expected more from this as I was hooked by the synopsis but was greatly disappointed. The MC is supposed to be a bold general yet he behaved like a mutt with zero braincells and like some typical shoujo FL. Normally I still wouldn't mind top much but the plot got super draggy so..

The plot seems promising at the beginning so I have high hope. However, it turns into meh in the middle. I suddenly forget the MC is a man and a general, he acts like a damsel in distress.

Nothing 50-50 about this, hands down one of my fave books to date, and I've read quite a lot, including all the highest rated BLs, but this is the only one I re-read like I do, mostly because it suits my tastes TO A TEE. I'm telling you, it's everything you've ever wanted - near-death experience, wifey and motherly role without the too fantastical 'mpreg' having to come in, strong non-doormat like MC and a handsome puppy ML whose love is so moving. I must say, in the beginning I... more>> wanted nothing more than to slap his kingly face, and couldn't understand the MC's self-destructive patriotism, but it made for SUCH a beautiful ending that I cannot ask for anything more. If you gave up before chapter 63, you're a waste of oxygen. Though some people felt like the MC became weak and the ML too soft-hearted in the middle, I find it precisely the reason I felt the love bleeding through the pages, there's so much pain and sacrifice in it. I don't write reviews, but I want everyone to read this, I loved it so. I cried of anger in the beginning, sadness in the middle and happiness at the end. Best book ever. <<less

The first half was good, but after MC became the empress.... The story turned inti a typical romance drama. I mean it's ok and historical dramas are always good, but in the beginning the MC was strong and the ML more cruel and I must say I liked that much more. Then suddenly the ML fell in love without any reason and became like a big puppy. Same happened to the MC... Not my cup of tea and I might drop this and pick it up later and maybe write... more>> another review after finishing it. <<less

Loved this story, flaws and all.

Great job by the translator.

The MC is too kind. The ML is so good to him once he falls for the general. Loved the crown prince. Though Wanyan Xu (the ML) transition from hate to love is abrupt, the overall story is good. Su Yi has a hero complex. He wants to save everyone at the cost of his own suffering.

Its a HE.

I've read this long ago but I do remember that this novel is one of the novels that got me hooked up in bl novels

I remember that this book made me cry so hard. I still remember the pain from reading at that time. The regret of the protagonists, I'm the one who felt it.

The only flaw I find disappointing is that the fact that the general didn't even say anything till the end when he was framed.

I thought maybe saying that, it'll prove that the general has the same feeling as his husband. It's not an one-sided love, dude!

But apparently I'm hoping for the impossible. Not even once the general chose 'his beloved' over his people. That's not selfless, on the contrary, that guy's too selfish for his own good.

But afterall, , the story is enjoyable. My mind went through a great-super-great deal... more>> of roller coaster brimming with emotion trying to finish the story. It gives me chill and satisfaction when it's done. <<less

I read the first few ratings and I still decided to cringe and read however I LOVE THIS NOVEL

Given the MC has this unnecessary self-matyrdome syndrome which made it soo un appealing to read but people saying it has r*pe and it’s a put off, probably don’t understand the time or era, given it’s disgusting but it wasn’t anything weird in that era, the spoils of war and all that rotten talk

Secondly, the ML has always had a certain admiration for the MC from the beginning so I can understand... more>> why he fell in love so quickly for the MC

They both hurt each other and even until the last chapter you can see they still need to be more open and trust each other more to carry both pain and love together, not trying to shelter each other at the expense of their trust, plus the ML seriously has been traumatized by his act and is constantly in self loath of himself, Lol I’m shocked he hasn’t tried taking his own life out of sorry,

For the MC I wish he were more shrewd and less soft hearted letting people take advantage of him like that, I mean for a general he is quite soft and a tad dumb, also he’s very compassionate, almost too compassionate, but I guess we all all have flaws, I just wish the suffering from chapter 53-70 could have been cut down more and less heart wrenching, it’ll take forever to heal no matter and for that I pity the MC,

lastly can I just slap Zi Xan or whatever her name is once, just once, I really am greatly disappointed in her character and to me she trying to stick to being the bad guy even when the MC tried to forgive her just annoyed me the more, and I had hoped she faced the same fate and General Yu, but oh well.

