Chasing Dramas

Gu Ting Ye is determined to marry a daughter of the Sheng Family. Ru Lan finally accepts this marriage and arranges a final meeting with her beloved Wen Yan Jing, only to be spotted by Gu Ting Ye. The Sheng Family has no choice but to push Ming Lan out to marry Gu Ting Ye. Meanwhile Qi Heng does well on the Imperial Exams and has his mother propose marriage to the Sheng Family. Who will prevail?

Several marriages are causing drama in the Sheng family. Ming Lan's planned marriage is halted after being insulted and threatened by He Hong Wen's cousin's family while Ru Lan's love story is put in danger with the random appearance of Gu Ting Ye's marriage proposal. Too many schemes are happening just so Gu Ting Ye can get married!

In celebration of the 2 year anniversary of this podcast, please enjoy this special episode about the movie The Palace (2013). We discuss the plot, cast, and most importantly the history shown in the movie! We see some familiar faces and are brought back to a familiar time in history. Zhao Li Ying (Zanilia Zhao), the actress of Ming Lan in The Story of Ming Lan is the antagonist in this Qing Dynas...

With a new Emperor on the throne, Gu Ting Ye returns home as a favored general for the Emperor. He is able to retrieve his prized spear and declare to his brother and stepmother that he will fight for the title of marquis. Elsewhere, Ming Lan is waiting a marriage proposal from He Hong Wen but a random cousin of his shows up and wants to be his concubine. Ming Lan let's it be known that it is eith...

Probably the two most confusing episodes in the drama, the story turns to focus on politics where a plot to take the imperial throne is underway. Gu Ting Ye aids an unfavored royal family member to the palace while concubines are taking military family members hostage and a prince instigates a coup. All the while, the fate of the entire Song empire falls on Ming Lan's shoulders.

Mo Lan finally gets her wish in marrying Liang Han but is sent off in a wedding that feels more like a funeral. Mistress Lin is severely punished for her actions by none other than her husband, Sheng Hong and exiled from the city. At long last, Ming Lan saw the downfall of the woman who killed her mother and unborn brother.

Mo Lan's illicit relationship is discovered by her father. Chaos ensues as rumors begin to trickle out to the rest of the Capital. Madame Wang and Sheng Hong cry to the heavens over what to do with this ungrateful daughter. Mistress Lin continues to scheme and push for Mo Lan to marry into the aristocracy. Grandma Sheng becomes absolutely furious at the turn of events. Does Mo Lan get what she wan...

Mo Lan is increasingly agitated to hear that Ming Lan might marry into nobility while their father only made a match with a poor student for herself. So, she decides, with goading from her mother that this is the only way to secure wealth and status, to let go of all humility and shame and throw herself at Liang Han, the son of a Count. Little do they know, it's all going according to Ming Lan's p...

After being let down by Qi Heng, Ming Lan turns her attention to what truly matters - revenge against her mother's death. Countess Wu has her sights on having Ming Lan as a daughter in law and invites her to various events. Ming Lan seizes this opportunity to see what kind of mistake she can force her sister and Mistress Lin to make.

The Duke of Qi has gone missing. Qi Heng and his mother try in vain to find him but to no avail. With no other option, Qi Heng heads to the Prince of Yong's estate. The trap was laid for him The Princess Consort threatens Qi Heng with the destruction of Ming Lan's family if he doesn't agree to a marriage with her daughter. He has no other choice but to agree. Ming Lan finds out and is heartbroken....

Ming Lan returns to the Capital and continues her investigation of her mother's death. The women of the Sheng family are invited to a grand banquet at the Gu Manor. The young duke manages to steal some time with Ming Lan to proclaim his love for her. Gu Ting Ye crashes the party later to warn Ming Lan that Qi Heng will not keep his promise. Sure enough, Qi Heng's mother reveals the truth about the...

Ming Lan returns to the Capital to hear that Qi Heng, the young duke, has been feuding with his mother to secure his and Ming Lan's marriage. Shortly after, the Lantern Festival celebrations are dashed with the kidnapping of a prominent woman with royal connections, causing fear in the city. Elsewhere, Ming Lan discovers more about her mother's death.

