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首辅养成手册
with flowers of literature and art publishing Pub 2017-10-01 1000 buried with flowers of literature and art publishing house past - he was hated's bastard. all suffered scorn. temperament malicious crime alert. was once famous. covered with Beijing.And she is t...
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Published October 1, 2017
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Displaying 1 - 5 of 5 reviews
May 24, 2025
Buku ini trully excellent. All the characters like Yining, Shenyuan, Lu Jiaxue, Cheng Lan was so mesmerizing, despite all their flaw and strength, malah itu yang jadi daya tarik mereka, imperfect but I LOVE THEM. Yining had her sufferings, Shenyuana and Luxue has them also. Shenyuan being oppressed made him so responsible and calcuting but he also felt insecure because of the treatment he received from his environment since he was little, Lu Juxue loved Yining madly and obsessively was so heartbreaking. 😭 Yining saw him favouring women, craving for power and status and thought he moved on and misunderstood he was no longer the person whom she loved, in fact, it was all just a misunderstanding and lack of communication between them so that the happiness they experience is limited. I cried a lot for Luo Yining X Luo Shenyuan pair and Luo Yining X Lu Juxue, both were justified at same time. My selfishness, I want them to be together, Lu Juxue and Luo Shenyuan with Yining, the three of them. But their possessive nature and the difficulty of compromising between Juxue and Shenyuan akan Yining makes it impossible, belum lagi memang Yining-nya sudah beda antara Yining yang lalu dengan Yining yang sekarang. But if possible I want the three of them together. 😭
Intrik politiknya juga aku sukaaaaaaaa, bikin pusing but thrilling at the same time, gak bikin bosan dan penuh twist.
Btw, I love the extra chap with alternative timeline between Yining and Juxue.
And the main story too, I love how Yining and Juxue find closure from their past relationship and Juxue can untie the knot in his heart. And I love Yining and Shenyuan find their happiness together, for all upside down or asam panis kehidupan yang mereka jalani bersama (ahem).
Honorable mention, shout out for Lin Hairu, Luo Yihui and Wei Ying, for the best family.
Intrik politiknya juga aku sukaaaaaaaa, bikin pusing but thrilling at the same time, gak bikin bosan dan penuh twist.
Btw, I love the extra chap with alternative timeline between Yining and Juxue.
And the main story too, I love how Yining and Juxue find closure from their past relationship and Juxue can untie the knot in his heart. And I love Yining and Shenyuan find their happiness together, for all upside down or asam panis kehidupan yang mereka jalani bersama (ahem).
Honorable mention, shout out for Lin Hairu, Luo Yihui and Wei Ying, for the best family.
December 18, 2024
Chinese title: 首辅养成手册
Pinyin: Shoufu Yangcheng Shouce
English: The Prime Minister's Development Manual
Read at: mydramanovel.com (it's not listed on Novel Updates)
This is the novel that the Chinese drama, The Rise of Ning, is loosely based on. And I say loosely based because at 15 episodes into the drama, it seems like a completely different story with the (mostly) the same characters.
The premise of the novel is that our FL, Luo Yining, was happily married in her previous life to the 4th concubine-born son of the Lu family, Lu Jiaxue. However, not long after her marriage, she was pushed off a cliff and died, and afterwards her spirit stuck around for another 20 years, so she was able to witness the rise and fall of multiple individuals and their families. Based on what she observes in those 20 years, she thinks that her husband was behind her murder, as he killed his older brother and grew in power after her death before eventually becoming one of the most powerful individuals around the emperor.
Now, Luo Yining is reborn, but the twist is that she's born into a different Luo Yining's body 7 years after her death who's only 7 years old. At this point her previous husband Lu Jiaxue already has quite a bit of influence and power. Interestingly, the Luo family that she's reborn into is the same Luo family that produced her former husband's greatest political rival in the future and our ML, Luo Shenyuan. However, at this time, Luo Shenyuan is just the unfavored 3rd son of the Luo family and hasn't built his power base yet, so it's the perfect time for Luo Yining to get on his good side early on so that she can hug onto his thighs later after he does become more prominent.
