Tag Archives: Chinese Historical Drama

TBR Challenge Review: 被嫌弃的童养媳是锦鲤 (The Abandoned Child Bride is a [Lucky] Koi) by 尹云白 (Yin Yunbai)

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被嫌弃的童养媳是锦鲤 (The Abandoned Child Bride is a [Lucky] Koi) by 尹云白 (Yin Yunbai)
Historical romance

The Wang Family’s child bride Su Wan is a lucky koi.

After Su Wan entered the Wang family, her future husband Wang Luo Sheng passed the imperial examination and the Wang family became increasingly wealthy.

But the Wang family believed that everything they had was thanks to the well-educated concubine Yang Yunyan and that the legal wife Su Wan was ignorant, clumsy, and could only bring shame to the Wang family.

Su Wan, who transmigrated into the book, was furious. She had the luck of a lucky koi but still suffered such a humiliation.

So before she married Wang Luo Sheng, Su Wan packed up her things and went to find Shen Lin, who treated her like a treasure in the book after she was divorced.

Wang Luo Sheng got rid of the ignorant child bride as he wished and made Yang Yunyan his legal wife.

However, why did his family become more and more destitute? Where were the fame and money he had in his previous life?

Wang Luo Sheng looked at the big house and the new shop that the once poor Shen family had bought in the city, and fell into confusion…

So the prompt for this month’s TBR Challenge is “New Year, Who Dis?” and I felt the last book I read, 被嫌弃的童养媳是锦鲤 (The Abandoned Child Bride is a [Lucky] Koi), where our heroine gets rid of her trash ass ex was the perfect choice. I’m a staunch supporter of “die with regrets, asshole” and this book embodies it. Look, it’s not a good January, and in the states we’re only looking at worse and worse, thus finding joy where we can is key, and this is my joy. A glow up man, a good life, calling out people for their shit, and winning in life. It’s a bit of a “turn your brain off book” and we all need that sometimes. The “who dis” vibe is strong where the toxic people are cut out of their lives completely. Continue reading →

TBR Challenge Review: 逐玉 (Zhú Yù, Chasing Jade) by 团子来袭 (Tuán Zǐ Lái Xí)

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逐玉 (Zhú Yù, Chasing Jade) by 团子来袭 (Tuán Zǐ Lái Xí)
Chinese historical romance published in 2023

Chasing Jade book coverAfter her parents passed away, Fan ChangYu faced a string of hardships—her childhood sweetheart broke off their engagement, greedy relatives wanted to seize her inheritance, and with a sickly five-year-old sister to care for, she decided to take a matrilocal husband in name only.

Her plan centered on a man she had saved: wounded, with nothing to his name but a strikingly handsome face. They quickly reached an agreement: she would take him in to recover, and he would pretend to marry her, helping her hold on to her family assets.

Once the family business was secure, Fan ChangYu prepared to write the divorce agreement, as promised. However, a war erupted, and soldiers were recruited; her “husband” was conscripted and vanished without a trace.

The next time she saw him, he was drenched in blood, lying in a wounded soldiers’ tent. His handsome face was smeared with blood, while his simple soldier’s uniform was torn to shreds. Seeing the hardship he had endured, Fan ChangYu’s eyes reddened with tears.

“Don’t be a soldier anymore,” she whispered, her voice choked. “Come back. I’ll slaughter pigs to support you.”

He barely opened his eyes, coughing up blood. “You… wanted a divorce…”

Her eyes filled with tears. “No divorce, no divorce!”

[Mini Theater]
Xie Zheng, the Marquis of Wu’an, became renowned at a young age, his achievements in battle granting him the title of marquis before he even turned twenty. His methods in military command were famously strict and ruthless, making him unmatched across the entire Dayin dynasty.

Recently, however, the soldiers noticed something peculiar about their marquis. He no longer resided in his spacious command tent, preferring instead to squeeze into the cramped and shabby tent designated for the wounded.

