pjmElle18

Well, it's still a phenomenal show nonetheless. Even though Huai An is not perfect, he does come up with remarkable strategies to enact his revenge in the present. Maybe flashbacks of him in action were part of the cut episodes so they had to make do with telling us instead of showing how he gained his reputation.

Yeah, I totally agree. I even commented way earlier that for Huai An to be so feared/respected/held in such awe by all these distinguished people, they must have seen him in action somewhere. Apart from just saying he was a genius kid, I was hoping they'd show us in action through some flashbacks what made him gain their fear/respect. We saw with YFS, him killing his comrades, and anyone he came across, in order to survive. For GuYu, because of his injuries(disability), the respect of his fellow soldiers, and his archery skills, we can somewhat deduce that he must have been a great General. Wuyang of course, he managed to seize power away from YFS. Tiemo king had a plan to seize Chang'an and his plan was still being carried out even though he was imprisoned.
So for Huai An, I wished they would show us something from his past, maybe a strategy he came up with while he was younger that his father utilized or something he did while he was a fugitive that shook up YFS and the Huben army so that I can truly feel that he's thee best strategist out there. Or even something from the county he was working in for seven years. I still think the character is great and has many nuances, but I wish to have seen something from his past that validated his title of best strategist.

I think they are the same person, the Eunich and Grand Preceptor. He could have changed his name when he became a eunich.

Another post that I saw on weibo.

https://weibo.com/7408272691/QjCjGAWA3

Many viewers were puzzled by how the rescue occurred in " The Twenty-Four Stratagems of Chang'an." Since this part of the drama is only narrated by the male protagonist, I'll make a reasonable deduction based on clues from the show. After his father was stabbed, the male protagonist, Liu Zhi (Xie Huai'an), knew he couldn't fully trust those around him, so he hid in the city for several days. While the Yan faction was busy eliminating the remaining three thousand members of Liu's faction and neglecting his young, forgetful sister, he secretly went to the Grand Preceptor's residence and escaped with his sister. During their escape, they might have been escorted by someone with ulterior motives like Uncle Long, or perhaps by the remaining members of Liu's faction. In any case, by the time Liu Zhi left the city, there was no one else in the Liu family who could protect the two children. However, from the storyline in the reed marshes, we know that there were still members of the Liu family who had benefited from his kindness, but they were all hidden.

The Grand Preceptor's punishment was being sent to the palace to become a eunuch, with Yan Fengshan euphemistically saying he hoped he could spend his remaining years peacefully in the palace. For Yan's faction, guarding against Liu Zhi, who is intelligent and has memories, is sufficient, as Liu Zhi has already demonstrated his exceptional intelligence. His three-year-old sister, who doesn't remember anything, isn't even on Liu's list of targets. What's there to guard against in a child who doesn't remember anything? Even if Xie Huai'an didn't take his sister away, Yan could raise her just like he raised Wang Pu. Even if his sister becomes an adult, she's merely a tool Yan uses to stab Xie Huai'an in the heart, a retaliatory act to force Xie Huai'an to admit defeat, not a genuine desire to kill her.

In a way, for me, I guess this also explains why YFS said as long as Huai An was alive, Chang'an will not fall. He knew about the Tiemo and their intentions to take over Chang'an, and he believed that as long as Huai An was still alive, Chang'an still had a fighting chance. Maybe it's also the reason he didn't immediately kill him. YFS seemed to be someone who saw power as protection and a means for survival. He was willing to betray anyone and align himself with the enemy if it meant gaining power that offered him security/safety/survival. Him rescuing abandoned kids and raising them helped him quench the killer instinct/bloodlust that had taken over him in that prison.

I saw this post the other day on weibo and decided to share it here.

https://weibo.com/1567560777/QjtklrJYR

#ChangAnTwentyFourStrategies#

The answer to why Xie Huai'an said Chang'an couldn't do without Gu Yu was revealed tonight…
The big boss isn't Yan Fengshan; there's someone behind Yan Fengshan, namely the Iron Mo people…
This mysterious figure, played by Wang Jinsong, is imprisoned by Yan Fengshan, but his true identity is the Iron Mo King…

With Yan Fengshan dead, the Iron Mo King immediately mobilizes all his men planted in Chang'an to launch a counterattack.
The carefully laid plan, meticulously crafted over many years, is beginning to close.
Gu Yu is arrested, forcing Xie Huai'an to make a decision…
Xie Huai'an's master, Zhu Zhilong, is also an Iron Mo person… He helps Xie Huai'an, also for the Iron Mo King's plan…
to have Yan Fengshan kill Liu Ziwen, and then have Xie Huai'an kill Yan Fengshan…
all to gain control of Chang'an.

