I wanted to title this review "They All Died Unhappily Ever After" I do not fault the acting or production etc, my main problem was with the story. I prefer happy endings, but I am on board with a sad ending if the story warrants it. If you don't like dramas where they all die and no one gets a happy ending then maybe this drama isn't for you. I was interested in it because of the male lead who I have seen in several other dramas and he always gives a good performance. Going in, I had no idea if this would have a happy or sad ending. By the time I got to episode 18, I had my answer. That there were 2 additional episodes after, I thought what could be next? The 2 episodes at the end were like pointless fillers and didn't add anything to the story as most of the events had been explained in previous episodes.

Those that deserved to die, died, but too many people that didn't deserve that fate did as well. The cast did a good job with their acting. Li Fei and Patrick Quan were both good as the hero and the bad guy. Patrick Quan is very good at playing good and bad. Li Fei looked stunning as always in traditional costume. I'm rather glad he does a lot of costume drams as he has the look for it.

Story-wise, the ML and FL went through a lot and didn't even get a happy ending. The struggle for power etc as well as both men being in love with the female lead just made it all seem a bit futile in the end. Maybe that is what was trying to be portrayed. As I said before episodes 19 & 20 were pointless except as extra material as the story had already ended at that point.