I really didn't expect Chen meiren to end up being so close to Ning Shuyan, so much so that even the emperor became jealous of their relationship

Also didn't expect the queen to pull a big one and straight up poison the emperor! She really didn't know how to scheme, did she?

Honestly, I was expecting the FL to be like the TJOAIC FL but she was a bit... too sincere like she felt guilty from time to time, for not sincerely loving the emperor, and she actually fell in love with him, when he promised not to hold another concubine selection and even abolished most of the concubines after he was bedridden from poison and was not expected to survive

He is a very sentimental and sincere type of a person, even as an emperor, his schemes were not that deep, as compared to other novel's emperors. From the way he remembered his mother, to the way he treated his brothers, it was clear that getting the throne was his way to survive in the imperial harem and fulfill his mother's expectations of him. He unconsciously wanted sincere affection from his harem, and FL was the first one to give him that experience, she treated him as her husband, not as her monarch and let the mighty emperor feel the pleasure of being an ordinary family man. I feel like, in alternate universe, he would have been that famous Wangye who only had his Wangfei in his harem. So, no surprise, the emperor is as whipped as frosting on a cake, when it comes the FL, by the end of the book

The ending seemed a bit rushed, ngl, the empress' scheme was impulsive, and even though she wasn't the sharpest sword in the armory, the level of recklessness was disappointing. If I was the empress, I would have poisoned the emperor in a way that it doesn't trace back to me, or framed FL as a demon consort, so the emperor is constantly under pressure of the court. I never would have done the butterfly scheme, and done so at such an inopportune time.

Also, Shen Cainu's character arc was unsatisfying. She has so much potential, she could've served as a contrast to the emperor, as he realized that he loved only FL, even if there was another woman who loved him sincerely. Her ending was forced too.

The last 60 chapters, the emperor became a simp, after he realized his love and almost lost FL a couple times, becoming very indulgent. He should have slowly unraveled the true depth of NSY feelings for him, have a moment of heartbreak, realize that he loved her no matter what, and be determined to make her fall for him by offering lifelong sincerity. Also, things we a little too smooth for NSY and she never truly suffered a loss, so that was a bit unrealistic.