TaleNeverTold

He got obsessed with FL over her resemblance to his late wife. He then died trying to save her.

You’re writing fanfiction now! Good for you! Now, it’s just for you to figure out WHY did she kill Third Lady Chen and how.
Maybe, Third Lady Chen wanted to rule the household…
Or maybe, Second Lady Chen was falling in love with CYY when Third Lady Chen swooped in and stole him. And since he was completely indifferent to both of them, it hurt somewhat. But now that CYY is heads over heals with his new lady, old resentment flared up.
Imagination is a very big playground, enjoy!
P.S. I maintain that Second Lady Chen is low-key crushing on CYY and she does not think GJZ is good enough for him. And GJZ gets jealous at some point… I wrote some smut about it :)

I think it has something to do with the idea that Fu Hai Lian and his wife’s sect were secretly supporting a northern invasion threat, just so it kept brewing and kept everyone on their toes so that young emperor would always turn to Fu Hai Lian for help - and then northern neighbours went ahead and actually invaded, so turned from pretend threat to real one. That’s the double-cross.

It’s been a month for me and I’m done trying to move on. I’ve accepted the new obsession which is convenient for me too as Ci Sha and ASM has healed me for some previous obsessions (for example, I’m not moving on from The Prisoner of Beauty and Liu Yuning but I’m easily past the Pursuit of Jade and Zhang Linhe. Yep, I’ve said it :)
So, deep dives into random YT clips and ASM fanfiction :) standard kit!

1) for the main couple - yes. 2) ummm... barely there, blink and you'll miss it

The storyline is a funnel, i.e. it starts relatively small in three directions (FL household and ML political career and SML life/romantic aspirations) and gradually gains scale on all accounts - from a courtyard drama at first to a full-scale war in the end. It also gains speed exponentially, i.e. it moves slowly in the first half, picks up speed in the second half and galops in the last five episodes. So, when the very last shot of the last episode is of main couple walking away from a grand fire behind them, it is meant to be a poetic bookend to the beginning of the story when FL stole a lantern from the ML to burn down something that upset her. However, many viewers see this ending as abrupt, there isn't any 'epilogue' and 'two years later' sequence. Also, few secondary lines remain somewhat unresolved - you can assume how the characters ended up happy/unhappy based on the cues provided but you don't get to SEE it - there are no scenes, no voice over, no nothing about them. Just big fire - and fade to black. So, it is still a happy end but it's more of an artsy movie style rather than classic C-drama style where you get five minutes of 'happily ever after' collage. Hence, some people are upset with this ending.

YX definitely went out with a bang! And in a way, it was his own version of happy ending — he got to claim the glory and the family pride and the right to sit at his father’s table in havens.

My headcanons for all of this ‘what happened after’ are below in this chat =) I’m sure you have ideas about the ending of these plot lines too =)

Not sure he ‘allowed’ those men anything. It is a point in the drama where we see when he FINDS OUT about her being hurt and harassed and is beating himself up over not protecting her. And he did go to protect and save her multiple time, he is THE ONLY ONE who did protect her throughout the story - and she acknowledged it after their marriage, how much she grew to rely on him. As for her staying outside his office… he did not handle his jealousy well but he did tell her that he needs to stay away for a while. She (a functional adult) CHOSE to stay outside of his office to force him or to guilt him out of his hiding. Was he right to handle this situation like this? No! Was she right? Also big No! That situation was not about being right, it was about stepping over the past and learning to communicate.

For one, yes, I also wanted to see GJZ do some ‘big feelings’ gesture.
But for two, I see the story slightly differently from where she stands. She did get interested in CYY first but because of his overwhelming presence in her family life, it is repeated through the show just how much out of her league he is to the point she’d never even thought to entertain the idea of getting to his level. At first, she’s feisty and outspoken with anyone but him as she sees him as superior. Partially, it’s the age, but also his social and political status - way, waaaaaay out of her league. Also, she did get interested in the nephew because of his heroic saving of her which was CYY’s deed so her infatuation with her savior was just temporarily misplaced. And in the end, after being disappointed with her crush, after being disappointed with the institute of marriage because of her parents and deciding not to get married at all - after all that she’d still agreed to marry him. She still considered herself to now be on his level. They have even established that she would gain nothing out of this marriage, so her marrying him out of no other reason than love IS her BIG ROMANTIC GESTURE. Thoughts?

It is HE for the main couple, not a HE for SML and TML, and as the ending is a bit abrupt we don’t get to find out what happens to many secondary characters. But I watched for the main couple and I’m perfectly happy with the ending =)

As far as I remember that specific BTS, no

Ye Xian.
Based on BTS, the scene in episode 26 where Ye Xian shows up with his inappropriate wedding gift to GJZ home was supposed to be longer, with CYY actually exchanging words and then, after a brief altercation, kicking him to the ground. In the episode we only see a kick and fall.
It's not out of jealousy as GJZ very clearly established that she has no romantic feelings towards Ye Xian and has romantic feelings towards CYY. It is because Ye Xian may see his visit to be a grand romantic gesture (same as he did with kowtowing to her mother's memorial tablet) but CYY sees is as potential stain on GJZ's reputation (when an unattached man visits unmarried woman late at night with romantically-suggestive gifts).
So it's not a deleted scene, it's an extended scene.

Oh no, she did show some signs of disdain towards Gu Jin Zhao, I do remember her snide remarks and side eye. I also wrote like full two pages of Qin Xialan being a petty shit to Gu Jin Zhao because she cannot process her stupid little crush. But Gu Jin Zhao found a way (a good one!) to move past that little bout of jealousy so all is good =)
As for Jin Rong - I needed a bit more exposure to the gambling world for him to have useful contacts. Also, I'm not sure that little kidnapping excursion would have healed him completely, he needed few more smacks on the head from his brother-in-law to get a grip on his life =) but now he's good, promise!

