Stand By Me C Drama Review

Stand By Me (与君歌) is also known as Dream Of Chang’an. It is a historical Chinese drama set in the Tang dynasty and you can expect this to be full of palace intrigues and power struggles with things happening behind the scenes. I started this with some worry that it will be one long-winded drama with different personalities battling for the throne. After all, it has 49 episodes altogether which entails significant time investment. So, did my worry come true? Check out my Stand By Me review below.

My rating: 8/10
Episodes: 49
Type: Romance, Palace
Aired: August 2021
Images Credit: Tencent

The Cast Of Stand By Me

• Cheng Yi as Qi Yan
• Zhang Yu Xi as Cheng Ruo Yu
• Lulu Xuan Lu as Qiu Yan Zhi
• Han Dong as Qi Chen / Prince Guang
• Mickey He Cheng Ming as Eunuch Qiu Zi Liang
• Xi Xue as Cheng Xi
• Vicki Xu Kai Ning as Yu Niang
• Xie Ning as Eunuch Huai Zhi
• Yang Ming Na as Princess Ning He
• Yang Xi Zi as Princess Liu Mi Sha
• Stacey Xu Si Yu as Li Ze Ning
• He Zhong Hua as Li De Yun
• Fu Fang Jun as Han Ding
• Ethan Yao Yi Chen as General Han Yue
• Bai Shu as Prince An
• Li Ze as Zuo Ma
• Li Jun Yi as Yan Xiu
• Curly Gu Xue Er as Xia Zi Yuan

Main Characters

Qi Yan

Qi Yan is the current Emperor of Daxing and a skilled archer. But he has no real power and is forced to listen to the powerful Eunuch Qiu Zi Liang who is also his foster father. Qi Yan is a smart and patient man but also suspicious of people around him. He is much misunderstood and leads a lonely life in the palace. The previous emperor was his late elder brother, Qi Ang, who was known as Emperor Wen Zhong.

Cheng Ruo Yu

Ruo Yu is trained in martial arts and the new Sword Holder from Violet Bureau. Her job is to protect Qi Yan. She is a happy-go-lucky lass with a cheerful personality. She is not a strategic thinker but a loyal servant. Ruo Yu was saved by Prince Guang 8 years ago when she was heavily injured following a tragedy. But she has lost all her memories of the incident and all that had happened prior to the incident.

Qiu Yan Zhi

Yan Zhi is Eunuch Qiu’s adopted daughter and a strategist in the Chess Battalion. She is calculative and shrewd in her planning against enemies. Yan Zhi claims to be an orphan before catching Eunuch Qiu’s attention who subsequently adopted her. She has no martial arts skills due to a past injury.

Supporting Characters

Qi Chen / Prince Guang

Prince Guang is Qi Yan’s uncle. He has medical skills and lives a secluded life away from the palace. He seems to be a principled man who is supportive of Qi Yan.

Eunuch Qiu Zi Liang

Eunuch Qiu is a powerful man who controls the Chess Battalion and the Army of Secrecy. He has the ultimate say in the country’s affairs which reduces the emperor to a mere puppet. Eunuch Qiu is a schemer and strategist who doesn’t trust others easily. He is also arrogant and cruel.

Cheng Xi

Cheng Xi is the head of Violet Bureau and Ruo Yu’s aunt. The bureau’s duty is to protect the Emperor and does not see eye to eye with the Chess Battalion. Cheng Xi’s brother is Qi Yan’s eunuch butler.

Yu Niang

Yu Niang is the head of the mysterious Amber Arch which has a bunch of trained female fighters. She is a skilled martial artist who can’t speak due to a throat injury.

Eunuch Huai Zhi

Eunuch Huai Zhi is Qi Yan’s butler. He is a loyal and dedicated servant. Ruo Yu is his niece while Cheng Xi is his younger sister.

Princess Ning He

Princess Ning He is Qi Yan’s aunt who was sent to Lucong to be married off by the previous emperor under Eunuch Qiu’s order. Hence, Eunuch Qiu is her enemy and by extension, so is Qi Yan.

Princess Liu Mi Sha

Princess Mi Sha is from neighboring Zhenwu. She has interest to marry Qi Yan and proposes to lend him Zhenwu’s soldiers as dowry.

Li Ze Ning

Ze Ning was Qi Yan’s ex-fiancee. She left him when the royal powers were weakened after the failed revolt against the eunuchs. But she wants him back 8 years later when she returns to the capital. Ze Ning is Li De Yun’s daughter.