**Warning: Spoilers Ahead**
The story is split into a couple different arcs. First it focuses on the FL's time in the Luo family, where she has to deal with an indifferent father who strongly favors her concubine born sister over her as well as various schemes from said sister and her mother. Luckily, she has the grandmother and step-mother's support. I was super annoyed by her father and his annoying concubine Qiao and was glad when the Yining was able to prove the truth time after time and make the father feel guilty about how he always jumps to the conclusion that it's her fault by default.
The next part of the story is after her identity as the true daughter of Wei Ling, a powerful military general, comes out and she moves to the capital to join her real family. Concubine Qiao certainly got what she deserved there for badmouthing the FL's mom in the worst way to Yining's "dad", only to find out that Yining's dad isn't some random guard but a respected general. As part of her new family, Yining needs to deal with drama from new characters, such as her adopted sister cousin who has been spoiled by the Wei matriarch for years, and lack of favoritism from the Wei matriarch. Fortunately, she has her dad on her side and is able to overcome those problems as well.
Even though Luo Yining tries to hide her past identity, she's unable to fully cover everything up, and it's inevitable that some of the figures from her past find out who she is. I'd say that's the last arc of the story, as certain characters such as her former husband Lu Jiaxue find out her identity and keep trying to kidnap and marry her. There's also more political stuff going on in the background, and Yining is "forced" to marry her 3rd brother Luo Shenyuan to get out of a tricky situation and avoid being accused of deceiving the emperor.
I wasn't expecting the characters from Yining's past to find out about her identity, but once the first person (Cheng Lang, her nephew that she used to raise) found out, I figured it was inevitable for Lu Jiaxue to find out as well. Because of this, she had a lot of suitors, as apparently everyone from her past is still obsessed with her and hasn't let go even after her death. Cheng Lang dealt with it by playing around with a courtesan that looks similar to her old self, while Lu Jiaxue has never married or taken a concubine again. It's sad because all she wants in this new life is to live nicely, but these two won't let her do so.
Still, I'm conflicted on who she should've ended up with. Obviously the ML is Luo Shenyuan and her brother affection for him gradually develop into feelings of love after he saves her time and time again, but I didn't think Lu Jiaxue was that bad either, at least not in terms of how he treated her. We learn along with Yining that he wasn't the one who caused her death, and not only that, but that he deeply mourned her passing and never stopped mourning. And especially at the end, where he drops everything else and rushes to her side when he hears that she's in danger, it's obvious that he really cares about her and treats her genuinely.
While I get that it's not right for Lu Jiaxue to kidnap her not once but twice, he treats her okay while she's in his custody and doesn't attempt to force himself on her. Plus it's not like Luo Shenyuan is a Prince Charming either. He admits himself that even if she was his sister, his feelings for her were strong enough that he might've tried for something. Also, he promised to treat her body carefully and abstain from sexual intercourse for a while since she's only 14 when they marry, but he can't control himself and gets her pregnant not too long afterwards, so really he's not a great guy. So yeah, I finished the book on a very conflicted note. I would have been okay if she had somehow ended up with Lu Jiaxue as well, though obviously that wasn't going to happen since she already had a son with Shenyuan.
I also have very conflicted feelings towards Cheng Lang. At first I was excited for him to be able to reconnect with his beloved aunt Yining and simply be A'Lang again, but when you realize his feelings for her aren't proper, it kinda makes you stop and think. And then when you realize that he can be persuaded to act against her and betray her for power, that's the moment where he goes from helpful supporting character to a character on the villain scale. He's definitely a very complex character, and not one that I typically see in a historical novel.
