The Rise of Ning (2024)

A PLEASANT SURPRISE!!!!

"Rise of Ning" is a captivating historical drama that tells the story of Yining, a girl who returns home after being cast away by her father as punishment. Upon her return, she navigates the complexities of her family relationships and the intricate politics surrounding them. The drama delves into the mysteries of her mother's death and the secrets of her birth, adding layers to the narrative.

As Yining reconnects with her family, she encounters a man who is intricately linked to her past and is also ostracized due to his origins. This relationship adds depth to the story, as both characters work together to confront the adversities posed by their family dynamics. The series primarily focuses on the various family relationships and the political intrigue within them, showcasing how the female and male leads support each other in their individual battles.

I initially watched this drama for the cast, particularly Ren Min, who portrays the female lead. I have admired her work in various projects before. Similarly, I was drawn to Zhang Wanyi, the male lead, who I had previously seen in the historical drama "Are You the One." However, beyond the impressive casting, I found myself falling in love with the story's buildup and development.

The narrative, centered around family, adversities, and complicated relationships, is both intriguing and engaging. The writer skillfully navigates potential pitfalls in the plot, ensuring that the story remains cohesive and captivating. Although the pacing starts off a bit slow, it serves as an essential part of the overall buildup, ultimately keeping me entertained and invested in the characters' journeys.

Given that this drama revolves around family politics, one might expect it to lean heavily into darker themes. However, despite its deep and heavy plot, "Rise of Ning" manages to maintain a light and relaxing tone, which I found refreshing.

One of the standout aspects of the series is the way its characters are written, particularly the main leads. The female lead is portrayed as quick-witted, smart, and emotionally and mentally strong. While she may not be physically powerful, her vulnerability makes her relatable and human. I loved how she embodies both strength and vulnerability; she isn't a warrior and doesn't rely on physical combat but instead uses her intelligence to navigate various challenges. She also assists the male lead in overcoming his own obstacles.

On the other hand, the male lead is characterized by his calm and gentle demeanor, combined with a sharp intellect. He possesses a tough side that emerges only when provoked, which I admired. Together, these two characters shine throughout the series. For the first time, I felt that neither lead overshadowed the other; instead, they both stood out in their own right, complementing each other beautifully. Their dynamic as a team was incredible, and I loved their teamwork.

Additionally, the supporting characters were interesting and added depth to the story. This drama features a diverse cast, and whether good or bad, each character contributed to making the show even more engaging.

The character development and the balance between the leads created a captivating viewing experience. It's great to see a drama that successfully highlights the strengths and vulnerabilities of its characters while keeping the tone enjoyable.....

The relationship between the leads is developed in a slow yet delicate manner, considering they start off as a sort of family and then evolve into something more. I love how they drew that line; as family, their bond was portrayed in a pure and heartwarming way, allowing the audience to feel the fondness between them. When they transitioned into lovers, it was a simple yet profound change. The shift was nothing grand but rather subtle, with each step taken carefully, which I appreciated a lot.

The chemistry between the leads was beautiful to watch. Their interactions made me giggle, and I adored seeing them together—both as supportive family members and as romantic partners. It was a beautiful, delicate, and heartwarming relationship that felt comfortable.

What stood out to me was the equality in their relationship. The writer made a conscious effort to avoid misunderstandings between them by emphasizing communication. This, combined with the carefully built trust, made their bond even stronger. He was always willing to protect her, even when she didn’t ask for it, and she was equally willing to help him out. Their overall dynamic was amazing to watch.

They don’t delve into the romantic aspect until later in the series, but the buildup of their relationship was so well done that the transition felt smooth.

I also loved how they inserted moments of comedy here and there, which lightened the mood even more. This balance made the series not only engaging but also enjoyable to watch!

The ending was beautiful, I love how they tied the knots and everything felt pretty much sorted out....this drama was such a wonderful experience..from a personal view and perspective...I loved every moment of it and actually needed more..but it was wrapped up beautifully.

