I think that this drama was just 'okay' and I am unsure if anything could have been done to make it better because I think it was hindered by the style that the story was told in. However there were several things about the drama that were great. Below is a break down of how I rated the show. I give it a 7 but I felt more like a 6.5; I rounded up because I was worried about bias.

Pros
1) The jewelry and hair ornamentation, especially the latter, were fantastic. I haven't watched a show where I really noticed this but there were some scenes where the crowns on the women were the stars.

2)The male lead was both sensitive and very comfortable sharing his affections, something in dramas that is typically reduced to 'the serious sort' (think of Ye Hua/Eternal Love) and it was written and acted very well. In addition to this, the relationship between the two leads was one of equals and exhibited true devotion, something that any person who enjoys 'true love' romances will appreciate.

3)There weren't true sub plots but rather 'arcs' and so the other lead characters had interesting stories, especially the arc about Prince Fierce (Veng Gao). I personally think that this was the best arc because his character exhibited a great deal of character growth and development.

4) The music was very different and sounded Western, and it was very good. I liked it a lot.

5) The cinematography was great--it had some interesting angles that reminded me of some of the unique shots in the King's Woman.

Cons
1) The purpose of the costumes, I think, was to help the show stand out from other shows of its kind however I thought that a lot of the costumes were not very memorable and/or had more of a 'theatre' feel. A lot of them reminded me of power rangers.

2)The acting wasn't exactly bad; I think the characters did a great job, but a lot of the acting, especially the acting of the two leads, felt like telenovela over acting in one extreme or the exact opposite, like they were not impacted or effected by events the way a normal human might be.

3)People die abruptly and suddenly, people who are heavily involved in the plot, and their deaths are sudden and no one seems to care that they are dead in spite of the relationship they shared. Its as if they are written out of existence. Other characters are introduced and are important to the plot, but we see so little of them that we as the viewer are given very little reason to care about what happens them.

4)The style in which the story unfolds is very much like watching a stage play. As I said before, its as if there are arcs, and each arc focuses on a set of people. Although they are the leads, the male and female lead and their relationship are randomly added to remind the viewers of their love but it is a lot more like a political drama unfolding. Arc 1 is the mountain and we have characters established, Arc 2 is the Water Kingdom, Arc 3 is the desert, Arc 4 is the Winter Kingdom Arc 5 is the plough nation Arc 6 is the Emperor, Arc 7 is the final act. It isn't like shows like Journey of Flower or the Flame's Daughter or Eternal Love that had a lot of things co-occurring the plot is INCREDIBLY linear.

5)The plot itself is, for the most part, consistent but incredibly predictable. Normally not a problem for me however the length of the shows combined with the telenovela-like emotions (i.e. over acting) made the show lose its momentum and often I just wanted to fast forward (I didn't) in order to move in. This combined with the frustrating linear plot means that the answers you want, such as anything relating to Fuyao's past, aren't really answered until MUCH later.

6) A lot of things in this show are never answered and left forever in the realm of plot advancement and/or these things genuinely make no sense (beyond the normal suspending of disbelief for a drama). For example, at one point near the end of the show, all the main characters suddenly show up to assist Fuyao and we are expected to believe that a hamster, whose origin has never really been explained

Ultimately the show is okay but I really don't know if it could be improved based on the style in which it is told. I would call it a political drama with a subplot of romance and a splash of fantasy because very little magic actually is used in the show. The ending isn't great, but I wanted the show to be over very badly--it would have benefited by being shorter. The devotion between the characters is great, but the show is VERY LONG and Yang Mi plays a character who often does things that make no sense. My favorite characters were the villain, the Prime Minister, and I liked the relationship that Prince Fierce eventually has because unlike the main characters, theres has growth and development (and i think the point is that the male leads are perfect and understand each other perfectly).

For base line comparison, the Flame's Daughter was, like this, a political drama with romance more as a subplot however the drama was very well written with everything shown having an explanation, motivations were understandable, and filler seems minimal. This show did not have that. And if you compare it to dramas like Eternal Love or Journey of Flower...this one does not hold up.

I think that you will like this show if you are a huge fan of the actors and can ignore these flaws or if you are in it just for the romance. If you desire the totality of the show to make sense or if you care about writing, then you may notice these flaws. The dialogue is okay, if over dramatic (again, it feels a lot like watching a stage play).

Give it a shot; I wish my review was more clear and apologize if it isn't. I am sure the actors tried their best I just think that for 66 episodes this is just too much time however I felt obligated to finish it because it would have felt like I wasted time if I didn't.