Notable Actors/Actresses
Guo Jun Chen: Mu Jue Chen
Li Nuo: Qian Yu
Director:
Recap Grade: A
First Impression: 4/5Mini Recaps
[Ep1] The vain CEO master is Mu Jue Chen. The secretary maid who passionately hates him is Qian Yu. She wanted to quit her job of ten years but gives him the wrong letter and ends up confessing to him. The vainglorious Mu Jue Chen falls deeper in love with himself as he accepts his maid's love for him because who wouldn't love this guy?
Qian Yu uses these ten days time to find her "brother". She only has memories of him when they were young. She had originally thought it was Feng Ming but now she thinks it's that restaurant owner, Shen Ming Xiu. It's only been the first day of their separation while Mu Jue Chen thinks it's been eight or nine days. At night when he sends her a voicemail via their clothes, Shen Ming Xiu receives it for her. Mu Jue Chen is boiling with jealously that this man has her clothes in the middle of the night. Thus, Mu Jue Chen shows up at her dorms to interrogate Shen Ming Xiu.
[Ep4] Qian Yu catches Mu Jue Chen attacking Shen Ming Xiu and wants to stop him. Mu Jue Chen knocks both of them unconscious, carries Qian Yu into her room, and covers her up. He wants to kiss her but he's reminded of the terrifying kiss the last time and how she had lectured him. He settles for a kiss to the forehead instead.
The next day Qian Yu has plastered news on all notice boards possible: she is looking for a mate to admire music with her. She will be playing her flute at the restaurant and if anyone can guess the next line, that person will be her master. When Mu Jue Chen listens to her awful flute music, he immediately recognizes it: "夙語" (Su Yu). It's the piece he had played for her when they were young. He smiles thinking she's regained her memory. So he is the boy. He covers his face and answers her awful music with his awful music. The narcissistic way he plays Qin, hahaha. He passes the semi-finals. He is the boy she's looking for but before she arrives to see him in person to confirm it, Mu Jue Chen has already left. However, Qian Yu is starting suspecting that it's Mu Jue Chen.
Shen Ming Xiu is about to pass the final round of Qian Yu's quiz. Mu Jue Chen can't let this happen. With no other ways to travel to her at light speed, he embarrassingly lets an eagle claw onto him to fly to her. Qian Yu impatiently waits for Mu Jue Chen. That's when he lands gracefully behind her. She almost loses her balance and he catches her right into his arms. He admits, "I've lost" and gives her another romantic kiss. He lost because he showed his face to her within ten days. He can't stand not seeing her.
[Ep5] Qian Yu finds the kiss the least bit romantic. She pushes Mu Jue Chen away. She's angry at him for disrespecting her again. Now that he's broken his promise by showing up in front of her (this was her motive all along), he has to give her three favours: return Feng Ming his cultivation, reveal why he knows how to play Su Yu and return her slave contract. He agrees to the first promise, but denies he knows Su Yu and refuses to give her the contract.
The competition continues. In the meantime, Mu Jue Chen's servants convince him to win her back otherwise he'd lose Qian Yu for good. However, he's way too in love with himself that he sees zero fault in his ways. He would give her what he thinks she loves to eat but it's actually his favourite food and she absolutely hates it.. She tells him there's not one day she had a day off from him. But he thinks she loves him so much she can't leave him for a single day. When Qian Zhan (Mu Jue Che's handsome and taller, way taller, bodyguard) tells him the truth of his inconsideration, Mu Jue Chen manages to twist it to fit his narcissism.
Qian Yu is determined to leave with her newfound brother, Shen Ming Xiu. However, on the day she leaves, Mu Jue Chen has to settle a dangerous mission his brother, Mu Yan Ce, has set him up for. An injured Qian Xiao tells Qian Yu to help the young master. Worried, she dashes to him. Thinking he died, she cries in the snow field (in the middle of summer). From behind, someone is carrying an umbrella over her. It's Mu Jue Chen. He's fine. She figured he lied to her but also notices her surroundings. He's giving her the romantic scenery she likes: a man carrying an umbrella in the snow. He also gives her a present (a carved doll of her). Lastly, to finish her romantic scene, they have a snow fight. I thought all was going well but...
[Ep6] Mu Jue Chen sees no fault in his snowball throwing skills. He's quite proud of himself actually. When Qian Yu wakes up he sends another fastball at her. Omg, lol. She's unconscious again. Mu Jue Chen uses this opportunity (her being unconscious) to change her memory so that she's no longer angry at him. Conveniently, Qian Xiao has this magical ability. Thus, Mu Jue Chen returns to the night she refused his marriage proposal. He promises to return Feng Ming's cultivation before she asks thinking that's what she wanted. She whines that he doesn't know what she wants. Haha. Girls can be so annoying. He continues to re-enter at different points in history to change their fate but nothing is working. I love that Flight of Bumblebee music they play to mess with him. When Qian Yu finally wakes up (after being knocked unconscious three times). She's touched seeing all the apology letters he's written to her. Happily, she writes in his palm that she forgives him.