Overall rise of Ning was such a pleasant surprise, and I'm really glad I gave it a chance! From the impressive cast to the engaging plot, everything just clicked. I know some people have reservations about the female lead, but honestly, she nailed her role! And of course, Zhang Wanyi did it again—his performance was fantastic, and I can't wait to see more of his work in the future.

The characters were well-written, and the relationship development between the leads was so captivating. The plot execution was spot on, and I never felt like the drama fell short at any moment. This has definitely become one of the best Chinese dramas I've watched this year!

Do I recommend it ? YES like there is no other answer I would give exept give it a chance and it might be exactly what you want.....

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She's just not into you anymore.

The Luo family is in gentle decline as the second generation is unable to match their late patriarch's illustrious career in civil service. They look towards the complacent and entitled third generation to revive the family's fortunes with a growing sense of anxiety. It is to this backdrop that Luo Yining returns from the family's country villa to celebrate her ailing grandmother's birthday after falling out with Luo Chengzhang and concubine Qiao as a child. Chengzhang is a frustrated and resentful civil servant of middling talent with a very small heart that only has room for Qiao's children. Yining is appalled to find her "third brother" Shenyuan shunned and bullied by the family and as unfavored children and they become fast allies. They are both not who they appear to be and gradually they uncover and keep each other's secrets as together, they navigate treachery both within and outside the Luo household.

This kind of saga that depicts the rise and decline of a family has been a popular genre since the 18th century classic vernacular novel 红楼梦 Hónglóumèng/Dream of the Red Chamber resonated deeply with its philosophical questions and social critique of feudal patriarchal society. While the narrative unfolds around the main protagonists it is not just about them; it explores broader social themes through related character stories and sub-plots told from their point of view. Every character has their own cross to bear. Chengzhang for example, is at surface a bad dad but he was also someone whose ambitions never materialised and who twice had to marry a woman not of his own choosing. Yining's return ruined the three people who meant the most to him. Maybe he gets off lightly or maybe fate was already unkind enough to him.

This drama gives the strong impression that it is a lighter, more accessible version of The Story of Minglan (SOML). The production quite cheekily acknowledges this by installing Yining in Haitang Pavilion and naming her mother Gu Minglan. Many of the main character blueprints of the Luo family down to the costumes and styling and the plot arcs around the inner harem rivalries and the mystery of Yining's mother's death smack of SOML. As someone who didn't enjoy SOML, I don't have a problem with it. Even though SOML is undeniably a more sophisticated and culturally impactful production, I found the pacing and the narrative approach suffocating. Even though it is less well written and not that original, The Rise of Ning is a more enjoyable watch overall. The biggest difference for me is Shenyuan is more interesting, better written, better portrayed and more empathetic than the male lead in SOML. Zhang Wanyi never disappoints in delivering yet another immersive and complex portrayal of this seemingly mild mannered and humble unfavored son with hidden depths. His strength is in being too casually overlooked and underestimated by his enemies. The story's biggest drawback is the romance is held back for so long that Zhang Wanyi and Ren Min's chemistry as a couple is under-explored.

Even though the narrative does incorporate a few interesting and new ideas, they are not fleshed out properly and are bogged down by lazy writing, shallow character designs and logic that does not hold up to close scrutiny. The main romance is weighed down by the fact that Yining and Shenyuan remain "siblings" for almost three quarters of the drama. I understand this was so she could remain in the Luo mansion but I think that the truth should have been revealed to both Shenyuan and Yining at the same time. They could keep it from everyone else while they try to solve the mystery of her mother's death and figure out who she really is. This would allow their romance to progress earlier on in the storyline and not leave the audience with such an entrenched impression of their chemistry as siblings. Another better approach could have been to skip the boring, tropey harem squabble arcs and move up the reveal because the characters in the Wei manor are more original and engaging. This would have also allowed a fuller development of Yining's relationship with Wei Ying, who is such a fantastic and memorable character who is both funny and moving at the same time. None of the women in this drama, nasty or nice, are prone to shrill, ear-piercing screeching, which was what I found most off-putting about SOML. In fact the smart, sassy and sarcastic Lin Hairu is one of my favorite characters and a huge upgrade from SOML.

