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dramaplatters · 8 years ago

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Best Historical Chinese Dramas

Today I decided to do something different & write a post about Best Historical Dramas, they are in random order

Let's keep this post strictly on Chinese dramas. I will do another on Korean Dramas

Virtuous Queen of Han

Wei Zifu was born from humble means out of a serf family. She was the fourth child and the youngest daughter of a lowly housemaid/servant at the household of Princess Pingyang (平陽公主), Emperor Wu's older sister. Her father presumably died around the time of her birth, as there were little historic records of most of her family members. Her younger half-brother Wei Qing, born not long after her, was an illegitimate child from an extramarital affair by his mother with a low-level official serving the Princess's household. When Wei Zifu was still young, she was recruited as a singer at the princess' estate, where she was also trained in dancing and the Four Arts.

Wei Zifu 衛子夫- 卫子夫 Weì Zǐfū (died 91 BC), posthumously known as Empress Xiaowu Si 孝武思皇后 or Wei Si Hou 衛思后, "Wei the Thoughtful Empress", was an empress during ancient China's Han Dynasty. She was the second wife of the famous Emperor Wu and his spouse of 49 years, and stayed as his empress for 38 years, the second longest in Chinese history (behind only the 42-year reign of Empress Wang, the wife of Ming Dynasty's Wanli Emperor, who came over 1,600 years later). She was the mother of Emperor Wu's heir apparent, Crown Prince Liu Ju, as well as the older half-sister of the famed general Wei Qing, the younger aunt of Huo Qubing, the step-aunt of Han statesman Huo Guang and the great-grandmother of Liu Bingyi.

Prince of Lan Ling

Another Historical drama, that has 4 Princes, each are more handsome than the other. :D like one & select him..

The Prince of Lan Ling is one of the four most handsome men in ancient Chinese history. Known as the god of War, he led his army into battle and vanquished his foes while wearing a fearsome mask to hide his face. The Prince of Lan Ling was Gao Changgong and he was a famed general during the Northern Qi period. His legend painted him as a wise and loyal person, who treated his soldiers with great generosity and respect.

A prophecy foretold that victory would go to the one who has the priestess blessing. Yang Xue Wu, the last priestess of her clan, unwittingly becomes embroiled in a war between Northern Qi and Northern Zhou. Although she foresees a tragic fate for the Prince of Lan Ling, the military general of Northern Qi, she falls in love with him and helps him win the war against Yuwen Yong, the Emperor of Northern Zhou. However, her attempts only bring him closer to his fate. As his standing among his people grows, so does the murderous jealousy in Crown prince’s heart. Can she protect him when it’s family who wants him dead?

Let's see what's the other one.

Legend of Lu Zhen

Legend of Lu Zhen or Female Prime Minister 陆贞传奇

The story centers on the rise of Lu Zhen (Zhao Liying) from a mere lady-in-waiting to becoming prime minister during the Northern Qi dynasty.

Lu Zhen was the elder ambitious daughter of the Lu family, who successfully ran the family porcelain business, much to her father's delight and her stepmother's jealousy. Afraid of Lu Zhen taking much of the family asset upon her impending marriage, her stepmother schemed to poison her father and attempted to frame Zhen for the murder. When Lu Zhen was acquitted, her stepmother arranged her to marry off as a concubine so that she could seize the family asset. Lu Zhen fled and was saved by Prince Gao Zhan (Chen Xiao), who would become the love of her life. Gao Zhan faced the same family problem; when his father died, Empress Lou usurped his succession to the throne so that her own son and Gao Zhan's half-brother, Prince Yan (Kimi Qiao) would become emperor. Through Gao Zhan's connection, Lu Zhen entered the palace to become a maid, with the aim to rise to sixth rank female official so that she could appeal to the supreme court to re-investigate her father's murder. Amidst the constant scheming from Prince Zhan and Empress Lou in the fight to claim the throne, Lu Zhen managed to gain the emperor's support and rise through the ranks with her hard work, intelligence, and luck. She then helped Prince Gao Zhan claim his rightful throne, but could not be his empress due to certain circumstances. Emperor Zhan instead conferred her the title of prime minister, which is the highest position in the court so that she could best exercise her talent and aid him in ruling the country.

