Good Grief

the way the grandfather, the lin patriarch, reacted to finding out about xiuwan and du zheng, along with his resolution for it, reminds me a lot of what happened to fu tingyan in the road to splendor. it doesn't matter what the truth is. as long as you are born a woman and you are no longer considered "pure" in the eyes of society, your only path out of that "disgrace" is death. it's tragic how easily a family will sacrifice you to protect themselves. if you are lucky, you will have people who cry for you; if you are not, no one will even remember you. life for women during ancient times was harsh, but it seems especially cruel during the ming dynasty, in which both of these stories take place.

Same, I was wondering why Du Cuique as a character seems so inconsistent and almost 1D compared to Zhao Xingtang in the drama. I looked more into it and turns out her backstory in the novel was set up the way it was which made her later actions makes sense in her twisted mind. But in the drama, as she was never the concubine and her brother was not dead, a lot of the subsequent actions didn't line up.

It makes sense now. I felt that Cuique’s motives lacked the depth that Xingtang’s had. In the end she comes off like an unrepentant brat. In your synopsis she’s more of a victim of the system and a more sympathetic character. Like Xingtang, it doesn’t excuses her behavior but you understand and sympathize with her plight. Unfortunately, with these adaptations, some things have to get cut for time. Thanks for sharing. That version would have changed my whole perspective of Cuique.

I like the changes to the ML too, but I am saying they should have made changes to Du Cuique's motives/actions too to match the changes of ML. I think the scriptwriters recognized Du Cuique's novel character is a very "exciting" character. But as her motives were related to her being part of the Lin household already, the drama version of her ends up becoming flat compared to say the drama version of Zhao Xingtang where her changes make more sense for the drama situation.

I understand, I am just saying I don't think the Du Cuique character drama adaptation was done as well as it could have been. They wanted to have their cake and eat it too with what she does in the novel but her motives in the drama due to changes with the ML ends up becoming flat instead.

I like the Lin Jinqi in the drama, but I don't know how I totally feel about the drama making him into a "good person" while for the female villains, they are still more of the villain roles (while having some sympathetic moments).

In the novel from what I know (someone correct me if I am wrong), Du Cuique's older brother DIED from saving the ML. With her brother's death, Du Cuique couldn't become a female official anymore using normal means (or truly marry someone as a wife without her brother around).

The ML and Lin family took Du Cuique in as a way to "repay the favor" and she became ML's concubine. She recognized that as she couldn't be a female official anymore but still wanted to advance in life. So, she leveraged the "repay the favor" with the Lin family and became ML's concubine.

Some of the actions she later did in the novel was due to him, the Lin family, her position as a concubine, and her own psychological issues. This drama attempted to still have her pull what she did, but her motives seem more superficial because they changed the ML so much.

We have Cinderella…a heroine with strong resolve who goes from riches to rags. A wise and formidable matriarch playing Fairy Godmother, and enough scheming women to assemble the entire Disney Villainesses collection.

Then we have Prince Charming…handsome, honorable and completely oblivious that Cinderella has been standing right in front of him.

All we need now is a glass slipper.

And with Du Cuique still alive, I guess we will see how much more...
I must admit I am not looking forward to a comeback - neither Cuique nor Xingtang. I think once a character's arc has peaked they should just exit left stage. I don't like resurrections.

mdl is wildin these days. notifications stopped working earlier this week too

I finished watching episode 3 and this series is shaping up to be one of the most interesting ones this year. I understand why some people might find it boring but so far, I really like how it explores company dynamics and corporation life. Eun Tae is interesting and I like how he has gained more confidence after winning the lottery. I would like to see more of him and his team, their dynamic is very good and it makes me root for them.

Loved ep 3-4. Narration speed, acting, characters development, music etc. For now It turns out to be a very relatable and warm story. Hope they will be able to keep up the tempo.

I just binge watched the 4 episodes and oh my god. This is such a satisfying drama. I freaking love it. I love the main lead, the acting, the cinematic and the plot line. It is such a good watch and I can’t wait for more episodes!!!!

Have beef for round one. Go somewhere cheap for round two. 🤣🤣🤣 epic 😂

Just finished 3 and 4 and this is still going strong for me. I love office dramas but this is definitely with a different twist. I usually let episodes sit if I find it boring but this has me hooked ❤️

I feel the exact opposite. It had a good balance of everything!