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Si Ming #2
Разлука Орхидеи и Повелителя демонов
Цветочную фею Ланьхуа преследуют неудачи. Случайно поменявшись телами с самим древним Повелителем демонов, воплощением зла, она оказывается заперта в Небесной башне. Дунфан Цинцан решает воспользоваться наивной небожительницей, чтобы отомстить заклятому врагу. Да только Маленькая Орхидея вовсе не так проста: она готова отчаянно сражаться за свою жизнь. Но вот беда: постепенно фея начинает испытывать запретные чувства к Большому Демону. Ответит ли ей взаимностью бессердечный Повелитель? Или цель для него превыше всего? История о демоне и фее, хранящих удивительный секрет. История, таящаяся в чарующем аромате орхидей.
576 pages, Hardcover
Published December 1, 2024
43 people are currently reading
905 people want to read
About the author
Jiu Lu Fei Xiang
66 books128 followersAssociated Names:
* Jiu Lu Fei Xiang (English)
* 九鹭非香 (Chinese)
* จิ่วลู่เฟยเซียง (Thai)
* Jiu Lu Fei Xiang (English)
* 九鹭非香 (Chinese)
* จิ่วลู่เฟยเซียง (Thai)
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 34 reviews
March 3, 2025
"If time could be turned back and restart from the beginning, he would not have used her, deceived her, believed he was right, or manipulated her like a pawn."
Having watched the drama before diving into the novel, I emerged with a clear conviction: the drama boasts a significantly stronger plotline. The novel, in stark contrast, felt like a maze of filler chapters that stretched endlessly until the final half, where some semblance of plot began to unfurl. Scattered throughout were faint hints of a narrative, yet they failed to compensate for the novel's laborious length. I often found myself drifting into boredom during the initial and middle portions of the story, longing for the story to move forward.
Once I reached the latter portion of the novel, the pacing felt hurried, as if the author were racing to tie up loose ends. The redemption arc of Dong Fang Qing Cang left much to be desired. In the drama, the romance breathed with authenticity; you could almost feel the electric connection between Little Orchid and Dong Fang Qing Cang. However, in the novel, it’s glaringly evident that Little Orchid harbors deep feelings for him, but Dong Fang Qing Cang’s emotional depth remains frustratingly elusive until the very end. Even then, the portrayal of his redemption felt lackluster. After everything he had put her through, he deserved a far more profound suffering and not the swift forgiveness he received.
I yearned for an intense portrayal of his desperation, love, and obsession after losing her, yet his sorrow felt muted—almost as if he were simply a bit sad, and that was the extent of his emotional turmoil. While I found myself slightly preferring Little Orchid's character in the drama, that appreciation was marginal. In the novel, she often comes across as naive to the point of absurdity, showing scant character development, much like Dong Fang Qing Cang. Frequently, her behavior felt childish and cringe-worthy, making the romance feel very uncomfortable.
I still can't comprehend why she harbored such strong feelings for Dong Fang Qing Cang. Every gesture he made toward her seemed tethered to his plans, which ultimately brought her nothing but anguish, regardless of the perspective from which you viewed it. It felt as if their connection was a classic case of Stockholm syndrome on her part and boredom on his.
I can scarcely comment on the side characters, as the narrative provided little insight into their depths or complexities. Yet, despite my myriad of complaints regarding the novel, it still managed to evoke a flicker of sympathy for Little Orchid and the trials she faced. There were moments when her antics brought a genuine laugh, a rare lightness in an otherwise tumultuous story. Overall, the romance left me feeling significantly disappointed.
Having watched the drama before diving into the novel, I emerged with a clear conviction: the drama boasts a significantly stronger plotline. The novel, in stark contrast, felt like a maze of filler chapters that stretched endlessly until the final half, where some semblance of plot began to unfurl. Scattered throughout were faint hints of a narrative, yet they failed to compensate for the novel's laborious length. I often found myself drifting into boredom during the initial and middle portions of the story, longing for the story to move forward.
Once I reached the latter portion of the novel, the pacing felt hurried, as if the author were racing to tie up loose ends. The redemption arc of Dong Fang Qing Cang left much to be desired. In the drama, the romance breathed with authenticity; you could almost feel the electric connection between Little Orchid and Dong Fang Qing Cang. However, in the novel, it’s glaringly evident that Little Orchid harbors deep feelings for him, but Dong Fang Qing Cang’s emotional depth remains frustratingly elusive until the very end. Even then, the portrayal of his redemption felt lackluster. After everything he had put her through, he deserved a far more profound suffering and not the swift forgiveness he received.
I yearned for an intense portrayal of his desperation, love, and obsession after losing her, yet his sorrow felt muted—almost as if he were simply a bit sad, and that was the extent of his emotional turmoil. While I found myself slightly preferring Little Orchid's character in the drama, that appreciation was marginal. In the novel, she often comes across as naive to the point of absurdity, showing scant character development, much like Dong Fang Qing Cang. Frequently, her behavior felt childish and cringe-worthy, making the romance feel very uncomfortable.
I still can't comprehend why she harbored such strong feelings for Dong Fang Qing Cang. Every gesture he made toward her seemed tethered to his plans, which ultimately brought her nothing but anguish, regardless of the perspective from which you viewed it. It felt as if their connection was a classic case of Stockholm syndrome on her part and boredom on his.
I can scarcely comment on the side characters, as the narrative provided little insight into their depths or complexities. Yet, despite my myriad of complaints regarding the novel, it still managed to evoke a flicker of sympathy for Little Orchid and the trials she faced. There were moments when her antics brought a genuine laugh, a rare lightness in an otherwise tumultuous story. Overall, the romance left me feeling significantly disappointed.