Overall lovely story, MC reminds me sometimes of Xie Lan from HOB, so self sacrificing and calm, read it if you want it’ll be worth it. <<less

I read this novel a while ago and I found the plot interesting but the r*pe tags put me off, I decided to give it a chance because I've read several novels with this subject that in the end were well developed and it wasn't just about that, but in this one I really couldn't find her less than terrible besides the story that became cliche with the general being unbearable and increasingly behaving in a totally contrary way to what he was at the beginning of the novel, the... more>> big problem for me is her in all ways to romanticize the r*pe that happens in a detailed and irresponsible way by the author to justify it with all possible cliche excuses and transform the scenes after the aggression into something "he's in love what happened two seconds ago was by accident". In the end, their relationship was a force of how Su yi "fell in love" after several physical and psychological tortures and s*xual assaults, but there are those who like it. <<less

-1

I have never cried as much with a novel as I did with this one. And I don't like to cry.

Please, at first I thought it was a good read but after a few years I read it again and thought how could I have liked something like that?

Today I have to say that this is one of the novels I give one of the lowest ratings to, I don't know if I've ever read anything I disliked more than this one.

Nice one, full of emotions. I hate it at first when MC is too protective to his Qi's people, but I'll take it as his character as the general, as a loyal subject to the country that he wishes the safety of all people.

"You have to understand, the wound is on your body, but the pain is in somebody else's heart."

Tender love at its finest.

However, it's not your usual love story. It started out pretty aggressive, really uncomfortable to read, so much so that I regretted reading it at some point. But if you're willing to overcome all the angst, then you'll be handsomely rewarded. I'm still so much affected by all the emotions going there. I'm glad I read this!

"May it be that my lord's heart is the same as mine, surely... more>> then our yearning will not meet with disappointment."

♡ <<less

I usually like Noncon. Doesn't put me off. The way it's in this work does put me off however honestly, no idea why, probably because the MC ended up in a relationship, but it didn't seem like a mindbreack situation. Didn't like that ML was still portraied in a good light.

But the translation and the writing style are truly good! Enjoyed both immensely 💕.

Suyi's personality was reduced from a power general to a man weaker than a child. Not suitable for a former general.

A novel that will make you cry. But I can't handle the history of the characters, I find it very toxic to the point of not understanding how such a story can be liked. But hey, everyone has their tastes.

I loved this! The novel had the perfect balance of angst, fluff, heartbreak you wouldn't get too bored with the drama or the fluff to easily. I loved the ML, even though the MC would never give in, the ML still did his best to repay the MC for what he did, he went through a lot of character development that's for sure. The other characters are very likeable too! And the pacing was great, wasn't too fast or too slow. I'd definitely recommend this if you wan't some angst... more>> and heart aches but would still like a very fluffy and happy ending for the main couple! <<less

Let's get one thing out of the way first, If you want fast enjoyment, very tropical romance plots and sweet moments that alter your heartbeat, read this novel, there will be a lot of it.

But if you want to get something out of it or wish to have new profound meaning of life after reading this novel, then don't bother.

If you can ignore everything and only focus on the bl parts, yes It works especially in the first half of the book, but I personally can't. I'm giving this book... more>> a 3 stars rating because It really did made me happy at the beginning part so I don't want to be too harsh, but If I really want to sit down and nitpick the flaws, illogical plot lines, ridiculous characters development and espcially the fact that Su Yi (Male Character for the entire second half of the novel is so OOC for what was originally promised), I can basically do it all day.