At night he creates another romantic event (with a funny wardrobe scene) for her but it's interrupted by Shen Ming Xiu. The two men have a drinking battle. Mu Jue Chen loses the first battle. He had one drink and he's a goner. Shen Ming Xiu signals the orchestra group to stop and the musicians quickly pretend to be unconscious. Lol. He tells her that he's her fiancé. The Mu family probably stole her family's martial arts which is in line with why Mu Jue Chen thinks his family owes her. A drunk Mu Jue Chen wakes up and claims Qian Yu can only be his. He then angrily punches the pillar.
[Behind the Scenes] Qian Xiao is practicing with the needles for the magic memory scene. It's Mu Jue Chen who's especially scared of being accidentally injured, heh.
[Ep7] The pillar Mu Jue Chen punched cracks and brings down the entire house. Qian Yu uses her body to protect an unconscious Mu Jue Chen from the falling house forcing Shen Ming Xiu to save the both of them (he only wanted to save her).
Mu Jue Chen's Dad locks up his son so he doesn't stupidly chase after Qian Yu again. To escape, Mu Jue Chen makes Qian Xiao pretend to be him while he takes on Qian Xiao's appearance so that he can visit Qian Yu. Qian Yu has decided to leave with Shen Ming Xiu to find out more about her identity. Mu Jue Chen (with Qian Xiao's appearance) stops her. With one look, Qian Yu has already figured out the two men have switched identities. She tells the real Mu Jue Chen this is none of his business.
The past: The young Mu Jue Chen had contracted an illness that is related to You You Gu (Qian Yu's sect). Mu Jue Chen's father had thought their sect purposely made his son sick so he demanded her family to give up their mantra so that he can heal his son. However, You You Gu cannot do that so the only other option is to accept Mu Jue Chen into their sect to heal him. Mu Jue Chen, a fair and obedient child at that time, accepts the offer to cease their family feud. What went wrong with Mu Jue Chen during his upbringing to change an innocent him to such an arrogant master?
[Ep8] Mu Jue Chen shows up (pretending to be an illusion) to stop her from investigating about her past. He takes her book that will apparently tell her all of what she wants to know. She tickles him and they fall onto the bed. She seductively leans over him and inches closer to his lips, but she only wanted the book. She successfully takes the book from him. He then gives her a "Bi Dong" (Japanese equivalent: Kabedon) and almost kisses her. She threatens him she'll bite him again so he hesitates. But the urge to kiss her is still greater. Unfortunately, a vase from the top of the bookshelf is falling because of the force he smashed the shelf with. The kiss is interrupted for good as he injures himself from protecting her. She bandages his wound. She then reads the book she stole from him but it was fake. She angrily stomps off yelling at him this is the third time he's lied to her.
After a kite incident, Qian Yu becomes more certain that her 'brother' isn't Shen Ming Xiu but is Mu Jue Chen. When her kite doesn't fly, Mu Jue Chen secretly orders his eagle to flap his large wings to create a gust of wind to allow her kite to fly. I like how the drama is using the CG eagle, heh. Qian Yu smiles. She's happy that he hasn't given up on her but she's still concerned why Mu Jue Chen lied about knowing her past for all these years.
At night, Qian Yu sneaks into Mu family to steal a secret mantra. A masked man injures her and Shen Ming Xiu. The masked man tells her they have had the same nightmare for years and now it can finally end. He takes the sword with two hands and strikes it down at her but Mu Jue Chen saves her. He orders Shen Ming Xiu to take Qian Yu to safety while he fights the masked man alone. The masked man is his father.
[Ep9] Qian Yu's real name is Gong Su Yu. Shen Ming Xiu returns the leader of You You Gu position to Qian Yu as she is the only survivor. All of a sudden, Qian Yu is a rich heiress.
Mu Jue Chen and his servants are trying to find their way to Qian Yu not knowing she’s safe and rich. While Mu Jue Chen floats like a dead corpse in the river to enter You You Gu, the servants walk in alive with ease. Mu Jue Chen is saved by Hua Hen Die. She’s obsessed with beautiful men and tries to seduce Mu Jue Chen. She fails. Since sexy didn’t work, Hua Hen Die locks him up.
Qian Yu confronts the snide Hua Hen Die to return Mu Jue Chen. The two ladies are battling it out on who can last longer under the scorching sun in their white thick fur coat. While Qian Yu is distracting her, Qian Xiao and Qian Zhan search for their master. Mu Jue Chen doesn’t need saving though, with the help of his prison mate, Wu Qing, he disguised himself with a mustache (from Wu Qing’s unkempt hair) and escapes prison.