November 5, 2024
❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️
Thank goodness we have the novel version! The English translation might not have had the best editing, honestly, it still worked fine for me. The anime had its good moments, but the book? It just hits different—it captures all those subtle emotions and little unspoken things that don’t always come through in animation. The novel feels so much more intense and raw. The characters, especially the main guy, are just so layered! He’s the perfect mix of morally complex and kind of... something else. I’m totally obsessed, and now I'm on the hunt for more books like this. Let me know if you come across anything similar!
Thank goodness we have the novel version! The English translation might not have had the best editing, honestly, it still worked fine for me. The anime had its good moments, but the book? It just hits different—it captures all those subtle emotions and little unspoken things that don’t always come through in animation. The novel feels so much more intense and raw. The characters, especially the main guy, are just so layered! He’s the perfect mix of morally complex and kind of... something else. I’m totally obsessed, and now I'm on the hunt for more books like this. Let me know if you come across anything similar!
April 28, 2016
If you asked me to summarise my feelings for this book in one sentence, it would be this:
^_^
Given the description, you would expect a light-hearted romance. It’s not. I mean, it is light-hearted in some places, and romantic in others, but there is so much more to the book than that.
The story begins in medias res with 小兰花 being forced to share a body with 东方青苍. It then follows them as 东方青苍 does…evil stuff and tries to get rid of 小兰花, whilst 小兰花 tries to convince 东方青苍 to create a body for her soul to inhabit. Of course, them sharing the same body (they each get to control half) means cooperation, and cooperation…well, let’s just say it doesn’t come easily to them.
But, as I mentioned before, this book is so much more than that. It is also, as all good books should be, a study in human nature.
Wait.
Don’t go yet. I can feel your interest waning already. That was probably not the most convincing argument as to why you should read this book. Ahem. Let’s try again.
This book really brings its characters to life. (There, doesn’t that sound so much more interesting?) In some books, there is no real character development. Here, you can feel it. 小兰花 goes from a naïve, innocent do-gooder to someone more complex, someone less helpless. 东方青苍 goes from a completely inconsiderate asshole who can’t see beyond himself to…well…less of a completely inconsiderate asshole. And you know what? The change is believable. It is gradual. There is no definite moment where the characters suddenly experience a change in personality *ahem*何以笙箫默*ahem*. It is a slow shift that is caused by the external events forced upon the characters.
And you know what else? 小兰花 is not helpless!!!
(Every time I realise how happy I am over the fact that the protagonist is not completely useless, I feel a little bit sad over the fact that this is still something so rare it cannot be taken for granted.)
Finally, I love that their love is selfish. I’m so fucking tired of seeing proclamations of undying love, of seeing unselfish actions written in the pages of the books I read. It’s just so refreshing to find a novel that acknowledges love is not selfless. At the core of its being, it is still a selfish act. And I think this book acknowledges it perfectly without going over the edge to complete selfishness.
In conclusion:
Should you read it? Yes. Why?
Because it is
^_^
Given the description, you would expect a light-hearted romance. It’s not. I mean, it is light-hearted in some places, and romantic in others, but there is so much more to the book than that.
小兰花离开猪妖后,也不哭了,把泪一抹,气势汹汹的对东方青苍喊道：“收拾他！大魔头收拾他！”
野猪妖此时全心全意的盯着东方青苍，也没有去管小兰花的声音。忽然之间！那边黑袍男子动了！野猪妖握紧刀柄，等待着他发来的第一招！
但……
奇怪的是，东方青苍竟是身子一侧，往旁边走了，一点不搭理野猪妖和小兰花。
野猪妖有些怔然，小兰花更是怔然，眨巴着眼睛，脑袋跟着东方青苍的身影转动，却见他面无表情的往树林子深处走去，简直就像是……根本没看到这里发生的事情一样。
The story begins in medias res with 小兰花 being forced to share a body with 东方青苍. It then follows them as 东方青苍 does…evil stuff and tries to get rid of 小兰花, whilst 小兰花 tries to convince 东方青苍 to create a body for her soul to inhabit. Of course, them sharing the same body (they each get to control half) means cooperation, and cooperation…well, let’s just say it doesn’t come easily to them.
可抛开那些所有繁杂的争端，还有一件最是当务之急的事情，小兰花和东方青苍优先学会去做……
东方青苍一脸铁青：“本座让你走你就走，步伐给我迈开点！”
阎王寝殿，小兰花和东方青苍从床上下来之后，就一直没有走出过房门。小兰花听得东方青苍这声怒气冲冲的吼，心里对东方青苍的惧怕也转为了气愤：“我怎么没走了！步子还要迈多大呀！我这不是怕扯到么！”
“能扯到什么！”
“能扯到什么你不知道么！”
东方青苍心里升腾起了一股极为难得的挫败感，他拿右手揉了揉眉心：“不会，根本就不会！你之前一个人用本座身体的时候，也没见你忧心此事！给我正常点。”
小兰花撅了撅嘴：“本来一个人用这个身体还没什么事，你突然挤进来，整个人都感觉怪怪的，一站起来就觉得身体里多了点什么……”小兰花拿左手捂住左半边脸，“我不想感觉到自己身体上有奇怪的东西存在啊！羞死人了！”
“……”
But, as I mentioned before, this book is so much more than that. It is also, as all good books should be, a study in human nature.
Wait.
Don’t go yet. I can feel your interest waning already. That was probably not the most convincing argument as to why you should read this book. Ahem. Let’s try again.
This book really brings its characters to life. (There, doesn’t that sound so much more interesting?) In some books, there is no real character development. Here, you can feel it. 小兰花 goes from a naïve, innocent do-gooder to someone more complex, someone less helpless. 东方青苍 goes from a completely inconsiderate asshole who can’t see beyond himself to…well…less of a completely inconsiderate asshole. And you know what? The change is believable. It is gradual. There is no definite moment where the characters suddenly experience a change in personality *ahem*何以笙箫默*ahem*. It is a slow shift that is caused by the external events forced upon the characters.
