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asiandramawhump · 3 months ago

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The Longest Promise (2023) - Whump List - Chinese

Whumpee: Shi Ying played by Xiao Zhan

Synopsis/Plotline: Royal Prince Shi Ying develops romantic feelings for his student, Princess Zhu Yan, but their student-teacher relationship prevents them from them expressing their true feelings. Fate works against them when they choose opposing sides in a political struggle. Eventually they put aside their issues to protect their beloved Kong Sang continent.

Genre/Tags: Adapted from a novel, Master-Disciple Relationship, Slow Burn, Romance, Cultivation, Warm Female Lead/Aloof Male Lead, Forbidden Love, Costume Drama

Watch On: Netflix, KissAsian

*SPOILERS BELOW - PROCEED AT YOUR OWN RISK!!*

1.01-1.02 - NONE

1.03 - (emotional whump), finds out that his mother committed suicide; collapse, panic, loss of control over powers; hurt/comfort :::(emotional whump), crying at mother's memorial :::grieving, lashes out and hurts other character

1.04 - (cont'd from 1.03) grieving, angry, punching tree, bloodies knuckles, accidentally injures others, guilt ::: coughs

1.05 - mild whump, slightly overexerted after teleporting

1.08 - bitten on wrist

1.09 - mild whump, slightly overexerted after teleporting

1.11 - knowingly absorbs poison ::: symptoms of poisoning, weak, pale, concern for him, coughing, helped to walk

1.17 - overuses his powers, collapses, unconscious, concern for him ::: thrown off cliff, drowning, under-water rescue kiss, coughing, weak, attacked by dragon, goes unconscious ::: unconscious for 3 days, back injuries from fight, injury treatment

1.18 - (emotional whump) despair over Zhu Yan's betrothal ::: requests punishment for his feelings: stabbed/slashed, shaking, weak, collapse

1.19 - (emotional whump) gives away hair pin to Zhu Yan; not whump but pretends to be an illusion to see Zhu Yan

1.20 - NO WHUMP - very fluffy scenes between Zhu Yan/Shi Ying

1.21 - destroys tree, coughs blood ::: (emotional whump) crying, sad

1.25 - stabbed with shards that are poisonous, collapses, goes unconscious ::: concern for him, cared for ::: wincing, coughing, attempting to hide injury, injury grabbed, injury discovery ::: (slightly funny) forced to take of himself, given medicine

1.26 - coughing; pretends to be sick (in disguise), immobilized (holding hands <3) ::: painful injury treatment, weak, need help to sit

1.27 - (emotional whump) concern for Zhu Yan; spits blood, risks Qi Deviation ::: heals Zhu Yan, spits blood

1.28 - (emotional whump) angry/hurt confrontation with his father, identity reveal

1.29-1.33 - no whump

1.34 - struck by lightning, coughs blood ::: (emotional whump) confrontation with Zhu Yan, pretends not to care to protect her; coughs blood, stumbles, pale, needs help to stand::: coughing

1.35 - (emotional whump) kills second male lead ::: (emotional whump) doesn't think Zhu Yan loves him, (crying) threatened to be stabbed ::: stabs himself with Zhu Yan's sword, coughs blood, dies

1.36 - dead/unconscious

1.37 - memory loss, cute scenes; falls asleep on Zhu Yan's shoulder (Zhu Yan hiding side effects of her reviving Shi Ying)

1.38 - (emotional whump) guilt, worry for Zhu Yan, crying

1.39 - requests to return to mortal realm; punishment, whipped, cut, struck with lightening, tortured, blood, coughing blood, concern for him; (emotional whump) meets mother in dream like state, crying ::: falls, collapses, goes unconscious ::: (still unconscious) bloody wounded; attacked, protected by Zhu Yan and mentor ::: bloody, wounded, mentor protects him with his own body, mentor fatally wounded (emotional whump) concern for mentor, crying ::: can't access power, struggling, coughing, (emotional whump) concern for mentor, crying, mentor mistakes him for Shi Ying's mother, mentor brushes tears from his eyes, hugging mentor's body, crying

1.40 - none

1.41 - attacked with energy, thrown against tree, cut on cheek, attacked again, clutches chest in pain, concern for him, stumbles, collapses, thrown against tree again, in pain, attacked again, crying, struggles to get up, collapses, someone tries to throw him off cliff, Zhu Yan sacrifices herself for him, unconscious ::: unconscious in the rain ::: still unconscious in the rain, healed by magic bird ::: rescues his girl, attacked, concern for Zhu Yan

1.42 - (emotional whump) panic for Zhu Yuan ::: sad over death ::: energy blowback from Divine Ring, blasted, staggers, coughs blood

1.43 - attacked, fight ::: absorbs evil spirit, fighting to seal away evil spirit, coughs blood ::: in pain, coughing more blood, concern for Zhu Yan ::: begs Zhu Yan to kill him, crying, panic ::: blasted back, in pain, crawling to Zhu Yan, coughing more blood, begging for Zhu Yan to kill him, emotional hug with Zhu Yan/crying, stabbed with Jade hair pin, collapses, dies on Zhu Yan's shoulder

!!!MAJOR SPOILER!!!