[Ep10] Wu Qing attacks Mu Jue Chen with his deadly skill but it’s a flop — a belly flop. He’s an assassin hired by Mu Yan Ce and his target is Mu Jue Chen but since his assassination failed, Wu Qing befriends him to wait for another chance. The men chance upon a bunch of villagers and help them plan an attack on You You Gu. It’s too late when Mu Jue Chen realizes he’s attacking Qian Yu. Mu Jue Chen is captured and guarded by his own servants who have formed an allegiance with Qian Yu over him. As punishment, Mu Jue Chen is also to be one of her servants. For her (along with a bit of Qian Xiao’s encouragement), Mu Jue Chen willingly becomes her servant to win her over. I love the 90’s silent film scenes of him doing hard labour. She’s giving him the exact same treatment he had given her. It’s a bit worse for him though because every time he hears her bell ring his stomach starts hurting. While he’s crouching over in pain, she climbs onto his back as her method of transportation (she used to be her driver, uh, equestrian).
Qian Yu is mean to him because she wants to teach him a lesson on consideration. She's also waiting for him to honestly tell her about their past. She’s not willing to give her heart to someone who’s lying to her. However when people are gossiping about him, the arrogant master, being her servant and piggybacking her everywhere, Qian Yu doesn’t like it. She links her arm with his as they walk down the streets to quell the chatter.
[Behind the Scenes] Mu Jue Chen is having a lot fun swinging back and forth for the scene where he was supposed to ambush her.
Qian Yu questions Mu Jue Chen about their past but he won’t say a word about it. It seems like he’s trying to protect her though. Is there some danger for her if she continues to stay in You You Gu? She kicks him out and gives him the antidote to free him of his stomach pains. He doesn’t want it. She then forbids him from entering beyond her You You Gu’s walls. Obeying her, he jumps up and down over the wall to talk to her instead. But the only thing she wants to hear him say is the only thing he won’t talk about.
Mu Jue Chen asks her to give him ten days to explain it to her and repair the tree (that is meaningful to them). She smiles and approves of that idea. As a reward, she gives him a huge pink bow. He then takes her hand and asks her if he does give her a satisfying answer will he get to indulge in his desires.
An upset Mu Jue Chen thinks back to their childhood. When they were young, Mu Jue Chen was sulking at her arranged marriage. He asked the young her if she would really marry the other guy. She denies it and as long as Mu Jue Chen protects her like a man, she’d consider him.
Qian Yu finds Mu Jue Chen unconscious. He’s overwhelmed from training and had fainted over. She cries and holds onto him. When he’s awake he takes advantage of her kindness and asks her to blow the medication before feeding him. She accepts his selfish requests. He grabs her into his embrace because it’s been too long since she was nice to him. All she wants is for him to have his medication but he doesn’t want it because once he’s better she’ll no longer be nice to him. He cutely refuses to drink it. I like this Mu Jue Chen: sincere.
[Ep13*] Qian Yu feeds Mu Jue Chen his medication. He sincerely thanks her and she hugs him. It's a sweet and sincere moment that is interrupted by Qian Ran. Mu Jue Chen strictly orders Qian Ran to not tell a single person. After being ordered that, Qian Ran is dying to tell someone and finally finds a way to reveal it. This is exactly what Mu Jue Chen wants. He wants the entire You You Gu, especially Shen Ming Xiu, to know that Qian Yu is his. Qian Yu, who knows him so well, figures out this was his plan all along. She uses the same trick on him. She also tells Qian Ran a deep dark secret about Mu Jue Chen and orders her to never reveal it. As expected, Qian Ran reveals it. Thus, Qian Zhan prepares a lot of lamb to replenish Mu Jue Chen. Because of the circulating rumours, everyone thinks Mu Jue Chen is lacking in Yang energy, heh.
Qian Xiao teaches Mu Jue Chen to keep a distance of 'love' between them and wait until Qian Yu approaches him before he approaches her. Qian Ran overhears this and reports everything to Qian Yu. So much love scheming. I love how Qian Yu has a smart response every time. I also love how they manipulate Qian Ran, haha.
Mu Jue Chen has another trick up his sleeve. He writes a love letter and tells Qian Ran to never touch it. Accordingly, Qian Ran gives it to Quan Yu. It's a love letter alright, but a very narcissistic one. The only flaw in his life is not having her. Pft. Qian Yu smiles and anticipates his confession. He asks her out for a date that night. When he sees her, he throws away the bouquet with suave and holds out his hand for her to take. She sweetly asks him if he'll confess to her tonight and he freezes. From that hesitation, she knows he was trying to lead her to make the confession first. Qian Yu won't budge on that and the two fight over who should confess first. He argues that he's been saying it all along. That doesn't matter, she wants to hear it officially from him tonight. He won't. Hahahaha. Thumbs up. This is so Mu Jue Chen. Jue la.