东方青苍在骨子里仍旧是一个十恶不赦的坏人，但唯独在这个什么都不记得的人面前，他想变得好一些，至少不要像从前那样，劣迹斑斑。
And you know what else? 小兰花 is not helpless!!!
(Every time I realise how happy I am over the fact that the protagonist is not completely useless, I feel a little bit sad over the fact that this is still something so rare it cannot be taken for granted.)
嘀咕完这句话，小兰花兀自沉默了一会儿，在被东方青苍欺骗之后，小兰花觉得自己应该重新审视一下东方青苍，这个上古魔尊，在很多情况下救了她不假，帮了她不假，但是在很多情况之中，他帮她也是帮自己，或者是被迫帮她。这个魔头的本性始终未变，奸诈、狡猾，善于欺骗，专于报复，他……
不是值得信赖和依靠的人。
像先前，她就为自己太轻易付出的信任付出了代价。
东方青苍用现实打她的脸真是打得毫不犹豫。
介于前车之鉴，小兰花觉得自己不能全部听信东方青苍的话，她得有自己的打算。
像东方青苍刚才说的，她若是落在千隐郎君手里，下场不会有多好，但如果落在东方青苍手里，下场就会好吗？想也不用想，小兰花就知道，肯定不会有什么好结果。
东方青苍迟早有一天会为了达到自己的目的将她挤出这个身体，到时候，她一样是孤魂野鬼，说不定比留在千隐郎君这里还惨。
她得自己动动脑子……
她的生机，只有在千隐郎君和东方青苍对打的时候，才有可能出现……
她得好好筹划，给自己一个保障。
Finally, I love that their love is selfish. I’m so fucking tired of seeing proclamations of undying love, of seeing unselfish actions written in the pages of the books I read. It’s just so refreshing to find a novel that acknowledges love is not selfless. At the core of its being, it is still a selfish act. And I think this book acknowledges it perfectly without going over the edge to complete selfishness.
他本以为现在的自己可以就这样看着小兰花就好，因为她想要这样，他便陪着她过这样的生活。但东方青苍高估了自己的忍耐力。
In conclusion:
Should you read it? Yes. Why?
Because it is
Want to read
November 3, 2022I FINALLY ADDED IT TO MY TBR!!! EXPECT A NEW PERSONALITY IN 2-3 BUSINESS DAYS
January 10, 2023
Spoiler alert for TV series and book.
I watched Love Between Fairy and Demon on Netflix and then found out it was based on this novel. Unfortunately it is only printed in Chinese, but I did find a (rough) English translation online.
The TV series was cutesy, comedic and goofy. Immediately I greatly disliked Xiao Lan Hua because of how childish and pouty she was. I have no patience for that kind of temperament. The only reason I ended up being drawn into the series was due to Dong Fang Qing Cang. By the end of the series, I'd grown used to Xiao Lan Hua, who had also progressed quite a bit as a character.
When I started reading the novel online I was confused by how different it was from the TV series and even wondered if I was reading the right novel. The novel has its comedic moments and Xiao Lan Hua is still a childish character. But ultimately, the story ended up being much more dark and seriously toned than the TV series would have anyone believe.
Xiao Lan Hua - as a character I much preferred her in the novel over the TV series. She is naive and childish and bratty but she is also much more thoughtful, clever and brave, taking matters into her own hands - even when it usually backfires on her. I appreciated her more heroic attitude towards her situation in the novel versus the character in the series. In the TV show she comes off as a basic, bland damsel in distress but with a very petulant spoiled brat attitude of entitlement who just needed to be slapped around. In the novel, she does get her fair share of being slapped around. She literally kills herself by accident within the first few chapters. While there's a bit of body swapping in the first few episodes of the series, this play of events takes up a solid third of the novel as Xiao Lan Hua's soul gets kicked to various vessels and she negotiates her obtaining a regular body with Dong Fang Qing Cang quite often. When she does obtain a more semi-permanent body she really starts to think more for herself and becomes even more brazen with her actions in trying to save herself knowing she's still at the mercy of Dong Fang Qing Cang. In the series, aside from being dumbed down she's also given a very typical love triangle to face. She's introduced as a cutesy love-lorn fairy who dreams of being with the God of War and getting back to/ saving said God of War becomes a large impetus for her getting away from Dong Fang Qing Cang. That love triangle doesn't exist in the novel and it's simply Xiao Lan Hua using what little wits she has to find ways of escaping Dong Fang Qing Cang, as well as maturing as a person due to her interactions with him. I feel like we don't get any of this maturity and progression of her character in the series until 2/3 of the way through, but in the novel it was expressed quite subtly and cleverly throughout.
Dong Fang Qing Cang - he was also immensely more interesting in the novel versus the series. In the series he's given a full backstory to justify his evilness and past as well as given a daddy complex to overcome and further enhance his range of emotions aside from falling in love with Xiao Lan Hua. While a villain redemption story is always fun to read/watch when done well there was absolutely none of that in the novel. Dong Fang Qing Cang is pure, straight up, uninhibited, 100% Evil ™. There is no justification for his actions, no redemptive arc, no father, and no excuses for him whatsoever. While he also comes across as a petulant child at times, it is a bit understandable due to his completely narrow minded view of the world. He IS the world and therefore the world must obey him. Period. Highly egotistical OCD characters like him are usually written off for the villains they are and usually defeated. Dong Fang Qing Cang, on the other hand, perseveres simply because he is that way. The novel doesn't bother justifying him or giving him reasons for doing anything. That is made explicitly clear throughout when the reader is given his point of view. Dong Fang Qing Cang simply cannot understand how anyone would dare defy him, negotiate with him, or disobey him. He is not emotionally capable of understanding these things at all. He's an extremely old demon king who has always done what he does and does not know any other way, especially if it involves any emotional change or change of perspective. The idea of being in someone else's shoes is anathema to him. Even at the end of the story he is still who he is, but the only exception is his love for Xiao Lan Hua. It doesn't make him a nicer person nor change him into a good character. It is simply a very slight change of personality for a very old demon king.
