5 stars!

Thank you so much for the quality translation! Love the story, the setting, the political intrigue and most of all, the RELATIONSHIP GOALS. That interaction is just mmf! The best! This novel definitely deserves all the praise and high ratings.

Just wana say though, disappointed

This story is really friends to enemies to husbands to LOVERS and I am here for it.

I really love everything about the first half of the novel as both Fu Shen and Yan Xiaohan plot against their enemies, and each other. There's an extended flashback sequence that shows how they met as teenagers, and it honestly made me adore everything about their story.

As enemies/frenemies they're formidable but when they reach an understanding with each other, they're really unstoppable. Mu*derS are solved! ENEMIES are destroyed! I do think the story slows... more>> down a lot in the final act, but I enjoyed the parts before it sooo much and I loved their relationship so much.

This is a great translation too, really enjoyable to read. <<less

So like everyone here who read this novel, I am also fascinated by the main characters. This story is amazing indeed. Literally no one can resist this much fluff and sweetness.

Putting their romance aside, I really like the plot of the novel. No plot holes what so ever so just enjoy the reading/ride of emotions without any pause for confusion. As for the briefing of the MC AND ML, someone already gave a detailed in this section.

Thanking the translators for their astonishing translation.. Thank you so much.

I love this novel.... more>> (˘ ³˘) ♥ <<less

Nothing but love for this story! I personally detest stories with political tropes. However this story which I thought will have heavy politics became one filled with romance and fluff.

The couple became close real fast, it was a given since they knew each other for a long time. I loved Fu Shen, the sassy general with a cold exterior and Yan Xiaohan, the loving royal inspector envoy who is extremely devoted to Fu Shen.

The story does have politics but in my opinion it's not heavily plot based. It's a story... more>> where the couple communicates, put each other above everything and gives you butterflies throughout the whole story. They are one of the perfect couples! <<less

Despite having completed the novel a long time back, this is one novel I can't help but come back to. This is the ultimate definition of a healthy couple. The lead characters are fully fleshed out who are great independently and even better when they are together. There is no angst to speak of neither is it tooth achingly sweet, but it definitely is a pleasant ride, one that you would remember for a long time.

Despite having completed the novel a long time back, this is one novel I can't help but come back to. This is the ultimate definition of a healthy couple. The lead characters are fully fleshed out who are great independently and even better when they are together. There is no angst to speak of neither is it tooth achingly sweet, but it definitely is a pleasant ride, one that you would remember for a long time.

This was so good!! Chichi's translations were really wonderful and this story had so much fluff! I enjoyed both the sweetness of the couple and how badass they are. I would re read this anytime.

Love it. It was refreshing for me after reading domestic violence with love content over and over. I feel like I was drowning and Golden Stage gave me a breath. Now I can pick what should I read more attentively.

A meritorious war general, Fu Shen, is rendered crippled after an ambush. Not only is he stripped off his military powers, but he’s also further pushed into a corner by the reigning emperor who decrees a marriage order, tying Fu Shen down to the infamous court lackey Yan Xiaohan. Killing two birds with one stone, the emperor’s motivation is to ensure Fu Shen has no heirs and to use Yan Xiaohan to keep Fu Shen in check. The two seemingly opposite personalities - one a state loyalist with integrity and... more>> the other a ruthless politician without any bottom line or scruples. The two are as opposite as chalk and cheese with clashing personalities, opposing views, and a history of betrayal lingering between them. How do two seemingly opposite personalities fall so deeply in love? Well, that’s the story of the golden stage for you!

Romantic, plot-heavy, wonderful characterization, masterful dialogues, and a profound love story. Fu Shen and Yan Xiaohan have all of my heart. This my friends is how a love story should be written. <<less

Came for yanfu, stayed for yanfu AND the unbelievably juicy court drama and political intrigue. A phenomenal work that will make you question your perceptions and standards of love and forever judge couples of all other danmeis to (and couples in real life as well). It's truly difficult to put into words the things I have learned from reading this novel and how I'll strive to keep it close to my heart.

3.5 stars

Read this a while ago, but didn't write the review. From what I can recall, I took me a while to get through this story. I had to restart it 2-3 times before I was drawn in.

Interesting enough read

‘Golden Stage’ represents many things for the main cast. This is essentially a hall of honour for martyrs. Hanging inside include portraits of our Meritorious General Fu’s Grandfather, Father, and Uncle. This is also where he set off from the capital to join the war as a general at the mere age of 18. Small spoiler, it’s also where he abducts his ‘wife’ to get married instead of the location arranged by the Ministry of Appointments. The Golden Stage sees the ups and downs of General Fu’s life as well... more>> as the rise and fall of his nation. It is much less pivotal to our Mister Yan, but it still the location where he experiences a grim farewell without expectation of safe return, that lasts for many years. Regardless, he respects and acknowledges the importance of the Golden Stage to General Fu. The reader too can step into this bit of historical fiction from the drama of court schemes or the dog food of the frenemies turned couple.