Qian Zhan doesn't pity Mu Jue Chen's failed night of making Qian Yu confess. He asks Mu Jue Chen if he's ever thought about what aspect Qian Yu loves about him. Mu Jue Chen doesn't know how to answer. He doesn't understand. Isn't it all of him she loves? What can she not love about him? Hahaha. Qian Zhan doesn't know how to communicate with him anymore.
[Ep14] Wu Qing, the assassin, is relieved that he can finally continue his plans of assassination. His principle is to kill those who are happy and after Mu Jue Chen's successful confession, Wu Qing knows he's in bliss. However, Wu Qing is easily diverted when Mu Jue Chen zaps in front of him and accepts his sword as a present to celebrate his fruitful love with Qian Yu. His assassination fails (as expected) once again. What's unexpected is Mu Jue Chen's white haired disciple is Shen Ming Xiu's father and he tries to kill Mu Jue Chen. This dad is a little crazy and not his own self. It's a possibility that it's him who poisoned Mu Jue Chen when he was young. Wu Qing blocks the dad's attack for Mu Jue Chen because no one can steal his target from him. Thus, the assassin becomes the protector.
Wu Qing faints over. Mu Jue Chen saves him. In his principles, an assassin cannot be saved by his target. His mission has utterly failed. Mu Jue Chen questions why he hadn't attacked given he had so many chances (not knowing that he's diverted so many already). Wu Qing had a principle. He cannot kill those who are not happy from deep within. Mu Jue Chen truthfully tells him that he's not suitable as an assassin. Heh. Wu Qin warns him to beware because there are three other assassins after him. Let's call them Wu X, Wu Y, and Wu Z.
Qian Yu is trying to make money by selling a pill that can revive anyone. She wants to marry Mu Jue Chen but she needs money. As the leader of You You Gu, she has that responsibility now. Haha. Mu Jue Chen compliments on how smart her soon to be fiancée is. However, the pill is unaffordable to regular peasants and no one wants to buy it. They need another way to make money so that she can marry him.
The three Wu assassins are sent to attack Mu Jue Chen but they're converted to work for him instantly. It's like they've become a manufacturing/delivery (Uber Eats?) company with their top notch assassination skills. With that, Mu Jue Chen and Qian Yu have earned enough money to request a marriage from Mu Jue Chen's parents. I love this gender reversal. The parents approve and also confess their sins. Although, they had no part in the death of her family, Mu Dad did indeed steal her You You Gu mantra. Dad will announce to jianghu that he's committed something sinful. Qian Yu suggests to pass the heir of jianghu to Mu Jue Chen instead and that will solve their family feuds. Thus the marriage continues.
Since the three (uh, four) Wu assassins failed at murdering Mu Jue Chen, Mu Yan Ce forces Shen Ming Xiu to complete the task. Mu Yan Ce had captured Hua Hen Die to force Shen Ming Xiu to take the poison. Only after he murders Mu Jue Chen, will Shen Ming Xiu get the antidote. Thus he takes the poison. Later that night, Hua Hen Die kisses him.
[Ep15] By kissing Shen Ming Xiu, Hua Hen Die takes the poison for him and dies. He's no longer bound by the poison but he is bound by the responsibility to avenge her. Mu Dad brings his ungrateful son, Mu Yan Ce to Qian Yu for her to exterminate him. Mu Yan Ce takes the attack willingly but at the last minute he darts behind his father so that Qian Yu attacks Mu Dad while Mu Yan Ce attacks his dad from the back. However, Mu Dad is too powerful and sends his son flying backwards. The impact from the fall causes Mu Yan Ce's death. Is it just me or is Mu Dad is so suspicious?
It's odd how Mu Jue Chen's brother just died but Mu Jue Chen and Qian Yu are still so romantic. Mu Jue Chen wants Qian Yu to change how she addresses him, otherwise he'll punish her with a kiss. Thus she calls him "Jue Chen". He kisses her. Either way, he was going to kiss her. Although, she calls him that in private, she's still having difficulty publicly calling him that. He has to fill her in every time, haha. When she finally gets it right, he accidentally almost corrects her incorrectly, hahaha. They publicly announce their marriage and his new heir title as the Jianghu leader.
Unfortunately, everything falls through. Mu Dad dies. Mu Mom accuses Qian Yu of killing Mu Dad. Shen Dad makes his grand appearance and he's no longer crazy. He also accuses Mu family of wiping out You You Gu. The marriage is off. To people who support Mu family, Qian Yu becomes a vixen who seduced Mu Jue Chen and killed Mu Dad.
Mu Jue Chen investigates his father's death. He knows the fatal blow was not from Qian Yu. However, in front of his mother, he agrees that the murderer is Qian Yu. Mu Jue Chen sends a message through his sleeves to Qian Yu to confront their family feuds face to face. She tearfully asks him why must they bear the responsibilities of their families when they're innocent. Mu Jue Chen is cold as he walks towards her with menace.
