Q Tia

So is she now Empress?

There isn't. Actually there is no trafficking or all the abuse cases. Because i read the novel this year it is still fresh. In the novel it was mostly political fights that MTH was doing. She is a scholar and politician not an investigator. One time she even offered to go and help the ML settle a conflict with rioters and save Shen Zhishu's life. Di Nian and Huang Bo was there to protect her. The ml also wasn't a child emperor, if you remember the main conflict was that both his parents were emperors and they combined their kingdom. So the retainers of either side was wary of him. His main goal was to balance the political situation and command respect. There was the case of her being the princess. But the remenants only showed up later, it wasn't cult like this one.

The worst part about the changes they made is characterization. You mean to tell me that someone as principled, who was trying to be a good ruler like Ying Gua would leave his throne to a 3 year old? You mean to tell me that Ying Gua and Meng Tinghui will not rule together for the betterment of the people but run away to be together? Crazy! After all they fought for.

Thankfully i dropped this drama after the zombie episode. The novel was so greay so idk what they were thinking

Yes. Theit ambiguous/ physical relationship started early on

Thank you for this comment. Especially since this was a she fell first novel that was adapted into .... this. I like the story just that all the changes they made removed everything i liked about the novel. It's such a shame. I couldn't care less about plot changes like 2 masked men etc. But they really took a novel that had a female emperor, women in positions of power and she fell first and made it the same generic formula we've seen in the past couple months of cdramas. In the novel they had mutual feelings for each other that showed in all their actions. It wasn't "subtle" or "built over time" or a slow burn.

First the novel has a different idea.
- FL is a scholar who wants to be an official but there was no significant push back to women officials because Shen Zhili was already an official and so were a few women.
- the ML started out as the crown prince. Both his parents are alive till the end. His mother is the Emperor and his father is also an Emperor. They used to rule different kingdoms and eventually unified the realm.
- The main conflict with the officials was getting them to agree with the Crown Prince's vision. He eventually became emperor and the officials sort of respect him but are wary of him. The court is split into his father's supporters and the mother's supporters.
- the FL chased the emperor. In fact they were together almost from the start. She was very in love with him. The main conflict in their relationship was insecurity.
- There was no "solving cases" and the Fl engaged in mostly political Scheming. She did not know any marial arts, could not ride a horse. There were very few points where her life was in danger because her battles were mind games and scholar battles. To me the novel was unique and fresh and the drama is same old same old.

It is not following the novel at all lol. This is a completely different, worse (imo) story.

K uses the same sub as the platform. So the subs on k for this drama is from Mango unfortunately. Bad subs all round. Sometimes if the drama is on multiple platforms kiss will pick a good one like IQIYI but no such luck this time.

The drama is a great production, though it certainly could have been better in some areas. Interestingly, both the drama and the novel seem to improve upon each other in different ways. Together, they make for a truly enjoyable story, as each shines where the other falters.

In the drama, Qu Hua and Fang Mujing’s relationship is given much more depth. By tempering Mujing’s character to actually voice her emotions, the show allows a subtle sense of their story to evolve naturally. A particularly strong moment was the depiction of Mujing’s letter to her parents, which was drawn out enough to let us fully consider the weight and consequences of her rational choices.

To keep the leads sympathetic, the more opportunistic characteristics of Fei Ni and Mujing are toned down and instead pushed onto characters like Feng Lin and Ling Yi. This allows those characters to act as proxies for that selfishness and, ultimately, to bear the narrative punishment for it.

The drama enriches the backdrop of the 1970s and brings it to life. It is understandable that the direction aims to control the narrative of that era in China, showing restraint rather than the OP nature and eventual wealth of the Fang family found in the novel. This reflects a reality that while change will eventually come, it will be gradual and not through sudden wish fulfillment.

Meanwhile, FMY is slightly more reckless due to this shift as he lacks the means like he did in the novel to to cushion the consequences of his actions. His black belliness and general artistic nonchalance is toned down leaving his relationship with FN to feel a bit more sanitised, even a bit more childish, leaving FMJ and QH to bring the passion and steam.

The workshop also plays a much bigger role in the drama with all the shenanigans of Director Xu, Feng Lin, Ye Feng and Fei Ting adding a lively backdrop.

A combination of the novel and the drama would have been the perfect sweet spot. The novel shows pragmatic choices without tempering them with warmth, while the drama emphasizes the values of a collectivist society, suggesting that even when rules are softened, it is out of human connection rather than a rejection of those values.

Review with novel comparisons

She wasn't after him for money that's the thing. She got together with him because she loved him. She became extreme and lied about her parents because his parents were snobs.

She also never knew that he was aware of that. She never knew that he considered their whole relationship a deal. That's why she acknowledged that she was wrong for lying but she loved him still.

A lie is a lie is a lie. Even when you feel you did it for a good reason.

I think that detail was only in the novel. In the drama, they just showed that he picked their names on a whim not knowing that SL was female and FR was male.

Exactly. That was my final straw and took the drama down to an 8 for me. They should have left him dead when she got back to the past.

Tae Min watched people beat his cousin. Took the car his Parents died in. Covered for his evil father and mother who killed them. He Isn't innocent at all. kissed HS without consent.

They have different vibes not necessarily that hidden love was better. The couple had Zero drama, a larger friend group and the ml and fl liked each other and got together quicker.

Also the plot is widely different. This focused more on the voice actor indus try, it had beautiful singing, voice acting and food. If you like hidden love for the wholesome couple, You'll like this. If you like it for the school life aspect then this isn't that vibe. Both had wonderful friendships and family.

I loved this from Start to finish. This was a true tribute to voice actors in the cdrama industry. The drama expanded on the novel "Really Really miss you" in a beautiful way. Zhou Ye has come a long way. She and TJC really sold the romance. 10/ 10 drama ❤️❤️

The main similarity with a date with the future is that it's about firefighters. That's about it. The dramas are completely different in vibe and plot in other regards.

He does not like her at all. The person who likes her is someone else.

That whole plot line is different from the novel. In the book, his mom and her adopted father and his mom might have had something together and so her adpoted mom hated his mother and said their marriage was almost canceled because of her. They didn't really go deep into it. According to the book, how dad died drunk and in the snow like that and he was so angry after his mom left.