noor1234

No that was AFTER he had already held a fake wedding with her in it while her funeral was passing by! That's when she got to talk to her mom....

Absolutely not. King cannot be seen taking sides of a couple that court's nobles have a problem with. He is the upholder of proper morality code of the time - not semantics of what the behavior of 2 people who helped him crack a case was like. He doesn't know what they were up to or not up to when FL lived with her grandma. And btw, she DID elope with ML - after the near death experience, ML held a fake wedding when her funeral was passing. So technically FL's dad can twist reality to say it's a double fraud for Fu family - that while they were burying their girl who died of 'sickness in nunnery' ML actually showed off his fake wedding in front of them, taking their daughter with him! King doesn't know about any of this. If they were 'engaged' when he saw them, that was after they had eloped & caused grandma's death!

I don't know how this 'elopement charge' gets resolved. But I think the drama will show ML & FL taking matters into their own hands and rejecting filial piety of a deadbeat father who only wants to be made salt censor & is exploiting the daughter for this purpose. That's why ML will go collect her mom for the wedding - to complete ritual of a living elder being by FL's side.

I don't think the leads have had time to relax since they came to capital - which is saying something, because Ganlin wasn't peaches & roses either!!! But we didn't see their courtship even there all that much. But here, everything from their union to every convo since, has been a combo of what is happening in court / ML's workplace to how FL strategizes to help him & both minding that the other is not sharing things, while showing caring gestures towards each other. They have not even kissed or tightly hugged since reunion, they show intimacy in other ways. I think it's realistic, understated romance, a bit dry romance.

You don't like the ML's arc, fine. But I will say, FL's choices were not to stay alive. After she's rescued by ML in that nunnery, she strategized to have a secure future - that's different from need to stay alive. She's the one who roped in ML in the salt investigation, she's the one who offered marriage as a means to an end, she's the one who went with him to Ganlin army base - even though her mom told her to go to capital where she had moneyed relatives - & she's the one who lived as an army guy's fiancé in poverty. It was always her ambition to go to capital, & she was ecstatic when she found out that ML was on his way to capital as a decorated military officer, & she could finally leave Ganlin.

If it was up to ML, he'd probably still be a salt smuggler or dead or in prison! FL is from an upper class household, she was born with a lot of stuff & her job was never to be a provider or protector for a family - she was raised to be a manager of household & educated enough to have an intelligent conversation with noble wives in capital. ML comes from nothing - I don't think he's even all that literate - & he has always had a band he had to provide for & protect. And he's doing that.

I do believe he doesn't want to share stuff about work with her - but that is not because he thinks she's not 'equal'.

You see it differently, and that's fine.

No, he gave over his entire smuggling money to the crown prince - as in the treasury to make a clean start - and left 3K teals for FL so that she'd have a bit of money for use in capital. This was done at the end of investigation arc when FL was leaving for capital & had convinced him to join the army & leave fake identity behind & she was the one to tell him to turn over the money to law.

I think the same.

True, well said!

He's a court official with an army background tasked with a revolutionary salt reform, deputed by king to get it done - by hook or by crook. Can he really say no to a king? And that too as just some random nobody with no family / status for support, just some 5-year military career?

He's actually a very good person, very honorable, with a strong sense of right & wrong & he's very affectionate with people - all of the guys with him were strangers, but he has taken all of them along. But he has seen what happens when you don't have power - people get trampled, killed, humiliated, fiancee' can get abducted, etc. & he has been shown to be human when he accepted Yusheng's lie about 16 heads & then went on to collect 16 alternates.

FL's choices were never THIS grim. She never had to kill someone to save someone or kill someone on someone's orders or kill just because she's in the military or arrest & torture someone because that's her job. He's hardened & jaded because of his experiences. He could take risks before as salt smuggler, he cannot make a wrong move as a court official or his family will suffer.

I do believe if this couple stays here like this for 20 years, they'll end up exactly like Yu lady & her husband - corrupt, cynical, indifferent, political players.

Oh, thanks for that! I was wondering how the leads knew this guy - and now that you mention it - he's the guy with hair who was next to crown prince during the investigation arc (& with Gen. Mo & the other sword guy) & later told FL to convince ML to join army etc. He also was the one to tell Yu lady she won't get any credit from prince for her work. THANKS!

