The first thing I'm gonna say is, as a person who understands Chinese and has read the raw, this novel is really worth reading.

There are not many plots, but lots and lots of flashbacks, which seems hilarious and relaxing at first, but gradually breaks your heart. The interactions between MC and ML are very cute, and unlike many other BL novels, the main focus of the romance line was not on how they fell for each other, instead on how they try to protect each other.

The translation is good and... more>> smooth, and I highly suggested you to read this novel! <<less

Excellent palace intrigue, the twists are nice but predictable. Writing is a bit too superfluous, glossing over a lot of details without getting into depth.

YZY has a very solid character and the changes in 7yrs is very interesting to see. Everyone else however, is flat and s*ave to the plot progression without much growth. ZW's character is really loose; say he's smart but he lets way too many superficial things distract him; say he's average, he always manages to come up with "brilliant" plots that always hit the nail on... more>> the head. Say he's deeply in love but he's always shamelessly flirting, and say he's pervy but he's always shy and withdraws at the last minute. YZY is constantly grieving over ZW's past but the author didn't put enough effort into really making the readers empathize with ZW, perpetually drawing attention away with inconsequential jokes that ended up eroding ZW's character.

The whole reading exp is basically summed up by the smut scenes where the dirty talks heighten the anticipation but when they really get down to it everything is just:

...

...

...

And then the next day. Lol.

The characters all had great potentials, but besides YZY, no one else got the depth treatment. Alas.

Still an enjoyable read to pass time, but nothing deeply moving or memorable. <<less

It's hilarious. Recommend. Recommend. Recommend.

Street smart & funny MC (special skill: torturing people with his antics)

ML is slightly deranged but used to be a good baby. Not your typical copy pasted "OP cold black belly gong" but HAS. AN. ACTUAL. PERSONALITY.

I got roped in by the summary, and stayed for the plot. While this is comedy, it's not comedy in the way that the summary suggests. I would say this is probably 3 parts angst, 2 parts mystery, 3 parts comedy, and 2 parts romance. I don't necessarily agree with reviewers who believe that novels should be either all comedy or all drama. A good novel should have a healthy mix of both.

This might upset some readers, but it should be mentioned that ML is suicidal. On the outside, he's... more>> unreliable, moody, sometimes black bellied, and does whatever the hell he wants without care for consequences. But deep down, he's just lonely.

Meanwhile, MC, well. He's a little shit. He is shameless to the point of courting death, but when things really happen, he gets shy. What a dolt, haha.

The process of their romance is complicated, as each character has their own motives that don't necessarily coincide. There is a fair amount of drama that occurs during the imperial power struggle, and it takes a long time for MC and ML to truly connect.

Spoiler

They both alternate between shameless and shy, haha. For the most part, it's MC trying to devise out ways to get in ML's bed and failing, though.

[collapse]

The world building wasn't the best, but I will forgive the author in lieu of the well-developed characters. Ending was well rounded, and MC and ML got the happy ending they deserve. <<less

It starts off slow and kinda weird. You're not quite sure where everything is going with the political intrigue and the relationships. But as the MCs' combined past unfolds and you get to see just how deep their relationship actually is and the mental dependence they placed on each other to continue living in a rather hopeless situation respectively, you really feel their love for one another.

It's not lust and fireworks that keeps these two together, though there's a bit of that, but their unconditional love and trust in one... more>> another, even if they feel utterly unworthy of the other's affections due to circumstances.

It's fluffy in places, humourous in others, dark and passionate in yet others. Slow burn in a different way than most. Totally worth the read. <<less

Just a fair warning: use only a good 10% of your brain when reading

If you came for political intrigue, exciting palace drama, or diabolical plotting from all sides- you have come to the WRONG story. Go read Golden Stage.

