Average drama series with a good story, average cast and average directing. I watched the whole series in 14 hours. I started fast fowarding right from episode 2, skipping contrived bleh 'funny scenes', longwinded internal character monologues and love scenes. The drama set in an interesting time slice of Chinese history, blended fact with fiction to create a believable story. However I was put off by the acting by some of the cast. The comic interplay was long winded and definitely not funny. Zheng Shuang gave a mostly two-note performance as the bubblyheaded Lin Xiang Xiang - excitable and giddy. Jing Boran was a credible Gong Ming who changed from a stoic conservative scholar to a a man in love. Chen Sean acted well as Wang Mang portraying the complexity of a man who wanted to do good but somehow ended being bad. Yi Niki as Shao Fei Yan was okay, I had not fast forwarded any of her scenes. The rest of the acting was forgettable. Fighting scenes were quick and added to the excitement of the drama. I had watched watched Queen In Hyun's Man and wanted more of the same type of drama but I was disappointed with this. If you had not watched Queen In Hyun's Man, this is worth a watch but not worth rewatching. If you are looking for a Queen In Hyun, I will recommend a miss, it will frustrate as this will lose out as you will compare the two dramas. How I rate --- 5 = okay, but will never watch again 8 = good with rewatch value >8 = good with rewatch value and must OWN!