The Princess Wei Young

....it’s Wei leng fault... give her holy water

All was Wei leng fault... please give her holy water to finally scatter bad luck and stop attracting all the bad people intentions around her.

Brillant series and interprétations, a deluxe team of actors!

Some aspects:
1. The script could deserve extra considération, another approach on and a more expressed and veemente condamnation of domestic violence!
2. Also a higher percentage of more emancipated, educated women in the series would have been highly welcomed, despite the fact that during ages that WAS not the situation.;
3. And most woman are being protracted, all the time, as thesey, divisive, sordic, submissive and twisted beings.
Even if the overall objective is to add feelings, dynamisme, to facilitates a commercial drama plot, Its extent might be going a bit too far.

ALL the above said: Prince Ann is by far the most interesting character! Deserved a better script development, a true opportunity, to blossom despite ALL the adversities.

Even if this is a historical drama, it is also a fictional drama. Therefore why not enrich it by adding some other parfums. Ex. At a given moment situations become recurrent if not repetitive. For almost 40;episodes there is the over presence of our Heroine being accused of all that went Rong in both heavens and earth, with a significant part taking place in the manor and on the prison and on palace laundry department....

with all the above said, i did enjoy, the story, the plot and all the actors. Good entertainment!

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Binged it in 3 days!

I'm not really into historical dramas but after watching Eternal love and The eternal love I decided to give more historical dramas a chance since those two were really good, and I'm extremely glad I did. This drama had me roped in from episode one. It was addictive. It does, however, have a lot of political stuff which basically dictates everything but that just adds in to make it that much greater. I would definitely recommend especially if you're new to the historical drama genre. Be warned however that there are a lot of downs but still not extremely depressing.

I enjoyed every character...even the evil ones that at times I even found myself rooting for them because in some ways they were relatable lol. I only cried twice. Happy watching!

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The Fearless, Good Natured & Quick-Witted Main Leads + Unending Plotting & Scheming in a Harem.

Where do I even start with?... This drama could honestly be better if they toned down a little bit on the unending plotting and scheming that resulted to some of them getting repetitive and irritating. It went on and on to the point where it feels like they spent 85% of the story on it and that's really disappointing cause I feel like they could've done more and better with its 54 episodes in comparison to what it has right now.

Honestly, the plotting and scheming weren't bad at all instead it was crafty and intelligent. However, anything 'too much is bad' and that's what made me raise my brow a little; but overall it was great.

Also, I love how versatile they're in changing the mood of the scenes; They go from being intense to mellow in literally a second and that really helps in lighting up the mood a lot of times. Aside from that, one thing that made this drama lighter and fun are the side story of Ming De X Tuoba Di as we as Cheng De X Jun Tao. They saved the viewers and the drama from its maximum distress and grief countless of times.

Another thing I wanna mention is the horrendous styling of Wei Young and Jun Tao on the first episode. it almost ruin my taste and expectation of the drama; thank god they improved and redeemed theirselves afterwards. Also the ridiculous and clichè plots has left some lingering distate on my mouth. I mean, how could they put it like that? who the hell incorporated them in this? cause I badly wanna talk and scold them for it. This could've been great if only the writers' tried harder in brainstorming better ideas to make the story more interesting and 'new' story wise.

Lastly, fighting scenes are extremely lacking and majority of them are bad. The only good ones are with Chuyan Nan and Jun Tao while the rest are trash and full of camera works.+ OVER DUBBING sucks! It was the worst! ><

Story - 9.0, It could've been better if they lessen the excessive plotting and scheming but even with it the story overall is good. It did reach a point where it started to get really irritating but I would never say it's bad. It was cunning and crafty well done however improvements can still be applied in a lot of areas. + The ending is just Great! It may not be the best conclusion to a story but it was satisfying and reasonable.

Acting/Cast - 10, Stellar!! Luo Jin is automatically a 10 over 10 and no one really did badly overall. I'm also glad to know that the main leads has acted on multiple projects before and I guess that helped out so much with their chemistry. Hell! They're even married in real life and that made me even thrilled in watching in. — I'm extremely satisfied and really entertained with each one of their performances.