Li De Yun

Li De Yun is the warlord of Huai’nan. He is a capable man who left the capital after the failed revolt before sneaking back in to become Qi Yan’s trusted minister.

Han Ding

Han Ding is Qi Yan’s loyal personal assistant who carries out orders behind the scenes.

General Han Yue

General Han is part of the rebels who tried to kill Eunuch Qiu 8 years earlier. He hates the eunuch as well as Qi Yan whom he sees as having stolen the throne from Prince Guang.

Prince An

Prince An is Qi Yan’s younger brother. He is a weak prince who is easy to control. He is also Eunuch Qiu;s foster son and the chosen candidate to replace Qi Yan.

Zuo Ma

Zuo Ma is Yan Zhi’s enemy. He is jealous of Yan Zhi who was chosen for a position in the Chess Battalion instead of him. She also framed him for her injury that caused her to lose her martial arts skills.

Yan Xiu

Yan Xiu is Yan Zhi’s loyal personal assistant. He has feelings for Yan Zhi.

Xia Zi Yuan

Zi Yuan is Yu Niang’s deputy at Amber Arch. She dislikes Ruo Yu due to the latter’s association with Qi Yan whom she hates.

Synopsis

With the eunuchs in control, Emperor Qi Ang tried to regain power through a revolt with some ministers. But he failed and died 8 years later. The ministers and their families were also killed. Before Emperor Qi Ang died, he passed the throne to his younger brother, Qi Yan. However, the people’s belief is that Qi Yan colluded with the eunuchs to grab power as he is the foster son of Eunuch Qiu Zi Liang who is the power behind the throne. Eunuch Qiu fostered him because he thought Qi Yan could be controlled.

Hence, just like his brother, Qi Yan is reduced to a puppet emperor. He faces threats from all sides including the Violet Bureau which is supposed to protect him. He is also forced to listen to Eunuch Qiu which is a humiliation. While Qi Yan seems like a useless emperor, he is quietly watching and biding his time to regain power while suffering silently in the process.

Ruo Yu is a skilled swordswoman who has lost her childhood memories when she almost died. She is from Violet Bureau and appointed to be Qi Yan’s personal bodyguard. Her aunt is the head of the bureau. This puts her in conflict with Yan Zhi who is Eunuch Qiu’s adopted daughter since the Violet Bureau and the eunuchs are enemies. Then, a third party seems to be driving a further wedge between the Violet Bureau and Eunuch Qiu with an eye on the throne.

Stand By Me 2021 Ending (Spoilers Alert!)

Stand By Me has an ending that is open to interpretation. Depending on what you want to imagine, it could be a happy, sad or neutral ending. Why? Because Qi Yan is shown to have died in the last episode. He has been sickly for a period of time due to various injuries including self-inflicted ones. He quietly asked the doctor to prescribe him with toxic medicines to boost his vitality in the short term to finish the job of dismantling Eunuch Qiu’s power. However, the medicines were harmful to his organs. He died about a year after Eunuch Qiu was defeated and killed.

Before Qi Yan died, he already told Ruo Yu to leave the palace and lead a carefree life that they both wanted. So, Ruo Yu has re-opened a noodle shop that they have visited in the past. In the last scene, Ruo Yu is seen smiling happily into the camera when she turns around to someone calling for an order. It is like the last scene in The Untamed. It leaves room for different interpretation of whether Qi Yan is still alive which is why Ruo Yu is happy or she has simply moved on and leading a happy life that Qi Yan would have wanted her to be.

Who Are Ruo Yu And Yan Zhi?

Ruo Yu and Yan Zhi are actually sisters. Yan Zhi is the elder one. They were both Chancellor Wang Yang’s granddaughters. Their grandfather and family members were all killed when the Dew Revolt against the eunuchs failed. Yan Zhi survived the ordeal with heavy injuries. When she awoke, she thought she was the only survivor and wandered back to their mansion to retrieve the previous emperor’s edict on his successor which has been passed to her grandfather.

Hence, when Prince Guang arrived at the scene of the massacre, Yan Zhi was nowhere to be seen. But he found Ruo Yu who was barely alive and saved her. Prince Guang asked Cheng Xi to adopt Ruo Yu as her niece to hide her identity. Ruo Yu has also lost her memory due to the ordeal. The 2 sisters were thus separated with Ruo Yu having no recollection of her family while Yan Zhi assumed all her family members have died. Yan Zhi then worked her way to become Eunuch Qiu’s adopted daughter with an eye on revenge for what the eunuch did to her family.