I think the main reason why I persevered through such a mediocre plot was due to the hilarity of the main CP's relationship. In the beginning, things were very unclear. It's obvious ML has the hots for MC, but I was surprised to read that MC was carrying a torch for ML... more>> way before the latter. Details are quite sparse, but regardless, their relationship was entertaining from beginning to end. There's a ton of s*xual tension, incessant teasing from both ends, crazy misunderstandings, & bittersweet moments. MC can be said to be as shameless as the infamous Wei Wuxian (MDZS) while ML resembles a Lan Wanji who defected from his clan & went psycho. The two's interactions were entertaining enough to wash away my gripes for the plot. <<less

30% comedy / 30% mystery / 20% romance / 20% angst & palace drama.

What made me rate this 5 stars instead of the 4 a story like this would usually get were the main characters.

Male leads are all too often trope characters. Overbearing CEOs, perfect film emperors, ace e-sports players, etc. They're fun to read about but forgettable. Yu She (courtesy name: Yu Ziyou, our ML) subverts a lot of tropes. He's funny, he's adorable, loyal, and a bit of a prude, but he's not mr Perfect. He's also impulsive,... more>> insecure, and eccentric. His mental health took a beating when he was 16 and Yu She never fully recovered. He's often depressed and sometimes suicidal. There will be chapters where you'll be reading things from his perspective and his inner monologue will be filled with suicidal ideation. After overdosing on Five Minerals Powder (the so-called cold food powder) in his teens, he has frequent blackouts, bursts of paranoia or aggression. (It's not played up for laughs or treated perfunctorily... Especially when Zhong Wan is around and Yu She tries so hard to delay a fit, or get Zhong Wan to leave so as to avoid accidentally hurting him. It's really heart-rending.)

Zhong Wan (our MC) doesn't stand out from other well-written MCs but he's still a well-rounded character. He's outgoing, optimistic, clever, witty, a bit of a tease but prone to overcomplicating things, and thinking he has to shoulder every burden by himself. We only see the complexity of Zhong Wan's character from chapter 30+ (and he only shines from 50smth) so impatient readers might just dismiss him as yet another bland, Mary-Sueish MC. However, if you're patient, you get to discover something beautiful. I feel that together, Yu She and Zhong Wan really carry the story. <<less

Premise summary: the MC (intelligent adopted eldest son of a disgraced noble family, now a s*ave) reunites with the ML (lonely prince; everyone wants him dead, but favoured by the emperor) in the capital after a 7 year separation. In that separation the MC was spinning tales about being intimate with the ML in order to help protect his siblings, meanwhile the ML's mental state was deteriorating having discovered secrets about his own past and present. Now that they're back together, the two leads try to pave a way to... more>> live happily ever after together amongst the fight for the throne.

The description, by using the words "brainwashed" and "trance" made me very wary but when you read the novel you'll find these are very inaccurate phrases and imo the ML's mental illnesses are portrayed quite respectfully.

Misunderstandings are common in this book but they are hilarious - some truly amazing dialogue in there haha - and aren't frustratingly long or anything. The author has such a great sense of humour.

On the flip side the angst is very heartbreaking but not overwhelming thanks to the overall light tone the author chose (I dont like to be depressed so I appreciated this lol).

I really liked all the characters even the nasty ones and I feel like all their motives tie together nicely.

The novel entirely focuses on the scheming and relationship of the two main characters. Lots of banter and fluff. Sometimes quite scandalous ohoho. The plot itself for me was slightly lacklustre. It mostly felt like there wasn't a lot of direction and the characters tended to know what what going on much more than I did, but because I trusted them to have some control over each situation it was intriguing to see how they'd solve them.

I think this novel was really well written plus the translator did a flawless job. Genuinely the highest quality translation I've read so far for any novel on NU!

4/5 because I had a good time and loved the dynamics but the plot for me wasn't quite worth the full 5 stars. <<less

I love this story. Translator (s) did a fantastic job.