Music - 10, Great use of ballad and mellow music. Ghad, i'm in love with every songs used on this drama. I have another batch of great music added on my playlist to listen to. Really love it <3

Rewatch Value - 9.5, It surely have its bad sides but I think that's not a heavy reason for me to slander this drama in any means possible. I was well entertained and fascinated all throughout the drama and that's what really matters to me. I would still watch it again if given a chance for sure.

Overall - 9.5, This drama was not perfect. It wasn't even bad and definitely better than 'decent'. It just got some minor plot issues but aside from them it is really good. I contemplated a lot whether to give it a 9.0 or 9.5 but at the end this drama just fallback in one or two particular area and the rest are really great so this rating is just enough and deserving I'd say.

If you find my review helpful please let me know

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How much do you like Cinderella stories?

Princess Weiyoung is determined to seek revenge for the killing of her entire family/clan. But what happens when she falls for the enemy?

I really liked the premise of this story - but at 23 episodes in - it got too repetitive. Princess Weiyong's 'stepfamily' abuse her and undercut her at every turn in incredibly obvious ways. Frankly, almost every character is out to get her.

The brave but bumbling love interest hurts as much as he helps. He can't understand that Princess Weiyong's family are abusive and that his own family is conspiring against them.

I liked that Princess Weiyoung rescues herself because everyone around her is incompetent...but it wasn't like her rescues were impressive or unique.

I grade on other criteria:

Complex Themes - 5
The only person who can rescue you is you. Judge people based on their actions not based on their family or reputation.
Character Growth -3
None that really stuck with me. Perhaps there is a twist later that changes the two main characters. I didn't get there. 3 points because the character Li Changru was really intriguing, complex, and the actress was able to show the layers of the character really well.
Nuanced Women -3
Li Changru is a real fascinating character, but the rest are Cinderella story caricatures.
Cinematography/Production Values - 6
Every once in awhile, there will be a really gorgeous cinematic take, but generally the costumes, makeup and hair look a bit garish and cheap. Cinematography is mostly serviceable - just captures long shots and reaction shots.

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✒ ⚜️ Where There's a Wei There's a Will ⛩️ °8° °excellent°

When she was born the sun poked through the clouds. It was a good omen. Daughter to King Hexi, Xin Er was born to royalty. She was loved and adored.

Li “Wei” Young was born in February. She's a jinx. She must die, says Madam, her evil stepmother. Wei's mother was the foot washer woman, and Madam will never forgive her for diverting her husband's eyes. Wei was raised by a modest family in the countryside. Before she arrives at the Li household, Madam intends to have her murdered.

Madam's murderous intent reaches far beyond Wei, though. She plotted the murder of King Hexi's whole family by framing him for treason. Xin Er escaped but was injured and dying. Wei took her home and nursed her back to health. Wei saved her. The two women have some time together while Xin recuperates. When Wei is murdered, Xin Er is with her and fights back. She manages to kill the assassin and hide the body. She knows the Li family is behind multiple intrigues and deaths; now they're trying to kill one of their own daughters! The woman who raised Wei is terrified that she'll be blamed for Wei's death, so they concoct a plot to replace the deceased Wei with Xin Er. The real Weiyoung is gone. Xin Er is marked for death and must hide. Xin Er was already determined to seek Justice for her own family. Now she wants justice for her savior, Wei, as well. What better WAY than to be WEI and watch the Lis while right in their household?

Now there's 2 daughters in the Li residence and 2 female cousins. Madam will make sure that HER daughter, the legendary beauty Chang Le, gets all the benefits, though. TPW is a 2016 release that is rated 8.3 on MAL. It is 1 season consisting of 54 45-minute episodes. I'll get this out of the way here: TPW is great, but falls short of being the masterpiece that The Rebel Princess-8.5 or Stories from Yanxi Palace-10 is. I can heartily recommend it, but when stacked up against the greats, like Rise of Phoenixes-9.5, it takes foot-washer status. It is still worth watching.