The Iron Mo people were also behind Liu Ziwen's death.
Now, let's talk about Gu Yu...

Now we can understand why Xie Huai'an described Gu Yu that way...

Gu Yu and Yan Fengshan are not on the same level...

This also explains why Liu Ziwen designed the Tiger Guard and the Hidden Waterway...
because of the existence of the Ironclad Men.
The Ironclad Men coveted Chang'an's land and wanted to obtain more resources, believing that the feasible method was plunder.
Simple plundering was not enough, so the Ironclad Men learned cunning in their life in Chang'an.
Thus, Liu Ziwen's methods were copied by Wu Zhongheng.
The Tiger Guard was omnipresent, and so were the Ironclad Men's ambushes, only to be activated when necessary, and sometimes they remained unmoved for their entire lives.

For the Ironclad Men to obtain Chang'an, Liu Ziwen had to die, so they helped Yan Fengshan plot against him.
Yan Fengshan, for his own benefit, joined forces with the Ironclad Men, and of course, he was aware of their ultimate goal. He imprisoned Wu Zhongheng, avoiding him but not daring to kill him.
Yan Fengshan used the Ironclad Men to obtain the Tiger Guard and thus seize power, ultimately creating a delicate balance. This balance was then broken by Xiao Wuyang.
In the end, the sins Yan Fengshan committed in his pursuit of power for personal gain came back to haunt him.
Xie Huai'an entered the city to exact revenge.

Why did Xie Huai'an say he wanted to destroy the Tiger Guard led by Yan Fengshan? Because the Tiger Guard had been used as a tool by Yan Fengshan, and its reputation was ruined.
The Ironclad Men were partly responsible for this. Killing Yan Fengshan was possible, destroying the Tiger Guard was also acceptable, but ultimately, the balance in Chang'an needed to be stabilized by another force.
This person was Gu Yu, the ballast.

Gu Yu, true to his name, possessed noble and pure character. He was very clear about what he was doing, cooperating with Xiao Wuyang to minimize the impact of war on the people of Chang'an,
while also engaging in a power struggle with Xiao Wuyang to reduce bloodshed.
Most importantly, after Yan Fengshan regained power, his first thought wasn't to confront Yan Fengshan, but to immediately return to Baiwenhu in the north and defend the border against the Tie Mo.

Gu Yu knew the purpose of every step he took, and Xie Huai'an knew it too.
That's why he said Chang'an couldn't be without Gu Yu.
But Wu Zhongheng also knew. The Tie Mo people surrounded Gu Yu's men, preventing him from returning to Baiwenhu.
Gu Yu knew this too; he had made the worst-case scenario plan, and at the same time, he trusted the most trustworthy person, Xie Huai'an.

At this point, for both of them, life and death were no longer the most crucial issue.
The key was whether they could stop the Tie Mo people before they died.
Otherwise, they would have failed their lifelong ideals and goals.

Gu Yu's greatest pain was that anyone could have found Bai Tou'er, but he hadn't.
In the end, he still had to entrust everything to Bai Tou'er, Xie Huai'an.
And he knew that Xie Huai'an, at this moment, dared to take something from his stomach. Xie Huai'an no longer cared about his own life or death, let alone Gu Yu's.
He had underestimated Bai Tou'er; after all, all his family was dead, leaving only his friends.
If there was anyone in the world Bai Tou'er couldn't abandon, it was Gu Yu.

He needed Gu Yu not just as a friend, but as his best ally.
Unfortunately, the current opponent wasn't Yan Fengshan, but someone Yan Fengshan had brought in for his own selfish desires—Wu Zhongheng, the Iron King, several times more terrifying than Yan Fengshan.

