Lizzy

I will have to think about this because I don’t think that those qualities have always been there - especially the ruthlessness and short-temper. I remember him choosing NOT to kill someone in the beginning of the drama who betrayed him. He has always drilled into Sen’s head not to take lives, and with his morality of protecting the reputation of the women in his life… none of it really indicates that he has always been coldhearted or ruthless. Maybe in self-defense in the moment, but not premeditated. I am not saying you’re wrong, but I guess I have conceptualized his character differently. I also read somewhere that DYX said that his character “loses himself” throughout the course of the drama and I think that we are seeing that now.

For me, I love dark and ruthless and cold male leads as well as the next person, but with this drama I don’t think the writers are trying to show us that he is those things… I think they’ve shown us that he’s the opposite, but when thrown into the scene of scheming and corruption it tainted him.

I think that he’s changed since joining the military and being under the thumb of corrupt officials and needing to claw his way up- that was also reinforced by Lucheng before ZL falsified his military merits. He has become colder, more desperate, insecure and more short-tempered. I think him joining the military ultimately culminated to all that went down in episode 17 with his character development, and with his coldness upon his return from war. He has an edge now that he didn’t have before.

You’d think I would get sick of political scheming with the amount of Cdramas I have watched, but nope 😂

I know I know we all hate Jinxiu, but he’s being used to develop Zhao Ling’s character and to highlight the area of conflict between ZL and FTY. Like when he showed up in Ganlin he brought attention to ZL’s insecurities, which set the stage for the next handful of episodes and the conflict within ZL.

Now Jingxiu wondered out loud if FTY will “love the man Zhao Ling has become”. I think that they’re basically showing us what the next point of tension / conflict will be with the leads and I’m excited for it. The upcoming previews indicate that they aren’t seeing eye to eye. FTY wants ZL to be safe, and ZL is now in a position of power and wants to climb to the top in order to protect the people he loves. This is my favorite kind of angst - when it’s character-driven instead of being about external circumstance (such as a love triangle). I’m looking forward to seeing the leads work through their internal conflict and their differences. How will FTY feel about watching ZL act like a different person than who she first met? How will she feel about his coldness, the lengths he will go to gain power? And how will ZL feel about it? How does he feel about himself? Ahhh give me moooorrreee!!

Jungxiu is being used to further the lead’s relationship and character development.

Shoulda left his a** buried in the stable.

Why not? she’s done it before 🤣

Well he’s been back at the capital for a while without making any direct contact with her, and for the past two episodes Tingyun has been more or less gossiped about and even mocked for not being married yet… She was also told that Zhao Ling has been denying the engagement 😅I don’t think I would be falling over myself with excitement at his unexpected appearance either lol. Poor girl probably has a LOT of questions 😂

Oh this doesn’t surprise me at all, and it actually makes me happy to hear. I wouldn’t have minded either type if HE, but I have been feeling like he’s losing himself in all of the scheming and climbing. I’m glad to hear that he basically retires and quits, and has a quieter life with his family.

Yeah I see that now. Interesting.

Am I one of the few viewers who can’t wrap my head around Jingxiu’s character development? I am trying to wrap my brain around why he would believe that TY would EVER go for him? Why he would become possessive and more evil than he already was? Targeting ZL?? idgi. He literally doesn’t make sense to me and I can’t understand why he’s doing what he’s doing. (Just started 17).

That’s what I thought, thanks.

I’m sorry for all the questions, but the a**hole just showed up to cause trouble for the leads - and he accused Zhao Ling and Tingyun of deceiving the new Emperor about their relationship, but that’s actually not true, right? I believe the crown prince at the time knew about them, their pasts and their relationship? This whole inspection thing is throwing me off, and it’s hard remembering which characters know what information.

Thank you! So it was a coincidence that the leads chose the same place.

So I’m almost caught up (almost done with ep. 15). I am a little unclear about how Lady Zuo came to be in Ganlin town, and a powerful influencer at that. I also didn’t make the connection as to how she became the leader of the school there, either. I thought initially that Lady Yun set it up, but it wasn’t spelled out. Was it truly a coincidence that Zhao Ling and Tingyun chose that place and she just coincidentally happened to be there? I also don’t remember how Zuo got out from under the thumb of the Fu family in the first place. Any insight would be appreciated.

Has the next airing schedule been released yet?

Ideally dramas aim for 30k heat index, but 26k is still good :)

PoJ had the makings of being a stellar drama, but it took a terrible nosedive the last half. This one is better than PoJ and I have confidence that this director and screenwriter will keep the quality until the end.

I think it’s a little different because Zhao Ling and Tingyun are engaged, so I think there’s a little more leniency with the rule. And as far as I am in the drama (ep. 12) they aren’t sharing a bedroom either in order to preserve her reputation as well. That’s at least how I see it.

Lady Yu wrote to Lady Zuo and basically set it up for her to go to Ganlin and cause trouble for the leads. It wasn’t a very long scene, but I think it happened after the salt case with the CP was completed and Lady Yu didn’t get any credit for it. After Zhao Ling decided to enlist in the military.

I managed to avoid spoilers so far, but I do want to thank you all for letting me know NOT to watch the next set of previews and then have to wait! 😬