interest , BUT she doesn't give any helpful practical suggestions to ML to fight against Yus. I mean does she think a tea party will make corrupt people who stand in her husband's way good?

I did not like that FL did not even respond to ML after Yu left the shop & again gave a lecture. She needs to stop being his mother & give actionable advice, not airy fairy stuff. Plus, the drama should show what ML & FL are like in the bedroom when they have this constant cold war at home, shop, pond, etc. It is thoroughly unpleasant to watch couples unable to find WORK-LIFE BALANCE!

Sec. Yu played a very diabolical strategy in court (when he blamed his son & indirectly FL). ML was furious but couldn't do anything. It was good to see Shameless/ SML finally accept - & that too in front of the king - that he ruined FL's rep. BUT what a cost! Because both dad & son showed the king that ML was only after Yu over a personal grievance! Well played by villains! And then Yu proceeded to defame FL openly under the pretext of apology. Also, what was done to Gen. Mo to discredit Wang & ML! Good scheme.

Sec. Yu's voice & dialogue delivery is very menacing & measured. Good villain. Plus, his praise of FL! SFL's son was handed over to Yu lady by SFL herself - I didn't see that coming!

I did not like Gen. Mo's no-nonsense wife urging him to take the BRIBE - which she was calling donation. Doesn't Gen. Mo AND his wife know that Wu's niece is Yu's son's concubine - the same Yus that Cmndr Wang etc. are against?! They are not in Kansas anymore - capital has a different ballgame going on! Even the king was at a loss of words....

I did not like ML seeking marriage for Sen only to strengthen his bond with Commander Wang / Northeastern wing.

I like how EVERYONE keeps referring to ML's meteoric rise to power - 4th rank - without understanding the toll it has taken on him (or FL) or the thin ice he walks on daily between king & Yus.

I feel bad for ML. He's stuck. Also, FL has started wearing normal clothes, why is he still wearing that ridiculous goatee? Time jump was of 3-4 months only.

Overall, I like wherever this drama is going.

It would've been better if Son Ye Jin had chosen a historical where a guy is after her romantically / passionately instead of reducing herself to a villainous role that has bene done to death even in South Korea.

Yes, but why is FL still in mourning clothes & Yu lady threatening her at the memorial in trailer for Ep. 34 - mom died in Ep.28 - (or is that a repeat of previous ep. to keep mystery of third last episode intact?). Are we to watch FL in mourning clothes till the 2nd last episode? If so, then that's too many episodes devoted to 'funeral' attire & mom-is-murdered stuff, this 'funeral/memoriam' arc should've been done away with in 2 episodes, to move on to the REAL THING: what kind of trap / revelation will make the Yus fall & how FL/ML work together to get it. I want to see FL stop being ML's mother & start being his wife & for them to have a proper romantic marriage. I'm bored of circular episodes & forwarding quite a number of scenes (FL's dad for e.g.) in last few episodes.

I forwarded ALL scenes that featured FL's dad - OTT character. Was a filler for me. Now in death has become a good plot point.

Yup. Plus, I don't know why such a big deal is made out of her Fu connection. That family's women tried to kill her, marry her off as a dead woman, men did nothing to save her. Nobody came after her to inquire about her. Why is she supposed to cry or think about their feelings now when she even changed her household to Xie. I think it's inconsistent for FL to think about Fus when she cut them off from her life a long time ago. What about the new life she promised she'd build with ML & all the buddies etc.?

FL is just shown giving lecture now, she's turned into the mother ML never had.

FL has turned into the mom he never had or some sage constantly admonishing him. Plus, zero romance.

Less than zero romance between leads & FL has turned into the mother ML never had. I forwarded the last 2 episodes because it's exhausting to watch these 2 & their self-created, non-issue 'problems.' Not a single scene of the entire bunch (FL-ML-buddies-Sen etc.) chatting & eating together like they used to - the drama wants us to side with FL & think yes, everything is bad in this capital, not worth living here! That it turns people into evil, restless souls.Since when was ambition a bad thing? Also, please don't tell me ML & FL are busy 'fighting the good fight' against corrupt people - that was never the hook of the show - the hook was this couple whose only scenes in capital have been squabbles or being non-communicative & zero romance. I'm unhappy with it, that's all.

This is going to be the shortest rant ever: ML's goatee is courtesy 100-day mourning period, not passage of time. The leads have been in capital for a year. We are not getting any more years of this couple's advancement till the ending, where presumably they'll show the leads with a daughter in that god forsaken border town Ganglin doing their own thing & being 'happy' which is anti-climactic after all that this couple & his buddies have been through.

The idea that you have to leave everything to be happy is such a defeatist attitude in life & a copout in this drama, after all the buildup to this point.