Another plus of the novel over the series is the fact that there are no side stories other than Chi Di and her disciple, which is also portrayed very differently from each other. I really disliked the side love story of the dragon and merchant he fell in love with. They were simply fluff characters in the series to me, created to give a more wholesome, innocent love story for watchers to fawn over. I found them boring. Neither of those characters exist in the novel. Dong Fang Qing Cang does have a large serpent beast (Da Yu) at his beck and call, but the creature is treated more like an obedient pet to Dong Fang and a bodyguard/ taxi for Xiao Lan Hua than an actual character.
Chi Di and her disciple are given much less emphasis in the novel than the series. In the novel, he's not even given a name (that I remember). He's simply referred to as the demon market merchant who happens to be very powerful in his own right because of how old he is as well as having been Chi Di's disciple. That's also what makes him a little crazy in the head and more of a traditional villain. In the series, the disciple constantly schemes to gain Xiao Lan Hua for his master and he also does so in the novel, but to much less greater effect. It ends up being more or less Dong Fang Qing Cang's fault that Chi Di is revived at all, doing the disciple a favor inadvertently. Granted, initially, that is what Dong Fang wanted. He did want to revive Chi Di so he could properly defeat her 30K years later. His determination to do so, even at the cost of Xiao Lan Hua's soul further proves his immaturity and single mindedness. It was only until he lost Xiao Lan Hua to Chi Di that he realized he really didn't want that at all.
The elephant in the room for the novel as well as the series is: Stockholm syndrome. It is greatly downplayed to the point of being almost imperceptible in the series, but the reader usually stays aware of it throughout Xiao Lan Hua's musings in the novel since we're given her perspective most of the time. The series covers this up with the side stories and lots of action as well as ridiculous amounts of cutesy scenes of Xiao Lan Hua and Dong Fang bickering with each other like an old married couple. Xiao Lan Hua and Dong Fang fall in love rather quickly in the series and that justifies her staying with him, versus making her a means to an end for him. In the novel, the inner thoughts of Xiao Lan Hua are constantly expressed and she regularly evaluates her emotions based on the recent series of escapades she's been through with Dong Fang. The reader gets a much more in-depth and gradual understanding of her maturing due to being in the outside world, as well as how she comes to be so dependent and even fall in love with her captor. Dong Fang, to his credit, is a very straight forward and practical person. Throughout the novel his directness constantly rattles Xiao Lan Hua and usually proves to be true if an action is involved with what he says he's going to do. He doesn't ever lie to her, but he also doesn't tell her everything simply because she is beneath him and doesn't need to know. He is the perfect character of very few words and a lot of action. When Xiao Lan Hua realizes this, she starts to put the unsaid pieces of his statements together and gets a much better picture of him as well as her position.
What makes the novel a love story instead of a disturbing case of Stockholm syndrome the reader can push away are the reflections of the characters. The inner thoughts really shine in the novel, showing their glacially slow understanding of each other and eventual love. This happens more quickly and readily for an already overly emotional character like Xiao Lan Hua and much more slowly and subtly for the more logical and stoic Dong Fang. When he does begin to feel, the emotions have no words because he doesn't know how to express them, let alone know what they are called. When in his perspective, after losing Xiao Lan Hua the writing was mesmerizing. His feelings are described in nebulous, strange ways that seem like aliens have invaded him versus him acknowledging they are part of him. He constantly assumes he is either sick or going insane. It made his realization of Love towards Xiao Lan Hua all the more satisfying and highly entertaining. When he does admit his love to her, she more or less doesn't believe him and assumes he brought her back to life just to use her again for some nefarious purpose. The ending is happy to a degree, but left very open-ended. He carries her off as they bicker with her pouting and him keeping her under his thumb. Again, the Stockholm syndrome vibe sticks, but the open ending allows readers to believe that eventually they will come to an agreement with each other.
The TV series has its own happy ending of Dong Fang being the one to sacrifice himself for Xiao Lan Hua and returning back to life so he can simply smile and say, "I'm back." Roll credits. While a lot of scenes and general themes overlap between the series and novel, they still feel like extremely different stories.
The series creates all sorts of justifications and machinations for what is happening, but the novel lays bare the straight forwardness of these characters and their story with no excuses. For instance, as mentioned above Dong Fang is given a daddy complex and a curse that stole his emotions to give him extreme powers over all. It crushes his soul tree, which Xiao Lan Hua finds and helps to heal, even though she's not really given much instruction from him to do so. His emotional change in the series is given a justification and an outside source to mend him and become capable of feelings again. It does work, but compared to the novel this comes across as a cheap copout for him not being able to accept his changes himself until given the ok to do so by others or some outside cause. He even becomes slightly resentful of the interference until he ultimately realizes it is for the better. In the novel, Dong Fang faces himself or his "resentment spirit" as it was described in the translation in a true man vs man conflict. I found this much more fascinating and realistic way of him overcoming his own problems versus allowing others to tag along and make those changes for him. It allows no room for resentment after the fact because he willingly made these choices himself.
The TV series feels very dumbed down and even sexist in a way due to how simple and ditzy a character Xiao Lan Hua is compared to the novel. All the female characters are given rather submissive roles to their male lover counterpoints. Despite their strength, which is usually only shown physically, they are still no match for their male superiors. While the power dynamic also stays this course in the end of the novel, the reader is given a kind of wink from the author that as long as Dong Fang has Xiao Lan Hua, she's really the one in control of him now.
I watched Love Between Fairy and Demon on Netflix and then found out it was based on this novel. Unfortunately it is only printed in Chinese, but I did find a (rough) English translation online.
