“Who says there’s no love between me and Lady Qiao? I admit, I married her for Panyi. But after spending time with her. I saw that she’s not only beautiful but concerned for the people. She has the talent and bearing worthy of my wife.” – Shao Wei
I think every other country’s drama can change, but Chinese drama will always maintain its supremacy. I have never watched any historical Chinese drama, but heard a lot, and finally, The Prisoner of Beauty, the recent Chinese historical drama, caught my eye. The drama follows the story of Xiao Qiao, who gets married to Shao Wei, her kingdom’s rival family, in order to end the hatred between them.
In this drama, there are every kind of trope which had me hooked. There is forbidden romance, arranged marriage, a rival’s daughter, a green flag, a smart, strong and cunning female lead. You know that I am a sucker for the arranged marriage trope, as it gives tension and intensity in a drama that I absolutely love.
Let’s start with our main attraction of the drama, the female lead, Xiao Qiao. I love female leads who are smart, cunning and absolutely hold their ground. Xiao Qiao is a huge green flag because she understands her husband, even though the marriage is all about alliance, she takes the best care of him. She understands him and the situation he went through as a child. I liked that she was shown as a mature female lead rather than stubborn in the wrong ways. She is so manipulative and cunning, OMG I loved that. I loved that even though she married the rival for alliance and even took care of her husband, she still held ground with her principles. She is an absolute drama queen; the acting just to get away with things was mind-blowing.
Then we have our male lead, Shao Wei, who went through a lot, and everything he does makes sense. The boy has a traumatising childhood, obviously, he can’t trust anyone, especially the female lead. However, even though he hated her, he still treated her with utmost importance. His fighting skills are amazing. However, he is absolutely clueless in romance. When Xiao Qiao is flirting with him, he acts so clueless, making me and Xiao Qiao wonder when he will understand. I loved his clueless side. Xiao Qiao helped bring out the child in him that he had lost and was just burdened by responsibility. He is so funny and shy when it comes to romance.
Their chemistry was pure and intense. I liked that their story was relatable, given that they were rivals. Slowly, there was a development rather than just like that. He took his time understanding and trusting her, and she understood that about him. The slow development was everything as they slowly realised that love is greater than hate. The love and respect he shows her, and always stands with her, and she always defends him and takes a stand for him, is so heartwarming to watch; they truly are worthy of each other.
The plot is all about the history between Shao Wei and Xiao Qiao’s family, and to remove the hatred marriage alliance is formed, it is so good and well written. I loved that in historical drama, loyalty is shown as top-notch. Be it Shao Wei’s companion or Xiao Qiao’s companion, the loyalty they have shown was beautiful to watch. The friendship group is amazing and hilarious.
The cinematography is amazing, given that it’s a historical drama, the culture and the costumes are just beautiful. All the side characters were amazing; they made the drama more fun. Shao Wei’s grandmother, a true Queen, knows how to properly give advice, a great woman.
I highly recommend it if you want to watch an arranged marriage between rivals, which includes forbidden romance and captivating leads.
“You’re an exceptional lady. I’ve never admired any woman the way I admire you.” – Shao Wei
Total Episodes: 36
My Rating: 8/10
Genre: Romance, Revenge, Historical Fiction
Till we meet again, Be Happy, Be Grateful, and Keep Smiling – a girl who likes to write.
A girl who likes to write 
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