Ending is open to interpretation, but Shi Ying does come back at the end...either resurrected by mystical powers that be or just in spirit form, but Zhu Yan and Shi Ying are reunited at the end.

#whump #whump list #asian whump #cdrama whump #asian whump list #the longest promise #ren min #cdrama #costume drama #the longest promise whump #2023 whump

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fiddleyoumust · 14 days ago

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I've been thinking about my taste in historical c-dramas and realized I always lean toward political/palace intrigue over xanxia or wuxia fantasy dramas. So, without further ado, my list of favorite historical c-dramas (with a happy ending) that ground the romance in political power struggles.

1. The Double

Cast: Wang Xing Yue, Wu Jin Yan

Synopsis: After being framed for adultery by her husband and his family, Xue Fang Fei takes on the identity of the deceased daughter of a high-ranking court official in order to clear her family's name and take revenge on the people who wronged her.

This drama is flawless. Both the FL and the ML are two of my favorite characters of all time. They're both smart, funny, and badass in their own way. Their relationship is one of mutual respect and admiration, and the way they fight for and support one another is beautiful and romantic. The villains are fleshed out and great at making you hate everything about them while also understanding their motivations. Wang Xingyue gives an INCREDIBLE performance as Duke Su, and while I think Wu Jin Yan is too old to believably play a teenager, she is a fantastic actress who does a complicated character justice. I really have nothing negative to say about this drama. It's perfect to me.

2. Blossom

Cast: Li Yun Rui, Meng Zi Yi

Synopsis: A chance meeting between a woman leaving her cheating husband and a general helping a second prince overthrow the crown results in both of their deaths, intertwining their fates. When the woman wakes up reborn in her 10 year old body with all her memories intact, she has the opportunity to change her fate, the fate of the general, and maybe the entire country.

Dou Zhao and Song Mo are my parents, full stop. This couple is so good - both smart and capable in their own right, but damn near unstoppable together. Their chemistry is great. Their love and devotion for each other is crazy, and they're both just so, so pretty 🩷. I never found this drama boring, but I have seen some people say they thought the back half drags a bit. I think if you're not fully enamored with the couple, that might be the case since the back half focuses more on palace power struggles, but I'm a political intrigue girlie, so I was hooked the whole time.

3. Are You The One

Cast: Zhang Wan Yi, Wang Chu Ran

Synopsis: An anti-heroine bandit and a vassal Prince army general find their lives entwined when he saves her from near death and uses her resulting amnesia to trick her into thinking they're a married merchant couple in order to use her to catch the mastermind behind her bandit stronghold. As he sinks deeper into his own lies, he desperately tries to cling to their made-up life, fearing the day she regains her memories...

THIS SHOW!!!! My beautiful power couple who outsmart everyone but each other and wield death with knives and swords. This show does so many things right. The palace politics are interesting. The second male lead is compelling and complicated in a way that makes you seriously consider him as a contender. Both of our protagonists are smart, capable fighters who slowly realize they want the same things but have chosen different paths to achieve their goals. Also, the ML is a SIMP, which I am always here for.

4. New Life Begins

Cast: Bai Jing Ting, Tian Xi Wei

Synopsis: Ignored by his Emperor father and neglected by his concubine mother, the 6th prince of Xin Chuan marries the daughter of a farming family from a neighboring country as part of an annual marriage selection. Together, they face the challenges of court politics, royal etiquette, treatment of women, and international relations as the prince's reputation rises in the court of Xin Chuan and he begins to earn the respect of his father.

The ML and FL are great, and their relationship is solid, lovely, and heartwarming. But the real delight of this show is the women and their friendships. The unwavering support and love all the female characters have for one another is the true heart of this show. If you love women supporting women and women fighting for change and equal access to power while a few great men support them, I can not recommend this one enough.

5. The Princess Royal

Cast: Zhang Ling He, Zhao Jin Mai

Synopsis: After 20 years in an arranged marriage, Princess Li Rong has her Prince Consort, Pei Wenxuan, assassinated after she believes he's been slowly poisoning her. She dies from the poison soon after his death and wakes up to find she's gone back 20 years, memories intact, to before she and Pei Wenxuan got married. She quickly realizes that Pei Wenxuan is also back, and the two of them must decide what parts of their past they'll repeat and what parts they can change to avoid their fate.