The TV series was cutesy, comedic and goofy. Immediately I greatly disliked Xiao Lan Hua because of how childish and pouty she was. I have no patience for that kind of temperament. The only reason I ended up being drawn into the series was due to Dong Fang Qing Cang. By the end of the series, I'd grown used to Xiao Lan Hua, who had also progressed quite a bit as a character.
When I started reading the novel online I was confused by how different it was from the TV series and even wondered if I was reading the right novel. The novel has its comedic moments and Xiao Lan Hua is still a childish character. But ultimately, the story ended up being much more dark and seriously toned than the TV series would have anyone believe.
Xiao Lan Hua - as a character I much preferred her in the novel over the TV series. She is naive and childish and bratty but she is also much more thoughtful, clever and brave, taking matters into her own hands - even when it usually backfires on her. I appreciated her more heroic attitude towards her situation in the novel versus the character in the series. In the TV show she comes off as a basic, bland damsel in distress but with a very petulant spoiled brat attitude of entitlement who just needed to be slapped around. In the novel, she does get her fair share of being slapped around. She literally kills herself by accident within the first few chapters. While there's a bit of body swapping in the first few episodes of the series, this play of events takes up a solid third of the novel as Xiao Lan Hua's soul gets kicked to various vessels and she negotiates her obtaining a regular body with Dong Fang Qing Cang quite often. When she does obtain a more semi-permanent body she really starts to think more for herself and becomes even more brazen with her actions in trying to save herself knowing she's still at the mercy of Dong Fang Qing Cang. In the series, aside from being dumbed down she's also given a very typical love triangle to face. She's introduced as a cutesy love-lorn fairy who dreams of being with the God of War and getting back to/ saving said God of War becomes a large impetus for her getting away from Dong Fang Qing Cang. That love triangle doesn't exist in the novel and it's simply Xiao Lan Hua using what little wits she has to find ways of escaping Dong Fang Qing Cang, as well as maturing as a person due to her interactions with him. I feel like we don't get any of this maturity and progression of her character in the series until 2/3 of the way through, but in the novel it was expressed quite subtly and cleverly throughout.
Dong Fang Qing Cang - he was also immensely more interesting in the novel versus the series. In the series he's given a full backstory to justify his evilness and past as well as given a daddy complex to overcome and further enhance his range of emotions aside from falling in love with Xiao Lan Hua. While a villain redemption story is always fun to read/watch when done well there was absolutely none of that in the novel. Dong Fang Qing Cang is pure, straight up, uninhibited, 100% Evil ™. There is no justification for his actions, no redemptive arc, no father, and no excuses for him whatsoever. While he also comes across as a petulant child at times, it is a bit understandable due to his completely narrow minded view of the world. He IS the world and therefore the world must obey him. Period. Highly egotistical OCD characters like him are usually written off for the villains they are and usually defeated. Dong Fang Qing Cang, on the other hand, perseveres simply because he is that way. The novel doesn't bother justifying him or giving him reasons for doing anything. That is made explicitly clear throughout when the reader is given his point of view. Dong Fang Qing Cang simply cannot understand how anyone would dare defy him, negotiate with him, or disobey him. He is not emotionally capable of understanding these things at all. He's an extremely old demon king who has always done what he does and does not know any other way, especially if it involves any emotional change or change of perspective. The idea of being in someone else's shoes is anathema to him. Even at the end of the story he is still who he is, but the only exception is his love for Xiao Lan Hua. It doesn't make him a nicer person nor change him into a good character. It is simply a very slight change of personality for a very old demon king.
Another plus of the novel over the series is the fact that there are no side stories other than Chi Di and her disciple, which is also portrayed very differently from each other. I really disliked the side love story of the dragon and merchant he fell in love with. They were simply fluff characters in the series to me, created to give a more wholesome, innocent love story for watchers to fawn over. I found them boring. Neither of those characters exist in the novel. Dong Fang Qing Cang does have a large serpent beast (Da Yu) at his beck and call, but the creature is treated more like an obedient pet to Dong Fang and a bodyguard/ taxi for Xiao Lan Hua than an actual character.
Chi Di and her disciple are given much less emphasis in the novel than the series. In the novel, he's not even given a name (that I remember). He's simply referred to as the demon market merchant who happens to be very powerful in his own right because of how old he is as well as having been Chi Di's disciple. That's also what makes him a little crazy in the head and more of a traditional villain. In the series, the disciple constantly schemes to gain Xiao Lan Hua for his master and he also does so in the novel, but to much less greater effect. It ends up being more or less Dong Fang Qing Cang's fault that Chi Di is revived at all, doing the disciple a favor inadvertently. Granted, initially, that is what Dong Fang wanted. He did want to revive Chi Di so he could properly defeat her 30K years later. His determination to do so, even at the cost of Xiao Lan Hua's soul further proves his immaturity and single mindedness. It was only until he lost Xiao Lan Hua to Chi Di that he realized he really didn't want that at all.
The elephant in the room for the novel as well as the series is: Stockholm syndrome. It is greatly downplayed to the point of being almost imperceptible in the series, but the reader usually stays aware of it throughout Xiao Lan Hua's musings in the novel since we're given her perspective most of the time. The series covers this up with the side stories and lots of action as well as ridiculous amounts of cutesy scenes of Xiao Lan Hua and Dong Fang bickering with each other like an old married couple. Xiao Lan Hua and Dong Fang fall in love rather quickly in the series and that justifies her staying with him, versus making her a means to an end for him. In the novel, the inner thoughts of Xiao Lan Hua are constantly expressed and she regularly evaluates her emotions based on the recent series of escapades she's been through with Dong Fang. The reader gets a much more in-depth and gradual understanding of her maturing due to being in the outside world, as well as how she comes to be so dependent and even fall in love with her captor. Dong Fang, to his credit, is a very straight forward and practical person. Throughout the novel his directness constantly rattles Xiao Lan Hua and usually proves to be true if an action is involved with what he says he's going to do. He doesn't ever lie to her, but he also doesn't tell her everything simply because she is beneath him and doesn't need to know. He is the perfect character of very few words and a lot of action. When Xiao Lan Hua realizes this, she starts to put the unsaid pieces of his statements together and gets a much better picture of him as well as her position.