The story is pretty good. The plot twists are sound. The mysteries are intriguing. The reveals are satisfying. Give it a try! <<less

So I finally finished this book after picking it up and dropping it at least twice lol. This is mostly court politics/intrigue-focused. The main couple was really cute. I've read a number of politics-focused novels so I skimmed parts of the book because the tropes and arcs become a little predictable.

This was such a joy to read. There's plenty of novels out there that rely too much on miscommunication tropes and slow buildups to keep the plot going. Golden Stage has your mains get together fairly soon, and has am entertaining plot outside of the romance. Both MC and ML are independent of each other- there's no dependency issues here, no big age gaps, no toxicity or unnecessary angst. All in all, a very wholesome read!

The 1 star I'm taking away for: Prose flow-though likely due to translation. A few... more>> plot points were way too convenient, so much they made me laugh. These things I don't really care for, but as others have said I didn't enjoy the

Spoiler

drug abuse depiction because it ultimately was only used to push for s*x

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.

Also, there is no smut! (Yay) <<less

This story made me hella mad! Why my boys have to suffer so much T.T Actually, it was my first historical novel that also had a plot about politics. It was really interesting, but it made my heart hurt.

Overall, it is a great novel. I liked it.

I've adored this novel from start to finish.

Can you believe that the main couple actually likes and cares about one another?!!! When there is misunderstanding, it's not contrived and actually resolved?! What is this trickery? :D :D

It's not all tooth-rotting fluff, though. There is conflict and drama, but again: NOT CONTRIVED.

10/10 recommend!

this is my very first historical danmei and im not disappointed!!! The way the author weaved the story and how the translators thoroughly translated the story is just soooo damn good!!! Not to mention the very realistic characters of this story that made me feel like im inside the story itself.

P.S - I noticed some comments that said the story have a slight slow start and it really is. But once you get through 1-3 chapters it will be okay. This story deserves its rating

i am so glad I came across this randomly one day and decided to read it on a whim. It was definitely worth it.

Golden Stage is about raw politics, war, betrayls and so on as expected from a typical political historical fiction. At first I had my reservations as to whether I would even be able to read through this particular genre because most of these (according to my own personal opinion) tend to drag out so much that the reader loses interest halfway through. But Golden Stage is one... more>> such bl that sets each arc perfectly neither letting it be too boring nor too draggy.

Another reservation of mine with this was the romance aspect. Usually the entire plot is so fixated on politics and other similar sub plots that the romance aspect of it gets pushed back. But GS really proved me wrong as there is a significant portion of romance involved and that too healthy romance between the MC and ML which will make you honestly long for a relationship like that.

One of the most important aspect of this is the MC and ML. Both of them are a pair of strong people with strong convictions yet at the same time they're so loving and caring towards each other it'll make you melt. The couple has such a strong bond and healthy communication, they can overcome anything tbh.

Golden Stage can be depicted brutally but at the same time it is basically a healthy combo of everything and this definitely should be read by everyone who is interested in such genres. <<less

I have watched BL set in historical settings, but I usually avoid reading them. This was my first time reading and I have to say that I have been missing out on a lot. The golden stage is a very wholesome work of art.

I don't like reading pure romance so I very much appreciated that there was an actual plotline outside of romance. The history was quite technical, but the plot was very interesting and realistic. The romance was also quite satisfying-sweet, but not overbearing and passionate without being off-putting.

However,... more>> I had a few problems. One of the problems is that the characterisation was a bit unclear with regards to the MC and ML. I also felt that the MLs character was a bit short-changed in comparison to the MC.

Another problem is that

Spoiler

the ML was maliciously exposed to an addictive drug and had to endure withdrawals for an year. Granted that this is contained in less than five chapters, but I have a personal bias again drug abuse in romance novels so I was quite uncomfortable.

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The issue is however not big enough to mess with my overall enjoyment of the novel.

It is worth reading. <<less

Another very good "married a male wife" novel. This novel has romance at its core but the main couple are both intelligent and capable men who are dedicated to their goals, their men, and their country. So the romance is there but takes a back seat to all the politics and in-fighting that occurs at the imperi court and on the battlefield.

I like the realism of the plot, that sometimes bad things happen to good people and there's no way to get justice for them. The cast of supporting characters... more>> are well-developed and the plot has a good, steady progression that mixes romance with comedy and suspense.

Definitely recommended. There's a happy ending! <<less