Madam is shocked that Wei made it to the house alive. When she didn't hear back from the first assassin, she sent more to set fire to the inn where Wei was staying. Thankfully, a kind stranger, Tuo Ba “Jun” (Luo Jin of The Long River & Three Kingdoms, who looks like he's Elon Musk's handsome little brother) saves her life ~ quite heroically. This actor is another superb Chinese romantic ML. His looks are fine, no complaints, but it's his voice, presence, and delivery that turn him into a nice package. He even looks manly in lace. One of his outfits is trimmed in black lace and it's gorgeous.

As Madam gets to know Wei a little better, she despises her. This is not a woman who acts like a humble maiden raised in the countryside! Wei has dignity, presence, a way with words, and self-respect. Madam concocts another plot to ensure Wei's death: She's poisoned and dumped for dead and the mountains. Fate brings Jun to her once again. He saves her life and nurses her back to health. He's called home suddenly, so he leaves Wei a letter requesting that she meet him at a certain place & time, but the letter is lost and Wei never receives it. She heads back home because she still has a mission; this is one brave woman. The Li house is in a state of excitement. The youngest Prince has returned home! Chang Le can hardly contain herself. She's determined to marry him. They're all invited to the banquet that his mother is holding. Even the illegitimate daughter, Weiyoung, is invited.

The king has 3 top candidates for the next crown prince: The two oldest princes and Jun, the son of the deceased crown prince. Pressure is rising on the king to make a choice. The king also has a daughter who loves to parade as a prince: Chen Yu Qi plays Tuo Ba Di. This actress is pure gold. I love her. She went on from her stellar performance here to star in Ashes of Love-6.4, which, it would appear, I didn't like as much as anybody else did, but she really shines in Heavenly Sword and Dragon Slaying Sabre-9. At the same time, the Li residence has females galore. They also have cousin, Liang Li Minde (Liang Zhen Lun from Ordinary Person Character), but only the Princess pays him any mind - and that's to torture him. The oldest Li and the heir is brother Li Min Feng (Nan Fu Long from Arsenal Military Academy) but he's an idiot, and no one wants to hang with him.

Visits, dinners, outings, sacred journeys, mournings, celebrations… It seems there's always a reason for the princes to be around the Li women. Wei wants to hate Jun, he's the son of the emperor who ordered her father killed, afterall. She tries to be cold with him, but even when he's tempted to give up, he just keeps coming back for more. Wei can't keep up the ACT much longer. Her feelings keep growing.

In the meantime, Madam is working her black magic. Wei prevails in the first couple rounds, so Madam wants her dead all the more. The tactics get more harsh. Wei is in constant peril. Chang Le could practically kill her with looks alone. Prince Jun only has eyes for Wei, so Chang Le's eyes are also laser focused on Wei.

From there it's one move after another. There's a bunch of princes and Li women and they are of a similar age, so they are checking eachother out and falling in love, though it's not always mutual. Princes, plural, means there will be a fight for the throne - the moms get involved in that. All the while, Chang Le and her mother just can't stop. Then another party, who had seemed to be a friend, jumps in and creates havoc.

Tiffany Tang (Blossoms Shanghai, My Sunshine-6.5) is “Wei” / Xin Er. I'm not sure why I've often felt on-the-fence about her. It may come down to her voice being slightly thin and nasally. She does a very solid emotional scene in a later episode. Her acting is fine - high average, maybe better? There is this lightweight feel about her. I don't dislike her at all, but this is the second feature in which I've seen her, and something, yet unidentified, is nagging at me. Luo Jin is a good romantic male lead. His earthy voice is a rich umber. We believe his attraction to her. He maintains a sense of humor, or lighthearted air about him.

