We enter into a new regime in the palace as the former Consort Xian is promoted to Empress and Fu Heng heads off to war to rescue a failed campaign in the Si Chuan region. 

Cathy provides her reviews of the two medical dramas, Dr. Tang 关于唐医生的一切 starring Qin Lan and Wei Da Xun, and Thank You, Doctor 谢谢你医生 starring Yang Mi and Bai Yu. Dr. Tang is a comfortable, heartwarming medical drama that leaves you rooting for all of the characters at the end. Thank You, Doctor squanders its cast with paper thin character development and rides on the strengths of its cases. Overall, I would recommend watching Dr. Tang. In the episode, I also discuss some interesting gossip that has transpired between the leads of one of these dramas.

After suffering another devastating heartbreak, Empress Fu cha cannot cope with the fact that her second son, the 7th prince, passed away. When the Emperor reminds her that her most important duty is to be the Empress, she concludes that she must decide her own fate. She does not want to be Empress anymore, only Fu Cha Rong Yin. 

Karen provides her review of the hit Chinese drama, New Life Begins 卿卿日常 starring Bai Jing Ting and Li Wei which became a surprising hit. This light hearted historical drama shines in its portrayal of sisterhood bonds but struggles to establish strong chemistry of the main couple. Overall though Karen thought it was a fun and worthy drama to chase.

Time goes flying by in these two episodes as two princes are born in the palace. However, Er Qing decides that she wants to ruin Fu Heng's life and plots to do so by way of the Emperor. Meanwhile, Noble Consort Chun cannot stand hearing that the Empress's newborn son would gain all the attention and strikes as well to devastating effects.

In December 2022, the key Chinese dramas out right now include She and Her Perfect Husband Featuring Yang Mi and Xu Kai, Wild Bloom Featuring Zhao Li Ying, Bright Future featuring Hu Ge and Shining Just For You featuring Feng Shao Feng and Peng Xiao Ran.

Wei Ying Luo is given the opportunity to return to Chang Chun Palace. She is offered the choice of publicly renouncing her love of Fu Heng or suffer a punishment. She chooses the latter. After her ordeal, she is allowed back to serve the Empress and help her regain the ability to walk. The Emperor, meanwhile, is trying to figure out his feelings towards Wei Ying Luo. Fu Heng and Er Qing finally get married. Fu Heng promises to try to be a good husband but the marriage quickly cracks. Consort Chun decides to gain favor from the Emperor and quickly becomes pregnant. 

BREAKING - On November 25th 2022, Kris Wu, once one of the most famous pop stars in China, was sentenced to 13 years in prison and exile on counts of rape and group sexual promiscuity. We discuss in this episode who he is and the events that led up to his arrest and the subsequent aftermath. Listen for the latest updates on this scandal

Trigger warning: In this episode, we do discuss sexual assault as part of this story so please proceed with caution. 

Wang Xiao Fei decided to publicly blast his ex-wife Da S/Barbie Hsu on Weibo complaining about all of the fees he's paying for in her home and he's sick of it, complete with a detailed spreadsheet. His mom entered the fray and so did Da S, her sister, Xiao S, and their mother, plus Wang Xiao Fei's mistress. It's been a multi-day saga with the clear winner being the mattress brand Hastens since Wang Xiao Fei has ordered the Hastens mattress he bought for him and Da S to be burned during one of his public tirades.

In the end of episode 34 and into 35, we get a number of disturbing revelations. 1) Yuan Chun Wang believes himself to be connected to an extremely powerful family, 2) Consort Chun had been nursing an unhealthy love for Fu Heng for the last decade and 3) with the Empress's return to consciousness, she outright forces the Emperor to reconcile for his true affections for Ying Luo.