Thanks to Ming Lan's efforts, her cousin Shu Lan is able to successfully separate from her despicable husband. Unfortunately, Ming Lan's great aunt passes shortly after. During the funeral procession, the group is attacked by bandits. Ming Lan becomes separated from the group and is rescued by none other than Gu Ting Ye. Does she make it back safely to the Sheng family?

Ming Lan and her grandmother make it to their hometown to visit Sheng family relatives. Once there, they discover the abusive marriage one of the cousins, Shu Lan, is currently trapped in and try to help save her. Elsewhere, Gu Ting Ye enters the military to begin building a career for himself.

Qi Heng thought his mother would help him propose marriage to Ming Lan but instead, she asked the Sheng daughters to be Qi Heng's sisters. Knowing that this devastated her granddaughter, Grandma Sheng brings Ming Lan on a trip to visit their Sheng family relatives to clear help her head. On the way though, Qi Heng follows Ming Lan via ship and vows he'll marry her, whatever his mother says. Later,...

Gu Ting Ye has left the Capital to search for his son. Elsewhere, Qi Heng prepares thoughtful surprises for his mother's birthday in hopes of securing her permission to marry Ming Lan. Meanwhile, Ming Lan finally reaps the benefits of her long laid trap to rid her household of spies.

Gu Ting Ye gets into an argument with his father over his marriage proposal with catastrophic consequences - his father passes away. His beloved stepmother takes this opportunity to reveal that she was lying about her affection to Gu Ting Ye all these years in order to kick him out of the family which she and Gu Ting Ye's older brother are effectively able to do. To add insult to injury, Gu Ting Y...

Ming Lan gets to showcase her skills in preventing her best friend, Yu Yan Ran from being bullied by Man Niang - an outside mistress of Gu Ting Ye. Ming Lan immediately sees through Man Niang's character as a Green Tea B**** and puts her in her place. This prevents Gu Ting Ye from successfully proposing to Yan Ran but at least it's a satisfying display of Ming Lan's ability to stand her ground in...

After a triumphant display at the polo match, Ming Lan comes face to face, alone, with the young Duke of Qi. He professes his intentions to marry her which surprises her but she recognizes that her status does not befit his station. Regardless, he is willing to try to marry her as his wife. Back home, she is reprimanded by her father for participating in the polo match while Mistress Lin tries to...

Countess Wu hosts a grand event! Everyone from the capital is in attendance! The main event of the episode is a polo match. Ming Lan attends with her family and decides to spend time with her best friend Yu Yan Ran. The Young Duke, Qi Heng, and Gu Ting Ye are also at the event. Yan Ran discovers that a prize for winning a polo match is actually one of her deceased mother's possessions and joins th...

Ming Lan is given a mini promotion after both Madame Wang and Mistress Lin committed egregious errors in the last episode. With no suitable candidate to run the Sheng family household, Grandma Sheng recommends Ming Lan. This is the first time we see Ming Lan starting to stand up for herself and we are here for it!

Gu Ting Ye learns some devastating news from his father. He will have to find another career as he will not be able to take any more Imperial Exams until the age of 50. Dejected, he plans to leave the capital with his mistress and their children. His mistress Man Niang though seems to have other plans. In the Sheng family, the master, Sheng Hong is summoned by the Emperor and confined in the Palac...

In this episode, we first discuss what the Chinese Imperial Exam is all about before seeing how Chang Bai, Chang Feng, Qi Heng and Gu Ting Ye fair in their first ever Metropolitan exam.

The Sheng daughters finished their lessons with Kong Mo Mo and are now back with Scholar Zhuang studying with the young men. In this episode, there is a spirited debate by the students on who is better - the eldest or the most capable. We dissect each historical example raised by the students and discuss Ming Lan's insightful conclusion.

The Sheng daughters learn 3 of the 4 arts of life prominent during the Song Dynasty. But these skills are not the only things they learn. After tensions blow up between 5th daughter Ru Lan and 6th daughter Mo Lan, Kong Mo Mo, a formidable woman, reprimands not just the daughters, but their parents as well.