I have the same sentiment.
Ren Allen is a very charming actor, that is the reason he was able to charm the viewers with his face aura alone - it helps him make up for what he lacks. His acting is either good or bad. In some scenes he is really good but there are times where he cannot show his emotions properly.
What I noticed is sometimes he couldn't look his fl in the eyes, so if close up you can clearly see he is either looking at part of their face, he rarely shows the in love eyes he was supposed to. At times he can, at times he can't.
Romance in cdrama land seems inevitable so it is better if he and his wife will talk properly so he can work properly. If his wife is the jealous type then she should ask him to stop working.
I just think if I was the actress and I am so passionate with my work and excited show my acting but the ml is obviously uncomfortable, I too will be uncomfortable.
I think this is why he is sometimes overshadowed by his fl. When it comes to acting those fl will shine at times where he feel uncomfortable.
He had a great chemistry with Seven Tan so even without kiss scene that works but of course it will be better with one.
With Bai Lu - it works because both of them were great acting, especially Bai Lu she was good giving love look but even with that Ren couldn't give that look.
With Riba, it works at first but the latter part of the series it seems he also just lose interest and just want to end it quick and that clearly shows, so I was questioning his professionalism at that tim or whether his wife starts to get jealous so he couldn't focus - and since he made this just few weeks after BW wrapped up - I wonder if that's why he also look uncomfortable at times.