These short-length productions are like snacks -- the better ones can be deliciously fun and entertaining, but it is rare to feel emotionally satisfied, let alone invested. Yet, Fan Zhixin's acting was unexpectedly moving (even if some might argue it was perhaps a tad too much). Watching him play such an earnest and emotional character was almost startling after seeing him as the suave, cold and ruthless Yan Xing Cheng in My Lethal Man and the disturbing, unsettling, and psychologically abusive Qin Li in Dear Liar. Fan Zhixin conveys a sense of maturity beyond his years and it's easy to forget that he was just 21 to 23 at most in all of these roles.

I'm not a huge fan of cross-world travelling mini dramas, mostly because they feel so unsatisfying at the end, but this one ranks among the better ones I've seen in this genre. I was rather indifferent to the FL, however, and the first third to half of the drama was so painful that I would have dropped it if it weren't for Fan Zhixin, who gave a stronger and more heartfelt performance than many other young actors leading a full-length series.

Childe Xie's Wine is also among the few mini-dramas I've watched that uses live audio! While the uneven sound quality showed a little once in a while, it was refreshing overall to hear everyone's natural voice. On occasion, an actor's performance is improved by the dubbing, but in this case, Fan Zhixin's acting benefited from the live audio, with viewers able to hear the way his voice breaks and catches during his emotional deliveries in the later episodes.

This would have probably been around a 5.5 to 6 for me, but I bumped it up to 7 for Fan Zhixin and hope he has more opportunities to nurture and showcase his acting skills.