okikai

things aren’t what they first seem here.
bai lu is crafting one of her most compelling and complex characters in Ye Li, and regardless of what lengths she goes to, our hearts understand and hurt for her. not any leading lady could pull off this role, it requires the skill to convey a lot with extreme subtlety. bai lu is more than up to the challenge.

i’d say this is also one of the fresher takes on a mastermind character, portrayed with an appropriate amount of tenderness and disorder.

so we get a revenge story, where the mystery extends, envelopes and includes our main protagonist.



the weakness of this:

i wanted cheng lei to be given more to work with because his part of this leaves me wanting more. i feel he was underutilized here.

the romance isnt going for “romance” as much as its going for “healing” and “connection”. i personally dont mind that this doesnt feel sweepingly romantic, but ive seen people mention it as a minus.

something i do struggle with is that some plotting aspects seemed disjointed. the core was really good so its hard to notice but the weave could’ve been tighter. many subplots felt like they were put on pause so the main thing could happen without in world good enough justification.

so its very good, worth the watch if you like historical dramas, but has its flaws.




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