The story tells how an innocent person can get pulled in mud just because of other's greed. The MC have tragic past, but he doesn't dwell in it, or he doesn't want to, making himself a busybody. MC have a shameful background, but he doesn't dwell in self-pity but blame himself and his father for the suffering of MC. Though the ML was never ambitious and fight for the throne, he was pulled in by others and at last have no other way to survive with his beloved if he doesn't fight for the throne. One more thing about the ML that people complain is he's not a reliable and perfect man. ML is deeply traumatized by all the adults in his life and who were supposed to protect him. He is shows lot's of symptoms for mental illness and disorder, including su*cide ideation and mood disorders, so imo his actions and thoughts are not without well thought out reasons. About the cp-

Though the MC is a bit shameless at times, he is like a silly teen with ml, embarrassing himself. And while ML was deranged, he never forget propriety. And their chemistry is really cute and enviable. The romance was not focused on how they fall for each other or papapa, but rather on how they lost so much of their time and trying to make up for it, while protecting each other. With earlier chapters their romance might feel rushed but with all the flashbacks in the later chapters it will be shown that their feelings have been brewing for a long time. Humour-

I don't even know how to start with this, the humour are refreshing, not the naive/s*upid/awkward mc/ML resulting in a funny scene yet an unrestrained, bold, shocking and showing off mc/ML without thinking the place or time. The ML practically force feed everyone dog food

Plot: 6/10

Main Couple: 11/10

Side Characters: 5/10

... more>> It's not really great, not really bad as well - this novel is pretty much average plot-wise. Still, the main couple made it quite fun and enjoyable for me to read.

Story-wise, it presents itself as a mystery/palace or political intrigue/romance and honestly it just tried to be too many things at once that I kinda felt lost on what was the goal of the story. Regarding the mystery, it can be quite predictable if you pay close attention to the dialogue.

The highlight of the story is the main couple. If the author focused more on them rather then trying to create mystery, the novel would've been 5 stars.

Anyway, both MC and ML are freaking hilarious! Their interactions made everything so funny, I can't count how many times I actually laughed out loud while reading this.

Also, we should be thankful for Yu She's Third Brother for getting the main couple together. He provided such a good location for the main couple to rendezvous. That same location is where the main couple had a lot of breakthroughs in their relationship - freaking hilarious I swear!

To summarize, it's a fun, comedic story. I recommend it if you don't want anything too deep and just want to pass the time. <<less

★★★★★ [5/5 stars]

I've been reading modern danmei consecutively for the past months and decided to take a break from it and pick this historical novel up. This has been on my list for a long time now and after finishing this, I can now totally understand all the good reviews. In my honest opinion, this is definitely one of the best historical danmei I've ever read.

The MC (Zhong Wan) has this shamelessness in him that was actually cultivated after enduring being at the lowest for so long. He was from... more>> a noble family and considered the reincarnation of the god of literature for having an innate gift in academics. But because of a power struggle and imperial fights, he ended up finding himself in a mud, completely and utterly humiliated. He lost his status and became a s*ave overnight. Because of all he had been through, he learned to ingratiate in order to raise and support his younger foster siblings, gradually getting used to his broken reputation. But despite all of that, the MC was the kind of shameless character that still finds himself blushing while letting his mouth spouts brazen nonsense. He was actually an effortlessly funny and likeable character. He was also so genuine and caring that you really can't stop yourself from loving him. His shamelessness sometimes reminded me of Wei Wuxian.

The ML (Yu She), on the other hand, was considered a lunatic by most of the people. He was once an obedient, filial and righteous youth but because of some specific, heavy reasons, he changed a lot in the past few years as if he was a wholly different person. His temperament worsen and he didn't regard his own life at all. His mentality was 'if he dies, then he dies, but he would drag everyone with him'. This kind of attitude in a character actually makes me so anxious because of his unpredictability for his own safety. He often has bouts of fits when his mental state is unstable. He would act aggressive and crazy and that was part of his illness. But this mentality and this illness was gradually fixed after meeting the MC again after years of being apart. He slowly found the meaning of life again. He was also kind of a tsundere and the MC's shamelessness and straightforwardness was put to use. His teenager self reminded me so much of the teenager Lan Wangji.