What makes the novel a love story instead of a disturbing case of Stockholm syndrome the reader can push away are the reflections of the characters. The inner thoughts really shine in the novel, showing their glacially slow understanding of each other and eventual love. This happens more quickly and readily for an already overly emotional character like Xiao Lan Hua and much more slowly and subtly for the more logical and stoic Dong Fang. When he does begin to feel, the emotions have no words because he doesn't know how to express them, let alone know what they are called. When in his perspective, after losing Xiao Lan Hua the writing was mesmerizing. His feelings are described in nebulous, strange ways that seem like aliens have invaded him versus him acknowledging they are part of him. He constantly assumes he is either sick or going insane. It made his realization of Love towards Xiao Lan Hua all the more satisfying and highly entertaining. When he does admit his love to her, she more or less doesn't believe him and assumes he brought her back to life just to use her again for some nefarious purpose. The ending is happy to a degree, but left very open-ended. He carries her off as they bicker with her pouting and him keeping her under his thumb. Again, the Stockholm syndrome vibe sticks, but the open ending allows readers to believe that eventually they will come to an agreement with each other.
The TV series has its own happy ending of Dong Fang being the one to sacrifice himself for Xiao Lan Hua and returning back to life so he can simply smile and say, "I'm back." Roll credits. While a lot of scenes and general themes overlap between the series and novel, they still feel like extremely different stories.
The series creates all sorts of justifications and machinations for what is happening, but the novel lays bare the straight forwardness of these characters and their story with no excuses. For instance, as mentioned above Dong Fang is given a daddy complex and a curse that stole his emotions to give him extreme powers over all. It crushes his soul tree, which Xiao Lan Hua finds and helps to heal, even though she's not really given much instruction from him to do so. His emotional change in the series is given a justification and an outside source to mend him and become capable of feelings again. It does work, but compared to the novel this comes across as a cheap copout for him not being able to accept his changes himself until given the ok to do so by others or some outside cause. He even becomes slightly resentful of the interference until he ultimately realizes it is for the better. In the novel, Dong Fang faces himself or his "resentment spirit" as it was described in the translation in a true man vs man conflict. I found this much more fascinating and realistic way of him overcoming his own problems versus allowing others to tag along and make those changes for him. It allows no room for resentment after the fact because he willingly made these choices himself.
The TV series feels very dumbed down and even sexist in a way due to how simple and ditzy a character Xiao Lan Hua is compared to the novel. All the female characters are given rather submissive roles to their male lover counterpoints. Despite their strength, which is usually only shown physically, they are still no match for their male superiors. While the power dynamic also stays this course in the end of the novel, the reader is given a kind of wink from the author that as long as Dong Fang has Xiao Lan Hua, she's really the one in control of him now.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
April 7, 2023
e"This body is hers, but is also his."
in actual real love I cried tears reading this.
the fact that he came to want her to speak up to him and rant at him for her to not cry, him constantly saving her while pretending he would kill her, his subconscious having a corporeal form that wanted to possess her, healing her bleeding throat while disregarding the sword she put through his chest and then going to the pit on hell to pull her soul out and still trying to tell himself that he wasnt in love with her all the while hes thinking he wants to be her companion and protector absolutely unspeakable actions need to be taken to fix me after this.
additionally the fact that he truly is evil, self serving and petty at heart towards literally every living thing on the planet even after the epilogue while she is the ONLY exception to this; WRITERS TAKE NOTES ON HOW TO WRITE MORALLY CORRUPT CHARACTERS RN THIS IS HOW YOU DO IT
I loved watching her charecter grow truly one of the greatest developments imo even when she had no hope she kept on going, highlight was watching her stand up for herself time and again despite being aware of how easily mortal she was. also the way she would go at him for killing people so easily but became desensitized to it and wouldnt actively work on protecting anyone i loved it. I need to put her in my pocket I love them both so much.
I wish this would never end I'd keep reading about them and their life
in actual real love I cried tears reading this.
the fact that he came to want her to speak up to him and rant at him for her to not cry, him constantly saving her while pretending he would kill her, his subconscious having a corporeal form that wanted to possess her, healing her bleeding throat while disregarding the sword she put through his chest and then going to the pit on hell to pull her soul out and still trying to tell himself that he wasnt in love with her all the while hes thinking he wants to be her companion and protector absolutely unspeakable actions need to be taken to fix me after this.
additionally the fact that he truly is evil, self serving and petty at heart towards literally every living thing on the planet even after the epilogue while she is the ONLY exception to this; WRITERS TAKE NOTES ON HOW TO WRITE MORALLY CORRUPT CHARACTERS RN THIS IS HOW YOU DO IT
I loved watching her charecter grow truly one of the greatest developments imo even when she had no hope she kept on going, highlight was watching her stand up for herself time and again despite being aware of how easily mortal she was. also the way she would go at him for killing people so easily but became desensitized to it and wouldnt actively work on protecting anyone i loved it. I need to put her in my pocket I love them both so much.
I wish this would never end I'd keep reading about them and their life
September 21, 2022
I watched the drama first, so the details of the original story widely differ. Nonetheless, the core of the characters remained consistent and I loved that the emotional ark and growth that DFQC remain the same.
December 27, 2020
One of the best epic romances I have ever read after "Heavy sweetness ash like frost".
The demon king is one of the the best alluring, romantic grey shaded characters ever seen in xianxia novels so far!
The rescue scenes are vividly portrayed in the book. In the initial first half of the novel contain chapters that narrate little orchid (the heroine) rescuing Dong Fang Qing Cang(the demon King's actual name) when he is cursed by someone mysterious, thus, inviting frequent flashes of heavenly thunder upon him.
