nyleva

Not completely wiping out Confucianism, but ending many thoughts and ideologies affected by traditional Confucian, such as the governance system and feudalism, classism, gender roles, etc.

No, the novel isn't comedy. I think the novel is amazing, but like the editor said at the beginning, the in-thing nowadays is comedy and not business/war dramas. The novel ends up being a war drama about ending Confucianism.

Biggest difference is that the novel isn't comedy and far more serious and complex. They're almost like two different works.

Some things I remember:

-MC's personality is way different. He's aloof, mostly serious, and keeps his distance from the Su family because he hates the infighting (he died in his last life due to fighting over power and authority).

-Due to loathing fighting over power and authority, he doesn't participate in the Su family business until way later.

-The dad is also different. He actively participates in the family business and supports his daughter.

-The entire wedding scene at the beginning doesn't exist. The MC wakes up already married, and he was attacked on the wedding night.

-The reason for the wedding is also different. The grandfather wants to keep her in the family, so he got a matrilocal husband, rather than she wanting to marry one to stay in the family.

-The school for matrilocal husbands doesn't exist. He works as a teacher for the Su family's private school for their children. He meets/befriends Li Pin there. Pretty sure the others aren't there.

-Meeting scenes with Nie Yunzhu and Qin Siyuan are different. He wants to build up his health, so he goes for morning jogs every day, which is how he met these two.

-Due to his jogging, he meets Nie Yunzhu almost every morning, and they develop feelings for each other. IIRC, he even considers leaving the Su family once their business develops.

-Most of the business stuff in the drama wasn't in the novel or is vastly different. The prize wheel, forgery, parking spots, weaving machine, etc. doesn't exist.

-Guard Geng doesn't really have a big role in the novel, and the MC doesn't write any romance novels for him. Chen'er (the maid) mostly replaces his role and develops a relationship with the MC.

-He becomes famous for the poems he knows from his previous life. Scholars are highly respected in the novel, and merchants don't have much social status.

-The downfall of the Wu family is way, way different. It involves corporate espionage, backstabbing, an assassination, coercing, etc. It's too complex to describe all of it, but basically: The Wu and Su families are competing to become tributary merchants. There's an assassination attempt on the dad, and he ends up paralyzed (don't remember specifics). Tan'er has to take up her dad's part of family business and ends up sick. MC decides to take part in the business. He sets a trap for the Wu family, and it ends with him coercing the Wu family to give up half(?) of their businesses to the Su family.

There are many more things that are different/don't exist such as the Lu Hongti scenes, MC's gun being a metal pipe, MC has a house near the school where he performs science experiments, assassination attempt on MC, the poetry meet being combined with another event, etc.

As for when it ends, probably after the Jurchen (Jing) invasion on the capital. I think this is about half way through the current novel (it's still being written). This is assuming a lot of stuff is skipped though. For example, the betrayal during the Wu family downfall actually leads to many latter events, but since that was skipped, I'm assuming the rest is too.

I read up to the latest book a few years ago. Some parts are fuzzy, but I can answer most questions. Keep in mind that there's a lot different in the drama.

The drama is a loosely adapted version of the novel. Other than some of the setting and some characters, they're basically two different works. Most notably, the novel isn't really comedy.