Both of the MC and ML's personality actually complemented each other so well. They both encountered an equally painful past that they both didn't deserve. They were connected from the past to the present and their entanglement cannot be undone anymore, one can feel the profound sincerity of their affection. They loved each other so beautifully and deeply. The chemistry between them is so palpable and their antics made my stomach hurts from laughing so much. They also once had this hilarious and a not-angsty-at-all misunderstanding in their relationship that made me wheezed. They've actually become one of my favorite couples.

What I like about this novel aside from the wonderful execution of the plot and the amazing characterization is the perfect timing of humor in the midst of angst. I remember finishing a particular chapter where it was so heartbreaking and my tears were literally flowing down my face and after just literally a second, in just a snap, I actually choked from laughing. I read a comment after that chapter that says it reminded them so much of the anime Gintama (which I highly agreed) in terms of throwing an unexpected humor while you were still heavily emotional, but not in a forced way. It was so natural that you would just find yourself having a mood swings but you still feel great. There were times when I literally prepared myself for the angst but maybe the author really didn't want her readers to stay depressed for too long because she can actually turn the atmosphere around in a completely different direction with no effort in just a single chapter. The emotional whiplash is too strong in this novel.

Seriously, I highly recommend this novel to everyone! It's so great and definitely so worth it!! Just trigger warning for suicidal thoughts. <<less

This is one of the best comedic ancient China BL stories out there!

MC: a sickly, but cheeky strategist

ML: a depressed, suicidal prince

From political intrigue to steamy romance, this unlikely pair unravels the mystery of the past and discover hidden secrets buried in the imperial family.

There will be twists and turns throughout the story, but fret not, the ending is a happy one!

This is good! The novel will give you a rollercoaster of emotions in every chapter. What made this interesting, in my opinion, is that the start of the chapters will be heavy, emotional, and will give you angst but then it will be hilarious and humorous towards the end because of the MC's unique way of thinking, rendering the ML helpless and vice versa. I also like how it ended. The characters all get their just and deserved ending.

I think this has turned out to be one of my favorite novels, if not my all time favorite. I usually don’t go for or enjoy ancient China settings or political novels at all, but this novel was so good that I almost forgot that all about my dislike of the ancient story settings.

I can see why this novel was adapted to a drama, drama cd, and manhua. It’s amazing, it’s enjoyable, aside from the complicated relationships and scheming going on that make it hard to understand who is doing... more>> what for who and why, I have to say it’s the perfect novel. Maybe it’s because I love comedy, love heartfelt confessions, and love utter devotion to your partner to the ends of the world but this novel really satisfied all my cravings.

What really did it for me it the comedy, I could not stop laughing for a good half of the novel, but it didn’t feel forced or out of place to me. When things get serious there is a reprieve from all the dark and heartbreaking themes, I feel as a reader that I am being brought out of those negative feelings by the cute and adorable comedy scenes that occur around the MC and ML. I love that the author did a good job making these comedic scenes realistic and in-character, I can practically feel the second hand embarrassment as the ML and MC fumble through awkward situations as they learn to build up their relationship as lovers and heal from their past. And the comedy isn’t totally random, it definitely doesn’t show up where it shouldn’t. Tragic scenes are properly tragic, the humor doesn’t intrude onto serious scenes, there is definitely less humor later in the novel but it’s still there and it’s adorable.

I was worried about the ending because it felt like things went to the political side and I didn’t want the MC and ML’s story to end with such an unromantic tone, but the extras show that they are living a good life as a couple, not as prince or scholar or whatnot, they are still the same MC and ML which really made for a satisfying ending.

I gotta say, out of a 100 point rating scale I would probably rate this at 95. And this is taking into consideration that I started reading with the expectation that I would Not like the story. I won’t say it’s for everyone, but I would encourage readers to stick with it because as the story goes on it keeps getting better.

