[Mainland Chinese Drama 2015-2016] The Legend of Miyue 羋月傳

[lovehbhjw2013]

@BaiZiHua  So sorry about not using the spoiler.  Actually I was reading the actual historical records and got all excited about the history which has painted her with different strokes from the drama.  I have not watched until that part too as I was only at Ep 66 when I wrote that, an episode behind you.

In any case I will take care, not to spoil the fun for others in future.

[halfmoonsmile]

I'm still on the 3rd episode. Lol The headpieces look so big. How do they lift their heads? The women look beautiful though.

[Sobayaki]

On 1/2/2016 at 9:14 PM, lovehbhjw2013 said:

In real history, Miyue is portrayed as a wanton woman who raised to political power by sleeping with powerful men.  In this drama, they painted her more like a heroine because people also believed that without her reigning China during that period, Shi Wang Ti would not be able to unite the entire China during his reign later.

 

Interesting, thanks for sharing! I like it when dramas fuel my curiosity so much that I start looking up history. Are there any historical information on Miyue in English (I couldn't find much through Google)? If not, do you have some links you could share in Chinese? Please and thank you!

[lovehbhjw2013]

On 1/6/2016 at 4:53 PM, Sobayaki said:

 

Interesting, thanks for sharing! I like it when dramas fuel my curiosity so much that I start looking up history. Are there any historical information on Miyue in English (I couldn't find much through Google)? If not, do you have some links you could share in Chinese? Please and thank you!

Glad you are somewhat like me. ...love to understand more history after watching a drama.... 

Got this history extract for you but in chinese:

Spoiler

宣太后的风流韵事，史书中确有记载

　　由于宣太后早年守寡，历史剧《芈月传》热播后，网络上就流传很多关于宣太后的风流韵事。有的故事确实是有历史文献依据的。据笔者了解，史书记载中共有三例：

　　其一，《战国策·韩策二》记载：公元前307年，楚怀王派兵包围韩国的雍氏（今河南禹州东北）。韩襄王多次派使者向秦国求援，但秦国军队一直按兵不动。韩襄王又派尚靳出使秦国，尚靳以“唇亡齿寒”的道理劝说秦国尽快派兵救援。而宣太后不同意派兵救援，她召见尚靳时对他说：当年我服侍秦惠文王时，大王把大腿压在我的身上，我感到身体疲倦不能承受。而他把整个身体都压在我身上时，我却并不感觉到重，这是因为这样对我比较舒服。因此秦国要帮助韩国，如果兵力不足、粮草不济，就无法解救韩国。而且解救韩国的危难，每天要耗费数以千计的财物，这对我和秦国又有什么好处呢？

　　其二，诱灭义渠。义渠，为古西戎之国，在今甘肃、宁夏一带。春秋战国时期，他们在这里建立了强大的郡国，与秦、魏抗衡，并曾参与中原争夺之战，成为当时雄踞一方的少数民族强国。公元前352年，秦出兵伐魏，一举攻占了魏西河郡和上郡，接着秦和义渠摩擦又起。秦国乘义渠国内乱，派兵攻打义渠，并平定义渠内乱，义渠便臣服于秦。此后双方时战时和。于是宣太后改变过去军事上征讨义渠戎国的策略，而采用怀柔、拉拢、腐蚀的政策，与义渠王私通，以堕义渠戎王之志。她书请义渠王于甘泉宫，让其长期居住，并以优厚的生活款待他。后义渠王同宣太后生有二子，使义渠王完全丧失了对秦国的警惕。34年后（前272年），宣太后杀义渠王于甘泉宫，接着发兵攻打义渠，义渠国亡，领土并入秦国。对于这件事，著名秦史研究专家马非百认为：宣太后以母后之尊的地位，牺牲色相与义渠王私通，然后设计将之杀害，一举灭亡了秦国的西部大患义渠，使秦国可以一心东向，再无后顾之忧，她的功劳不逊于张仪、司马错攻取巴蜀。（《秦集史》）

　　其三，《战国策·秦策》记载了宣太后的另一风流韵事。秦宣太后在六七十岁的时候，看上了秦国大臣中的魏丑夫，并作为男宠。特别是在宣太后临死之前提出要让魏丑夫为其殉葬。后由于庸芮的说服，才打消了这一念头。