Even though I enjoyed Ren Min's charming portrayal of Yining, her acting is still a work in progress. Her lines are too tentative and lack the depth of expression needed to capture the maturity, sensibility and intelligence of the character. Her voice is so distinctive that I also didn't for one moment buy it that Lu Jiaxue did not instantly recognise her as Meimei. I think she could have credibly dubbed herself as Meimei but when she grows up to become Yining, a more nuanced professional voice actor should have taken over. Her character is also not that consistently written. She indulged in a reckless and inappropriate dalliance with a much older man but showed enough good sense not to tell him who she really was. It is a relationship that mortifies and haunts her and when she encounters him again, she clearly fears and loathes him. What is not well conveyed is how he may have still occupied a space in her heart. This didn't come out until the end; which made me wonder why she never gave Lu Jiaxue a chance to clear up the misunderstanding or severe past ties with him neatly. The way she handled the situation was very immature and not like the Yining who faces her problems calmly and frankly. As a result, she never gave him or herself closure and in this, she was also not fair to Shenyuan.

As a villain, Ci Sha's portrayal of Lu Jiaxue deserves top marks. He was almost too powerful, seemed to answer to no one and was able to walk prisoners in and out of jail and cut down his enemies in plain sight. He was so intensely menacing and brutal that every time he showed up, my throat went dry and I felt a knot of fear in the pit of my stomach. But the character is too one dimensional and not well written. It is difficult to reconcile such a heavy handed portrayal of an irredeemably cruel and callous bad guy with someone even a pubescent Yining could have fallen for. It is equally disturbing and difficult to understand a grown man's obsession such a very young and very naive girl. The "she's not into you anymore" trope is one that should win audience sympathy because it is much easier to get over unrequited love than it is once-requited love. However, the portrayal of Lu Jiaxue as a love rival missed the mark and completely alienated me. It was nothing short of offensive to watch him paw Yining and manhandle her time after time. That is not the way to woo a girl, nor is openly trying to kill her favorite brother! These are not the actions of a character that is allegedly cunning, manipulative and smart. I would have liked to see a more multi-faceted, subtle and refined love rival, one that actually is a credible challenger instead of one that is so obviously beyond redemption. This tiresome obsession went on for too long and overshadowed the development of Yining's feelings for Shenyuan.

Even though the plot builds to a satisfying ending climax, I rolled my eyes at how how the final episodes descended into a Phantom of the Opera like theatrics. I didn't think Lu Jiaxue got his just deserts and found everyone's willingness to forgive baffling and out of character. But overall the storytelling and pacing was consistent and engaging throughout and the supporting cast really pulled their weight. I enjoyed the second couple and many characters beyond the leads. Overall a very solid and entertaining watch that I rate 8.0/10.0.

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Top Tier Chemistry

Anyone hesitant to watch this drama because of the "fake-sibling" tag, it's not like what you think. Let me help break it down; Shenyuan, played by Zhang Wang Yi is the illegitimate son of the Luo family. He never considered Yining, played by Ren Min as a sister or anyone in the Luo household "family" because of the negligence he faced. He is only kind to her because her mother was the only person that looked out for him when he was young. They both grew up separately and when Yining returned, he approached her with an intent motive. He finds out early on that she is not his "half-sibling". He later notice that he was beginning to look at her in a different way but remained respectful due to their "relationship status". Yining is also kind to him because she feels guilty about an accident that happened when they were young (that's the only memory she has of him). She also feels connected to him due to the similar unfair treatments they receive from their "father".

Their relationship transition was respectfully well-written. ZWY and RM executed their roles well and their chemistry is top tier. Their characters are resourceful and complimentary. I love the dynamics between them and you'll find yourself wanting more of them. They're consistent, know what they want and get what they want.

