It was good, but not great.

I finished this series within 2 days with a lot of fast-forwarding. Questionable plot-holes.

Chen Xiao and Crystal Liu (the CP) are both veterans of the entertainment industry. It's a no-brainer that they executed their roles perfectly. From the subtle gestures to the narration, genuinely talented people. Chen Xiao's portrayal of Gu Qian Fan, the 'Living Devil' while being all fluffy with his on-screen beloved was very convincing. I truly enjoyed seeing two sides of GQF, and how he protected his lady behind the scenes from start to finish while letting her have her autonomy and build her life the way she intends.

The political bits really did bore me and I pretty much skipped those scenes. Personally speaking, I didn't lose out on many of the details as for some reason, they were brought up in the later episodes. There were a lot of questions that weren't answered. Did GQF's father really intend to kill ZPE? ZPE was shown to be independent and charismatic which was really progressive considering this was set in Northern Dynasty and her social status was basically considered one of the lowest. However, she seemed to have lost this sense of independence along the way while grieving for GQF's absence. I really disliked the way she begged for him.

The sisterhood was something very refreshing. Although if I was ZPE, I'm not sure if I could tolerate Yin Zhang (Jelly Lin) that much. I get it, she owes her older sister, but it became too ridiculous how she went miles to save Yin Zhang, only for her to make the same mistakes.

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A pro-feminism show

In the beginning, Ban Hua is seen as someone who knows what she wants and goes for it. She is fascinated with the ML and does not hesitate to woo him. However, she backs off when she realizes that the ML doesn't reciprocate. This aspect of the show is very relatable since, hey, we've all been there--liking someone who doesn't seem to like us back. I like how they portray self-respect compared to other typical romcoms where the FL just gushes and chases hard to no avail, that it becomes toxic and abusive due to the power difference.

Ban Hua is also shown to be someone who loves her family dearly and would even volunteer to lead an army to the battlefield just so her family can live a comfortable life again. There is a time when she saves the ML (rather than the other way around) and ended up almost dying. This is really touching because I would do the same for my family, too. Speaking of family, her family is very supportive of her, through her bravery and shenanigans, if you're used to watching abusive families, this will be very refreshing for you! They never once blamed the ML for their daughter's struggles as she chooses to face these trials for him, anyway. In every relationship she's had, the parents are very supportive, but of course, they still worry as Ban Hua is known to bring terrible fortune to men she gets involved with.

My favourite part is when Ban Hua was looking through the catalog of eligible bachelor in Daye (their Kingdom) and her parents suggest that she chooses Rong Hua as his parents have passed, meaning, she need not deal with in-laws, which would make her life very easy and peaceful.

So yeah, if you'd like some girl power going on, this show is for you!

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Absolutely love it!

Exemplary acting skills from all the cast! I really appreciated the humanization of mental issues in different people. FL's trauma was well executed and totally matched the situation. People not believing her 'paranoia' was something quite realistic. Many people with (C)PTSD are often told that it's just in their head and that nothing 'bad' is going to happen and they were able to portray this scenario quite well.

Another part of the series that really amazed me was how they have shown that women often are subjected to 'victim blaming'. FL pretty much did not know what she was getting into, after all, her ex-BF lied so much to her. Even then, she was still considered to be the one at fault. Talk about gender inequality! Kudos to everyone on the production team! A very touching story with a mix of humour was something I never knew I needed. BTW, each episode only runs for 30 minutes--so not much dull moments!

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