Vanness Wu portrays prince Tuo Ba Yu. This actor has some strange unexplainable likability factor. I kept liking him despite the fact that he attempted to kill a bunch of innocent people rather than grant them a refuge early in the show. I also continued to like him a little despite the fact that I know he's up to no good. Ultimately, he continues to make poor choices and continues a downhill skid. He teaches one character to be a strangler vine. Act innocent, take nourishment and slowly grow to devour the host. He didn't explain that it's a self-strangler vine. He's a romantic ML in Autumn's Concerto-7.2, and he's surprisingly good. He starts toxic - this actor seems natural in such a role, but he comes around. Sadly, AC starts great but as the ML improves, the show declines and the 2nd half is not nearly as good as the first. Mao Xiao Tong (Love O2O-6.8 - the show, Reunion: The Sound of the Providence S2) plays Li Chang Ru. The schtick is that she isn't nearly as pretty as Chang Le, but she really is. She's gorgeous.

Lee Hsin Ai (1931 Love Story) is Li Chang Le, the ultimate mean girl. She is stunningly gorgeous. And she is a self-absorbed Antoinetta. She wants what she wants and when she doesn't get what she wants she wants to go scorched earth on everything. She's not even that bright, but she still manages to do lots of damage. No matter how evil this character is, I loved the sound of the actress's voice. That's impressive.

Back to prince-ss Tuo Ba Di. She's the feisty type who shows love by way of pulling braids, shooting arrows at heads, and other abuse. Minde is /hit/. He's also utterly clueless. He still thinks the princess is a prince. If one watches Chinese dramas, one gets used to the way a woman can dress up as a man merely by changing her hairstyle or putting on a hat. They're always still so laughably and obviously female. It's something the audience is expected to roll with. When the princess is missing Minde, she starts yelling at him and threatening him in her head. She's intermittently threatening to beat him up and crying. Minde has a stunning emotional scene in episode 21. It's moving. He's quite the fighter too. He gets some of the best action scenes. The Director is Li Hui Zhu (Warm on a Cold Night) and the screenwriter is Cheng Ting Yu (The Sword and the Brocade-8.6).

As for a theme, Chinese historical features that involve palace intrigues have the common threads of pride and fear. “We can only be safe if we are victorious in the end,” Jun’s mother asserts. She's the crown princess and that's how she feels. It's very busy. So many plots. There's an immodest number of deaths. There's 4 weddings (one never got out of the planning stage) and too many funerals. Don't get too attached to anyone. A death or two in the later episodes made me very sad. Always watch the quiet ones.

The art of the show is very grand. The costumes are marvelous. Changle's wedding headdress is obnoxiously over-compensating and it suits the situation. Ep30 has a big battle scene in which 1000s of soldiers approach the old city. The music is good. The sets are gorgeous. The expansive halls lined with lacquered wood are so regal. I decided to ask an AI search engine about the process by which they produced lacquer. It's much more labor intensive than I realized.

“Ancient Chinese lacquer was made primarily from the sap of the lacquer tree (Toxicodendron vernicifluum), a process refined over millennia… The sap, called urushi, was collected by making incisions in the bark of lacquer trees, typically in summer when sap flow was strongest. Trees needed to be at least 10–15 years old, and only small amounts (about 200–300 grams per tree) could be harvested before the tree was exhausted… The raw sap, a grayish-white emulsion, was filtered to remove impurities like bark or debris. It was then stirred and heated gently (below 40°C) to evaporate excess water, creating a smooth, viscous lacquer. Sometimes, pigments like cinnabar (red) or carbon black were added for color… Lacquer was applied in thin layers to a substrate, usually wood, but also bamboo, cloth, or metal. Each layer (often 20–30 per object) was brushed on meticulously, requiring a dust-free environment and high humidity (70–80%) to cure properly. Each layer took days to harden through a chemical process called oxidative polymerization, triggered by the enzyme laccase in the sap… After each layer dried, it was polished with fine abrasives like charcoal or whetstone to achieve a glossy finish. The process was repeated for durability and depth, sometimes taking months for high-quality pieces...” It goes on. I have appreciation for these historical sets.