Overall, this drama is very cliche but ZWY and RM did well on delivering it. They kept me engaged and this is the first time that I bough fast pass for a drama and it's worth it. I hope to see more of them together in future projects. I love their on and off screen interactions.

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Rise of Ning worth watching and rewatching

First of all I love both male and female lead. Ren Min is supposed to sound like that plus her voice is authentic and Zhang Wanyi voice is just beautiful to listen to.

Acting is excellent and all roles has their roles right. The storyline and plot is perfect in pace. Not too tense and not too slow with the right build and unfolding just right. More than ever when a conflict occurs it’s get resolved and not dragged on. They are creative with adapting the novel piece of reincarnation and creating a romantic story here.

I love dramas for their plots and lessons. Most of all besides protecting your loved ones, one key message is about how women are viewed and what they are allowed to do in an empowering way which I won’t spoil. Remember China censors certain things and by the fact this was allowed says a lot about the movement of women and men being viewed more equally. In addition, the costume design are hand embroidered and beautiful. Ren Min is my favorite and her crying scenes always bring about great emotions. Both leads know how to use their eyes and voice to elicit emphasis where necessary.

The musical score is beautiful. The scenary on many levels is great also. I’m waiting for every episode to come out and rewatching what I want. You will want to watch this!

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The best ending, power couple with a child and both their families' blessings

What makes interesting from start to end is having a power couple. Yining who used to be an outcast when her mom died met Shen Yuan who was also an outcast at that time because his mom was a maid and his father never accepted him. However, when they solve cases, they make the best pair. The male lead knows martial arts and became a scholar's student and the top scholar himself. He has book knowledge, sword skills, and business skills. In his family, he is ordinary but outside, at nights, he's the most dangerous assassin you wouldn't want to meet. Yining is a smart female lead and didn't have to be the-princess-needs-rescuing-type all the time. In other dramas the family matters usually take time to unfold and be solved becoming draggy but things are fast paced for Rise of Ning.

The second male lead's obsession is dangerous. He won't take No for an answer. He was an eye sore because he can't move on and kept pestering the female lead. The only thing I find skipable were all those flashbacks of him and Yining as Mei in the past, I think it's too much. I wasn't sad when he shielded Yining from the arrow because I think he was the target but yeah they gave him a redemption arc.

Yining using kindness to melt her stepsister's heart is one of her best traits I love and we did not have to see her and her stepsister destroy each other and drag on the episodes .This is one of the reasons I love this drama, things go fast paced and solved
I love the two families. I was nervous I thought he lost Duke Ying, her real father when I was growing find of him as her father. On the other hand, throughout the story, there's always a behind the scene.

Rise of Ning has different themes of love included, mother-daughter, father-son, siblings, grandparent-grandchildren, and romantic partners.
One of mother-daughter scenes were the situation of the sixth lady and her mother. Her mother had good intentions as a mom but used the wrong methods. She became too obsessed with her children's marriages without regards to their happiness. Yining's mom became a victim of her jealousy and false assumptions too. she got what she deserved

My favorite people beside the power couple and the grandmas of both families are the second couple and the goose, Madam Lin the best mom for both Yining and Shen Yuan and Duke Ying is the father of the year.
Ren Min's make up is beautifully done, when she lets loose her hair, it's much better on her. I love her as Yining and her chemistry with Zhang Wanyi as Shen Yuan. I love Zhang Wanyi's acting here, when he fights, he looks awesome. They are both magnificent.
, don't miss this out, slow burn but mixed with comedy and is not drama heavy, transitions were smooth, the ending is not rushed, story is wrapped up well,

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Interesting

This drama is on my plan to watch list for a long time . Finally this is released. I am so happy that Chinese dramas are now progressing. First episodes reminds me of The Double.

POSITIVE- The visuals are excellent with colorful costumes . I really liked the cinematography. Chinese dramas are seriously eye candy for you . When I was watching this series I was afraid because the director is from Fox Spirit matchmaker so you know . I have watched the ML's acting before so I know how professional he is . The storyline is also so good . I really like family politics types of dramas. Some characters of this drama are positive. The grandma is such a sweetheart. Although at first I thought this drama is about siblings love but thank God this is not . Both the ML and FL are so handsome and beautiful.