　　宣太后之所以如此风流，除了年轻守寡以外，与她来自于楚国有关系。楚文化具有浪漫的特点，也与当时的秦社会风俗有关系，当然也与她掌握着大权有关系。

For me, after watching the drama, I feel that the drama managed to justify what the history recorded.  History record could not explain her behaviour that well or linked her behaviour to sth but after watching the entire drama....it has made it feasible to see her as a heroine, a matter of whether we want to believe she has a good reason or not.   For example, her lover boy at 60/70 years old...the script writer cleverly used a childhood sweetheart Zixie to show why she did what she did.  History did not record existence of Zixie in her early life but it just made some sense to explain her behaviour.

Hope you enjoy the juicy tidbits of real Miyue.

Honestly, even if people want to dispute her direct contribution, I will still hail her indirect contribution by bringing up an excellent son who ruled Qin for 56 years in the B.C years.  Not until kangxi (ruled 61 years) and qianlong (63 years) came along much much later in the Qing dynasty and overtook him in reigning years.  

 

[Mangoberrie]

Some parts of the drama follows history while other parts don't. There's been a fair bit of discussion over this matter. Like many others, I started looking up bits of history too on MiYue...but at the end of the day, it's still a drama and it's made heaps of people more knowledgeable about a period of ancient history, in a rather enjoyable way too. It's a pity all episodes were leaked days ago, not sure if this had an impact on viewership. 

 

[lovehbhjw2013]

2 hours ago, Mangoberrie said:

Some parts of the drama follows history while other parts don't. There's been a fair bit of discussion over this matter. Like many others, I started looking up bits of history too on MiYue...but at the end of the day, it's still a drama and it's made heaps of people more knowledgeable about a period of ancient history, in a rather enjoyable way too. It's a pity all episodes were leaked days ago, not sure if this had an impact on viewership. 

 

 

You mean this drama is currently being screened on TV?  I thought it had ended.  It is worthwhile to watch again as it is an interesting drama.

I believe sometimes the details in historical record is too sketchy so the drama has to add some details to dramatise it.  I learn a lot from the drama and I draw my own conclusion that Miyue was indeed someone notable in history of China.

[sugarplum892]

 

Cfensi

[UnniSarah]

Hello fellow friends

Can someone pm me a website where i watch this. It's no longer on viki. 

[BaiZiHua]

 

@lovehbhjw2013

No worries love I'm happy that you commented and I also learned some stuff about history from you as well. Thanks for being on this thread and helping others with the historical stuff about Miyue. Had it not been for you I thought Miyue was a fictional character.

 

@sugarplum892

Thanks for the lovely pix that you just posted of Miyue I dwnlded them to use as a my desktop pix I hope you don't mind.

 

I just finished this drama and I thought it was a decent drama 7/10. I think it's a drama I would watch only once though. Sun Li,Liu Tao, Alex Fāng and Gāo Yún Xiáng acting was pretty good. I'd say Gāo Yún Xiáng was my fav character. I have to say though I really liked her son (Ying Ji) when he was small but grrrrrrrrrrr I did not like him at all from his teen yrs on up .

 

 

[lovehbhjw2013]

@unnisarah...  aw...means no more eng sub version now at all?  anyone can help her?...she is really keen to watch and I hope she get to watch too.  It is a pity and 81 ep...not sure if that is an impedance for many to watch...

@BaiZiHua...  Yeah..Ying Ji was very cute when young but during his reign....there were some conflict of interests to him as an emperor from mum so he became no longer cute.  Good thing is he finally understood the pain of his mum.....

Btw, Miyue was great-great-grandma of Qin Shi Wang and apparently her legend became an interest to many and became a drama because of a recent debate going on about the buried terra-cotta soldiers in Xi An.  Qin Shi Wang took over the reigning 18 yrs after Miyue's death and the years between their deaths was only 55 years but they were 5 generations apart. 

