This is going to be hard to review and I honestly don't know where to start. I binge watched until episode 17 and then it got painful as I knew how it was mainly going to play out so I skipped to the last episode and then emptied my tears as I did not want to break my heart watching.In the end, I was foolish watching the whole thing. Of course, I cried here and there and once more all out sobbed and begged at the last episode. It was unbearable angst.

1. CHARACTERS
I don't think I can say enough how much I love so many of the characters here. Truly the main leads shine just as brightly as the two main supporting leads. Wei Guang and Ye Ningzhi are amazing together. They were each other's support system to bounce ideas off, companion to find comfort and home in and each other's reason to keep fighting and holding on. In my opinion, the most unique part of the plot was the relationship between main female lead, Ye Ningzhi, and the main supporting female lead, Empress Zheng. For the first quarter of the drama, I just pegged her as this usual evil snide woman in the harem that is going to use petty tricks and be malicious to the main female lead. Imagine my absolute wonder and tremulous delight when they have this beautiful and honest relationship though the empress tries to remain stoic for the first half or so. You rarely see that in historical dramas where characters in the harem stick together and love each other genuinely. They were so supportive of each other and though they were technically rivals, their relationship was so intriguing to me and something I really cherish. Equally as moving was the supporting characters' relationship. I won't say much as it might give away the plot, but their relationship was really interesting and that was another boost for me to finish the drama. The acting of the main lead in particular was phenomenal. He had very subtle facial expressions which changed accordingly. He was really intense and I was overwhelmed by his actions and expressions.

2. PLOT
The plot was actually mostly predictable in the sense that I could predict what the main backbone was going to be like. The only unpredictable parts were Yan Kuan's actions and the intricacies in how the main leads solved the different problems. For some reason, I got a lot of Empress Ki vibes throughout the whole drama but of course, Empress Ki was much more tragic. The historical setting and the customs are all similar to other historical dramas and the political intrigue + scheming is as common as they come. So there is nothing new there. There were some plot holes and things left unexplained such as Ningzhi's mother's and circus troupe's fate. I know it's a minor thing but I would have loved to know what happened to them. There were a few major plot twists and many minor ones. I think the most important one was done really well, especially the lead up to the story and how I could not fathom it based on his character's behaviours and persona he puts on. All the minor twists were good as well and mainly pertains to the leads' wits, with how they framed the villains. I really enjoy that plot device because it adds thrill and mystery to it. Of course, as usual, a normal grievance of mine is that somehow all the guards supposed to protect a high ranking person always fail and are not capable enough to. All of them would just perish while a character somehow manages to slay all of the assassins, ALWAYS. That is something I am tired of.Other than that, I thought the wrap up was done quite alright though I would have really liked to see it wrapped up a bit more with the main characters. It does not have to be actual scenes but it can be further narration. Don't get me wrong, the ending was packaged nicely but it's my very personal taste to see further down in the future of my characters' lives because I get too attached.

3. EMOTIONS
Simply put, it is heart-wrenching. I had a main idea of what the ending was going to be like and I was very prepared but to no avail as I was too caught up anyway. The main characters' relationship was precious. Their love was enduring and even though they loved each other wholly and unconditionally, they were always maintaining their physical distance and keeping a tight leash on their emotions. It was an honour to see the progress of their relationship and to experience it intensely even as an outsider. They believed in each other and the male lead especially had so much faith in their relationship. I have not seen a love like this in a long time and I believe that they are the epitome of 2 halves of a whole. You guys really have to watch the drama to understand what I am talking about as you can see how their love was so so tangible in the later episodes.
Without fail, every scene with Wei Guang gazing at the phoenix robe brings a fresh wave of tears and I suffer whenever there is a mere mention of that phoenix.

Favourite quotes:
Ningzhi: "I want to save others... but why can't anyone save me?"
Wei Guang: "I am not afraid of dying. But I want to die on the battlefield instead of because of the royals' drama."
Wei Guang: "Ningzhi, you are a phoenix that finally flew away free."

Overall, this drama is a treasure especially with the male lead's acting and the love that stood the test of every imaginable obstacle. There were no obvious plot holes and the OSTs were phenomenal.