The Romance Of Hua Rong Review

I binged watch The Romance Of Hua Rong (一夜新娘) as it is a short and light drama that is just right to fill a lazy weekend. After struggling through Blossom In Heart, I really needed a change to something that is easier to sit through. So, this came at the right time when all the episodes have been subbed and I could watch it without waiting. Below is my review of The Romance Of Hua Rong and if this mainland drama is worth your time or otherwise.

Episodes: 24
Type: Romance
Aired: November 2019
Images Credit: IJQ TV

The Cast

• Yuan Hao as Qin Shang Cheng
• Zhao Zhao Yi as Hua Rong
• Ian Yi Po Chen as Jin Yi Wen
• Yu Kai Ning as Qian Da You
• Huang Qian Shuo as Zhang Xian
• Gao Ji Cai as Zhao Yuan Ming
• Wang Pei Han as Su Qing Qing
• He Qian Ying as Lu Wan Wan
• Zhang Jia Lin as Xiao Hui
• Yu Xin Tong as Tang Chu Die

The Main Characters

Qin Shang Cheng

Shang Cheng is a pirate king who doesn’t believe in ruthless and indiscriminate killing. He is smart and cocky but is swept off his feet by Hua Rong. His adoptive father is Qin Ba Tian who was killed 8 years earlier.

Hua Rong

Hua Rong is the only daughter of Hua Man Tian who is a high-ranking court official. She is independent-minded and not content on being an obedient and refined lady. Hua Rong is adventurous and dreams of being a heroine to help the needy. Her hero is Yun He, a masked warrior who is well-known for helping the weak.

Jin Yi Wen

Jin is a wanderer who likes to write about his travels. He comes from a rich family in Wang Jiang and often travels with his servant, Lai Sheng. However, his background is not as simple as it seems and he has reasons to hide his real identity. Jin is polite and cultured. He has feelings for Hua Rong. He also has an elder brother, Jin Duo Xiong.

Qian Da You

Da You is one of Shang Cheng’s loyal subordinates. He is one of the 2 jokers in the drama together with Zhang Xian. Da You seems to be knowledgeable on women and would often advise his boss whenever the latter has problems with Hua Rong.

Zhang Xian

Zhang Xian is also Shang Cheng’s subordinate but, unlike Da You, is more dim-witted. He will appear clueless at times and need to be enlightened by Da You. Zhang Xian’s love interest is Xiao Hui.

Zhao Yuan Ming

Yuan Ming is a minor prince and student of Hua Man Tian. He is a childhood friend of Hua Rong and has feelings for her. Yuan Ming is ambitious and would do whatever it takes to get what he wants.

Su Qing Qing

Su is Hua Rong’s cousin sister. She is refined and ladylike which is a complete opposite to Hua Rong’s personality. Su seems to care about Shang Cheng at one point.

Lu Wan Wan

Wan Wan is the daughter of the president of Wang Jiang’s commerce chamber. She befriends Hua Rong after the latter helps her to escape from a marriage arrangement. Wan Wan has feelings for Jin.

Xiao Hui

Xiao Hui is a bonded entertainer at an establishment that men frequent. Hua Rong frees and buys her from her gambler father. Hence, she becomes Hua Rong’s maid. Xiao Hui is timid and often gets frightened by Zhang Xian initially. But her resolve in protecting in Hua Rong leads her to learn martial art skills from Zhang Xian and then falls in love with him.

Tang Chu Die

Chu Die is the daughter of Tang Feng, the owner of Meng Die Villa, a mysterious place up a hill. She is rumored to have a close relationship with Yun He. In actual fact, she was saved by Yun He once and has loved the hero since then. Chu Die is skilled in martial arts. Her trusted peer in Meng Die Villa is Ye Chen.

Synopsis

Shang Cheng is after a man named Pei Yong to investigate the death of his adoptive father 8 years earlier. He chases him to a men’s entertainment establishment. Hua Rong is also there to try to free Xiao Hui from her bondage at the request of the latter’s mother. The 2 of them get in each other’s way. Hua Rong also bumps into Jin while escaping. Their sacks get mixed up in her hurry to flee. Hua Rong gets captured by Shang Cheng when the ship she is hiding in gets overtaken by him and his men.

Shang Cheng falls in love with Hua Rong and marries her while she is in his custody. But Hua Rong escapes from his island on their wedding night. Her boat capsizes during a thunderstorm and she is saved by Jin who has been looking for her to get back his belongings. Jin also develops feelings for Hua Rong. In the meantime, Shang Cheng has not given up looking for his bride. He finds her eventually, but he now has a romantic rival in Jin. Hua Rong is also besotted with Yun He who is her hero. He saves her from Pei Yong when she tries to free some girls that have been sold into bondage.