NEGATIVE- I sometimes felf bore in some scenes. The storyline is kinda messy . And the most annoying thing is the FL's voice, I have seen her acting before so I know about it but this time really I am so disappointed by her . Her character is strong and wise but feeling like the actress is not fit in romance dramas. The chemistry between the ML and FL is kinda weak . The actress who played the sister role is professional but the character which she played is annoying.

OVERALL- A average drama . If you are not a picky watcher then you can give it try . But the visuals are really so good . Sometimes you will feel bore also sometimes good .

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Honest review—it’s an average drama

I’ll be straight to the point. This drama has flaws, but it’s still watchable. Well for me, I love family dramas, and that’s the reason why I managed to finish this series despite having some issues. English is not my first language, so forgive me if there will be some grammatical mistakes here.

STORY:
Messy storyline. It’s good but I wish they did better. It is fast-paced so it keeps you interested on what will happen next. Some scenes are unnecessary and are not making any sense but in the end it’s just a fictional story, so what do we expect?

ACTING:
For the FL, her acting is not consistent. It’s very bad on the first half of the drama, but she improved a bit on the second half. Idk if she’s also the one who dubbed her voice here. Her voice is also so annoying but it becomes bearable because you will get used to it after some time. Another problem is how she deliver her lines. There are some scenes where in she rushes her lines, and it doesn’t match with the emotion she needs to convey . Sometimes her tone also doesn’t match the emotion. I believe she needs to practice more in this area. For her facial expressions, it’s mostly a look of confusion. Whether she’s angry, confused, happy, or concerned, she will just put her eyebrows together and make her eyes bigger, and think she’s already acting. I guess it’s still better than having just a stiff face. Well, she improved a bit on the second half of the drama, but it’s still there. Watch the drama and you’ll know what I mean. Also, her appearance here is better than TLP. Actually it’s her best look. Her hair, outfit, and makeup suits her well compared to her previous projects. But Renmin should stop or avoid doing scenes where in she needs to have her hair untied without any accessories (example: her looks during night time). It looks weird on her.

ML is good, but lacks a bit of love in his eyes. Idk I just feel like something is lacking. He looks more inlove in LYF. Sometimes his acting also looks weird or forced but overall, he’s good. Maybe their chemistry is just weak.

Other characters: I loved them more than the main characters. The character development of the supporting characters are well-written. I love Yixiu my girl, but she should’ve chosen the han guy or maybe a better partner. (I mean he’s weird but Lin mao is also weird😅 linmao insulted her in their first meeting and he keeps calling her fat). I love Yiyu too, and for me she’s the beautiful woman in this drama. AND OFCOURSE MY FAVORITE LIN HAIRU!! She’s the best. Their acting are on point.

MUSIC:
Music is good but they didn’t stick to me that much. I don’t sing along with the music unlike to other dramas with catchy ost.

Overall it’s just an average drama. No ‘wow’ factor. Story is predictable. If you want a drama with a good ending, then this is for you.

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Loved until I didn’t…

I had a really fun time with this. We got so many different but all interesting plot lines, one after another within the Luo household between both ShenYuan and YiNing along with the other family members and villains. I didn’t care much for the side plot love triangle with her uncle and cousin, but apart from that I was pretty invested in all that was going on.

I do think it fell off in the last 10 or so episodes.
The lead romance was poorly paced and very rushed on YiNing’s side, which makes sense since it really only had a few episodes to get going when they revealed her true identity to her so late in. I bought ShenYuan’s feelings for her since he knew they weren’t related all along, but her’s seemed to reciprocate very abruptly. She even kept calling him third brother in their romantic scenes which threw it off even more. The wall between sibling love and romantic love was never shown as divided for her to us. I did enjoy their relationship up until the “romance” began. I was really looking forward to how their love story would play out but it ended up just materializing from thin air which was disappointing.