Though he’d taken a serious injury—a wound deep enough to bleed through his armor—under normal circumstances, he’d be back on his feet within a couple of days. Yet this time, he’d been lying there for over ten days with no sign of improvement.

The camp’s grizzled strategist clicked his tongue after visiting him. “Hmph. If someone is by your side to wipe your brow and feed you medicine, of course the wound takes longer to heal!”

It wasn’t until the marquis’s mysterious wife—who had never shown herself before—snuck into the barracks, wearing her husband’s tattered soldier’s uniform, and took his place on the front lines, fearing her “delicate, sickly husband” might die on the battlefield. Only then did the “gravely wounded” marquis leap up from his bed in shock, hastily don his armor, and rush to chase after her.

As the blood-red sun set, a lone goose cried across the vast sky.

With a butcher knife in hand, Fan ChangYu hacked off the enemy general’s head and squinted toward the distant friendly troops kicking up clouds of yellow dust as they approached. She pulled over a nearby soldier and asked, “The one charging at the front, wearing that bright armor with the Qilin shoulder guards and riding that big horse… why does he look a bit like my husband?”

The soldier: …Isn’t it possible that he actually is?

Naive but fierce Little Sunshine (Female Lead) vs. “That woman is so crude” to “Why doesn’t that woman like me?” Marquis Xie (Male Lead)

Just reading the book blurb/description made me chuckle again. Does it give a lot away? Sure – but actually not that much. (These books are long though this book wasn’t that long at 180 chapters including the extras, and a lot of these cnovel chapters are shorter than you’re used to.)  The author, 团子来袭, is a new favorite for me. In fact immediately after finishing this book I read another fully translated book by [her], and am eagerly waiting for the others in the works to be finished. (And hoping if she has a larger backlist they get picked up!) Anyway the theme for December’s TBR challenge is “it’s a party” and … I guess … there are parties in this book? Nothing is jumping out at me but there are various celebrations and it’s one that feels like it most fits out of my recent reads. (And yikes my reading seems to have really slowed since November which … let’s not get into why 😒.) Continue reading →

Belated TBR Challenge Review: 九重紫 (Jiu Chong Zi) by 吱吱 (Zhi Zhi)

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九重紫 (Jiu Chong Zi) by 吱吱 (Zhi Zhi)
Historical romance published in 2022

九重紫 book cover - it has the letters in calligraphy on it - the cover is in blues, with a moon a smidgen right of center. The bottom quarter to third is water with flower water lanterns, and a type of boat with the back of FL and ML pictured.She is the legitimate daughter of the Dou family who lost her mother at a young age. Her status is noble, yet she is like a floating duckweed in the wind, with a pitiable fate. Her past karma remains unfinished, and in this lifetime, she returns to the bustling world, leaving behind the past of the mortal realm, seeking only a peaceful and enduring life like a gentle stream flowing endlessly. But unexpectedly, fate plays tricks, the more she tries to escape, the more she becomes entangled in the mortal world.

In a single encounter, she intruded into his heart, and in the mysterious realm of destiny, their love bond was already fated.

He is the highly esteemed heir, elegant and noble, yet trapped by his birth father’s schemes, facing difficulties at every step.

Amidst a faint fragrance floating, in a fleeting moment of brilliance, he dares to touch the forbidden, abandoning the prestigious and beautiful branches for the sake of a sincere heart, secretly pledging himself to the beloved.

Love has already blossomed, but the inner demons are hard to quell. The harder it is to attain, the more relentlessly it is pursued.

He takes the beauty as his own, experiencing the joys and sorrows of life together, never parting even in old age. She gives him genuine affection and lends him a helping hand; he offers her devoted love, helping her shed all hostility. Through all the ups and downs of life, she and he weather the storms together.

