Artehc

He was such as a badass. They made a badass couple.

I wonder if they keep Xie Yanlai's suicide mission to assassinate Xiao Xun or not. Cuz that scene is also cool as f

Haha me too. At first I was kinda eh cuz it was like the typical always-winning lead character. But after that arc, I gained more respect for her. She's a different breed of a strong FL.

No I didn't mean that 😅 the little emperor doesn't die. Xie Yanfang never threatens his life either. Just try to manipulate him like a puppet.

I hope they keep it. That arc presents such a shocking yet refreshing image of Chu Zhao unlike other typical FL (that she took all the insults like a champ)

They cut all of the arcs before the princes rebellion, so we couldn't see how Chu Zhao makes a name for herself in the capital before she becomes the Grand Princess/Empress (in the novel).

Since they cut so many of the early chapters, we couldn't see the character development arc of Chu Tang herself.

I wouldn't say a crush, more like mutual respect for each other's political acumen. Deng Yi is always a strictly power-driven person. There's no room for romance with him even until the end.

Yes happy ending

I like the changes they made so far in the drama, EXCEPT how they seem to try to match Chu Tang with Deng Yi. Why??!! There's no need for that!

Yes there were some cliché parts that I didn't like, but we also miss a big chunk of her character profile from the novel that make Chu Zhao shine and different from other revenge characters.

She's not the generic reborn character that is defined by her thirst for revenge. She's also very resilient, very thick-skinned, and elusive. (e.g. the poetry tournament, her changing the perceptions of other girls on what women can do, her understanding of and changing her uncle's family's nature, her stubbornness at resisting prejudice against women in power).

- I agree that ML's personality has been slightly changed. In the novel, the ML is like a tsundere who snaps at everyone he doesn't like. Grumpy and rebellious. But the drama softens his sharp tongue a bit, which is a welcomed change for me personally.
- In fact, Xie Yanfang's personality is also different. Xie Yanfang is very subtle with his schemes and knows very well at how to win the public's favor. ML can see through his brother's persona clearly, but he couldn't do anything about it.

Yes. They haven't explained it yet, but I think we'll see it after when the brothers have a "talk" with each other.
In the novel, ah Jui was always on the Xie clan's side up until almost at the end.

I've read the novel first, so I'm biased and prefer the novel.
BUT the drama has not finished airing yet, so I can't say it's better or worse. So for now, I consider the drama a different version of the story and fill out all the holes that are missing with what I read from the novel . So far, I find it also enjoyable.

That said, if you ask for my recommendation, I say you read the novel to get the full experience then watch the drama for the visual. Just like how I did with "Legend of the Female General" and "Princess Royal".

don't worry about filler. they also cut a bunch of them in EP2

They changed alot actually.
- In the novel, Chu Zhao and Fu Jui didn't meet nor know each other at all in their first life. And Fu Jui didn't work for the General at all. He was just a half brother of Xie Yangfang (The Prime Minister), doing whatever he was ordered to.
- Even in the second life, Chu Zhao and Fu Jui (in the novel he went by Ah Jui) only accidentally met while she was running away to the border to meet her father right after her rebirth. And Ah Jiu was just one of the messenger crew on their mission to the border.
- Also, Chu Zhao came back before she "met" Xiao Xun in the novel. So they were supposed to be strangers in their new life.
- They also skipped a lot of the early arcs in the novel, jumping straight to the "rebellion" by the princes. There were quite a number of chapters to set up the setting and characters before the plot started rolling.

They changed the story from the novel a bit, but I'm loving it still. The visuals are incredible. I'm always fascinated by the Han dynasty inspired visual.

Edit: Not a bit. They changed quite a lot xD.

Haha well then, I'll just say the ML and FL won't be officially "together" until the end cuz the FL is the empress while the ML is still a general confined by his family (the Xie family that are very powerful and sometimes work with and against the FL in stabilizing the kingdom during a civil war vs Xiao Xun's father).

If they follow the novel (which I wish they will), she will become the Empress at around midway of the story. But the empress to whom, I won't say cuz that's a spoiler.

Ooooh I can't wait for this!
I know Zhou Yiran will fit 'Xie Yanlai' role perfectly. The rebellious, lone-wolf, and self-deprecating type.

Yes! If you like a rebirth with smart (and rather ruthless) main characters, you'll love this.