I really appreciate Ci Sha. The simplicity of him using his own hair instead of the wigs like all other men in this shows really stands out. But apart from that, his performance here was phenomenal too! I really wish they explored LiNing’s side to their relationship more. She seemed to brush it under the rug and preferred to pretend it never happened, but it did and she did have feelings back then. To ignore it entirely even after learning of the misunderstanding was a little odd. It would make more sense if they better paced her romantic feelings for ShenYuan so we’d have proof she’s really moved on, but again those never clicked for me due to the last minute appearance of them.

I’m keeping it at an 8 despite the later episodes having let me down, because I did really really enjoy it for well more than half of it. It was a delight and exciting to wake up to new episodes every day.

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One of my favorite series in 2024

The lead actor and lead actress have the best chemistry to each other. Their faces look very similar. They acted their roles well, neither overacting nor underacting. They express emotions and used their eyes to reveal their feelings well. The family story has both problems and warmth. One of the characters that impressed me the most is the stepmother who loves and protects the lead actress as if she were her own mother. It is a love that does not care about bloodline. She also shows kindness to the lead actor and other stepchildren. The story also shows about social values ​​​​of the imperial examination for being governmental official. The series teaches us that the parents should let the children choose the life they want, whether it is about lifestyle, work, love and their married life. In conclusion, I think I do not regret for watching this series.

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And the Dangerous Delulu Award Goes To? SML! The Rest Was Solid Though

This is the 4th drama of ZWY that I'm watching this year after both LYFs and AYTO. I really like his characters; in this one he really was a chameleon of sorts. RM I'd only previously seen in TLP and I liked her here much more. Familiar with a lot of the supporting. The show wasn't a new concept but what made it good was the intelligence of our leads to outsmart all the schemers and villains. But the unfortunate part was that the SML and his dangerous towards FL.

Pros: As mentioned, not a new concept but strength in smarts. Was very much like the Double where you had a household of scheming wicked women but a very smart FL and her equally on point "3rd brother". The majority show was about how she would swart evil plans of the women in the Luo family. She also had the support of her adoptive mother and grandmother as well as 6th uncle and 6th sister. Though she wasn't related by blood to any of them as that was uncovered later, they still treated her like family. ML meanwhile, while finding out her about them not being related, still had her back and developed feelings first. He though was running an underground organization of fighters trying to overturn an 8 year old case of their master being framed for embezzlement and executed. While he acted like the slow witted guy in a side yard at home; in reality he was intelligent, had wonderful martial arts skills, and was very strategic. All that was brought home when he became the top 3 scorer on their exams; his disgusting father who hated his guts had to come to the realization that this son out did him in everything and even though many of us still didn't like the father after his evolution, at least he wasn't a rotten bastard anymore.

While FL was trying to uncover the secret behind her mother's early passing she also found her biological father who was literally father of the year in comparison to the Luo dude. This man was everything FL deserved in a father. Though the transition to the new family was bumpy, it was a lot better than where she originally came from although all of the wicked women were dealt with or evolved after being married off. By the end both families blended nicely, our leads were married with a baby boy and it was the epitome of tranquility. All of the antagonists plots were overturned by the persistence, patience, and hard work of ML and his people along with everyone who helped which included FL's father the Duke towards the end.

Costumes, OSTs, sets, were nice.

Cons: SML! Holy hell! Literally the most obsessive/possessive delusional 3rd wheel I've probably seen since introduced in whichever episode. He even ruined their wedding by abducting FL and killing people to make it look like her and was planning to leave town with her even though she was someone else's wife, didn't love him, etc. it was sickening. I thought the dude from "Girl Goes to Imperial College" was bad as he actually poisoned FL in the "if I can't have her, no one can" deal but thankfully the leads outsmarted him pretending she died. But this dude was savage; he harmed her, forced her against walls, and if got away with taking her away, probably would have raped her. He was a brute and his death was a total copout because not only did it take half of the last episode but they made it all soft and easy. He took an arrow for her and one minute she was the abductee to crouching and clutching his shoulders. I was in total shock! And I wasn't the only one. Like girl, what are you doing? Your husband is standing right there! Make it make sense please. Knocked half a point off the rating right away. The man made your skin crawl with how disgusting his obsession was and I would have personally sent him through a wood chipper and here she is after all the times he's hurt her and those around her, holding him. It was beyond stupidity. Can't hit my head against the wall hard enough. He took too much away from our couple and their happily ever after.