Mu Jue Chen: "I, Mu Jue Chen, will only marry Gong Su Yu as my wife and you must take my orders."
He takes her hand with the knife and kills himself. Shen Dad is proud of her for killing Mu Jue Chen. It was all a show to catch Shen Dad unguarded. He's the real villain. He killed Qian Yu's family and now he's also killed Mu Jue Chen's family. This drama does not fail to make me laugh even in the most serious scenes. I laughed when Mu Jue Chen and Qian Yu argue on who is more terrible at acting. She complains that he woke up from his fake death too late. He says it's to increase her screen-time, hahaha. The three battle it out and because of the remainder of Mu Jue Chen's poison from his childhood, he's about to lose control of his cultivation. Qian Yu distracts Shen Dad by throwing her family mantra over a cliff. Shen Dad dives over the cliff to catch the mantra. However, he also throws a metal claw which latches onto Qian Yu's shoulder.that pulls her to the cliff. Mu Jue Chen, who's wounded, can barely hold onto Qian Yu. He won't let go but his body cannot hold out any longer. Qian Yu falls down the cliff.
[Ep16] Don't worry! Qian Yu is alive but we don't know how yet. She's listening to the amazing stories of Mu Jue Chen as the new heir. He solves problems of all sorts from mother and daughter-in-law fights to educating the brutes. He's fulfilling the promise he had with Qian Yu to be a good leader. He's perfect except his cultivation have all disappeared since the fight with Shen Dad. The other sect leaders want to take his position but Mu Jue Chen manages to scare them away completely by chance. Heh.
I will be calling Qian Yu 'Xiao Yu' from now on. Her real name is Gong Su Yu but barely anyone calls her that in this drama. Mu Jue Chen calls her Xiao Yu so I’ll follow that.
[Ep17] Mu Jue Chen is funny as ever with his narcissism when he assures his mother that marrying Xiao Yu isn't going to be hell unless he, the all and mighty, calls it hell. He will tame the devil, he declares. Xiao Yu had survived because she had the mantra. She mastered all of it and killed various beasts to survive.
At night, Mu Jue Chen invites Xiao Yu to his room. He removes her hair pins away, wipes her lipstick, and cleans her hand. She thinks he’s preparing to sleep with her but he’s wholeheartedly cleansing her of her vileness and removing the theoretical blood from her hands. He had zero intentions of sleeping with her. Did Mu Jue Chen really think that just by physically washing her hands he'll erase all things evil about her? Haha.
Mu Jue Chen had lost his memories, even his personality has changed (despite still being as narcissistic as ever). Xiao Yu thinks he's faking it because he's keeping his promise with her about being righteous and a good leader. The next day, she gives him a 'Bi Dong' (Kabedon) and moves in to kiss him. He shies away and accidentally trips. The all powerful Xiao Yu sends all the bookshelves falling down and hovers over him. She's even more amazing with her Bi Dong than Mu Jue Chen was. Mu Jue Chen barely overcomes her seduction; he quickly grabs the nearest book to stop her lips.
Mu Jue Chen continues to think Xiao Yu is a devil. He confidently bargains with her. His offer for her to disband her clan of demons is his lips. He literally says "Kiss me". Haha. He cleverly deduces that she’s holding a grudge on him for stopping her kiss midway so he will graciously permit her to kiss him. She calls him crazy but when he moves in for a kiss, she doesn't move away and accepts it. He asks if she's satisfied. She says it was alright. She promises she will disband the (fake) devil clan if he marries her. He accepts it. But he actually has no intentions of marrying her.
Xiao Yu decides to enter his dreamworld to awaken his memories. However, he only pretended to fall for her tricks. He’s actually luring her into his dreams to cleanse her, hahaha. There’s gold men circling her and humming a Buddhist mantra to her. Mu Jue Chen confidently wakes up from this dream but the instant he’s up, Xiao Yu smacks him unconscious again. This is so familiar, heh. She re-enters his world and to her disappointment, he really did forget about her. Heartbroken, she accepts being a demon and her fate of being imprisoned. She enters his detention centre. Xiao Qian comforts her that last year a 70 year old man was released. Hahaha. The scriptwriter must have been on crack to think of all these plots.
Xiao Yu sees a glimmer of hope when she notices he still has the doll she gave him. She studies her brain out until four legendary men known for their wisdom appear in her subconsciousness. If my limited Chinese historical knowledge does not betray me, these four men actually existed in history, haha. Her studies have reached to godly levels. She aces every exam. At this rate, she’ll break the record of the fastest person to be released from prison. Mu Jue Chen personally tests her and passes with flying colours. She wins her freedom. However she’s willing to give that up and stay in the prison for him. LOL. I love how Mu Jue Chen and Gong Su Yu's roles have changed. It's her pursuing him relentlessly now.