Gu Yu had gone first, leaving the rest to Xie Huai'an.
Bai Tou'er also had Iron Kings among his men; this time, he was truly in grave danger…

That was Han Ziling's cover as Li San Geng. Li San Geng was supposed to be an experienced trash collector, that was why he was ultimately hired to work at Hidden Soldier Valley. When he told Wang Pu he was a trash collector for 7 years, it was just a cover, it didn't mean he had been in HSV for 7 years. I think he entered Hidden Soldier Valley around the time Huai An was summoned to go to Chang'an to meet the emperor.

Yep. But it's only minus one army compared to the possibility of facing the Huben army, armies of the four generals, and GuYu's army since they didn't know where GuYu was and if he was still alive and had contact with his army.

(But now I'm thinking, what if Wuyang and GuYu had died that day when they fought against YFS's people after the botched assassination attempt of YFS? Would their armies have been forced to serve the new emperor under YFS? How would the Tiemo have proceeded with their plans of taking over Chang'an if YFS now had full military control? Just a thought of the other possible scenarios that could have happened in this drama.)

True, things would have been much easier if they had just killed the Wuyang while they had the chance.
But also, at that time, YFS was the one in charge of Chang'an and had placed his own emperor on the throne, albeit a fake one. So even if they killed Wuyang or Wenjing(who was considered a mere puppet anyways), they still had the Huben army to deal with, along with the army of the four commanders who were all the more ready to defect to YFS. If they killed Wuyang/Wenjing prematurely, Huai An probably wouldn't have killed YFS at that time. He might have chosen to work together with him to defeat the Tiemo and protect Chang'an and then killed him afterwards.

I'll have to go back and watch the episodes again to be sure, but I think at that time, they didn't know whether GuYu was still alive or not. So Uncle Long had to stick to the plan because what if GuYu was still alive and he prematurely exposed the plan of the Tiemo by capturing/killing the brothers? Gu Yu could then mobilise his and Wuyang's army and attack the Tiemo and defeat them, and all their years of careful planning would have been in vain. Uncle Long thought everything was going well because Wuyang was in a coma-like state and couldn't do anything. I think their biggest threat was Wuyang because of his army, and not necessarily the deposed emperor.
As for the imprisoned king, my speculation is that they probably could have freed him a long time ago, but they wanted Chang'an to think the Tiemo nation was no longer a threat because they held their strongest leader/strategist prisoner. They had no idea that a plan was already in motion to infiltrate Chang'an for a future takeover. Their king was kept safe and healthy while they orchestrated things on the outside.

💪🎉🔥🎉🔥🥳
Congratulations to Cheng Yi and the rest of the amazing team🥳!

While in the carriage, Huai An said to Uncle Long that he assumes the reason he was taking him to the Tiemo king was because they lost Wuyang. He said Wuyang didn't want anyone to know he had woken up yet. Wuyang must have escaped after deposed emperor Wenjing left to meet with the Tiemo envoy. The king probably thinks Huai An must know where Wuyang, and Wenjing, is and maybe that's why he wanted to see him.
Yan Feng Shan used the Tiemo to kill Huai An's father back in the day and imprisoned their king, and now the Tiemo used Huai An to kill YFS and free their king. I think the Tiemo king was freed after YFS was killed.

Cheng Yi's acting is on par with the rest of the outstanding cast. There's nothing lackluster about his performance in this drama, or in his other dramas. Everyone, from the screenwriter, director, cinematography, actors(Cheng Yi included)etc., did a great job.

Which ending are you talking about because it hasn't ended yet?? There's still 8 episodes to go and it actually got better. This is a drama that gets better with each episode.

My thinking is that, Huai An must have informed Zhang Mo's father about Zhang Mo's death, and it must have been his plan to have the deposed emperor work for him. Huai An must have known Wenjing was working for the father of his murdered pageboy when he visited the deposed emperor while he was working. Otherwise, how did Zhang Mo's father know that Zhang Mo was dead when all along the deposed emperor has been writing fake letters to his family pretending he was still alive and hustling for them in the city?
Maybe the meeting between the two and him working there was orchestrated by Huai An in order to finally get Wenjing to fully understand the weight of what he did, plus to also emotionally manipulate/motivate him to risk his own life for his own country so that Zhang Mo's sacrifice of giving him his face, and his ultimate death, would not be in vain.

