Drama Digest
This drama follows Yuan Qing Li, who unfortunately encounters bandits. Luckily, she is saved by some good people; however, she has no recollection of who she was or used to be. She also finds out she is to be married off, so in order to escape this, she disguises herself to be something she is not—that is, a man. She uses her martial arts skills and continues on with her life, but she is met with several obstacles.
The Feel-Good Part
This is a heartfelt yet blatantly cliché love story about how genuine love overcomes all obstacles. There is a sorrowful undertone despite the fact that this is mostly a happy and enjoyable love story. The dynamics of the side pairings are equally interesting to witness.
The Disappointing Factor
The instances themselves are intriguing enough despite the story’s lack of much originality overall. If you figure out the plot or identify the evil people right away, you won’t receive the award for best armchair detective of the year. While the characters are extremely colorful and avoid being overly conventional, some of the story twists are a little sloppy. The conclusion was masterfully executed, neatly ties up the majority of loose ends, and provides a fitting final coup de grace. It won’t rock your world, but it won’t require you to curl up in a ball to recover from a major slump either.
In-Depth Analysis
The Later Liang dynasty had just seized control of what is now northern China in 907 CE. Yuan Qing Li, a general’s daughter, is making her way to a serene nunnery to practice solitude meditation. A gang of robbers, however, attacks her group, kidnaps her, and abandons her for dead. She is saved by good forces, but she doesn’t remember who she was before she went to sleep and doesn’t remember who she is when she wakes up, living a life she doesn’t think is her own. She also learns that she must get married, something she really does not want to do. She makes the decision to flee and go undercover while dressing as a male. She quickly finds use for the martial arts training she had when she was younger and advances to the position of county constable. The Duke of Liang, Jing Ci, has also posed as a lowly Liang official in an effort to uncover a devious plot that might topple the government. To put an end to the corruption and help Yuan Qing Li uncover her actual identity, the two teams worked together.
Star Power
The Jing Ci character had the potential to be really interesting, but Yu Menglong’s terrible robotic depiction completely destroys it; he moves like a robot, talks like Alexa in a masculine voice, and stands like a mannequin. Even when he attempts to show his love to his love, there are no feelings or reactions on his face, and spectators cannot sense the passionate love he has for her. His statement sounds emotionless, like he’s reading it from a book. It’s really too bad since Yukee Chen, who portrays Feng Mian Wan, and the rest of the actors gave really strong performances.
Overall Opinion
If you have no other options and want to pass the time while waiting for new episodes of other dramas to air, watch this one. It’s not completely awful, but it’s also not great.