In my view the novel doesn’t have much worldbuilding, rather it stays focused on the MC and ML and their goals. It pretty much all stays within the capital, there’s not any major traveling or setting changes. I would also say that the characters are pretty much set too, there’s little character development like that which you would see in other novels. The MC and ML’s relationship definitely grows, but the characters themselves have already lived through a lot, there isn’t much need for them to grow any more because they’ve already accomplished quite a lot of growing that we see through flashbacks and re-tellings. Characters won’t change much, the novel will show what kind of person they are and that’s about what you should expect, so there are no surprises and plot-twist situations when a character acts out. I wouldn’t say these are negative things but if you are expecting wordbuilding and character growth you will not find it here.

I would recommend this novel if you love a story where characters heal from their past, if you like tragic pasts, if you like a lot of random humor stemming from funny misunderstands, if you like the characters rising to the top slowly but surely, if you enjoy devoted love, and if you like historical settings. Yes, the plot includes a lot of political stuff but it mostly revolves around the MC and ML and how it affected them and continues to affect them, so while there is a lot of fighting for the throne and family hurting each other, most of it will have ties to the MC and ML so while (in my opinion) it can be hard to understand why many characters act the way they do, it gets easier to understand the more you read. The information builds up eventually, like a puzzle slowly coming together, but the pieces we get don’t necessarily connect until we are given more later on. The story doesn’t mention anybody that isn’t relevant and doesn’t go in depth into politics that it doesn’t need to, this is MC and ML’s story at the heart so I would still recommend this to people even if they don’t like political stories.

Finally, @ future me: You will definitely love this story even if you read it over and over again, guaranteed. Just make sure to wait until you’ve forgotten most of the details, the humor will be best if it comes as a surprise! <<less

*This is refreshingly wonderful.. Anyone interested in historical Shounen Ai must give it a try..

Rating : 4.6 /5

I'd say it's more likely a Shounen Ai, since it's not really as hardcore as Yaoi..

* If you're here to read some intense tragic rollercoaster, then it's not for you.. This one is a mixture of tragedy and fluffy comedy with a happy ending.. * Zhong Wan's thought process rendered me speechless, specially when he imagined himself be pitiful.. His loyalty towards his kins is astonishing.. He was not only very intelligent and... more>> strong but also way too hilarious and playful at the same time.. Only someone like Yu She would be able to keep him in check..

* I personally like that Yu She was never tyrannical despite being a prince.. He was hurt, but he rather took it out on himself than harming others.. It's very rare to see such a royal member who doesn't act like the whole world belongs to him or treats others like garbage.. I was really getting tired of stories where as*hole royals think the whole world belongs to them, or treat people except their loved ones as garbage, kill people whenever they please.. Yu She is totally an exception in this regard..

* After reading the manhwa whenever I read about Xuan Rui, that manhwa's face comes to my mind..

* Good thing that Xuan Congxin was allowed to learn politics and would become Princess Regent.. Else her talent would be wasted.. If only she was a male, she definitely would have been an excellent Emperor..

* Xuan Yu is silly and sweet.. His imagination actually resembles Zhong Wan more than his own elder brother..

* I kinda wanted an extra about Xuan Jing and Lin Si.. They are quite silly and cute too.. <<less

This novel was okay. The writing was decent, the two main characters were pretty good, the humour was good, the romance was cute. But that's kind of it, nothing about it really stands out to me. I was mildly entertained throughout the novel, and that's it. That's the only feeling I got while reading. I wouldn't reread this novel or anything or think about it twice. In fact, I gave up on it twice so it took me literal months to finish. It might just come down to preference, but... more>> I think the main problem is just that the plot's not that engaging. The reason the rating's not lower is because the novel's not objectively terrible, there's nothing hugely wrong with it. It was just.... mediocre. Like lukewarm water.

PLOT: For some reason it never feels like anything is happening, I couldn't tell you a thing about what happened during this novel because even though things happened none of them were memorable. It's a court intrigue novel but I was so bored throughout it, and I usually love court intrigue. I was never curious about what would happen next, not even because the author did a bad job setting it up, but because I couldn't bring myself to care. I literally didn't care about any of the reveals even when I didn't see them coming, it was just like "oh cool." Overall, it was incredibly underwhelming.