This novel disspointed me, It was promised so much more on the first half only for the second half "cannon fodder trop" to be dumped down on the reader's head.

It even managed to offense me in some part, for example Su Yi was an interesting character in the built up, It was such an insult that he eventually became what he becane, completely destroy any good feelings I had towards him.

ML Wuyan Xu, he is not the problem, It's his very freaking-fast personality change that irk me. It's like he went to bed, woke up and become a completely different person so that the plot can go on, It's so hard to keep track of him and his logic as a character.

Even though, The writing of the crown prince character is stretching the reality a bit too much, I'd still say he is the only part I look forward to in the novel, but I have to admit that consistency of this character waver too, It's too irritating.

This novel could have been so much more, It's such a waste that the author fail to deliver. <<less

This is one of my first BL novels, but I won't be biased because I've read far better than this. BUT, I want you to read the FULL review before you abandon the read right away. Always give something a chance despite what others might say....

To be frank, if you love only cunning mcs, drop this right now (really think about this... have you enjoyed other reads that don't have a cunning mc?). Our precious MC is a war general, but he is the opposite of cunning. He's resilient, I'll... more>> give him that, but his resilience really frustrated me during the second part of the novel. He is kind, but too kind. All his features that are supposed to make him a likable MC are instead so over-exemplified that he nearly becomes a cannon fodder in the end (the type of cannon fodder you would find in FOD arc 2 if yall curious). This nearly became a tragedy BL in the last half of the novel and I was close to tearing my hair out.

Now onto the MC. Yes, he's nearly a rapist in the beginning that soon turns into a love-sick puppy--much to the utter dismay of the MC. He's rejected--though that doesn't always stop his manipulative advances--for literally half of the novel. He is simply a man, who by moral standards, is an absolute s*um tr*sh bag cloaked by the image of a pitiful man who just wants to tie the MC by his side due to his love (and resorting to any means to do so). I, however, have no problem with such men in my standards when it comes to novels--due to this being the sh*t I encountered daily in my Wattpad days--so I didn't really bother about this aspect (I give you full permission to throw a watermelon at me, it is OK).

Plot? None of that war tactic sh*t if you expected there would be any. Instead, this is one of the novels where the 'romance development' is the plot.

Now, with all that said, I didn't necessarily hate this novel. Actually, it's quite vivid in my mind. Now the problem is asking myself the question: is it vivid because it was my first? Or was it because it still remains one of the most frustrating novels I've encountered? Or maybe I enjoyed the emotional roller coaster in the end? I'm not sure... Maybe its all of them at this point.

The rating I gave is 3 stars for a good reason, yet I don't want to deter readers from reading it. There was a certain charm in the novel that caused the conflicting reviews of one star and 5 stars. In the end, if you're not one to bother about toxic relationships that eventually develop into healthy ones, like a bit of angst and drama, is a sad*st when it comes to the MC suffering in *cough* multiple ways, and like the plot-but-make-it-romance-development plot, then I recommend this (I feel that if you're a Painter of the Night avid reader, then dive right in!). I think you might enjoy this novel. <<less

I have many things to say about this novel which are both GOOD and BAD. Nevertheless, I gave it 5 stars because I really enjoyed reading this.

I really really liked it!

I stumbeled upon this novel a year ago, but delayed reading because I read a few negative comments that had put me off.

Also, at that time, I wasn't in the mood for any r*pe/torture setting and dropped it.

... more>> But when I had a change of heart and started reading it two days ago, I found it actually a pretty interesting story.

I didn't quite like people compairing the story to HHYL because, I think that the romantic aspect is better here imo.

The story has a nice pacing, although I think that ML fell on love a bit too quickly? On the other hand, I think that MC's inner struggles were presented really well. But he honestly IS just too soft hearted for his own good.

This is less of a review of the novel, than it is my advice not to mind comments and other people's opinions and tastes too much.

If you want to read it, just read it and see for yourself if it's your cup of tea. <<less