Can holding each other’s hands bring a lifetime of peace and stability? – lightly edited from NU

So the prompt this month was “drama!” and honestly, I wasn’t quite sure what book to choose. I’ve read a few I enjoyed but didn’t love (or super hate…) … but this one is the basis of a drama I’m looking forward to, so we’re going with 九重紫. The upcoming drama title is Blossom – fingers crossed it’s good. I’m very curious how they condensed a 523 chapter novel into just 34 ~45 minute episodes, so we’ll see. (I mean of course there was filler in the novel that could be cut … but not that much.) All that being said, our heroine here isn’t someone you love right off the bat, but she grew on me and I really loved her and felt she and our hero were a perfect pair. (Which of course is the point, but it’s extra here.) Continue reading →

TBR Challenge Review: Blossoms in Adversity

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(This is a review of the drama (惜花芷)  not the book with the same name, because alas it isn’t translated. I just checked and it seems the book is 694 chapters with 18 “extras.” The length is often a bit misleading because the chapters are short and in no way compare to the ones we’re used to.)

ANYWAY! Blossoms in Adversity – LET’S GO!

The series description slightly edited from MDL:

A devastating tragedy of asset forfeiture to the throne suddenly befalls the Hua family. The men are forced into exile, leaving behind the women and children in dire straits. Hua Zhi, the young lady of the family, no longer stays low-key and steps up. She braves hardship and leads the women of her household to manage to avoid starvation and danger. She transforms not only their lives but also the feared Commander of the Security Bureau, Gu Yan Xi, into her beloved “Mr. Yan”. During these lively and heartwarming moments, Hua Zhi rises from a sheltered lady to the head of her family, leading her toward a brighter future.


The native title 惜花芷 actually means more like “Cherish Hua Zi” – I think the original drama title was going to be The Story of Hua Zi but it turned into Blossoms In Adversity which fits even better because 花 means flower, and it’s the family name. I loved the story and how everything made sense. Even when it was so frustrating I loved seeing the growth of the characters and how the family came together. I think it’s important to know that in ancient China society was made up of four classes: (scholar-)government officials, farmers, artisans and merchants. (And slaves). So the Hua family goes from the highest social class to the lowest. I think that helps explain the elders’ resistance to Hua Zi doing business. Also in the first episode, people might miss it, but Hua Zi shouldn’t even show her face on the street because she’s the daughter of an aristocratic house. (In fact she shouldn’t even have left the manor, but she’s an “unusual” girl and was “spoiled” by her grandfather who took her along with him to travel when he was performing his official duties when she was younger.) She goes into business not only to provide for her remaining family members, but also to redeem the menfolk from exile. Hua Zi knows under an obscure law that if she pays 500,000 liang (silver taels) one person can be redeemed. So she needs to make 21.5 million taels to bring back all 43 exiled family members. It is a staggering amount. I don’t know the dynasty equivalent or conversions, but at times one silver tael – a liang – was 1000 wen/copper coins. And I think there’s a scene that said an average family lives on 2-5 taels (though they said coins so 2-5k wen) a month. So … 21,500,000 is just … mind boggling and why her mother and aunts think she’s insane and just an immature child unreasonably dreaming. Continue reading →

OH DAMN Y’ALL! Team TBR Challenge Review: Miss Mystery

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“Blurb”: 18 years ago a young and innocent Xue Tong witnessed her family being brutally murdered. Since then she has hidden herself quietly and patiently, waiting for the day she could put her revenge plan into action. Well that day has come, and Xue Tong has finally returned to her hometown as Miss Lin Bao Er, the daughter of a wealthy Nanyang businessman. Now an adult, Lin Bao Er is clever, cunning, good with a gun, and skilled at understanding the depths of human nature.

