rosamundekingsley99_stv

@enigmatic_zephy because history proves true - you end up trusting TOO MUCH when you love and when you have to maintain the august quality of the throne and its institutional power, you cannot afford to love and trust TOO MUCH. We don't need LCY and XF to tell us that - just look at Roman history and Chinese history. @nuttyz but all this subtlety is purposeful in power dynamics - that is one of the most successful ways to flesh out your enemies - each person will interpret to his/her own advantage and purpose.

@nuttyz But you can't help becoming you are based on the environment that you are in, and in a strange sense, he has suffered the same ending as his father. @gsmith you hit the nail on the head - and I have highlighted that portion (thanks @USAFarmgirl!) - yes, LCY fought for his revenge and ended up with NOTHING. As the Klingons stated in Star Trek, "revenge is a dish best served cold" - and indeed, because you are left with NOTHING.

@USAFarmgirl Thank you for all the helpful tips!

@USAFarmgirl I still have not figured out how to use the highlighter, so I have bolded the parts of your statement that I found intriguing. To me, both had limited emotional growth potential because of the worlds that they occupy - they have to focus on self-preservation constantly - it is only when neither know who the other is when they were able to open themselves, and in that moment, that was probably the only moment of actual love - not the crazy romantic kind, but the kind that sustains throughout the river of life and adjusts to the curves, the disappointments and shared joys. You are right - they did not have the opportunity to experience love for a lifetime, but then again, they are not creatures who could make choices and mistakes that allow someone to experience love. I think that I read somewhere that the male lead here is not that different from the male lead in The King's Woman. Except to a certain extent, he knew that he would be lonely for most of his life because of the position that he occupied. I am not sure that the male lead here quite appreciated all of that because he was so totally focused on revenge. The male lead in The King's Woman wanted revenge, the girl, yes, but he also wanted to create a unified China - he had a goal that was beyond just personal vendettas, and so he had to give up everything else. There is a scene in Scarlet Ryeo (the Korean remake of Scarlet Heart) where the general asks the 9th Prince what he is willing to give up to attain the throne? Once he knows that the 9th Prince can give up the thing he treasures the most, then he will support him. And the 9th Prince ultimately did give up what he treasured the most - the woman he loved. @Takingthehighroad - this is a great quote and Blaise Pascal understood the human mind and heart way better than most of us do in the modern era. No, the heart and mind do NOT always work in tandem, and hence, you see all the reasons for the catastrophes, but also the miracles, and the sacrifices that people make.

@piluche the beginning is the end and the end is the beginning; as for the river of forgetfulness, do have of us really ever forget? We'd like to think that we do, but the bruise and the ache are still there - it is just not painful. And despite this drama's ending, neither of them will ever really escape from the mayhem of their emotions and the choices that they made.

@furu.vu217 LCY can never stop acting - he has learned always to mask his true emotions because once he shows love for something, he has learned that it will be taken away from him - love is a fundamental weakness in palace politics. And that is why we all watch and are grateful that despite the pageantry, we can choose to live our own lives and not constantly be playing a game of chess in order just to survive.

@USAFarmgirl or, not learning enough to let go of the past and be open to what could be in the future; when XF held too long onto GX, she failed to see what was right in front of her. Destined to meet but not destined to be together... and maybe this love is not that great, because neither of them can let go of their fears to love. Remember, love is about letting go and neither could let go of revenge (the male lead) and perceptions of a great first love (the female lead).

@jayyepeee this is truly insightful and yes, I too had to watch this drama several times over because each time, you pick up something new. The edges of this drama are jagged and uneven, perhaps not that different from life and the lives that these characters led. This drama is not a linear drama and really in the end, it is not about Qin Sang or Lan Po - it is about the dynamics of family and that you reap what you sow, and you cannot avoid the gamble with lives that someone else set into play long ago - and that is fate.