Also, how weird and creepy was the FL still calling ML "3rd Brother" after they were together, then married and even after the kid was born. Like is the boy supposed to call his father, uncle? Writers majorly screwed that up. It was completely out of place.

A few plot holes with Mistress Qiao's kids at the end; I thought both were sent away somewhere to reflect on themselves especially the scheming daughter but at the end she shows up all worldly with a mention of having married an official. Wasn't she sent to a temple though?

Would I recommend it? Despite the horrible SML whom you can ffw as he just adds more ick than anything else, this show is good and empowering because it has two beyond smart people dealing with both family and justice issues.

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Judge it by yourself

People's are judging it pretty quickly. Initially I also didn't liked how the story. I thought it's gonna be classic trope of inner court family fighting drama. But now I wait for new episode everyday. The things I lked about this drama are :
1. Leads are very understanding of each other. They support each other and don't get in each other's way.
2. Fml's character is consistent. She take good decisions, like in some dramas fml's are shown smart initially but as the episode progress fml starts relying on ml, but here it is not like that.
3. Some people might find fml voice annoying. I also found it annoying at start, but now it does not bother me at all. So as the story progress you will get used to it.
4. Both leads have their unique storyline & they don't overshadow other couple.
5. Leads resolve their misunderstanding quickly.
6. There is no sml syndrome. Fl straightly draw a line with sml although there is a reason why fml does it.

Please give it a try. You may skip initial 2 episodes if you don't like concubine trope.

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A middling family.

I came to this drama right after watching Are You the One (AYTO), which also starred Zhang Wanyi, because I hadn't seen him in anything else. He seems to play basically the same character, with much of the same facial expressions and demeanor, except he was funnier in AYTO. In both dramas, his character is not actually as close in relationship to the FL as it appears to her, and which he is to some extent along with some other things hiding from her, including for instance being the head of an influential organisation of some sort, and also playing himself down in so doing. The cadence of his voice was pretty much identical in several scenes, to the point that it felt the roles could have been interchanged without too much of an issue.

This is the first time I have seen Ren Min in anything, and I must honestly say I was not particularly impressed. I found her acting quite one-dimensional in that, in my impression, she seemed to have a limited set of expressions throughout the drama. Her younger self where she meets the character of Lu Jia Xue (LJX) in the villa does not seem much different from her portrayal in the rest of the drama, and even by the ending, there did not seem to me to come across a sense of maturation or growth. There was a lack of depth and gravitas as well as range in her acting that would have elevated the role and character, and I would be curious to have seen another actress in the role.

The story and execution could have been much better - the initial arc from the family drama to the later more broadly political arc felt to me like it had become another story. Even the arcs within the initial family drama did not feel like they transitioned smoothly for me; there was quite a clear initial Concubine Qiao arc, then the next bit, then the graduation to the broader politicking. When the first Concubine Qiao arc concluded, I found myself thinking 'What, already?', because it felt so short and almost abrupt. I was also not a fan of the way they used brief flashbacks and exposition perfunctorily to explain what had happened in the plot instead of having shown it as part of the story. There were also some loopholes that felt glaring to me and annoyed me significantly throughout, like the way no one even bothered to check on or treat Luo Shenyuan's back after he sustained a wound early on in the drama, including Yining herself or even the doctor he got to come treat the Old Madam. While arguable that this was to show how little he was cared for or thought of, I also thought it made Yining herself come across thoughtless towards him and selfish.