Li Rong is one of my favorite female characters. She's cold, closed-off, analytical, and so repressed it's painful. She's tries so hard to protect herself, that she ends up missing out on the most important thing in her life the first time around and her bravery in trying to change herself enough to not miss it a second time is breathtaking. Watching fiery and charismatic Pei Wenxuan try to properly win her heart in their second life is one of the most swoonworthy romances I've watched. The politics in the show are engaging, and there is interesting meta to be had around how our desires and how we prioritize those desires affect the course of our lives.

6. The Story of Kunning Palace

Cast: Zhang Ling He, Bai Lu

Synopsis: A wicked Empress is pushed to her death after a coup overthrows the Emperor. She wakes up in her 18 year old body and vows to make different choices this time around. But changing her course is more difficult than she imagined, and things become more complicated when she gets entangled with the man responsible for the coup and her death in her first life.

I thoroughly enjoyed the politics and court drama of this show, but ultimately, it's the performances of Bai Lu, Wang Xingyue, and especially Zhang Linghe as the intense and unhinged Xie Wei, that really make this drama worth watching. Bai Lu's chemistry with both MLs is fantastic, and her scenes with Zhang Linghe are so charged that you'll be holding your breath. They both chew their way through this drama immaculately. Watch it for the simple joy of watching two actors ACT.

7. Melody of Golden Age

Cast: Ding Yu Xi, Ancy Deng

Synopsis: In order to protect her family, the 6th daughter of a low-level court official marries the favored general of the queen dowager in place of her older sister. Neither party wants the marriage, but neither can afford to anger the queen. They decide to bide their time and divorce in a year, but in the meantime, they help one another achieve various goals... and, of course, fall in love for real.

I can't be rational about Ding Yu Xi. If he's in it, I'm tuned in. His chemistry with Ancy Dang is fantastic, and watching his character, Shen Du, slowly melt and fall for his wife, Yan Xing, is so, so enjoyable. I was less interested in the mystery/court politics of this one, but I still liked it a lot. The romance is very good and Shen Du and Yan Xing are dreamy protagonists.

8. Blossoms In Adversity

Cast: Hu Yi Tian, Zhang Jing Yi

Synopsis: The feisty and brilliant daughter of a noble family must find a way to keep all the women and children in her family alive when her grandfather offends the king and gets their family's wealth, property, and status stripped away, as well as all the men banished to a labor camp.

This show is all about the FL, Hua Zhi, for me. She is a fantastic character - strong, sensible, smart, and fearless - while still managing to hold on to her heart and see the good in the people around her. Her love story with the prince/commander lacked something for me. I think I wanted it to be more intense than it was and might have worked better if a different actor played him. But, Hua Zhi, her family dynamics, the court politics, and all of the side characters were beyond enjoyable.

9. Flourished Peony

Cast: Li Xian, Yang Zi

Synopsis: A woman in a terrible marriage makes an escape with only the clothes on her back and a rare potted peony her mother left her. She ends up pawning the peony to the king's flower envoy in order to start a business, and the two become entangled as a result.

The FL, Mu Dan, is a badass. She tackles villain after villain with just her wits and the sheer determination to live her life freely. The ML, Cheng Yang, realizes early on that he's found a kindred spirit, but neither of them are interested in romance at first. I loved that they are genuinely friends for the majority of the show and that the ML trusts Mu Dan to solve her own problems, rarely stepping in to help her because he knows she's strong enough to solve it herself. This show, much like New Life Begins, highlights the horrors of being a woman in this time period. And like New Life Begins, one of the best things about this show is the women Mu Dan collects throughout her journey, building her own little found family. Flourished Peony has a 2nd season on the way that will air some time in the back half of 2025, but the end of S1 is solid and won't leave you hanging if you decide to watch it before S2 comes out.

10. The Rise of Ning

Cast: Zhang Wan Yi, Ren Min

Synopsis: After spending most of her childhood in the country away from her scholarly family, Yi Ning, the black sheep daughter, returns home for her grandmother's birthday. Rivalry between her and her other siblings and cousins cause tension, but she finds an ally in her father's illegitimate son, Shen Yuan, another black sheep who has cultivated a life for himself in the shadows of a family that doesn't acknowledge him. Together, they try to solve the mystery of Yi Ning's mother's death and decades old case involving Shen Yuan's master. A case that puts them in contact with a dangerous man from Ning's past.

Full warning, the romance in this is between Yi Ning and Shen Yuan. Spoiler: No, they're not really siblings. He knows they're not very early on. She finds out much later, and the romance starts after that, but he's very clearly already fallen for her while she still considers him a brother. If the trope bothers you, skip this one.

If you're like me and don't care 😂, this show is great. Yi Ning is a sweetheart with a spine. The second male lead is a combination of incredibly handsome and scarily unhinged, which makes him all the more sinister. Shen Yuan is smart, calm, and deadly - my male lead kryptonite!!!, and his devotion to Ning is so wonderful. I also have a Zhang Wan Yi bias. His face is just very, very good to me. The mystery plot is engaging, and I didn't ever find myself bored with this show.

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