I actually forgot that Liu Shi Shi and Tong Da Wei are already married to their significant celebrity other in real life cuz they were so adorable and cute together as a romantic couple in this drama!!! At first their pairing seemed odd to me, but gradually their chemiztry manifested itself. Despite the looming presence of death (sickness / suicides); the constant push-and-pull, going on in circles,& convolutedness of the relationship among the three main leads; the childhishness, the incredulity, and the highly annoying pathologic God complex and victim complex of some characters, I believe it is still possible to enjoy watching this drama. There are plenty of sweet and funny moments; wonderful piano music; and some life lessons. It touched on touchy topics like domestic abuse and mental illness. I liked that it teaches that love should be built on trust, among other things. That money can't buy love, peace, or happiness. And that despite the harshness of life, one should still earnestly seek to play the hand he or she is dealt with with peace and strength because as long as one is alive there will always be hope.

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The Legend of Hao Lan is a little more brooding than the Story of Yanxi Palace. But as expected of a Yu Zheng drama, the costumes are gorgeous, the setting was exquisite, and the cast is stellar. Expect some intriguing court and harem politics set during the Zhou and Qin dynasties. Be titillated by the confusing and spicy love triangle between the three main leads. Unexpectedly, there was sizzling cute chemistry between Mao Zijun and Wu Jinyan. The versatile performances of veteran actors like Ning Jing are a treasure to watch. This is also Mao Zijun's break-out role. His characterization was superb. Karina Hai also showed another dimension of her acting skills. There are quite a familiar faces from The Story of Yanxi Palace in here or 9 actors to be specific. Feministic undertones. Beautiful OST/bg music. I highly recommend it.

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If you're watching this drama without expecting romance too much, I think you're going to enjoy it as much as I did. I have watched it from an impartial perspective cuz it was my first time watching the key actors. Angelababy has amazing chemistry with both Deng Lun and Zhu Liyong. If she isn't married, I'll be shipping her with Deng Lun. hehehehehe They look adorable together!!

The downsides of this drama besides the less focus on the romance aspect; its dragginess, are too much focus on the subplots (I esp. hated the sets of hellish parents in this drama!!); the tiring and annoying lover's quarrels between Fu Xiaoning and Xi Shan; and . . .the shameless product placements!! harhar

On the positive, I liked how the growth and transformation of the characters have been shown. I liked the enthusiastic and fresh portrayal of the budding real estate biz in Shanghai. Also, I liked how the drama correctly portrayed 1) the real estate concerns of people from all walks of life and 2) the operation of the toxic patriarchy esp. in the family dynamics. Most of all, I liked the lessons taught in the drama such as:

a) Optimism, faith in one's self, patience, and hard work are essential to success.
b) Love can't be rushed or forced. And it grows specially beautiful if it's nurtured by friendship and trust.
c) ''To err is human, to forgive, divine'' (per Shao Peng Cheng's words). and
d) The application of the principles of business ethics.

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This is my 2nd lakorn. I dropped it after the 20th episode because it became draggy. I just grew tired waiting for the explosive revenge on the main antagonist.

What I best liked in this drama are:

1) Great chemistry between Thanapob and Fern.
2) Intense acting from the antagonists most esp. the veteran actress who played Sida Litinatgoson.

What I dislike in this drama are:
1) Too much violence and extremely violent characters. The major male characters are dickbags. While the women antagonists are painted very viciously.
2) Lack-luster acting from Fern. This is bad considering she has great chemistry with Thanapob.
3) Cliched storyplot.

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