Ok, I haven't gotten to Chen Yanwen yet (I have something for him in Chapter 6 or so) but I have established a conflict with Qin Xianlan, Second Lady Chen. In short, she has a 'minor, very innocent, and not entirely recognized romantically-inclined affection for Jin Zhao’s husband'. I have not yet figured out the way to resolve it - I will let it slide, I can't see Jin Zhao being threatened by this one-sided crush, so there will be no big blowout resolution, Second Lady Chen will simply fade to the background.
As for Gu Jinrong, he has had few run ins with shady side of gambling business (is there non-shady side of gambling business?) but then was firmly sat right by Gu Jin Zhao and continued on with his life on a straight and narrow. He now runs Gu Jin Zhao's banking business (yes, they had banking system in China back then, I checked). He's very helpful when Jin Zhao tries to solve the counterfeit scheme and for his help he's offered a position in the Ministry of Revenues. He gracefully declines, preferring business side of life to officialdom.

Me. I came up with this. Now, in the comments section. I do write fanfiction, it’s my normal go-to when some story needs fixing or just needs more =) As for Gu Jinrong and Qin Xianlan, I’ll think of something for them, but tomorrow as it’s late where I am now =) Maybe, I’ll even throw in some Chen Yanwen, I’m feeling vindictive.

Ok.
Fu Hai Lian did not want to escape and was fully ready to die in that fire but his servant, loyal to the wife and the sect, forced him out of the fire and into hiding. Fu Hai Lian was badly burned but as he healed, he started planning his revenge, gathering remnants of his network and blackmailing people in the government left and right for their help. By the time he was almost done with organizing another coup, Chen Yan Yun showed up with Ye Army and Mystique Guards behind his back and thanked his old mentor for rounding up all the traitors so neatly and sparing him the need to hunt them down one by one. Some traitors (such as Fu Hai Lian and few high-ranking people) were executed publicly by hanging, their bodies later disposed of in a way that would not grant them reincarnation. Others were executed silently, so not to create massive wave of death in the city, young emperor was concerned it would be too much too quick. All of them were erased from the country record, their estates seized. Innocent family members were spared and relocated out of the capital. Chen Yan Yun insisted.
Ye Family was offered their noble title back, however, with no male heirs to carry it forward, Ye Xian’s mother asked for the different honor instead - Ye Army was reformed as elite garrison in the empire military force and it was the only garrison that carried the Ye flag regardless of what military family commanded it. Sacrifices of Ye family were regaled and repeated through generations and taught in school as example that serving one’s country is not limited to military prowess, only to merit.
Gu Lan did marry and continued running Lynxia Studio and four other restaurants she opened later. Her husband is still stupid in love with her and while she doesn’t show it much (not into PDA), she is very much in love with him too. One of the cases when he fell in love first - but she fell in love harder. You can tell by the fact they have three kids in the first three years of marriage - until doctors had to gently advise on contraceptive tonic to spare her health.
Gu Lian was not as lucky. Her having two kids did not change her husband for better, he continued being a womanizer and gambler. When Yao family realized that being related to Gu Jin Zhao would not score them any good promotions, they ignored Gu Lian completely. Later, her husband incurred a bunch of gambling debts and got himself and his wife involved in some shady business. It got bad enough that Gu Zin Zhao had to intervene and after they served their punishment (few years in working camp) they were evicted to remote provinces where one on Gu Jin Zhao’s business associates kept an eye on them.
Ji Yao started trading business with Western merchants and it kept him very busy - and very rich. Old Lady Ji was devastated that her grandson is too busy to find a wife and give her an heir to the family name, though she tried very much to respect his independence. Gu Jin Zhao later conspired with Xue Qin Lang to introduce Er Gege to a young lady from their friend circle who was an admirer of maritime travel. Worked out splendidly!
Xue Qin Lang never married and opted out for running an academy for accomplished young ladies where they were taught archery, horse riding, calculus and trades. Capital city people tried to gossip that such teaching are unseemly but seeing how Grand Secretary’s wife, Gu Jin Zhao, was a guest lecturer and patron in this academy, gossip quickly died down.
Gu De Zhao tried coming back but was firmly dismissed by both his daughters and went back where he came from. He was, however, not forbidden from periodically visiting his grandchildren - but always briefly and always under supervision.
Young Emperor was crowned two years later after the events in the drama, when he came of age. He bestowed a title of Pillar of the State upon Chen Yan Yun, who carried this title for another 30 years until he retired.
Baopu lived a long (and very unfair life, if you ask him! ugh, the kids!) and died on his own terms.

I will not put this under the spoiler as it is not a spoiler =) it is fanfiction.

What are your answers to these questions? If you had 10 more episodes to write, what is YOUR rest of the story?

Episode 17, we first see him around minute 13, then around minute 16 he takes off his hat, gives a speech and tries to kill the young emperor, who is saved by Ye Xian. It’s a guest role, so he’s only in this one episode.

Not only the aura and the look though, right? The standard for behavior for ML also changed. I tried watching other dramas and as soon as I stumbled upon ML doing some over-the-top-dramatic-slow-motion shit or the usual I’m-toxic-in-love-because-I’m-the-man shit, I’m thinking ‘San Ye would never’. How am I supposed to go back to adolescent snowflakes when an adult man has entered the building? Way to uproot the genre!