Eleison

Wait till they show the whole backstory. Her life is very sad!

Okay... and WHY did Sang Yan approach Che Xingde when he had already called the police and could have just waited and told Wen Yifan to wait inside the station and not come out? 🤦‍♀️🤦‍♀️ Duuuudddeeee!!!

I was kinda shocked that Zhong Siqiao stopped the kissing session to ask Su Haoan if he brought protection (surprised me in a Cdrama), and was gonna applaud that the assumption was HE should be the one to take precautions instead of assuming SHE should, but then I realized that SHE had to stop the makeout session AND be the one to think of it in the first place. I mean, at the very least, one good thing about how that scene played out was that Su Haoan responded responsibly after she pointed it out, but even better if he had been the more responsible one and either 1) brought protection OR 2) thought of it before she did. Girls/women are still often the ones society puts the responsibility on for making sure "guys behave," and unfortunately this scene was no different (portrayed healthier than it could have been, but still not where it could be). 😑 Lost some points there, First Frost.

Oh, really? Do tell. I wonder if they're anything like mine (though I think I like it better than Hidden Love (it's much heavier and more somber than HL)), I still have some gripes. Modern romance Cdramas sometimes feel a bit... dated? The MLs are often more aggressive than I like, and I have no idea if they dealt with the trauma from SA in FF well since I have very little experience with or exposure to women with a history of it (as far as I know, that is).

I'm finishing First Frost right now, but I'll come back to this afterwards! Once (if?) I finish I'll reach out to vent. 😉

😅😅😅

I've heard people complain about the ending because none of the main couples end up together right at the last minute, yes? I'm not too far, but I don't know why people like the second leads. I don't like Shangguan; she's too slippery for me to root for and her whispery talking kind of grates on me (I don't care for the "elegent," "noble lady" way of speaking in Asian costume dramas (Kdramas and Cdramas both); it gives me the shivers. 😅)

I definitely spoiled a few things for myself already (might've read who Anonymous is... 🫣), and we'll see if I make it through. So far it's pretty gripping and an interesting premise compared to other costume dramas.

The title sounds so much cozier/more romance focused than it is! 😅

Haha, thanks, this is all helpful! So interesting that none of the main Gong family has actual siblings. They're all cousins, but have somehow formed "cousin camps" and see some as rivals and others as allies. Fascinating, but obviously profoundly dysfunctional. 😅

Not quite! Episode 27.

P.S. Duan Jiaxu is much too shy and awkward (though appropriately gorgeous) to be anywhere near as rizzy as the ML from Hidden Love, but I like what they did at the wedding by portraying it from a different angle, focusing in on Yifan and Sang Yan in this rather than Sang Zhi and Jiaxu (though hardcore flirting happens at this wedding between each pairing of leads in each drama 😅). This wedding scene was one of my favorite scenes from Hidden Love when Jiaxu is finding out that he's Sang Zhi's crush. Sparks were FLYING. 😅

Okaaaay, I admit it, Sang Yan grew on me. Not because I got used to him, but because, as the episodes progress, he improves.

AND, I came to respect his patience with Yifan (he's still a little manipulative in his flirting and suggestiveness for my taste, but I think where it's most important (for the most part), he does a very good job of respecting her boundaries and privacy). He lets her initiate everything (especially after they're moving towards being an item) and only takes initiative when he knows she's ready.

It was pretty cute to see the transition of listless Yifan wafting through life, numb and depressed to the smiley, gentle and playful Yifan. She does indeed de-frost under San Yan's steady presence of care and love. It's like he's drawing out a scared cat from under the bed; his steady care for her helps her rediscover her confidence and joy.

I don't think there's any way a real person could fixate so intensely on a person they admire like this while also being patient and undemanding at the same time (it helps to be drop-dead gorgeous, of course). Sang Yan truly is a fantasy lover, but that's not to say he doesn't showcase what love offered without expectation of return can do in another person's life--it's deeply powerful!

I thought the same about her! 😅 So confused by that casting.

Gotta love the way Koreans transliterate English words. 😅

This is adorable and clever!

Someone else said BJT's Cantonese was pretty awful as well, haha, but that's where I wouldn't notice. 😅 If Mobius is focusing on their own country's viewers, Maggie will sound just fine, I imagine! 😅

Also, I like that the actress for Zishang seems to have kept her natural features largely intact unlike most other Chinese actors (I'm used to seeing a lot of the following: the thin, prominent nose, large double eyelids with poochiness under the eye, and luscious, thick lips, a defined jawline and high cheekbones). I respect that kind of confidence and determination from her in an entertainment industry like China's. And anyway, she's lovely!

Can someone help me out with the Gong family tree or structure? 😅 I thought at first that Ziyu was siblings with Huanyu and Zishang, but now that does not seem to be the case. Does that mean Shang Jue and Yuan Zhi are not brothers either? Are they all cousins? 😅 And then there's the people on the Back Hill, the Xues and Yues. And also, what does "Yu Lineage" and such really refer to? I get that the second first name "Yu," "Jue," "Shang" and "Zhi" refer to roles/special knowledge groups within the family and don't seem to have anything to do with family ties, but the rest has me all confused. 😂

What a complicated family, haha.

There is a 40.5 episode that aired afterwards and separately. A user suggested I stop Episode 40 halfway, and then just watch the ten minute bonus episode instead. It was brilliant advice, and everything ended perfectly for me. 😅 I'm not sure where to find that 40.5 episode, though; it wasn't officially posted on any of the legal streaming sites so you might have to dig a bit to find (but I think it's worth a watch).

All your gripes are valid, but I've found most costume Cdramas have a slough of their own versions of these kinds of moments and writing (except Nirvana In Fire 😉). They often come with the genre.

I didn't know anything about the actors before watching (nor do I know anything about them now), and I still enjoyed it very much.

And there's a certain level of suspension of disbelief for things in costume Cdramas that are just specific to the genre and the way they're stylized. In my opinion, you can't enjoy them (Cdramas) without accepting that these unrealistic elements are inextricable from the genre.

Thanks for the rec!

I can do some of those dramas, too, but only when the situation is too unrealistic to be believable (like in BOFs), to the point where it's almost fantastical relational dynamics. 😅 Maybe I'll get into it and appreciate him more as I continue. 🤷‍♀️ We'll see! I'm not that far yet.