There were 3 candidates: ML had also proposed a name - a guy called Baio, & Ministry of Personnel recommended the other 2 - Shameless/SML & Chongsi. The names are shown in the edict king has in his hands in court.

True.

He wasn't 'powerful & arrogant during lunch' - he told her to tell him if she makes a move & not hide it. She was going behind his back - as his fiancee' btw, and had sent a letter to HR people about Chongsi. That's why he got that letter out from the Ministry of Personnel & gave it back to her. He has his own reasons for not backing her brother's in-law (wife's brother) because it would look like favoritism - but king's tutor recommending the same guy is something else - & that got done due to FL.
In the tea scene, he was telling her that he understood what she did, but she should also understand his position. She did not like it because she wants him to have a support base, & he cannot be seen as having a support base if he is to be impartial handler of salt reform. They have a communication problem, but it stems from wanting to do the right thing & also need to protect the other.

Well said.

I'm not liking this, that's no sacrifice or building up from zero. ML has his money from his hard work & near death experiences. The guy has walked on fire! FL also had a terrible time in Ganglin. But she has flaunted money from maternal side (!) - she could've asked them for financial assistance in Ganglin too btw, why didn't she?

That's why I'm saying he should get it - because the potential for drama is more if he gets it! ML & Shameless will have to work together, & of course SML will try to sabotage ML.

Ep. 22: No matter what is happening right now, I think it will be quite interesting WHEN Shameless/ SML becomes Salt Censor and has to work with ML in doing Salt Reforms. There's potential for great tension & intrigue hi-jinx if they are forced to work together.

SFL's stupidity knows no bounds: getting back at Wei lady as if she's going to take any back stabbing against her lying down! I can now see clearly HOW that Wu niece will end up as SML's concubine / 2nd wife - because she represents Anzhou salt merchants & Yu lady will be forced to take her to avoid scandal against her family (that her d-i-l tried to entrap Wei husband) and also to create a powerful group in salt reforms.

The stress & pressure is clearly taking a toll on ML and his relationship with FL. Their scenes together have a current of unpleasantness. She is telling him she doesn't want to grow distant & wants to help, but he has to balance out all the courtiers & special interest groups & is isolated. They may get a wedding, but there's nothing else other than tea between them. Let's see if she remains understanding of him & he doesn't feel burdened & alone......

BUGGING THE HELL OUT OF ME TROPE: of making FL soooooooooo rich that she not only bought the expensive house on expensive street BUT is also the owner of shops - if she was this rich & could make these moves 7 years ago - as her mother wanted her to - why did she offer marriage to ML & go to Ganglin. She had gotten the 'household registry' from crown prince. So she could've easily gone with this same ML to capital, have these same shops, have the same house, even, and make ML work at these ridiculous shops. ML didn't really need to be in the army. They could've lived off her 'wealth' or her maternal family's shops. Now she's offering money from these shops to this d-i-l married to some cousin-brother - and she's living a lavish life, that she didn't work to get. She even told the real estate person that many army wives would want to settle in the capital - look at the poverty of all those army women who descended from the carriage to meet her - I doubt anyone of them can afford a place like her!!!! Even ML doesn't live like this.

This is against the entire premise of the drama - that 2 people down on dumps work their way up.

Well said.

👍

Boy, are you in for a surprise! I've seen a scene on twitter/x & it has concubine/ niece going to that Wei lady's under-husband (whose dad is the grand secretary about to retire) & Wu makes it appear as if this was done because of Yu family (remember Wu wants to get her niece installed in an influential family AND get back at Yu lady), so Wei will go after Yu's & my guess is Yu's don't want to make an enemy out of Wei family, so Yu lady will accept niece as son's concubine - an arrangement that will ensure that Wei doesn't come after Yu fam. & ALSO guarantees support of Anzhou merchants for whatever Yu decides to undermine ML.

The pawning etc. gift failed to work because she's not really from these circles - IF m-i-l had really coached her & seen her as part of her son's success later on, she would've fared better. SFL has failed in this family, primarily because m-i-l had it against her from the get-go. A young woman may do some dumb s**t but it is the job of elders to guide properly. Not excusing her slander against FL but SFL never had a mother & she grew up being envious of everything FL had. I think Lady Yu's lack of respect towards SFL & taking her as an enemy (not giving her proper wedding, not giving her separate household budget, not allowing her to keep gifts, brainwashing son against her) & then use her dad's books as a free lunch is far worse than anything SFL did.