Two experts held different views of who the terra-cotta soliders were buried for.  Initially it has always been attributed to Qin Shi Wang because he was known to be a king who did not want to die and wanted the elixir of youth to live forever.  So when the terra-cotta were found they thought he wanted to re-create the same "living" world for himself when dead similar to what the Chinese culture believe in burning worldly items for the dead.

However, during a recent archaeologist finding, they found a special character imprint on the elbow of the terra-cotta soldiers and they only managed to figure out that word was 芈月 recently and that triggered further investigations to point to the fact that the terra-cotta were buried for her.  They also linked the terra-cotta to her because in historical recording (but not shown in drama) she requested for her lover-boy to be buried with her.  She was advised against it by her advisors because she was supposed to go and meet the late emperor when she died plus other good argument points to convince her so in the end they inferred from there that she ordered for the terra cotta soldiers (static people) to be built and on their elbows her name was carved to be buried with her.  They also had other evidence pointing to the period the terra-cotta was built should be about 50 years before Shi Wang Ti's time....  I am not sure if this camp won the debate yet but this drama would have helped propagate this view.

So when we visit Xi An now, there is something to talk about.  What I would look out for is...is it true the faces of the terra cotta soldiers are unique?  In photos so far or on TV, I saw that each terra cotta seemed to have their own faces so they really took massive effort to replicate the living to be buried with the dead, whether it was for Miyue or Shi Huang Ti.

 

 

[BaiZiHua]

 

Wow the stuff your wrote is amazing I love reading this kind of stuff but it's too bad although I'm part Chinese I can't read it. And if it weren't for your kindness in sharing I wouldn't know anything about her at all (aside from what the drama told me). If you google Miyue it only talks about the drama and nothing pops up about her in English. I'm thankful you took time out to write that info for ppl like me who are very interested in history but can't find stuff about her. I so happy to read the stuff you wrote here. And if you're correct and she wanted to be buried with her lover boy then wow she really was ballsy. Haha I would be scared to try anything like that because I know how crazy ppl in the palace can be. Also the thing I hated the most about Ying Ji was the way he treated his stepdad. Sighssss it breaks my heart cause he was really a good father to him. He is so ungrateful. Thank You so much have a nice day/evening. Hope to see you around somewhere in the forum.

 

 

 

 

[lovehbhjw2013]

@BaiZiHua

Glad you enjoy the story behind it as much as I do. 

Historical records that Ying Ji and Mi Yue killed YiQuWang together and Miyue has seduced YiQuWang  and bore 2 sons with him over a period of 30 years before plotting to kill him...the drama wrote their own interpretation.  Also, towards the later part, Ying Ji also fell out with MiYu and stripped her of her power due to his brothers given birth by Miyue with late emperor.  The drama showed him as the only son.   Perhaps Ying Ji was portrayed in the drama as a not-so-nice grown up because in his later years, the power struggle with his brothers caused him to kill them to protect his emperor position.  Power is a very scary thing and complex.  It caused the brothers to fight among themselves.  Neverthless, he remained in power and contributed to China.  From a personal angle, he might not seem like a good person but as an emperor he had done a lot to unite China before his great grandson finally united China.  Btw, if you are keen to know more about him....looks like there is a new drama coming up called "The Qin Empire Ⅲ:Rise " or "大秦帝国之崛起" with a focus from his life's POV(40 episodes).   One con though...think not much love story....

I forgot to point out that the terra cotta soldiers found had 2 types of hairstyles.  If strictly Qin, the bun would be in the middle but they had a combo of some Qin and some Chu's terra cotta soldiers who had with a bun slanted to a side.  Only Miyue had interest to have both Qin and Chu's terra cotta soldiers as Qin Shi Wang was born under Qin ruling only.

 

[xiaodan4869]

What annoys me is when Mi Shu said "月是故乡明" in ep 15. Does Du Fu know she quoted his poem 1,000 years ahead of him? What the heck was the author thinking about to write down that line??? The super bug lowers the good impression of me to the author a lot.

*That poem is common sense even to middle school students, let alone an author with overall great writing talent. Uhhhh

Who said it's comparable to Zhen Huan Zhuan?