Yining was an annoying and selfish character to me overall - she tells Shenyuan off for not letting her in on what he's doing on more than one occasion, and then at one point declares that they will keep no secrets from each other, but at which point she had not even told him about her relationship with LJX herself despite him having asked previously. This really came across as a double standard that made clear it applied mostly one way to him, which really irked me. Thankfully he prompted her after said statement, at which point she reluctantly tells him. Additionally, despite her supposedly not being favoured in the family, she is clearly highly cared for by her grandmother/the Old Madam, and her stepmother Lin Hairu/the Madam, who look out for her in every way; this is not even mentioning Shenyuan. Sure, she is plotted against by Concubine Qiao and those half-siblings, but she still behaves recklessly and as she wishes well enough with the support of the Old Madam and the Madam, taking things over to Shenyuan and getting him into their good books and so on. Her selfishness with regard to LJX is also apparent and she also comes across as really immature in her having indulged in a dalliance with him but then never bothering to speak with him outright to clear things up, even after she comes to the conclusion of needing to face up to him.

Yining's makeup also seemed really thick on one or more occasion, and one close-up of her face with the really obvious false eyelash extensions really took me out of it. Ren Min's voice was also to me very grating and whiny-sounding. While these are no fault of her own, they added significantly to my annoyance of Yining.

The plot was so-so, nothing to write home about, it did the job. I don't think it needed to be 40 episodes though, and I felt there was a lot of fat that could have been trimmed off. The thing with the Princess' son, for instance, probably wouldn't have been missed at all.

I was not a fan of the brother-sister relationship basis and thought it could have done much better if the writers had included showing some conflict within Yining about her brother suddenly becoming no longer her brother, and the rest of the family she had grown up in as well. I also felt the show would have benefitted significantly if there had been more of a character transition shown between Yining going from thinking of Shenyuan as her brother to a romantic interest. Instead, she calls him Third Brother until the end of the show, and in fact when she does call him Guan Ren instead, that also felt weird. I would have liked if there had been some kind of change to at least maybe calling him with his name or something.

Because the whole premise of the brother-sister relationship felt wrong to me to begin with, the theme music for them annoyed me every time it came on. While LJX was absolutely basically a stalker, I did not find the concept of an older brother harbouring romantic feelings for their younger sister when said younger sister knows them solely as an older brother particularly compelling, personally, and am kind of surprised no one complained about it being predatory or the like. Again, I think this could have been done well if the writers had perhaps shown some conflict or at least processing in Shenyuan and Yining at finding out, and I would have greatly appreciated a good transition of Yining coming around to seeing Shenyuan in a romantic light as someone who would be a good husband/the way other ladies saw him and realising that her feelings for him were changing, because it was clear that she had thought of him as an older brother early on, e.g. with saying to find her a sister-in-law.

My favourite character turned out to be Duke Ying, who was a lovely character and a true heart of familial feeling. The rest of the actors did fine, and the acting was overall the high point of this drama. I also liked the styling, and the sets were pretty. Rewatch value is low for me because I did not enjoy the premise nor the execution very much, and found the storyline kind of draggy. It would have been better if they had chosen to focus on Shenyuan's machinations, but even that story bit took too much of a turn without adequate explanation at the end. There was much that could have been improved in the writing.

Finally, I found myself quite compelled by the LJX relationship aspect - I would have loved to watch another story, where the 'man is downtrodden by his older brother and has an eye illness rendering him temporarily blind, a girl comes into his life whom he falls in love with and then disappears, he searches for her for years, then finds her, not knowing there was a misunderstanding that has caused her to believe he harmed her' comes to a happy ending. I hope someone makes this retelling.

(The other compelling aspect for me was the older uncle's backstory and his feelings towards his childhood friend whom he did not get to marry, which was only a minorly-played point informing an arc. If there had been a swap between who had had to marry whom, things would have turned out much differently.)

Overall, this was a rather milquetoast showing with the exception of a few stronger standout points.

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