When she meets the charming young master Zhu Guan Wen, the two decide to pose as couple in order to progress their own interests. Neither can help but grow feelings for each other, but will their love be their greatest strength or their downfall? [– from MDL]

You. Guys. I am giddy as I write this review. Revenge, a kickass FL, and THE most supportive ML. I was constantly *STAR-EYES* and *HEART-EYES* while watching this drama. Honestly, I think you “need” both trailers to get an idea – it’s definitely got it’s dark moments (nearly all presented in trailer two), but there’s a lot of romance too. The TBR prompt for October is “Danger Zone” and … Miss Mystery really fit the bill here because our FL (female lead) Lin Bao Er/ Xue Tong is throwing herself into unknown dangers in order to avenge her family. She’s got a plan, but in life you never quite know how things will turn out. Lucky for her she has ML (male lead) Zhu Guan Wen who could be labeled “Mr. Supportive.” (ETA: I forgot to add that as a potential bonus, each episode is only 5-10 minutes long, so it’s not a big commitment.) Continue reading →

A Drama to Delight Your Cold Little Black Heart. Team TBR Challenge Review: What’s Wrong With My Princess

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General Murong Qiu Yu was infatuated with the second prince Li Mo, she aided him in seizing the throne. However, she was betrayed and killed by Li Mo and her sister Murong Xin Er. After being reborn, Qiu Yu found herself back on her wedding night with the seventh prince, Li Jian. Qiuy Y decided to join forces with Li Mo’s rival, Li Jian, to ensure that Murong Xin Er and Li Mo face the punishment they deserve… – source, MDL


I followed the TBR Challenge Prompt for “once!” This is a new to me scriptwriter (Luo Man Ying) – which isn’t something I usually check, but I did here. It’s also fitting because the story is the best part of the drama. What’s Wrong With My Princess is one of the most satisfying revenge stories I’ve seen. It’s a short drama so definitely not big budget, but definitely worth watching. I think I’ve seen both lead actors in other dramas previously, but ironically the one who I’d be most interested in seeing again was a character I hated – the SFL. (I chalked it down to the directing and good acting – her character is awful.)

When it comes to Chinese dramas the way lead characters are discussed are “Female Lead (FL),” “Male Lead (ML),” “Second Female Lead (SFL),” “Second Male Lead (SML),” and occasionally there’s a third FL and ML. Although ML and FL are always the hero/heroine, it’s not the case for SML, SFL, etc. – just they also get the more developed stories and longer screen time. There are some trigger warnings needed for the beginning – although it’s so unrealistic and absurd seeing it at least for me wasn’t that big of a deal – in fact I kept thinking and even said “that’s not how this shit works” but it was so awful it’s one of those “I don’t mind it’s wrong” things. The evil characters kill FL’s child in utero… right as she’s going into labor. It’s deeply fucked but that’s the point and why she comes back so angry and determined to exact justice. There’s also the dark history (or purported history) of consorts and concubines doing this sort of thing in the palace in order to grab power for themselves or preserve power … so it’s slightly less “what the FUCK”/more common to see to a native audience than to a Western audience.
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What if the “Villains” Were the Heroes? A belated TBR Team Challenge Review of Dong Lan Xue

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“Summary”: The maid in charge, Shen Yan, has assisted the Seventh Prince Chu Ning Yuan in seizing the title of crown prince. The two, who also had tragic experiences, became cold-hearted in order to seek revenge and seize power. They are used to seeing the dark, and the little warmth is only left to each other. Chu Ning Yuan gradually fell in love with Shen Yan who was always by his side, but Shen Yan was indifferent to his love, and even took the initiative to match Chu Ning Yuan to marry the daughter of a powerful minister in order to destroy the current crown prince’s plan to stabilize his power by taking the prime minister’s daughter as a concubine. Chu Ning Yuan saw Shen Yan’s intentions and became more determined to keep Shen Yan by his side. [Lightly edited by me, initially taken from MDL]

Trailer:

Dong Lan Xue is a short webdrama that is obviously low budget but doesn’t look like it at all. The costumes are gorgeous, as are the actors, the sets are well done, the script is excellent, the acting is good, there’s great fight choreography, and even nice background music. I think it was the first super short I’ve seen – as in each episode is only 2-3 minutes, and I was impressed with not only how much gets packed in, but how well the story is told. Continue reading →