So, who will Hua Rong choose in the end? Who is Yun He? Will Shang Cheng be able to find out the mastermind behind his adoptive father’s death? You can check out The Romance Of Hua Rong episode summary for a full recap of the drama from start to finish.

The Romance Of Hua Rong Ending (Spoilers Alert!)

The Romance Of Hua Rong has a happy ending. Hua Rong finally accepts Shang Cheng’s proposal to willingly marry him compared to the first time around when she pretended to agree in order to escape from him. After going through many ordeals together, she realizes that she loves him and cannot bear to lose him. Hua Rong only treats Jin as a brother and friend. Jin also knows her heart lies with Shang Cheng and slowly shifts his attention to Wan Wan who loves him.

Who Is Jin?

Jin is a prince of Wang Jiang. He hides his identity as he is looking for a rare medicine to cure his mother. This medicine is last known to be in the hands of a pirate who is subsequently killed by Yun He. Hence, Jin is quietly investigating Yun He’s whereabouts.

Yun He’s Real Identity

Yun He is actually Shang Cheng in disguise. Shang Cheng created Yun He to follow up leads on his adoptive father’s death. Qin Ba Tian has warned Shang Cheng in his dying breath not to investigate the people behind his killing as it would invite danger to himself. Thus, Shang Cheng came up with the masked hero to do things behind the scene.

Who Is The Real Mastermind?

The real mastermind behind Qin Ba Tian’s murder is Jin’s elder brother, Jin Duo Xiong. He did it because he wants a piece of a white jade which would give clues to the location of a treasure stash belonging to a previous dynasty. Duo Xiong wants the treasure to control the world. However, he needs 2 pieces of the white jade to get the full map. One piece is with Shang Cheng while the other is in the hands of Tang Feng. Qin Ba Tian and Tang Feng used to be sworn brothers. Duo Xiong’s plan is to lead Shang Cheng to Tang Feng and then get both the pieces at the same time.

In the end, Shang Cheng finds the treasure before Duo Xiong does using only his half of the jade. He hides in the treasure chests together with his men because he knows Duo Xiong will move those chests back to his camp. They capture Duo Xiong and he challenges Shang Cheng to a duel. Shang Cheng kills him during the fight and avenges his adoptive father’s death.

The Romance Of Hua Rong Review – An Uncommon Theme

The most important thing to me in a rom-com or any romance dramas for that matter is the chemistry between the male and female lead. Even if the plot is just bizarre like Well Intended Love or the drama is draggy such as Here To Heart, an off-the-charts chemistry of the main couple can save the day. Do we get that in The Romance Of Hua Rong? Well, yes. They are cute together and the way Shang Cheng gazes at Hua Rong at times is sweet to watch. The clip above is a collection of their kisses and some of those sweet moments.

Furthermore, we have an uncommon theme of a pirate king here which is kind of refreshing instead of the over-used characters of princes or court officials. So, no palace politics and infightings that dominate dramas like Princess Silver. It is just a light and breezy watch of a love-struck pirate chasing after the woman he loves. Of course, there are also a few action scenes to inject more variety into the drama but everything ties back quite nicely to the main plot of Shang Cheng wooing Hua Rong.

i have no complaints on the acting of Yuan Hao and Zhao Zhao Yi although I have not watched them in any main roles before. I know Yuan Hao from Love And Destiny but he doesn’t shine there as much as he did in The Romance Of Hua Rong. Perhaps he only has a minor role there that doesn’t give him much opportunities to create an impression on viewers. But together with Zhao Zhao Yi in this rom-com, they are able to feed off each other’s character to give a convincing performance for me.

My Verdict

For this review on The Romance Of Hua Rong, I would say it is watchable but nothing compelling. The girl’s character is cute but there is quite a bit of screaming especially in the early parts of the drama. If you are looking for something more grown-up, this may not be your cup of tea because Hua Rong’s character can seem a bit immature. If you can tolerate the princess’ character in The Love By Hypnotic, then you would have no problems with The Romance Of Hua Rong.

I know there are talks that there will be a sequel or a season 2 for this drama which means many do find it highly enjoyable. To me, it is light and sweet. That is about it for me. It is not a drama that makes me feel emotionally invested. Well, maybe I should put it this way. It is a drama that I don’t feel that I have wasted my time watching but neither does it give me the urge to rewatch any of the clips. Basically, it is a drama that is very easy to move on once the curtains come down.