Yan Zhi knew Ruo Yu is her sister in Episode 34. Prince Guang had to tell her when she was forced by Eunuch Liu to kill either Ruo Yu or Yan Xiu. But Yan Zhi kept it from Ruo Yu due to the latter’s close relationship with Qi Yan. Ruo Yu learned that she was Wang Yang’s granddaughter in Episode 39 through Cheng Xi’s evil plan. Ruo Yu got confirmation that Yan Zhi is her elder sister in Episode 47 when Yan Zhi shielded Ruo Yu from Eunuch Qiu’s arrow and subsequently died.

Did Qi Yan Steal The Throne?

No, he didn’t. It was all the previous emperor’s plan from the very beginning with Wang Yang’s knowledge. Emperor Wen Zhong ordered Qi Yan to take the throne and make a promise to overthrow the eunuchs before he died. He also wrote an edict supposedly to pass the throne to Prince Guang. But it was a red herring with the intent to attract Eunuch Qiu’s attention.

The plan was for the edict to be delivered to Wang Yang who was also Qi Yan’s teacher. But Wang Yang had already told Qi Yan to kill him and his family to earn Eunuch Qiu’s trust when the eunuch comes looking for the edict. This way, Eunuch Qiu will install Qi Yan as the new emperor and the latter will have a chance to do what the previous emperor had failed to achieve. Wang Yang’s only request was for Qi Yan to try to preserve his bloodline by sparing his granddaughters.

Therefore, Qi Yan tried his best to ensure Ruo Yu and Yan Zhi live when he shot his arrow. At night, he went back to the scene with Han Ding to look for the girls but couldn’t find them. They only found a severely injured General Han Yue whom Qi Yan then sent to Prince Guang to be saved.

Who Was The Third Party Behind The Scene?

The third party who was creating further rifts between Eunuch Qiu and Qi Yan is Prince Guang. He knew about the edict that he is supposed to be the heir to the throne and he also wanted to get rid of Eunuch Qiu for the good of the country. So, he wreaked havoc on both sides to weaken them. But he never wanted to kill his own family including Qi Yan and he wanted to be emperor in a dignified manner.

So, Prince Guang assumed the identity of a masked You Xiang to become one of Eunuch Qiu’s advisors. He revealed he is You Xiang to Yan Zhi in Episode 32 while his cover was blown open by Eunuch Qiu in Episode 42.

Qi Yan already suspected Prince Guang earlier but tested him out in Episode 48. After Prince Guang’s men snatched the edict from Ruo Yu, (the edict was hidden by Yan Zhi in a scroll painting all along and given to Ruo Yu before she died), Prince Guang decided he didn’t want the throne after all. He has dreamt about and coveted it but he still has loyalty and the belief that the imperial family is not all ruthless.

In the end, Qi Yan revealed that the edict was written in a special ink. Once wet, the words Prince Guang disappeared to be replaced with Qi Yan. That means the previous emperor had tricked Eunuch Qiu to keep an eye on Prince Guang whom had been made used of to pave the way for Qi Yan’s ascension. With Prince Guang’s honorable behavior to reject the throne when tested, Qi Yan subsequently appointed him as the Crown Prince. Prince Guang became the new emperor when Qi Yan died.

What Happened To Cheng Xi?

Cheng Xi and Prince Guang are half siblings. They share the same mother. Thus, her intention was to overthrow Qi Yan and get Prince Guang to be installed as the new emperor. Cheng Xi placed Ruo Yu as Qi Yan’s bodyguard as part of her plan. She foresaw that Qi Yan will fall for Ruo Yu but she didn’t expect Ruo Yu to feel the same and became extremely loyal to him.

After a while, Cheng Xi became obsessed with wanting Prince Guang to be the emperor although the latter didn’t agree with her actions. Cheng Xi died in the end when she sacrificed herself to create a rift between Ruo Yu and Yan Zhi as revenge. She jumped on Yan Xiu’s outstretched blade to trick Ruo Yu into believing that Yan Zhi wanted her dead.

When Did Qi Yan And Ruo Yu Get Together?

Qi Yan and Ruo Yu expressed their feelings for each other in Episode 16. But then Qi Yan also kept pushing Ruo Yu away to protect her due to danger in the palace. He reaffirmed his love for her in Episode 28 and shared their first kiss in Episode 30. There is no indication that they got married in the end although they did get to enjoy time together before Qi Yan died.

