Corneilius

There are some misunderstandings and Awu is kidnapped.... again, the General is presumed dead for several episodes but it resolves itself eventually for a surprising and unexpected ending.

both are great Dramas but take a while to build the back story. With Minglan give it to episode 33 where Minglans brilliance is revealed (the grown Minglan doesn't appear until episode 5) The Rebel Princess, give it unti she gets to the border fort around episode 10. if you don't like them by then then you probably never will. I struggled with Minglan because it is such a massive cast but I found an episode recap helped to understand what wss going on

Tan SongYun plays a similar character in 'Flight to You' which is criminaly underrated.

Road Home gets a lot of recommendations but Romance isn't my focus. I found it very slow and draggy but it seems to get most recommendations from people who focus on Romance.

Episode 33 is the best episode in cdrama, Episode 35, the 2nd best.

hold tight you are in for a wild ride!

it's on my bucket list. I hope you had some flower cakes!

I was the same, an episode recap helped because it is a multi layered story and when it looks like nothing is happening....everything is happening.

I have rewatched 3 times now, it is absolutly gold standard.

Did Yunnan meet your expectations?

Nothing is like Meet Yourself but 'Flight to You' with Tan SongYun and 'The Ideal City' with Sun Li are both Dramas about women having to overcome tremendous difficulties in their working lives.

if you like Lu Yifei (Christal Lu) she is excellent in the modern drama 'Meet Yourself' which is a feel good healing drama with a very tough first episode. It was so popular last year that it triggered a massive tourist boom in Dali city and Yunnan province where it was set.

The reason it has bad recommendations is because of the Toxic ML. He should have been in prison due to his appaling controlling behaviour to FL and then trying to wreck her career after she left. it could have been a great drama about female empowerment but instead ended up excusing abusive workplace behaviour against a woman by giving ML redemption which was never deserved.

its a real cliff hanger and looks desperate right up to the last episode but it has the most satisfying ending in cdrama. The Mother of Gu's children makes a reappearance too

it gets wilder after they are together and we get a female schemer who makes Madam Lin look like an Amatuer!

A member of the Gu clan enters the drama and makes Madam Lin look like an Amatuer. The palace becomes more involved in the storyline which gets more deadly!

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Story_of_Minglan#:~:text=The%20couple%20earns%20their%20happily,figure%20of%20the%20Sheng%20family.

according to Wikipedia it has 73 episodes, I don't know why MDL states 78. There is a YT post for the with 78 episodes but that has some fillers which are not the drama.

You Tube

She is very competative and gets into a competition with Minglan because she thinks Minglan is getting a marriage she craves but Minglan is playing her to get at her mother. Molan ends up in a sham marrige and once she is no longer a threat Minglan treats her as a sister once more. Actually its more than Molan deserves but Minglan isnt one to hold grudges and really values family and friends

just started this (on episode 5) after getting a recommend on YT under a completly different title and.....I like it. Yes it's a bit silly, it's low budget, the writng is stilted but the FL steals the show and most of the support chracters do a good job, the pacing is good and there is enough peril to keep you engaged!

Episode 33 when she orchestrated the demise of the family member who she has discovered was implicit in her mother's death. she uses their greed for advancement to show their true chracter which results in their fall from position and in one of cdramas great scenes, goes to see her where she is banished and in one sentence reveals that she knows what she did to her mother and she has engineered the situation in revenge for the death of her mother. she then goes to confess to her grandmother who is shocked at what she has done but promises to keep protecting her.

This Girl!

Grandmother is shocked and amazed that her demure and reserved protege is brilliant and brave.

Minglan is at the bottom of her social class, her mother dies when she is young, her father is indifferent. The only protection she has in a toxic household is her doting grandmother. She survives by keeping her head down, not being noticed and hiding her fierce intelligence. She will be your best and most loyal friend, but if people sheme against her, her family and friends she is easilly able to use peoples flaws to destroy themselves. She doesn't fight (except on one memorable occasion when she draws a sword whilst pregnent to help her friend). She is like no FL in cdrama, she just wants a quiet life and a good marriage but keeps on getting dragged into others schemes. Don't worry, people underestimate Minglan and they always regret it.