In the opening episodes it's obvious that this story is well written. The layout, the plot, the characters, and the dialogue are all smart. It does follow a familiar template, and it does wander too much. It is bittersweet. So is life. Overall, it's a worthy watch.


QUOTES🗣

Hatred often becomes the chains that pen us down.

Acting on impulse only brings failure.


IMHO〰🖍

📣8 📝8 🎭8.4 💓7 🦋5.5 🎨9 🎵/🔊8 🔚6.5 🤗7 ▪ 🌞4.5 ⚡6 😅2.5 😭4 😱2 😯3 🤢4 🤔5 💤0

Shazams:
天若有情 (電視劇《錦繡未央》主題曲), by A-Lin


Age 11+ Language: @$$hole ×1, b!+ch ×1; Rated - Teens 13 or older


Re-📺? The future is Hard to see





In order of ~lite & trite~ to ~heavy & serious~ you may also like:

🎎 -
The Sleepless Princess 9.1;
The Romance of Tiger and Rose 9.8;
Overlord 8.4,
Legend of the two sisters in chaos-7.7 (the ending is bittersweet),
Under the Power 8.6,
The Princess Royal-8.3,
The Rebel Princess 9.1,
The Sword and the Brocade 8.6 (in ancient Chinese opera style),
Ruyi's Royal love in the palace (episodes 1 - 49 are a 9.3. While looking up it's historical accuracy, I learned how heartbreaking the rest of the show is. It's over 80 episodes, so that's a hella-lotta hurt. I am not up for it now, so I stopped at episode 49, which is a perfect ending).
The Rise of Phoenixes 9


🔮🐉-
Love Between Fairy & Devil 8.9;
Douluo Continent 9.4;
Handsome Siblings 8.7;
Ancient Love Poetry 8.6;
Eternal Love Of dream-7.4 20
Love and Redemption 10

⚡/😱/🚀 -
House of Flying Daggers-8.5 04
Heavenly Sword and Dragon Slaying Saber 9-Kung-fu!;
Bloody Romance-7.3 18


💘 -
Romance junkies only: Accidentally in Love-6.5 ‘18 B-level scripting, acting, and directing, but still fun/strangely relaxing to watch,
Well-Intended Love-7.5 Rom-porn - extra points for the dopamine but many object to an outrageous stunt the ML pulls,
Boss & Me-7
When I Fly Towards You-7.8,
You are my destiny-6.8 cute and sweet and 1/2 padding,
Meteor Garden-7.4 - 70% flowing 30% dragging and BOF is better,
Hidden Love-7.8

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Devastating Majesty

I remember back in 2021–2022, when I was watching a wave of then‑airing dramas, I caught the first episode of this one and was genuinely impressed. The foretelling, direction, and script were strong. The plot moved quickly, though I often wished the editing and dialogue delivery were tightened—sped up by about 0.5x. The slower pacing did build tension and weight, driving my curiosity about what would happen next, but I personally would have preferred a sharper rhythm.

I picked the show up again last December, and now, even in September, I find it hard to finish. Toward the end, I had to watch at 1.25x or even 1.5x speed to make it feel worthwhile. The plot is undeniably complex and engaging, but centering everything around Wei Young became predictable and exhausting. Her growth was framed in a way that felt closer to Korean makjang—designed to provoke anger rather than deepen character. That’s one way to involve viewers, but it doesn’t always have to orbit Wei Young alone.

The emperor was a useless, foolish figure, but the rest of the characters were well‑written. Chang Le and Chang Ru, with their narcissistic streaks, were fascinating—cruel, ruthless, and compelling. I often wished Wei Young herself had been written with that same ambition and edge. Instead, she resigned herself to fate, scheming only in defense, never in offense. Villains fought for their desires but failed, while Wei Young was carried by destiny to the throne. I would have preferred her as a calculating, ambitious schemer, like Zhen Huan or Wu Zetian. At the very least, she should have reigned as empress for several episodes before being made dowager in the finale. That abrupt transition was disappointing.