[Ep18] Mu Jue Chen doesn’t like Xiao Yu going against his rules. He tries to make her leave his prison cell. Her condition to leave is for him to marry her. He grudgingly accepts. She also adds another stipulation. They need engagement pictures. She convinces him that a harmonious picture is needed for peasants to believe they are truly in love and that he has truly tamed the devil. She says the perfect words to trigger him to accept the pictures. Xiao Yu's goal with these pictures is to invoke his memories of her.
It’s the day of the pictures. Mu Jue Chen imagines romantically kissing her but it turns into a horror scene when he imagines her ferociously biting him. Mu Jue Chen breaks into a cold sweat. Heh. She takes him to a snow field and gives him a snowball. She convinces him to smack her with it. I love how he is so easily manipulated. However, Mu Mom hired a painter who manipulates him to do the opposite of what Xiao Yu wants. Angry, Xiao Yu smacks the snowball at the painter. Qian Xiao is now the painter. This guy can do anything.
Xiao Yu cries at the sight of fireworks as she remembers the beautiful memories she had with Mu Jue Chen. His heart softens for her but he quickly snaps out of it. For the portrait, Qian Xiao makes them pose more lovingly. Mu Jue Chen grabs her waist and almost goes in for a kiss. But he stops himself. He whispers by her ear that he won't fall for her tricks. She sincerely asks him if he hates her. If he does, she will leave. He ponders on her question and replies that he doesn't hate her.
Shen Ming Xiu isn't over his grudge against Mu Jue Chen but Mu Jue Chen thinks of him as a brother. He unconditionally trusts Shen Ming Xiu. He even invites him to his bed. It's funny how a portrait of them sleeping together is delivered to Xiao Yu and she becomes jealous of the two men. She also realizes Shen Ming Xiu has ulterior motives. Originally, she had packed her bags to leave but now she's staying to protect Mu Jue Chen.
Qian Xiao hired a renowned potion-ist to create a memory-recovering-pill. This expert is none other than Wu Qing, heh. While Wu Qing and Xiao Yu are working together to find the herb, Mu Jue Chen thinks she hired a retired assassin to take over the world. Thus, he works with Shen Ming Xiu to stop her world domination plans, not knowing the real assassin is Shen Ming Xiu. Just like with Wu Qing a few episodes ago, Mu Jue Chen unconsciously stops all his attacks with ease. The next time they meet, he's in a golden armour. There's no place for Shen Ming Xiu to attack so he decides to push him down the mountain. Instead it's Shen Ming Xiu who rolls down with him after Mu Jue Chen accidentally slips. Shen Ming Xiu is injured and stepped upon at least three times. Meanwhile Mu Jue Chen is injury-free.
The memory recovering pill is non-stealthily placed into a conspicuous place for Mu Jue Chen to discover. He wants to destroy it thinking it's a deadly poison. Xiao Yu stops him. She offers to take it but he smacks it away from her. He doesn't want her to take the poison. The pill bounces on all four walls of the room and miraculously bounces right into Mu Jue Chen's mouth. Surprised, he gulps it down. Xiao Yu exclaims how easy this was. He then faints over.
It’s the marriage and Mu Jue Chen runs away. LOL. He doesn’t want to lose his body to Xiao Yu. She stops his carriage and challenges him that if he's able to hide his (awesome) identity in the next few days she'll leave him. But if he exposes it within three tries, he will be hers. He easily loses the first round when he saves a bride from being attacked. This bride happens to be his bride; it’s Xiao Yu.
Although Mu Jue Chen won, he’s not as happy as he thought he’d be. Xiao Yu cares for him the entire night and his heart finally warms up to her despite almost freezing to death. However, she's made plans to leave. He looks disappointed. Before she leaves though, she wants one last date with him. He quickly exaggerates his sickness and accepts the request because he truly wants it.
Mu Jue Chen receives news that Xiao Yu is in this village. He arrives there to find human bodies lying on the street. Only Wu Qing is left standing. Mu Jue Chen comes to a logical conclusion that Xiao Yu and Wu Qing have teamed up to destroy this village. Mu Jue Chen is willing to sacrifice himself for the greater good and offers a marriage to her in order for her to stop tormenting the villagers. The supposed dead bodies instantly sit up and clap in joy for Xiao Yu. They tell Mu Jue Chen that Xiao Yu and Wu Qing are here to save their village. Lying in the street under the sun is a way to cure them. Xiao Yu doesn't accept Mu Jue Chen's proposal. She doesn't need a bargain on her marriage. That surprises Mu Jue Chen who clearly wants her now. He lowers his esteem just a tiny bit to ask her to marry him. Xiao Yu smiles and accepts that proposal.
Before the marriage can smoothly assume, there's a showdown between the future mother-in-law and daughter-in-law. Mu Jue Chen is oblivious to the war that's brewing between them.