She dies the first time they meet. He dies the last time they meet. Team TBR Challenge Review: An Ancient Love Song

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JUST WATCH THIS TRAILER

This is one of the rare times I’m “in line” with the TBR Challenge prompt – July is “opposites attract” and while this maybe isn’t what one would think … I feel it fits here. I might also be a little off with the second sentence of the post title, but it’s pretty safe to assume. So this is a love story but it is NOT an American genre romance. Obviously.

The premise is … what if you and your soulmate were trapped in reverse timelines.

I want to talk about the details of this drama for once – because the way An Ancient Love Song came into existence is SO COOL. As far as i know it’s a short, low budget “low production” series. However, I saw some interesting buzz about it, and had liked the FL (female lead) in another drama I’d watched before. Initially I saw a trailer and was like “while the visuals are beautiful it looks sad, so pass” but then I heard about the origin. So apparently someone made a random but intense fan music video (FMV) years ago. They took clips of different dramas and put them together (very impressive – they made the visuals seamless and it really looked like it could’ve been one show) –  and even hired voice actors for new dialogue/a story. It went viral, and eventually someone decided to turn it into an actual series. The original creator was even brought on as a scriptwriter. I believe someone said it’s the first time this has ever happened. Continue reading →

Team TBR Challenge Review: Word of Honor

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LOOK IT’S SO GOOD OKAY? 
*CAVEAT: To be honest, I put off watching this series for a bit because there were some mixed reviews, and for the first episode(s) the critics are legit. The beginning is … a lot. They throw a lot of shit out there, and introduce characters that are instantly killed off. Also, for whatever reason the first (few?) episodes – I’ve replaying from E1 as I write this review for me … third? fourth? rewatch – anyway, especially in episode one it’s like the director firmly told everyone “hey, overact as much as humanly possible.” Even knowing that/having seen some gifs that had me facepalming, I almost DNF’d at E1, but powered through, and am so glad that I did, because this series truly is excellent. (You need to watch the first few episodes the first time to get the background, but IMO the series only really starts/gets good once the hero loses is stupid awful “disguise.”) So … lol truly – if you pick up this series, which I hope you do … POWER THROUGH THE FIRST FEW EPISODES. Ping me, tweet me, email me, I will let you bitch all you want! I’ll encourage you and we’ll get through it! (It’s taken me months to write this review where I started and stopped…) Anyway, here’s the blurb/summary.

As leader of an elite unit, tasked with protecting the imperial family, Zhou Zi Shu was not a man to be taken lightly. A man of great honor, who commanded much respect, he served with the utmost loyalty and was rewarded accordingly. However charmed his life may have seemed on the outside, in reality, it was not the life Zi Shu desired. Unsettled within himself, Zi Shu ultimately decides to leave his position in order to pursue his own dreams.

Putting the past behind him, Zi Shu is determined to start anew but even the best laid plans can be waylaid by fate. Not long after setting off to see the world, Zi Shu finds himself embroiled in a conspiracy that rocks the martial arts world. At the same time, he meets Wen Ke Xing, a mysterious martial artist from the Ghost Valley, who is on a quest to avenge his parents’ death. Brought together by fate, the two become fast friends as they share a series of adventures that leads them ever closer to a legendary treasure that is rumored to give its owner ultimate power over the martial arts world.

Entangled in conspiracies and hunting treasure, Zi Shu and Ke Xing find themselves caught up in an adventure so epic, it could alter the course of history forever.

Adapted from the novel, Faraway Wanders by Priest, Word of Honor is a 2021 adventure fantasy drama directed by Gary Sing and Jones Ma.