Stand By Me Chinese Drama Review – Like A Chess Game

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pi9c1NjZseY&ab_channel=VikiGlobalTV

Stand By Me is a drama that is heavy in palace power plays. The whole story is told like a chess game. Each party is trying to defeat the other through behind the scenes movements. They then have to anticipate their opponent’s move and plan for counter-measures. If you like this kind of intrigue, then Stand By Me has a lot to offer.

On the other hand, if you are in it for the romance, it may fall a little short. It is like The Blooms At Ruyi Pavilion whereby the story has a heavy focus on the political side of things as well. Hence, I don’t see Stand By Me as a romance-driven drama although the love story is there as part of the plot.

A Power Struggle Focus

Basically, the story is about a puppet emperor who is working to overthrow a powerful eunuch in control of the royal court. There are also other characters who secretly want to remove the eunuch and emperor but each with their own selfish motivation. Viewers are not told upfront who are the good and bad guys from all these different characters. So, you will have to wait for the whole story to be revealed.

Hence, Stand By Me has a well-written plot with good execution. As you watch the characters, you may not know which side they belong to but you will still understand what is going on with the way the story is told. This leaves a feeing of anticipation on how and when secrets will be revealed. You will also naturally try to guess the characters’ background and intention and this is where the drama managed to make things interesting for the viewers.

I don’t find much room for boredom to set in despite it being 49 episodes in total. Like The Long Ballad, it moves at an even pace with a chain of events happening one after another for viewers to learn more about the characters. The plot has a tight focus unlike Legend Of Fei which also tries to have some level of suspense in the story but ends up being convoluted.

Acting

I have watched Cheng Yi in Love And Redemption and I think I like him better in Stand By Me. He fits the role very well as Qi Yan because he knows how to convey a lot of emotions with an impassive face. Being an emperor, he has to display stoicism and appear dignified. So, Cheng Yi successfully exhibits these attributes but at the same time, viewers can also see Qi Yan’s real emotions underneath such as anger and determination as conveyed through his eyes and micro facial expressions. He is also very good at appearing melancholic and lonely as he shifts to a more sorrowful expression.

I know Zhang Yu Xi from Intense Love where she really got the sparks lighted up with Ryan Ding. In Stand By Me, her chemistry with Cheng Yi is good enough as a romantic couple but nothing extraordinary to me. In the beginning of the drama, she gave me a feeling of being wrongly casted for the role because she is just too petite and delicate to be the Sword Holder and emperor’s bodyguard. It took some time for me to get used to her in that role and it got better when it is revealed she was chosen to be the Sword Holder for a reason.

Imperfect Ending (Spoilers Alert!)

The ending may not be to everyone’s liking because of its open-ended nature. It also has an element of sadness in the last episode because the male lead died. Logically, that is the more realistic ending given how sickly he has become. Therefore, be forewarned to prepare tissues when you watch the last episode. Apart from that, Ruo Yu’s sister also died in Episode 47.

This means if you want to watch a happy drama, you can forget about Stand By Me. This is no rom-com with a confirmed happily ever after ending. While it is not depressing all the way like Royal Nirvana, it has its sad moments for the female lead with no fairy tale ending.

My Verdict – Good Storytelling

I’m not sure if romance drama fans would like Stand By Me because I find it to be more focused on the palace power play. It is great if you like palace intrigues and power struggle dramas. This is where Stand By Me really shines rather than the love story between the leads. It has good storytelling and execution with a liberal dose of suspense about the characters’ agendas. Think of it as watching a chess game. If you can appreciate strategies, counter moves, and hidden hands among the parties fighting for power, this would be an enjoyable drama.

However, some may find the story to be unrealistic as to how a eunuch can gain so much power. At some point in ancient China, eunuchs did have immense power to influence the government. Nevertheless, this is merely a drama and not some history lessons. Hence, not everyone may relate to this story whereby the power center has been turned upside down. The ending too may not be what you would have wanted.

For this Stand By Me C drama review, I would give it a score of 8/10. Watch it for the plot and characters. Even the supporting ones have depths to their story to make the overall drama beautifully executed. It is not romance-driven and certainly not in the mold of The Eternal Love Season 3 with hugs and kisses everywhere. So, if you are after a hot and passionate romance between the leads, forget it. This couple speaks more about love, loyalty, and trust in each other amidst a dangerous environment that they are operating in to make you feel touched and root for them. The kinship and revenge angle offer the other relatable aspects to the story for more intrigues.