He said, "He is like you."

Yep. Because if we go by these "stats" to determine which dramas to watch, we would miss out on many great dramas who never met the "required standards" of what constitutes a hit drama. I've watched some dramas that were considered popular hits but I never enjoyed them, while I've enjoyed those that would be considered "flops" based on stats.
For me, I agree with you that good storyline, execution, chemistry, and good delivery are what makes a series great.
Also, what I'm proud of with Cheng Yi is that he got his success/popularity solely for his acting abilities. He has a proven track record of his dedication to his roles and ensuring he does his characters justice in delivering the best performance. He has gained the respect of many people. Plus, I love that he doesn't dwell on the negative and takes criticism well. He sees it as a way to better himself even more so that he can deliver even amazing performances. He has my respect.

I saw this post on weibo and 👍.

"So, Xie Huai'an was retaliating in kind, directly targeting Wang Pu, right?
Wang Pu was extremely arrogant, thinking that going to the appointment would allow him to capture Xie Huai'an and claim credit. His eagerness to win blinded him, making him vulnerable to Xie Huai'an's trap. By the time he realized he'd fallen for it, it was too late.
Yan Fengshan orchestrated Bai Wan to learn about her true parentage, causing his sister to die in front of Xie Huai'an. So, Xie Huai'an used the same method in the same place to reveal Wang Pu's true parentage, a psychological maneuver that shattered Wang Pu's faith, leading him to choose to eat the poisoned dumplings and purple clay teapot, forcing Yan Fengshan to witness his adopted son's death before his own eyes. Wang Pu thought that returning to face death would allow him to catch Xie Huai'an in return, but he didn't expect Xie
Huai'an to be even more cunning, having already planned everything! Using someone else's methods against them, killing them by destroying their spirit—Xie Huai'an was brilliant, so satisfying to watch.
The confrontation between Xie Huai'an and Yang Chuhao (played by Han Tongsheng) was incredibly enjoyable, a powerful performance from both the young actor Cheng Yi and the veteran actor. I watched this part while pulling my hair out – it was absolutely brilliant! A true clash of titans, the actors were evenly matched, and it was so thrilling for the audience! The plot, dialogue, and acting were simply superb; it gave me goosebumps.
Tonight, I'm completely captivated by "The Twenty-Four Strategies of Chang'an" again. The plot, the acting, the twists and turns – you can't guess what's going on! Is this really a Chinese production? It's so enjoyable to watch, each episode is more intense than the last! #TheTwentyFourStrategiesofChangAn#"

Link: https://weibo.com/1971506011/Qj0E20Lrq

Plus, the drama is also doing very well on CCTV 8 between 21:30 - 23:00, which I don't think is the prime time slot, but I could be mistaken. It has already entered top 20 of Youku's annual best-selling drama list of 2025 in less than 6 days with 14 more episodes to go at close to 30 million. I don't know how it works, but the drama has potential to even reach the top 10 on Youku's annual list. With the limited/minimal exposure this drama is getting, I think it is actually doing very well. And I also think there is a lot of information that investors/platforms have access to and are privy to that fans may not be aware of, and this information influences their decisions. Brands wouldn't invest so much in a drama that's not "performing well". While data seems to be very important to gauge one's success and popularity in the Chinese entertainment industry, I don't think us fans should allow this to affect our enjoyment of the dramas of our fave actors/actresses, busy worrying about stats.

Yeah, and YFS is not tall. He is on the smaller side, so the description on the pass also fitted Bai Wan perfectly.

I'm curious to know how they switched places though, and why Bai Wan agreed.

As for Huai An, I do agree that he really was a bit careless about his sister's safety, especially as things were starting to escalate very quickly and lives were being lost. Maybe he thought since the Huben were underground, and did not know Bai Wan was his blood sister, she'll be safe once she reunited with her adoptive family. Or maybe he thought they'll see her as someone very important to him if he sent her out with protection, even if it's undercover protection🤷‍♀️? But either way, he badly underestimated YFS's reach, even in hiding.