Still, the intricacy of the plot cannot be denied. For instance, when Li Min De became an imperial guard and harbored feelings for Wei Young, I expected him to rise as one of her valiant generals once she became empress. But that thread was left unrealized. Later, I learned the drama wasn’t adapted from Feng Empress as I had assumed, but from a web novel. In that version, Wei Young is the daughter of a maid. After helping Taoba Jun ascend the throne, she discovers his affair with Chang Le and is killed after marriage. Reborn as her 13‑year‑old self, she extracts ruthless revenge—crippling Taoba Jun’s claim to the throne, disfiguring Chang Le, massacring the Chiyun family, and ultimately marrying Li Min De, the Rouran prince, to become Empress of Rouran. That storyline sounds far more compelling.

Even so, I was deeply involved with the drama. Lou Jin and Tang Yan carried it, and Tang Yan’s smile melted my heart. Her bearing as Empress Dowager reminded me of Legend of Xiao Chuo, where I found the plot stronger. In the end, though, this drama felt more like a nightly soap opera—something aunties and uncles would watch over dinner. Intricate, engaging, but not quite enough for me.

Weirdly, I find myself missing Chang Le too. The drama made efficient use of every character, weaving them into the story so seamlessly that—even when they were annoying—I didn’t mind. Toward the end, though, I lost patience. The final episode was strong: Tang Yan, with her phoenix eyes and empress bearing, radiated authority, while Lou Jin embodied a believable emperor. Yet I still longed to see Wei Young’s dominant presence in court as Empress Dowager.

In the end, I was reminded of what the abbot said at the beginning—that a phoenix must endure the pain of burning or dying before it can rise from the ashes and soar to the sky. For me, that prophecy manifested when Wei Young became Empress Dowager. In her eyes, I saw a phoenix transformed: a woman who had lost everything, even herself, yet finally ascended to the heavens, commanding the world with quiet, devastating majesty.

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Loved it

Historical dramas are definitely my thing, and this was the second Chinese drama I ever watched. I loved how strong the female lead was, and how the show took a very feminist angle! While pursuing romance, the female lead also seeks to enact revenge. Weiyoung is smart, witty and driven. So, she becomes the empress in the end,

I also loved the male lead, and his devotion to the female lead. It helps that the couple are married in real life, because their chemistry is insane. I cried so much at the ending, the villains did not give them a chance to have a happy life at all.

Now onto the villains, as much as I hate Changle and Changru, they were awesome villains to watch. They were determined to get what they wanted no matter who they hurt. It made for an entertaining show.

The only part of the show I didn’t like was the second male lead, I felt nothing for him, and I didn’t like his braids!

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This is the first time I have watched a drama with both Tiffany Tang and Luo Jin as leads,and I must say it was impressive.
It can be cited as a political drama with the female lead caught in a soup.Tiffany Tang,plays the role of Princess Weiyoung,whose family gets killed ruthlessly when she was Princess Xun er,and through a series of changes becomes Weiyoung.Here she meets Tuoba Jun,played by Luo Jin and both of them get entangled in various struggles,problems and difficulties.
Well,the drama is quite interesting.Though there may be some boring or dragging moments,it makes you watch it till the end.
I liked the acting of Luo Jin very much and Tiffany Tang was also good in her role.
The villains were vicious in nature and always try to create problems for Weiyoung and Tuoba Jun.This scheming process may become tiresome few times,but it is okay to watch it.
The costumes were good,sets and locations were also good.All the other actors were good too.Finally,it is a decent watch.

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Second time watching and it did not hold up to scrutiny

Princess Wei Young was the second C drama I watched and I suspect the novelty of something other than Hollywood or franchise movies made this seem much more interesting than it actually is otherwise I wouldn't have given in to nostalgia and chosen to watch it again. First off, the lead characters were insufferable and whoever chose to have a whiny arse childish hero and a martyr complex heroine did us a disservice. By the time we reached the 25th episode most of the characteristics that I liked about the leads were reduced to them being/doing/speaking irrationally.

What the heck happened to Tuoba Jun and Wei Young? The initial 10 stars is now reduced to 3.5.

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