**************** Scarlet Heart

Zhang Xiao (Cecilia Liu), a young woman from the 21st century, suffers a near-fatal accident that sends her back in time to the Qing Dynasty during the Kangxi Emperor's (Damian Lau) reign. She finds herself trapped in the body of one of her previous incarnations:

Ma'ertai Ruoxi, the teenage daughter of a Manchu general. In this new timeline, she has an elder sister, Ruolan (Annie Liu), who is a concubine of the Kangxi Emperor's eighth son, Yinsi (Kevin Cheng). Ruoxi initially tries to return to the future, but she soon adjusts to life in this era. She meets some of Kangxi's other sons, including the fourth prince Yinzhen (Nicky Wu), tenth prince Yin'e (Ye Zuxin) who falls in love with her, and fourteenth prince Yinti (Lin Gengxin). She also forges a close friendship with the thirteenth prince, Yinxiang (Yuan Hong).

Ruoxi attracts the attention of the emperor with rumors of her brashness and bravery, and manages to charm him with her intelligence and wit. Later, at the imperial palace's "beauty draft" (during which concubines and wives are chosen for the princes or the emperor himself), conflicting arrangements are made by Yinsi and his first wife, Gogoro Minghui (Shi Xiaoqun), leading to Ruoxi being drafted into the service of the dowager empress to keep the peace. Ruoxi is given an appointment as a servant to the emperor himself, specifically to prepare and serve tea to him and those he hosts.

During Ruoxi's stay in Yinsi's house, Yinsi falls in love with her. She initially rejects him but eventually returns his feelings, and later agrees to marry him if he gives up competing for the succession to the throne. This is because Ruoxi's knowledge of history makes her aware that Yinsi's ambition will ultimately lead to his death in prison after Yinzhen becomes emperor. However, Yinsi refuses to and thus Ruoxi broke up with him. Before leaving, Ruoxi warns Yinsi of Yinzhen's plans to usurp the throne and came up with solutions for him to prevent being taken down by Yinzhen.

Ruoxi then started to get closer to Yinzhen, and their interactions changed her unfavorable opinion of him, and she unwittingly falls in love with him. Meanwhile, Yinsi and his supporters, acting on Ruoxi's advice, frame Yinzhen for plotting against the crown prince Yinreng (Zhang Lei). Yinxiang steps forward to take responsibility and is ultimately sentenced to house arrest. After this incident, Yinsi realizes that Ruoxi is now romantically involved with Yinzhen. Yinreng is deposed after his criminal ways are exposed and is imprisoned for life. Kangxi then begins showing preference for Yinti and offers Ruoxi as a concubine to him. However, Ruoxi boldly defies the emperor's order, and as a penalty, she is demoted to the laundry department.

Ruoxi works within the laundry department for a number of years, and is offered some level of protection and special treatment by ways of the princes. Kangxi falls ill during this time, and when Ruoxi is brought back to the emperor's service by Eunuch Wang to prepare pastries and help stimulate Kangxi's appetite, he pardons her and restores her to her former role as his lead tea preparer and server.

Kangxi eventually dies of his illness, and with military support from Longkodo (Zhao Jialin) and Nian Gengyao (Xing Hanqing), Yinzhen falsely claims that Kangxi named him the successor, effectively staging a coup and taking the throne from Yinti to become the Yongzheng Emperor. Yinzhen then releases Yinxiang from custody and moves Ruoxi into his quarters, eventually consummating their relationship. He does not, however, marry her, as he wants to be able to live with her and see her every day—wives and concubines have their own estates between which the emperor must divide his time. Ruoxi is pleased enough with this arrangement, as she has always been reticent about marriage and enjoys seeing Yinzhen daily as well. Ruoxi's happiness, however, is marred by Yinzhen's paranoia and his ruthless persecution of Yinsi and his followers. She is often caught between the rivaling factions of Yinzhen and Yinsi.

