Watching NIF again and still manage to notice new things I overlooked before. lol This show is all kinds of awesome. Ep 20 is so delightful and satisfying...even if I do feel bad for Xiao Jingrui :(

I'm impressed at how detailed and complex the story is, how did the author/writer manage to create such outstanding connections with every arch of the story?

I think Xie Yu's downfall is the true beginning of the revenge...up to now it was cleaning the path for stormy Mei Changsu to pass and shake the empire's power balance. From now on everything related to the throne becomes related to him. And we also get to understand why he calls himself evil, poisonous, and cruel. I never understood since he only punished unruly and ruthless people before, but seeing that he was willing to sacrifice Jingrui because Xie Yu is just too evil shows to him nothing...not even friendship...can overshadow for one second what he came to do.
He's out not for blood but for worse than blood: death and annihilation for you can recover from shedding blood but not from being erased.

Nirvana in Fire is The Masterpiece! For me, nothing can even compare to this drama, ever... And Mei Changsu is the best character, because he isn't presented like some really good guy, who seeks for his revenge trying not to harm the ones around him, but as someone willing to do all that is necessary to achieve his goal, to bring his plan to end. And all he did wasn't for his own good, but for his family, for Prince Qi and for all his comrades. That's why, no matter who he harmed I always understood him and loved him. He is my favorite character ever!
And you're right, rewatching this drama is even better than watching it for the first time, all the angst is tempered down and you have time to notice little details that bring new great feelings about the show <3
I have only watched NiF once, and I've never rewatched a drama before, but this one I definitely plan to rewatch sometime. One reason is that I'm sure I will notice lots of things I overlooked before. With so many characters and so many connections between them, I did find some parts a little bit hard to follow at times - but that didn't stop me from seeing that it's a masterpiece! (Look, I even commented on this post even though I didn't just rewatch episode 20!)
I wouldn't say that it's the true beginning of the "revenge" (not sure I would say revenge, because it's not revenge that he is after in the end), more like it's the point where he has no choice but get out of the  shadows. He started his plan long before he even got into the capital. In the first episode it is implied that it is due to his machinations that the Crown Prince became Crown Prince. With Xie Yu downfall he is finally able to piece together the answer to the puzzle and has a clearer picture of who is the man behind the curtain, but his main goal was never to get that man, his goal was to restore the truth. 
Omg, I realize this discussion is so old, but I read what Juls posted and had to reply XD So I think a lot of people glide over this part cuz it's really confusing, but the first episode where Lin Chen was like: So the Sixth Prince really made it to Crown Prince...  If you read/listen carefully, Lin Chen (and also Prince Yu later later) is actually talking about the crown prince of Nan Chu(I think it's actually the guy that came with Nian Nian near Episode 20!), not JinLing, even though both crown princes were the sixth prince of their respective city.. easily confusing... So I don't think it was MeiChangSu who got the Crown Prince of Jin Lin into his position, especially cuz he didn't even know who the Divine Talent was until he opened the packet in the beginning. Just felt like I had to clear that up haha XD