Enemies to friends to lovers - a simple way to think of this story, but there is much more to enjoy about this drama than the two leads falling for each other. In fact, there are truly three leads in this story - and the interconnectedness of their lives and fates really drives this story forward as they learn to love and fight for what is right in a world of deceit in the quest for power.

The story sags a bit towards the end - I feel the whole war with the state of Wei was unnecessary. There is no build up with the king/emperor of Wei, and I would have rather the story focused on the complicated emperor of Liang instead. And while I would have liked for a better end for Wei Zhao, there was probably no feasible way for him to be alive after what he does to the emperor.

Be warned: the first 10 or so episodes have some hard-to-watch moments as the male and female leads go at each other while being enemies - some of it is downright torture. It's a testament to the pacing and development of their relationship and the actors' performances to make their romance eventually believable with some palpable chemistry.