When Gogoro Minghui tells Ruoxi that Yinsi acted against Yinzhen years ago because of her advice based on the knowledge of the future, she is shocked, and her despair causes her to miscarry Yinzhen's child and is unable to conceive again. Enraged, Yinzhen blames Yinsi and his wife, issuing an edict forcing them to divorce, which leads her to commit suicide. Ruoxi fears Yinzhen's punitive actions against his brothers and confesses the truth to him and Yinxiang.

Yinzhen is stunned when he understands why Yinsi plotted against him and starts treating Ruoxi coldly. Ruoxi is unable to withstand the mental stress and asks Yinti to help her leave the palace. Yinsi knows that Yinzhen will not allow Ruoxi to leave and decides to intervene. He discloses details of his past romance with Ruoxi, and an angered Yinzhen eventually agrees to let Ruoxi and Yinti leave the Forbidden City.

Despite Yinti's excellent care, Ruoxi's emotional anguish deeply affects her health, and she begs him to send a letter to Yinzhen, requesting to see the emperor one last time before she dies. However, a misunderstanding between Yinzhen and Yinti causes the letter to be thrown aside unread. Ruoxi struggles to stay alive, but after three days, she concludes that Yinzhen's absence confirms that his love for her has ended, and she dies. When news of Ruoxi's death reaches Yinzhen, he rushes to Yinti's house, regretting his actions after learning that Ruoxi still loved him.

In the later years, Yinsi and Yintang (Han Dong) were imprisoned as Yinzhen blames them for everything that happened. Yinxiang went to visit them in prison and hands them poison, which was Ruoxi's request to him before she left the palace. Both Princes commit suicide and end their suffering. Yinxiang dies a few years later, followed shortly by Yinzhen himself, whose 12-year reign as Emperor was the shortest in Qing history. Yinti lives on but does not find another wife. Only Yin'e has a happy ending with his wife (Liu Yuxin) that he grew to love, watching Emperor Qianlong ascend the throne.

Back in 2011, Zhang Xiao regains consciousness in a hospital and is informed that she had been in a coma for weeks. She wonders if her experiences in the past were real or imaginary. After recovering, Zhang researches the Qing Dynasty era, only to find that history remains on its proper course, and there are no records on Ma'ertai Ruoxi. However, she later visits a museum where she recognizes some Qing Dynasty-era artifacts and sees a woman in a Kangxi Emperor portrait that resembles her. Meanwhile, a man who bears a striking resemblance to Yinzhen visits the exhibition and encounters Zhang Xiao but does not recognize her. The show ends with a cliffhanger of the man walking away as Zhang Xiao's tears start to fall.

" Scarlet Heart was my first Chinese Historical drama, and I can still watch it many many times

****************

The Princess Weiyoung

Li Wei Young (Tiffany Tang) was born Princess Feng Xin Er, the daughter of the King of Former Liang. A loyal subject under Great Wei, however, Xin Er’s father is framed for treason and killed by the evil General Chiyun and Li Min Feng. Xin Er’s family and kingdom is annihilated. Escaping with her life but now an orphan, Xin Er accidentally wanders into enemy territory. There, she is saved by Li Wei Young, the daughter of the prime minister of Great Wei. Although born a noble lady, she is driven to live in the countryside by her family because she was born on a day deemed one of misfortune. Little did Xin Er know that her savior Li Wei Young is also Li Min Feng’s half-sister. Full of hatred for the enemy that destroyed her home, Xin Er assumes Li Wei Young’s identity after she was murdered. She ultimately learns to channel her hatred towards those who deserve it and become a kinder person overall. And it is exactly her wisdom and humanity that attracts towards her two very different men. Tuoba Jun (Luo Jin) is the beloved, well-educated, kind prince that is favored by all, including the king, and who falls in love with Wei Young. And competing with him is his third uncle Tuoba Yu (Vanness Wu), the cold, menacing and emotionally scarred prince that truly wants to rule the empire, and sees the intelligent Wei Young as his tool and his nephew as his rival. Wei Young, however, only has her eyes on one thing: she was not able to save her people. Between the schemes of these two men and living in enemy territory, can Wei Young ever avenge her family?