CHARACTERS: I liked the MC and ML, they had personalities. The ML is considerably more interesting than the MC in my opinion, but I liked them both well enough. I definitely wasn't that invested in them though, I don't think the author puts enough effort to make them characters you'll really care about. There was not a lot of character development, so it was pretty hard to actually care about them or what they were going through. Although the characters were likeable, almost all of them were pretty one dimensional, even the 2 main characters. The side characters especially were pretty boring and not that developed either.

ROMANCE: Ehh. They had cute scenes and the interactions were cute. Again, that's it. If you're looking for a well-developed romance, this is not it. Not that the romance was badly written, but the development was really subtle. Once they do get together there's romantic scenes, but HOW they got there was pretty subtle and quick. This is NOT a slow-burn, not only is the romantic development subtle it's also lightening fast so don't read it if you're not the type to enjoy couples who get together almost right away. The side couple was pretty cute, my only complaint would be that they didn't have enough screentime lol. <<less

I think the person who put the 1 star review about Yu She being bad was a bit shallow in my opinion. While Yu She has done a lot of things I don’t agree with, I think fundamentally, the novel starts off with a very broken ML.

That being said, this was a much better read than I had anticipated reading the summary. I had thought it was going to be a funny novel, but it took me on a trip, but held my hand enough that I understood what happened.... more>> The ending was incredible and I enjoyed watching the banter between our shameless MC and our confused ML, who often feeds the court his fair share of CP dog food.

I would recommend this read. The translators did a great job, there’s a lot of extra descriptions and terms that they highlighted for us. <<less

I loved this novel. Court drama, palace intrigue at an appropriate level that doesn't get too overwhelming; story is told in various levels of flashbacks so you are always understanding a little more of what's happening between the characters. Once you accept that the two characters originally had a deep and meaningful connection that was cut off for reasons beyond their control, everything makes sense for them. The emotional ab*se that both of them experienced didn't destroy their ability to try to come back together again, even though clearly the... more>> ML is emotionally extremely fragile and conflicted and the MC is too smart for his own good -- for the ML he brings out a faithful naive commitment that he never lets go of, and for the MC the ML does everything in his power to keep him safe and alive and tries not to get too touchy too fast (it's usually the MC taking the lead). There's both silliness and some tragedy but the tragedy is mostly in the background. There is a ton of cannon fodder getting their unfair comeuppance which is never discussed, typical of court drama. <<less

People, don't sleep on this masterpiece! I know everyone have their own tastes but I feel many of you will enjoy this. It has everything you want in a historical-palace novel; politics, power struggles, fight for the throne, messed up royal family, scheming and more scheming, there's a lot of drama. Plot is a perfect blend of romance, comedy and angst. Romance made me go all warm and fluffy n angst made me cut onions at some points though, our MC n ML are totally a hilarious pair! I love... more>> them so much!! And ofc I need to mention the side cp also, what I felt lacking was only the details of their story, I really hoped for at least an extra chapter for them. T_T

This novel honestly deserve much more recognition and support. Author has done an amazing job, her 16 years of hard work was all worth it! Many thanks to the author and the translators as well <3 <<less

I'm changing my review after 14 chapters. I like the protagonist but despite the heaviness of the plot, it's getting a bit dull. It's just vague. I feel like the author touches on a particular scene, but doesn't divulge in it, and instead moves on to the other. And then what? Where are we heading to? I still don't know.

UPDATE again 3/3-20

Unfortunately I've come to the realisation that the only character I like is Xuan Congxin. But she's just a side character, and this is a BL novel....... more>> sigh... it's obvious she's destined for mundaneness since it's a historical story, eventually getting married and disappearing, leaving the scene to MC and ML.

ML is arrogant and self absorbed with his self-pity while MC is a noisy busybody. But it's only thanks to him being a busybody that we have a plot whatsoever.

Story is about MC who is a clever young man who has been stripped off of everything in his life and is now devoting himself to protect three kids. He's selfless yet wise and the translation is good. <<less