Set in the beautiful background of the Republic period of China, comes this drama of drama, power, and love. An old formula but one that has carried many dramas and it works well here as well.

Admittedly I wanted to watch this drama because of Jing Tian, a bit different from her role in Si Teng but still, the beautiful, intelligent, and strong-will female character. I have read that some people were disappointed watching this, comparing it to Si Teng. But for me, each role has its own merit. And I think she is brilliant as Feng Shi Zhen here. Her beauty and intelligence shine, and one of her biggest acting assess – her facial expressions are one the mark again here. Those little looks, stares, and mischievous smiles really express her thoughts brilliantly as they did in Si Teng.

Timmy Xu is also well cast here as the handsome and proud young man coming of age, Rong Jia Shang who is being lured along by Feng Shi Zhen. The chemistry between the two leads is worth watching. As the emotions developed between the two “Romeo and Juliet” lovers, the leads carried the transition from tutor/student to lovers well. Each of the support cast members is well placed in the drama, helping to carry the storyline along nicely. There aren’t too many flashbacks that plague many of the C-dramas and the story flows fairly quickly, especially when you realize that the novel is a fairly long novel, squeezed into the 40 episodes.

The direction and editing of the drama are fairly good though it is a bit choppy. There are scenes that contain errors and the transition between scenes isn’t smooth. Or maybe I am paying too close attention to each scene because of Jing Tian. Haha.. Don’t get me wrong, the editing and music are good in this drama.

There are parts of the storyline which are a bit confusing and not a clear explanation is provided. It takes a little thinking to work out what is going on. It was only after I read the novel that I understood why certain things happen the way they did. There are obvious differences between the novel and TV drama, as the novel is containing more abusive behaviour as well as more sexual content. Some elements in the novel have been shuffled around in the drama a bit, but overall, it still makes great viewing.

In saying all this, the drama is worth watching. The storyline is good though, it is an old formula and the depth of the story isn’t as good as other ones I have seen. The chemistry between the leads and support cast is great, the interaction natural and in the right frame. And there are scenes that would just take your breath away.