Recommend a Historical, Please?

Hello my fellow DramaList-ers! ^^

This time I'm looking for political upheaval, daring quests to save the world, beautiful costumes and royals in disguise. All the juicy fun that makes up a good historical. I am hoping you can help me choose a drama that will really grab my attention and make me wanna go on a full drama-thon. : D I'm not picky in regards to nationality. (ie. C-drama; T-Drama; K-Drama; J-Drama) The only one I have yet to try is a Thai Drama, but that is mostly due to a lack of knowing where to start.
I have a CRAP TON of shows on my Plan to Watch List, however because I have so many I found myself at a loss as to where to start looking within it or even merely narrow it down. Feel free to recommend off of my PtW List. Though I'm also more than willing to find something completely new. (Note: the list below states my preferences, these are not iron-clad must haves.)

My general preferences this time around are:

• I want closure. If there is romance, then I would prefer not to have the female lead wind up not decisively choosing the male lead or vice versa by the end of the drama. Ambiguous endings drive me up the wall! (Example of a major offender: Shine or Go Crazy)
• No drawn out beginning. I want to jump right into things and be hooked from the start. I'm not really in the mood for a slow introduction. (ie. Can You Hear My Heart with its first four episodes made up entirely of backstory) I understand that historical dramas are longer and therefore have a greater tendency to go into backstories at the beginning. That's okay. I just don't want to spend forever getting to the entertaining part.
• The struggles the characters face should not be recycled over and over again. Once a problem is resolved, I would prefer not to have it then rehashed several more times. Having a character continuously struggling with the issue/problem is one thing, but to have the character seemingly move past the issue then two episodes later have them face it once more as if it was the first time all over again is off-putting. It's only natural the character would handle the problem differently or have a different perspective of the issue the second time around.

Historical Dramas I LOVED:

Sound of the Desert - I adored this drama. Lots of intrigue and plot. I was captivated by both Wei Wu Ji and Mo Xun's devotion to Xin Yue.
Legend of Lu Zhen - My favorite historical drama by far. The costumes and cast leave my breathless. I can't wait until it is finished being subbed. I sit on the edge of my seat for sub updates.
Prince of Lan Ling - I greatly prefer happy endings, this was just too amazing to pass up though.
Faith - The lack of a big reunion left me a bit disappointed, but I still enjoy this drama greatly. The background machinations of the court and secondary romance between the King and Queen was awesome.

Historical Dramas I Dropped and Why:

Perfect Couple - I really enjoyed the chemistry between Wallace Huo and Tang Tiffany, but the whole her lying about being the daughter of the Jiangs' really began to grate on me. I simply couldn't sympathize with her motivations. I understand she wanted to find her adoptive mother's son, but I just couldn't suspend my disbelief that someone could justify lying so much for supposedly 'pure' motives and good intentions. I didn't like that the drama wanted me to think what she was doing was okay.
Da Tang Nu jiang Fan Lihua - The over the top-ness was too much for me. I couldn't take it. I loved Li Hua as a character, but she was too old looking when she stood next to the male lead. I'm not sure if it was the way they dressed her or her make up. I just know I kept feeling like a cougar was chasing Lau Hawick around the screen. In a not good sort of way

I agree with Scarlet Heart

Tree With Deep Roots
Ryoma Den
Three Kingdoms
Yae No Sakura
Damo
Jejoongwon
Too Late To Say I Love You
Sunset at Chaophraya

We have similar tastes. Your list of 'Dramas I loved' is literally the list of my favourite historical dramas (Prince of Lan Ling /dies 40 times). With one notable exception...
Scarlet Heart. Other people are saying it, and I'm reiterating it. 
WATCH IT. 
LOVE IT.
WATCH IT AGAIN. 
DIE.
Repeat. (?)
Just don't watch the second series of it. *shivers*
Seriously, above all others, watch Scarlet Heart. You'll get over their hair; I promise. 

Also, where are you watching Legend of Lu Zhen? I literally just finished it; it's completely subbed on youtube, I can link it to you if you want. 

I also love the drama Hong Gil Dong, but it's a bit cheesy and fun, not TOO too political. The ending might hurt though. But in a bittersweet way? 
Same with Iljimae. It isn't too political, but it's one of the best dramas I've ever seen. Like a historical City Hunter. Only better. The ending is a wee big ambiguous, but in a happy way. Er... yeah. 

I'd also sort of recommend the recent Hua Mulan drama, although... egh. There is a lot of "I can't be with you! But I love you! But we can't! /drama" and it may get a bit repetitive. 

Moon that Embraces the Sun! That's a good one too. Although the main chick is a bit of a piece of cardboard acting wise, the rest of the drama is phenomenal. A bit supernaturally too. 

Oh yeah; The Vigilantes in Masks is a good one too. It's the Chinese version of Iljimae, although it has a much more comedic, fun tone. Very actiony. 

I came on to the forums to post this exact question, so I thought I'd help out somebody looking for the same thing as me. I hope I did help!!!!

Do you mind sad endings? Because I have found that, whilst I love historical dramas, mostly being based on at least some facts, many do not have a happy ending. 

If so here are some that have not so happy endings but are great nonetheless (in order of preference):
Empress Ki
Painter of the Wind
Ooku (the series)
Queen Seon Deok
Chuno
Jang Ok Jung
A Tree with deep Roots
Hwang Jin Yi
Damo

With a somewhat more happy ending:
Sungkyunkwan Scandal
Arang and the Magistrate
Warrior Baek Dong Soo
The Princess' Man
Gu Family Book