Differences between the novel and the drama

1) Novel : Lin Zhixiao was a  geology major who also played the clarinet. 

In the drama they made her a cellist.

I also found an interesting douban post which I am attaching here which lists a few reasons for this change. (https://www.douban.com/group/topic/262420058/?_i=7529528QFEusLa,7704131QFEusLa)

1. In order to maximize the personality differences of the characters.

In the original novel, Gu Wei is a doctor of medicine and has a natural nerd atmosphere. If the heroine is a student and her major is still so dull, the portrayed characters will definitely have a nerdy atmosphere. In this way, the character differences between the male and female protagonists are not obvious enough, and the conflicts between the characters are not easy to create.

2. To create conflict in family relationships.

In the original novel, the family relationship of the Lin family is harmonious, warm and bland. After the scene is presented, the audience will feel bored due to the lack of drama. By arranging the heroine as a cellist who is studying music, the difference in conception between the father and daughter can be achieved. (For example, the daughter insists on her musical dream but the father does not understand and firmly opposes it), to reflect the generation gap and emotional conflict between the two generations in the family relationship, thereby advancing the development of the story.

3. In order to make the lens language richer and more diverse.

In the novel, the identity of the female protagonist, a student of the Department of Geology, is difficult to express in beautiful camera language. For example, when expressing the professional characteristics and character of Gu Wei, the director can arrange for him to read.  What about the female protagonist? Do you want her to sit at the table with this tome and work hard there? And changing her career to a musician, cleverly avoided the problem of repeated footage.

In addition, the scenes of musicians' rehearsal and concert performance are warm and romantic, which not only fits the love theme of the story, but also adds a lot to the scene. .

4. In order for the male and female protagonists to form a soul intersection control group

The hero and heroine are a pair of young people who love each other, one is a doctor and the other is a musician; one is a sullen straight steel man and the other is a lively and pretty girl; one holds a scalpel to cure diseases, and the other holds a therapeutic : the bowstring that heals the soul. The two people love each other and kill each other, redemption and anti-redemption, the deeper interaction and integration at the soul level, and the meaning of watching and helping each other to grow together, all at once.

In the novel I remember that lin zhixiao's mother was against their relationship. She was not rlly nice like in the drama.

In the novel, lin zhi xiao's father tries to find a partner for her while in drama nope..... and her father also positive about her relationship with gu wei

I think the main difference comes from the point of view. The novel is like a diary entry of LZX. So the story is limited to her perspectives. We can't really see what GW is thinking (except for the tiny tidbits at the end).  But in drama we can clearly see how whipped he is for her and his efforts to get her. This makes the story a lot more interesting. 

@dramaknight yep, I don't understand why they had to extend the age different...unless they really wanted to infantilise her, which is so stupid since it takes away one of the key charms of the novel -- how despite their differences they are really egalitarian in their relationship. And he doesn't treat her like a child or a pet. I'm so over this whole unpleasant unsupportive parents nonsense. Again, one of the standout aspects of the novel was the fact that they could really focus on their relationship and their careers because their families respected their choices. If one more person tells that it's to add interest to the drama, I swear, I'll scream! Because developing a script this way when your source material is so different is indicative of shoddy scriptwriting, which requires unnecessary tropes and drama for the sake of making the story more interesting. 

@Dramaknight Agreed! In my mind, the development of the not-girlfriend etc was antithetical to who they are in the book. Again, it was one of those drama for the sake of unnecessary drama situations. Yes, Gao Xi was at fault for not hearing him when he said they were friends. This thing dramas do where they show women as desperate and 'clingy,' in the worst way, is awful. It's such a pet peeve of mine. But if they did go that route, and if she didn't pick up his signals then he should have clearly drawn a line and said something -- the stupid jokes, and wink wink nudge in the hospital were getting out of line. Gu Wei clearly showed his discomfort with all of it but didn't really express anything. And when he did it was at the worst possible time - at a work-team-networking dinner in front of XiaoXiao, the girl he was interested in. Talk about second hand embarrassment. This definitely doesn't happen in the novel. Yes, Gao Xi is passive aggressive and creates false impressions but because XiaoXiao and Gu Wei talk to each other and are on the same team, we don't see it impact them so much as it becoming cannon fodder among the larger universe and side characters.

And now, with this next set of eps that just aired. I'm not going to spoil anything but COMMUNICATION is like the red thread in the novel. They consistently communicate with each other. And yes, she's flighty and charming and full of heart and he's a little reserved and somewhat stuffy but devoted -- but they take turns looking after each other. One holds the fort while the other leans in. I mean that's a resilient and good relationship. But here the scriptwriter is writing them into emotional blind alleys. Gu Wei  expects XiaoXiao to read his mind and understand his stresses without ever talking about it. It's like they've infantilised her so much that she's deemed incapable of addressing hardship. When in fact, that is patently false re her dad's illness and supporting her mum. She expects him to be available, not unreasonably so, but they don't talk about when he isn't or her legitimate worries that she doesn't know what he's thinking. I understand needing space and time to sort out how you feel or to take time to find the words that you need to articulate how you feel or even not wanting to talk because of whatever reason but this slamming the door shut on emotional turmoil is shitty writing. So disappointing. With such rich source material this is what we end up with. And even stellar acting can't help.