Chasing Dramas

The presumed dead Gu Ting Ye appears at his grandfather's funeral, dashing some family members' plans to steal his inheritance. Ming Lan's mother goes into labor but the devious Mistress Lin doesn't aid the suffering woman. Ming Lan tries desperately to find a doctor but by the time she does, it's too late. Master Sheng and Madame Wang are furious at the turn of events and punish the servants. Grandma Sheng decides to raise Ming Lan under her care. The family leaves for the capital as Master Sheng is promoted. What will be in store for Ming Lan now that she has lost her mother?

In this episode, little Ming Lan tries to improve her mother's living conditions after winning favor with her father. Her father Sheng Hong is outraged to find the destitute living conditions she and her mother lives in and tries to investigate. However the devious Mistress Lin is one step ahead and artfully implicates an innocent maid. On a peaceful boat ride, bandits try to assassinate two young boys. What happens to one of them?

The drama begins by introducing us to two main conflicts. The first is that young Ming Lan, the main character of the show, and her mother are unable to secure coal to help them through the winter. The second, is that Ming Lan's oldest sister, Hua Lan's engagement party is almost ruined. Their brother drank too much and almost loses his sister's betrothal gift in a bet. We are introduced to the dynamics of the Sheng household and some interesting traditions of Chinese marriage during the Song Dynasty.

Set in the Northern Song Dynasty, this drama depicts the life of the 6th daughter of the Sheng family, Sheng Ming Lan. Though not of high birth, she is able to use her intelligence and perseverance to secure happiness in this interesting time period. This podcast episode provides the historical background of this drama, the Story of Ming Lan/ 知否知否硬是绿肥红瘦 and introduces the 2 main leads.

We conclude our discussion of Empresses In The Palace with our final thoughts. We discuss the historical figures the key characters are based off of and fun facts about the cast and crew. Lastly, we share our thoughts on the impact of this drama.

Zhen Huan is filled with hatred towards the Emperor after the death of the 17th Prince. Ning Pin schemes to slowly poison the Emperor. Zhen Huan seizes power in the Palace as the failing Emperor's suspicions towards the 6th prince reignites. In a final confrontation between the Emperor and Zhen Huan, Zhen Huan reveals her hatred towards the Emperor. The drama ends with Zhen Huan taking the mantle as Empress Dowager of the Qing Dynasty as her adoptive son, the 4th Prince, ascends the throne.

The Emperor has finally caught on to the 17th prince's feelings towards Zhen Huan and sets multiple traps for the 17th prince to confirm his suspicions. Unfortunately, the 17th prince falls directly in those traps and the Emperor forces Zhen Huan to kill her beloved in an act of jealousy. In their final meeting, the 17th prince drinks the poison she wanted for herself to protect Zhen Huan one last time.

The Empress and Emperor meet for one final showdown. The Empress finally confesses to her crimes but how will the Emperor react? What will happen to the Empress? The Emperor also has to deal with growing unrest in the Empire as a familiar face comes back to stir trouble for Zhen Huan

Zhen Huan continues to turn her attention to her biggest enemy in the Imperial Harem, the Empress. She needs to destroy the Empress's remaining power in the Palace, her adoptive son the 3rd Prince. Zhen Huan and her faction are forced to make sacrifices along the way as they devise plans against the Empress. Will they succeed?

The 3rd prince is following in his birth mother's footsteps in making decisions but not considering its consequences. He has fallen in love with one of his father's concubines, the beautiful Noble Lady Ying and is determined to make it work. Don't need to explain how that won't work. Meanwhile, there is drama brewing in the 17th prince's household as his two concubines fight for his attention