I posted online a little bit about this series while I was watching it and I said it has some of the most complex main characters I’ve ever read or watched. One was basically forced to become an assassin to protect not only himself but his entire martial [arts] sect (Four Seasons Manor) of nearly 100 people that he was entrusted to lead at just 16 years old. The other is willing to watch the world burn as he tries to avenge the tragic death of his parents – and with good reason, because they were betrayed by the world. Then there’s the added level of this being a same sex relationship/romance drama which is definitely ~not allowed in China, so the whole thing is overall subtle and it’s mostly hints and innuendo. (Since the airing of this show there’s been an outright ban…) Still, I really enjoyed Word of Honor and started rewatching it to write this review. Again, I also entreat people to “endure” through the first few episodes because there’s some pretty painful overacting in them which thankfully doesn’t last.

The “prompt” of the TBR challenge this month is “love is love” – and this is a “BL” series – “boy love” which is unfortunately banned now, so shout out to the iconic Word of Honor. (LOL seriously – considering comments I’ve read, these characters live rent free in a lot of people’s heads. 💯) And truly. Gong Jun and Zhang Zhehan give a masterclass in chemistry here, with just looks. Continue reading →

Team TBR Challenge Review/Rant: The Legend of Hao Lan

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​(This is the synopsis from Wiki) Betrayed by her family and her first love, Li Haolan finds herself in desperate circumstances. Her father, State Censor Li He, arranges marriage between her and the far-older Yu Ping, who treats his other wives brutally. When she tries to circumvent this fate by begging her first love, Prince Jiao, to marry her, Li Haolan’s stepmother, Gao Min, orders her killed and thrown into the river. Surviving only by chance, Li Haolan crawls back from the brink of death to discover her reputation in tatters, as Gao Min spread the rumor that Li Haolan shamed the family by eloping with a stranger to explain the girl’s disappearance. Li Haolan’s mother, Wang Wan’er, a lowly concubine, has gone mad with grief over her daughter’s unknown fate. Gao Min orders the murder of Li Haolan’s mother and sells Li Haolan into slavery, just as Li Haolan watches her sweetheart marrying her little sister, Li Xiuyu.

Stricken with the knowledge of everyone’s complicity, and unable to return home, Li Haolan vows she will never beg for another thing in her life as she tries to claw her way out of her fallen circumstances and avenge the death of her mother and the wrongs done to her. The scheming merchant Lü Buwei purchases Li Haolan and takes interest in the fate of this intelligent, unusual girl. Together, they form an unlikely partnership as they both begin to climb the ladders of power.

Through Lü Buwei’s influence, Li Haolan enters Zhao‘s imperial court and makes a match with Ying Yiren, the captive prince of Qin. As Qin and Zhao fall into war, the balance of power changes, with Li Haolan on top.​

The theme this month was a gimme/reader’s choice  and I went with not only one of my most recently watched dramas but the one I most need to process. So the summary/synposis is basically everything that happens in the first episode. I have A Lot of Feelings about this series and an overarching summary in my head is “all the men in this series are trash.” There are only one or two that get more than five minutes of screen time that are mostly ok and … they both die. Granted, most the women in the show are truly terrible too. That being said, I’m … actually not mad I watched this series, but man – it is DEFINITELY not a “happy watch.” Production wise, it’s fantastic. This is clearly a big budget production. The sets, costumes, the actors, the music – it’s all so incredibly well done. It’s a historical drama in terms of not only setting, but it’s based on actual people.
I actually watched the whole damn thing in two days, no thank you, insomnia. I also did fast forward through a lot of the scheming because I don’t care about that shit, and you see it play out anyway so that’s something. I honestly don’t think I missed much though, and I “rewatched” the whole series the next day in that I watched the scenes between the heroine and her husband. And I realized – there aren’t that many. I don’t think I missed any in my second selective fast watch, and it’s possible it could all fit in the span of a single episode. Two at most. Yikes. (They’re also apart for five episodes, which covers the span of eight years/has a time jump.)

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