Wu Qing is teaching Xiao Yu the ways of battling with her mother-in-law. It's like Tai Chi; how much force you take in from your opponent is how much force you should attack back with. You never fight her directly. Hahaha. Under Wu Qing's guidance, she overcomes her anger to triumph over Mu Mom's insulting proposal letter that she had her son write (Mu Jue Chen is still as oblivious as ever). Xiao Yu is winning this push-and-pull-game with ease but Mu Mom has more up her sleeve.
[Ep21] Mu Mom and Shen Dad are against Xiao Yu and Mu Jue Chen’s marriage. There’s so many carriage mishaps (switching carriages, switching her with a rock, etc.). Xiao Yu and Wu Qing saw their scheming from a mile. Xiao Yu never got in the carriage. Instead it's Wu Qing who is dressed up as the bride in the carriage. Xiao Yu arrives to the ceremony on a white horse. Wu Qing has all these funny monologues about being left stranded for eight hours and blah blah blah but no one is listening hahaha.
There’s another interruption during their third wedding bow. A chubby woman claims Xiao Yu killed her mother (a sect leader). But Mu Jue Chen wants to continue the marriage. The proof against Xiao Yu is also quite meagre. At the wedding night, Xiao Yu strips to tempt him into consummating. Although Mu Jue Chen chose to believe Xiao Yu, he's still wary of the murder. He begs her to stop. She will, on one condition: take the memory pill plus do a few moves with her. If he takes it, she’ll never make him do anything he doesn’t want to. She feeds him the medication by mouth. The moves she wants him to do are left to our imagination but there’s some pain in it as we hear him yelping. Haha. After all is done, they both lie down exhausted. He finds his heart accelerating. He refuses to believe his heart is accelerating for her though.
The next morning, his memory still hasn't recovered. Mu Mom finds out they slept in separate room. She’s hopeful her son is sick of Xiao Yu already. Her son isn’t sick of her. He’s investigating into the chubby girl’s sect. He wants to prove Xiao Yu’s innocence but he’ll need to prove that the fatal blow (the palm print) isn’t from Xiao Yu. While he’s thinking of how to get Xiao Yu’s hand print, a random girl who’s flying her kite bumps into him and he catches her before she falls.
The three days are up to solve the chubby girl’s mother’s death. She summoned all the other leaders to call for judgement against Xiao Yu. Mu Mom actually stands up for Xiao Yu. Mu Mom doesn’t like Xiao Yu but she won’t allow others to look down on her family and Xiao Yu is her daughter-in-law. Mu Jue Chen saves the day and flies in with his humongous eagle. But someone sent a pillar to attack him. Xiao Yu flies in to protect him but it’s too strong of a blow. She’s injured. An angry Mu Jue Chen blasts his powers to bring peace to the chaos. Are his powers back for good?
[Ep23] Mu Jue Chen has evidence to prove that Shen Nan Tian (dad) is the murderer. To all the world leaders, he claims that Xiao Yu is this beautiful saint, there’s no way she can be a bloody killer. Xiao Yu asks him to repeat all the lovely words he says about her. He does. These two. But the audience has had enough. There's a serious issue (like Shen Tian) they need to deal with first.
Mu Jue Chen helps Xiao Yu and mom make up. Or so he thinks. Mom and Xiao Yu are smiling at each other but there’s tense electricity circulating between them. Mu Jue Chen feels the ominous spark but he's probably still oblivious. Haha. It’s a temporary peace between mom and Xiao Yu. They’ll continuously look for each other’s faults but on the outside they’ll appear harmonious. Isn’t that most if not all mother-in-law and daughter-in-law’s relationships haha.
Mu Jue Chen doesn’t have all his memory back. It’s just bits and pieces. But he does remember Xiao Yu is the girl in his memories. They kiss to make up. Mu Jue Chen also doesn't have all his powers back. He’s training really hard for the showdown with Shen Nan Tian in a month’s time. He doesn’t want to admit to Xiao Yu that he’s tired and exhausted so he fights through it until he faints. Xiao Yu can’t bear seeing him tire himself out thus she decides to take on Shen Nan Tian on her own. Qian Ran finds out and Xiao Yu tells her to keep this a secret. She’s the biggest blabbermouth in this world. Qian Xiao gets her to speak without getting her speak. Heh. Thus, Mu Jue Chen determines to not let her leave his sight or touch. He won’t even separate from her when he crossed path with his mother. Ha. Eventually, Xiao Yu finds out that Mu Jue Chen has learned of her plans. He doesn't want her to die for him. But neither does she want him to die for her.
The next day is Xiao Yu’s birthday. The Qian disciples get Mu Jue Chen and Xiao Yu to perform their Su Yu duet. They’re a match made in heaven. Mu Jue Chen convinces Xiao Yu that he’ll triumph over Shen Nan Tian. He promises to return safely for her. He used to only care about the world but now she’s more important to him. He can lose the world but he can’t lose her.