In the latter half of the book, contain chapters that narrate the demon King rescuing little orchid from under the Zhuxian terrace, where murderous energies whirl.
Out of the two, only the demon king appears all powerful & capable. After all, even the souls of powerful immortals were torn apart & scattered inside the Zhuxian terrace. Even the heavenly emperor can only manage to rescue himself in case he falls inside --- not bring an additional person up.
However, little orchid, apparently, weak on the surface, has an innate abnormal, but powerful ability that no one in the three realms knows --- not even her self. Her true form is an ancient treasure which if others get hold of, can upset the natural order of things.
Meanwhile, Dong Fang Qing Cang only seems to be interested in "playing her to death" though he rescued her countless times.
Little orchid is the demon king's only tool to sever his obssession with the heavenly God of war, lady Chi De.
And little orchid is well aware of this blatant fact...
Out of the two, one is dissipated, and a debt too large lingers...
The happy ending of this story is beautifully wrapped up:
Dong Fang Qing Cang was quiet for a long time.
“Of course there is a scheme.”
Little Orchid was startled, “Indeed you’re scheming
against me! What are you scheming against me?!”
“Besides giving one’s heart (body) to, little flower
demon, is there something else you
have?”(chocolate cosmos.wordPress)
The demon king is one of the the best alluring, romantic grey shaded characters ever seen in xianxia novels so far!
The rescue scenes are vividly portrayed in the book. In the initial first half of the novel contain chapters that narrate little orchid (the heroine) rescuing Dong Fang Qing Cang(the demon King's actual name) when he is cursed by someone mysterious, thus, inviting frequent flashes of heavenly thunder upon him.
In the latter half of the book, contain chapters that narrate the demon King rescuing little orchid from under the Zhuxian terrace, where murderous energies whirl.
Out of the two, only the demon king appears all powerful & capable. After all, even the souls of powerful immortals were torn apart & scattered inside the Zhuxian terrace. Even the heavenly emperor can only manage to rescue himself in case he falls inside --- not bring an additional person up.
However, little orchid, apparently, weak on the surface, has an innate abnormal, but powerful ability that no one in the three realms knows --- not even her self. Her true form is an ancient treasure which if others get hold of, can upset the natural order of things.
Meanwhile, Dong Fang Qing Cang only seems to be interested in "playing her to death" though he rescued her countless times.
Little orchid is the demon king's only tool to sever his obssession with the heavenly God of war, lady Chi De.
And little orchid is well aware of this blatant fact...
Out of the two, one is dissipated, and a debt too large lingers...
The happy ending of this story is beautifully wrapped up:
Dong Fang Qing Cang was quiet for a long time.
“Of course there is a scheme.”
Little Orchid was startled, “Indeed you’re scheming
against me! What are you scheming against me?!”
“Besides giving one’s heart (body) to, little flower
demon, is there something else you
have?”(chocolate cosmos.wordPress)
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
January 11, 2023
I'm certain I would have liked this better if I could read Chinese or if there was a professional English translation. However, I'm grateful that bananachocolatecosmos.wordpress.com took the time to translate it since otherwise it would have been inaccessible to me.
October 3, 2022
i needed more grovelling after all that crap he pulled, but i do love these two. the epilogues were adorable ! 😭❤️
January 8, 2023
2.5☆
I wasn't expecting to write this when I started the novel, but for me the drama adaptation is better. The script is well written and the the story seems more wholesome, the characters arcs are also more intricated.
It was nice to see more of Siming's story and the later parts of the book definitely made me feel all the feelings, but overall it felt like something was missing plotwise. Also, it's impossible to ignore some of the fl and ml actions.
I wasn't expecting to write this when I started the novel, but for me the drama adaptation is better. The script is well written and the the story seems more wholesome, the characters arcs are also more intricated.
It was nice to see more of Siming's story and the later parts of the book definitely made me feel all the feelings, but overall it felt like something was missing plotwise. Also, it's impossible to ignore some of the fl and ml actions.
January 1, 2025
Is this book available in English?
I just finished watching the Netflix show called “Love Between Fairy and Devil,” and it was so good that I’m trying to find the book it was based on. It doesn’t seem to be available in English on Amazon, Kindle, or anywhere else I’ve looked. Maybe as more people search for this book in English, it will trigger it getting published in English (I hope!).
I’ll keep my review fairly short since it is of the show. It was amazingly good. The story, and especially the dynamics between Orchid and Cang (called Dongfang Qingcang in the show), had so much depth and made me fall in love with the characters. Orchid is purity, kindness, and good-heartedness incarnate, and Cang is a supremely powerful warlord accidentally freed from an immortal prison by Orchid.
They are spiritually bound in ways that force them to interact with each other and overcome multiple challenges together. Over time, they each grow in the ways they need to, and you see Cang softening towards Orchid and Orchid becoming stronger in herself. There are a lot of moments that are tender, funny, or deep along the way. By the end, you can’t imagine them ever being parted.
I am now rewatching the show and would love to read the book, too.
I just finished watching the Netflix show called “Love Between Fairy and Devil,” and it was so good that I’m trying to find the book it was based on. It doesn’t seem to be available in English on Amazon, Kindle, or anywhere else I’ve looked. Maybe as more people search for this book in English, it will trigger it getting published in English (I hope!).
I’ll keep my review fairly short since it is of the show. It was amazingly good. The story, and especially the dynamics between Orchid and Cang (called Dongfang Qingcang in the show), had so much depth and made me fall in love with the characters. Orchid is purity, kindness, and good-heartedness incarnate, and Cang is a supremely powerful warlord accidentally freed from an immortal prison by Orchid.