Overall ratings of ZHZ and MYZ from Douban

[lovehbhjw2013]

To be fair to MiYue drama, it has a historical background to it and when a scriptwriter tries to write something creative that people do not agree, it will affect its viewership with the controversies in the drama....just like Yoo In Ah and Kim Tae Hee's "Jang Ok Jung".   I love that drama  based on their acting but the drama brought KTH and YIA to a low point 2(?) yrs ago.  2015 awards night, both strike back with award winning works like "Yong Pal" and "6 Flying Dragons".   It is hard to beat people's minds who are die-hard about certain historical facts.  What people fail to appreciate is the events leading to the historical facts and be open about some "fantasy possibilities" and enjoy the drama as a drama.    MiYue is painted very favourably in this drama and not everyone is of the same view.  For me, I enjoy both the historical facts of MiYue as well as the scriptwriter's imagination of some of the details in MiYue's life as a drama. 

Even though seducing YuQuJun is a fact recorded in history but no one really knows why she did what she did, including killing him, was it so easy for her as written factually in historical records that Ying Ji and her killed YuQuJun??  Afterall, she was human.   Some people look at this incident to hail her a heroine to sacrifice herself for greater good of the Qin empire but some look at her as "最毒妇人心' if they have imagined her to seduce a man as a plot to kill him 30 years later.  So with this example in mind, I won't read the rating as an apple to apple comparison with ZHZ which is purely fictional and has more room to let the pen roll in any way without much repercussions.

[gingertj831]

Because of Huo Zun's OST, I started to watch this drama. But I only saw half of the drama, and don't have time to see tge rest of it. I have to admit Huo Zun's voice helps this drama a lot.  But I have to admit Nirvana in Fire is better. I use fews days to finished the drama.

[BaiZiHua]

 

@lovehbhjw2013

 

Sorry for the late reply thanks very much for posting info about Miyue for me. I really appreciate you helping other fellow soompiers translate stuff you read on the net for ppl like me who are curious about this drama but can't read chinese. Big hugs <3 and love for your kindness. I know what you mean about Ying Ji's stuggles may have caused him to become bitter person. The battle for the throne has always been so crazy and it turns fathers and sons against each other. I guess I'm just heartbroken how bad he treated his good stepfather.

Also I have to agree with you about Yoo In Ah and Kim Tae Hee's remake of Jang Ok Jung. I didn't think it was all that bad. Honestly I understand some ppl may like drama/books/movies to be based on 100% when the subject was a real life person. However I don't mind facts with a little imagination mixed in from the writers. Jang Ok Jung and Empress of China even if it may not be based on 100% facts I really happen to enjoy the drama anyways. For instance my entire life I thought Wu Zetian and Jang Ok Jung were evil heartless scheming woman. But the remakes of these dramas gave me a different perspective on ppl and the reasons why one may be pushed to the point of no return. It humanizes them and makes you kinda understand their pain.

And thanks for the info about The Qin Empire Ⅲ:Rise I will look into it since I want to know a little more about Miyue's family. (Sorry Mods for being a little off topic with the Jang Ok Jung and Empress of China stuff) Before I go I wanna wish you a great CNY best wishes to you and your loved ones.

 

 

[lovehbhjw2013]

@BaiZiHua  Happy CNY to you and your loved ones too!

[Guest]

I will pick up The Legend of Miyue when I have free time. I am on episode 5.

I like the subdued colors of the women's costumes, which brings forth simple elegance to the general ambience.

[marvin444]

Can someone PM me where I can watch this? I've been waiting to watch this and Legend of Chu and Han forever 

[Latte_Anyday]

Why is it in most Chinese Dramas, in particular the historical ones... the female characters ALWAYS and I really do mean always create havoc for other women? I mean it's just way too petty and so high school LoL! I guess it is true when there's too many women around their menstrual cycles tend to sync up AHA.

It holds true in this Drama as well. Well, blame men in power & their egos/ libidos  As usual the Royal Harem picks on each other in a pecking order & have a very cliquey mindset. In comparison to other similar historical Chinese Dramas like The Virtuous Queen Of Han, The Imperial Doctress - all with a strong female protagonist as the central plot have attractive actresses. The actress for Mi Yue look rather plain in contrast. Looks aside, I like how spunky Mi Yue is despite all the hardships that keep being thrown her way. She's smart too