Mu Jue Chen learns of Xiao Yu’s disappearance. He finds Shen Nan Tian and battles him. He’s not a match though, not until he masters the last stage. That’s when Xiao Yu appears from the sky. She pulls him aside to play Su Yu to him while he levels up. Qian Zhan distracts Shen Nan Tian for the time being. He almost sacrifices himself. Mu Jue Chen masters the last stage. He summons an all powerful move and kills Shen Nan Tian.
Now that the source of all evil is gone, the world is peaceful under Mu Jue Chen’s leadership. Shen Ming Xiu gets his bittersweet happiness. He visits his late-wife’s memorial. It’s Hua Hen Die. Mu Jue Chen has spread You You Gu’s mantra to normal peasants so they too can train it. Rumour has it that it can pacify all family troubles (especially those between mother- and daughter-in-laws). Pft. Rumour also has it that Mu Jue Chen and Xiao Yu are living happily ever after. They’re not.
Xiao Yu wants a divorce. Mu Jue Chen is forcing her to take a ton load of prenatal lessons to train their fetus. Xiao Yu has to sit through the monks humming their hymn again. Hahaha. Right when Xiao Yu wants to leave Mu Manor, she’s about to give birth. Their son is born almost instantly. Mu Jue Chen credits the prenatal lessons. Hahaha. He wants her to continue learning after she recovers with their newborn. Xiao Yu glares him down. The end.
Remarks
[First Impression (Ep1-6)] Other than the costumes, this pretty much uses the same foundation as "What's Wrong with Secretary Kim". It's promisingly cute, fun and goofy. Mu Jue Chen's actions and words are completely unpredictable to the normal mind because he's anything but normal. He is the most adorably conceited male lead ever. He's a spoiled brat who doesn't know love. There's this blinding light that signals his arrival that's accompanied by woo-hoo music. I have so much fun laughing at him. I love that there's cheap and witty humour. I love their sleeves that can transmit voice messages. I love him and I want him to get love but I will pity Qian Yu for having to suffer his narcissism for her entire life.
[Actors/Actresses] I never knew Guo Jun Chen could be this funny. More than his expressions, it’s his actions that make me laugh out loud. He’s nailed the way a narcissistic young man would move. I can’t imagine how else they would act. Guo Jun Chen has made this role his.
[Episode 13 Update] I love this episode because of all the scheming from both parties. It's cleverly hilarious. I'm giggling and laughing this entire episode. I sort of want Mu Jue Chen to suffer just a bit more though. I absolutely love how grounded Guo Jun Chen is at being a narcissistic-lovable-idiot.
[Episode 15 Update] I thought that after the pair are together, I'd start losing interest but oh my gosh, this just keeps getting more exciting. I'm impressed.
[Behind the Scenes]
[Review] This is low-key brilliant. There's a lot to love about this drama. The child in me loves this type of humour. It's downright hilarious from the obvious narcissistic male lead to a nonsensical assassin. There’s a humongous flying eagle that shows up in time every time. There’s an unimaginable snowball fight. There are flying monks. There’s a Taichi battle between the mother- and daughter-in-law. There are talking sleeves. The list goes on. This drama is a pure comedy. But humour isn’t the only thing this has. The story is brilliant. Midway through the drama I was expecting it to slow down like normal romcoms but there are even more twists. I had so much fun not knowing which direction the drama was taking.
The major flaw for me is the female lead. Consequently, I didn’t quite buy the chemistry between the leads. She doesn’t have a large range of expressions. She’s given such an amazing role but she’s unable to tap into its potential. I can think of a handful of actresses at her level of fame who could have easily done better than her. On the other hand, Guo Jun Chen plays an arrogant master like no one else. I wouldn’t want anyone but him playing this role. I had also hoped Qian Zhan would have had a larger role. He's cue. Qian Ran was hilariously cute as well. Qian Xiao was a scene stealer. So was Wu Qing.
Despite its shortcomings, this drama runs on an effective formula. The focal point is the pursuit of the main leads for each other. The first half is the male pursing her in his arrogant ways (but he does learn to be considerate, or somewhat considerate). The second half is her pursuing him in her learned arrogant ways. All other storylines and characters are used to support their love. Insert some wacky twists and turns and we’ve got ourselves a simple but twisty hilarious romcom. This story in 24 episodes made me laugh like no other and was able to incorporate so many ingenious scenes as well as create handful of memorable supporting characters. It deserves to be praised.
[Verdict] Light period romcom that's more on the comedic side with surprising plot twists. There’s an awfully arrogant male lead who thinks everyone loves him. I don’t know about everyone, but I do love him and I don’t mind feeding his arrogance. Stay away if you absolutely hate these type of arrogant men though.
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