On one hand, FL envisions ML's future as a regional commander or Marquis or Chancellor (Ep.28: her talk with Yu lady), BUT she also does not understand what it takes to get there - ML is not an evil guy, so why is she lecturing him all the time?

FL did not have to make any tough decision in life, she hasn't seen hunger or poverty or humiliation from strangers the kind ML has seen, all that happened to her in a privileged existence was that her grandma wanted to kill her & Zuo widow wanted to kill her & now Yus want to kill her. Every single time, ML came to rescue her! And she knows he killed a guy right in front of her to protect her (that officer in Ganglin). She has never had to kill anyone on any one's orders or to protect loved ones, she hasn't been on the frontline of battle & she is not the one in court answerable to king every single day.

It's a drudgery to watch their interactions. There is no spark or romance between this newly married couple in upcoming episodes, they have not even smiled properly since the wedding (which took 5 years separation & a cold meetup, btw), in fact he is drowning under the burden of protecting her & she is rejecting him (Ep. 32 trailer: loneliest birthday fireworks ever). There is too much unnecessary drama created to just pass an episode. This is one special king who only has ONE GUY to work on EVERYTHING UNDER THE SUN - be it salt payment, grain production, drought relief, reforms, rooting out financial corruption, finding murderers, and also keeps testing him (which I don't even take seriously anymore). I know the last arc is about how Yus are brought down, BUT when nothing serious can ever happen to the leads - even the king's commands are for appearances & to gauge ML's loyalty - the stakes are never high or real. The drama would do better to show us the leads having a good time in between all this salt reform / corruption / king is in bad mood today / mom died / Wu died, who died, etc.

The only arc of interest is how Wu concubine is going to dump Shameless/ SML & how SFL will ruin herself even further!

There's nothing of interest in the main leads or where they end up anymore.

Her husband had been fired from job - relegated to commoner status for mismanaging the money delegated to him for a task, this was done by an 'angry' king in front of a full court, unless the king gives reasons / announces that ML is restored & why is he now incharge of drought money when he couldn't handle mausoleum money - because courtiers would've questioned that too, how can his wife be standing in dowager's chamber with the rest of the elites. It was wrong to show it without a buffer scene of reaction from courtiers & Yus to the news.

That invite was to a banquet. No one invites a '3 county register' to inner chamber of dowager's unless her husband is a top courtier - which ML wasn't anymore - in public / court. I think there should've been a scene announcing the restoration of title & showing reactions of courtiers & Yus before showing FL in that chamber in last scene.

Thanks for replying. I think there should've been a scene showing reaction of the Yus and the court. ML was demoted to 'commoner' by 'angry' king in front of courtiers - that's not even a demotion, that's a firing from job. So for him to be reinstated, courtiers would've asked how did he get the favor back? Because on the face of it, nothing has changed - court thought he was spending more than 100K teals on mausoleum & king got angry & that's why he got fired. So I'm sure courtiers should've asked king why are you giving job back (plus drought money job) to a guy who didn't handle the last job or money as per your instructions?

Especially after Yus thought they'd won against this couple, when ML's status is restored, no one reacts to the news, no one questions the king, there should've been a scene, it was extremely jarring to see FL at the banquet without any scene to cushion her husband's & her own restored status.

But then as a 'commoner's wife,' why is FL in dowager's inner chamber? Doesn't dowager know ML's current status?

@peachblossomgoddess forget about this issue. Tell me why wasn't there a scene announcing ML's reinstatement in court & also as caretaker of drought effort? Plus, a scene of Yus reaction to such an announcement. At the very least, Yu lady should've shown surprise to see FL in the dowager's inner chamber with other females of elite families. I thought it was jarring to just jump to a scene showing how dowager was thoughtful of FL without showing first how she got there when her husband had been turned into a commoner in front of court & all his titles taken away. Because I don't think she would've been invited to dowager's event her unless she was still the wife of an approved official.

True.

She promised him on wedding night that she'll stay devoted to him in this life. Unless she meant she'll stay devoted from far away, I doubt she'll leave him.

Yus are being stretched out to be the harbingers of everything that is corrupt in court, and they are only coming after this young newbie couple again & again, only because king favors ML to get things done during his new reign. Their paths should not even cross but just to upend one guy (ML) all the scheming chaos is initiated every 2 episodes by just one powerful couple! I wanted ML to travel to drought areas & then salt reform areas to check on stuff - as a change in scenery / set pieces - while FL accompanies him, but I don't think we are leaving the capital before this couple goes back to probably to that deadbeat border town of Ganglin (where they shouldn't end up IMV!)

There should've been a scene / announcement shown to viewers before the last scene - it was very odd to see FL in dowager's inner chamber without any buffer scene to show / declare the reinstatement of ML who will now head the drought effort too.