They are spiritually bound in ways that force them to interact with each other and overcome multiple challenges together. Over time, they each grow in the ways they need to, and you see Cang softening towards Orchid and Orchid becoming stronger in herself. There are a lot of moments that are tender, funny, or deep along the way. By the end, you can’t imagine them ever being parted.
I am now rewatching the show and would love to read the book, too.
March 3, 2025
3/5
As someone who is 75% into the cdrama, I really enjoyed both the similarities and differences between it and the og novel.
(The heartbreaking fact that novel!DFQC is utterly alone, his Shangque is just some random background antagonist(!) and he himself doesn't even care about the demon ppl 😢 woah when it comes to this cdrama is way more cosy)
(But then, the morality - or certain instances of lack of it - of certain characters in the novel is just ✨ ✨)
Both are good... But both need something more.
Perhaps I wish we got a little bit more romance in the novel. At least the epilogues were cute!
As someone who is 75% into the cdrama, I really enjoyed both the similarities and differences between it and the og novel.
(The heartbreaking fact that novel!DFQC is utterly alone, his Shangque is just some random background antagonist(!) and he himself doesn't even care about the demon ppl 😢 woah when it comes to this cdrama is way more cosy)
(But then, the morality - or certain instances of lack of it - of certain characters in the novel is just ✨ ✨)
Both are good... But both need something more.
Perhaps I wish we got a little bit more romance in the novel. At least the epilogues were cute!
October 10, 2023
2.5 stars
The book started of strong with Orchid's hilarious activities and Dongfang Qingcang's stoic persona but as the book progressed the characters became terrible. Orchid became too much of a damsel in distress and somehow her personality became very boring to follow. Dfqc had zero character development through out the book. SPOILER: The last bit of the book where orchid "reincarnated" as a baby threw me off and ntm that kiss was very weird to me.
The book started of strong with Orchid's hilarious activities and Dongfang Qingcang's stoic persona but as the book progressed the characters became terrible. Orchid became too much of a damsel in distress and somehow her personality became very boring to follow. Dfqc had zero character development through out the book. SPOILER: The last bit of the book where orchid "reincarnated" as a baby threw me off and ntm that kiss was very weird to me.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
December 14, 2023
Maybe it is because I’ve read a fan translation, …nup I did not enjoy this book at all. The dialogue between characters is not easy to follow ( broken English), the plot is weak, characters are not built well, I had to force myself to finish this book.
I would suggest to better watch the drama (has nothing to do with the book)
I would suggest to better watch the drama (has nothing to do with the book)
November 20, 2023
I read this totally because I was in love with the drama and wanted more of them. The beginning made me realise it's a different storyline in here. I still completed it and loved how it grows and the Epilogue is actually what completes the story for me
September 2, 2025
因为追剧才来看原著，没想到收获了不一样的惊喜。文字版比剧版更跌宕起伏：时而让人捧腹大笑，时而戳中泪点，时而又温暖感动。特别喜欢书中补充的细节：魔尊的心路历程更细节一些，小兰花也显得更聪慧机敏（不像剧中那么呆萌）。不过个人更喜欢剧版互补的设定，书中的魔尊强得近乎无敌，反而少了些趣味。
两个版本虽然共享人物设定，但俨然是两个平行世界的故事。书版篇幅较短，感情发展稍显仓促，但想象空间更大。综合给3.5星，推荐剧粉和书粉都来看看这种奇妙的互文体验～
两个版本虽然共享人物设定，但俨然是两个平行世界的故事。书版篇幅较短，感情发展稍显仓促，但想象空间更大。综合给3.5星，推荐剧粉和书粉都来看看这种奇妙的互文体验～
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
November 1, 2022
Beginning was super fun but imho the author was more interesting in hitting off all her preferred tropes than developing the relationship. Still an entertaining read.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
April 10, 2023
Love the drama in it. I enjoy it.
October 13, 2023
It is slightly different from the live adaptation but the core is still consistent. I enjoyed reading it
January 29, 2024
Amazing creative folklore storytelling. Loved every minute of it. Very very strange story, but great. This is an English translation of a Chinese novel.
March 2, 2024
Read the translated version, but I’m counting it. I had so much fun with this!!! Highly recommend.
January 16, 2025
The English translation is not that good for first time readers in this genre of Chinese webnovels but the story and charachters are well written. I should watch the donghua soon!
January 23, 2025
Es una delicia de novela, con arcos de personaje muy definidos y buenos. Además, la pareja principal tiene unas interacciones maravillosas.
July 5, 2025
The drama is better, but also a whole different story, so i guess it's not even fair to compare. As it is, the novel is pretty mid.
August 31, 2025
I watched the c-drama first, and it definitely is a bit different, but still fun all the same!!
Want to read
March 22, 2023I absolutely loved the series on Netflix. Does anyone know if this book will ever be translated to English?
October 4, 2022
3.5 stars
I'm not sure the male lead is redeemed enough by the end of this. I kind of just wanted the heroine to say fuck it to everyone and go do her own thing, which isn't a great way to feel about a romance. But it's better than the show?
I'm not sure the male lead is redeemed enough by the end of this. I kind of just wanted the heroine to say fuck it to everyone and go do her own thing, which isn't a great way to feel about a romance. But it's better than the show?
May 29, 2020
I've enjoyed the previous book of this author, that was set in the same universe and hoped that this one will be as equally exciting. But...it wasn't. The pace is really really slow and a the whole story seemed a bit dull. I guess, it's great for those people that enjoy a slow unhurried pace of narration, but it's really not my thing.
March 9, 2024
I’m not okay.
Huge book hangover.
I can’t stop thinking about this book.
I want to be left alone with all my feelings.
I love a good the villain gets the girl troupe.
Honestly though, having to kill the person you love the most would be so tragic.
Huge book hangover.
I can’t stop thinking about this book.
I want to be left alone with all my feelings.
I love a good the villain gets the girl troupe.
Honestly though, having to kill the person you love the most would be so tragic.
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