I think the least interesting of the main and supporting characters is the FL herself, Luo Yining. In the drama, they make her out to be a pretty smart girl who's also good at scheming, but I felt like the book version of her is much more bland and passive. She's a general nice girl but not particularly smart and didn't take the initiative to do much. I definitely like her character in the drama more; it was a bit disappointing to start with the drama version of her and then to go to the book version of her.
The story moves along briskly. I don't think there was ever a moment when I was bored, and I found myself staying up late to read a couple nights in a row. The story doesn't focus on politics, though it does come up from time to time especially near the end, but rather the FL's life as she navigates various family drama and schemes. There's also a good amount of face slapping in this book, which I always enjoy. A lot of the characters who mistreat Yining get their just desserts one way or another, starting with the members of the Luo family and extending to other side characters like Xie Yun.
I started reading this story because of the c-drama, but now that I've finished it, I definitely think of it as a completely different story from the drama. I would recommend that drama fans (and fans of historical Chinese novels in general) give this story a try!
Ending my review with an excerpt from the this last scene between the FL and Lu Jiaxue, which I found quite touching. He finally came to save her!
Perhaps due to blood loss, Lu Jiaxue seemed to be losing consciousness. He tightly gripped her hand in his large one, saying hoarsely, “Back then. I didn’t save you… You’ve resented me all these years.”
His words shook her to the core. Luo Yining now saw the arrow shaft protruding from his back, and she trembled. She reached out to touch it.
Seeing her eyes turn red, Lu Jiaxue raised his other hand to comfort her but only smeared blood on her face. He could only manage a strained smile.
“If I didn’t come to save you this time… you’d resent me for life.”
It was as if everything had come full circle; he had come to save her.
Pinyin: Shoufu Yangcheng Shouce
English: The Prime Minister's Development Manual
Read at: mydramanovel.com (it's not listed on Novel Updates)
This is the novel that the Chinese drama, The Rise of Ning, is loosely based on. And I say loosely based because at 15 episodes into the drama, it seems like a completely different story with the (mostly) the same characters.
The premise of the novel is that our FL, Luo Yining, was happily married in her previous life to the 4th concubine-born son of the Lu family, Lu Jiaxue. However, not long after her marriage, she was pushed off a cliff and died, and afterwards her spirit stuck around for another 20 years, so she was able to witness the rise and fall of multiple individuals and their families. Based on what she observes in those 20 years, she thinks that her husband was behind her murder, as he killed his older brother and grew in power after her death before eventually becoming one of the most powerful individuals around the emperor.
Now, Luo Yining is reborn, but the twist is that she's born into a different Luo Yining's body 7 years after her death who's only 7 years old. At this point her previous husband Lu Jiaxue already has quite a bit of influence and power. Interestingly, the Luo family that she's reborn into is the same Luo family that produced her former husband's greatest political rival in the future and our ML, Luo Shenyuan. However, at this time, Luo Shenyuan is just the unfavored 3rd son of the Luo family and hasn't built his power base yet, so it's the perfect time for Luo Yining to get on his good side early on so that she can hug onto his thighs later after he does become more prominent.
**Warning: Spoilers Ahead**
The story is split into a couple different arcs. First it focuses on the FL's time in the Luo family, where she has to deal with an indifferent father who strongly favors her concubine born sister over her as well as various schemes from said sister and her mother. Luckily, she has the grandmother and step-mother's support. I was super annoyed by her father and his annoying concubine Qiao and was glad when the Yining was able to prove the truth time after time and make the father feel guilty about how he always jumps to the conclusion that it's her fault by default.
The next part of the story is after her identity as the true daughter of Wei Ling, a powerful military general, comes out and she moves to the capital to join her real family. Concubine Qiao certainly got what she deserved there for badmouthing the FL's mom in the worst way to Yining's "dad", only to find out that Yining's dad isn't some random guard but a respected general. As part of her new family, Yining needs to deal with drama from new characters, such as her adopted sister cousin who has been spoiled by the Wei matriarch for years, and lack of favoritism from the Wei matriarch. Fortunately, she has her dad on her side and is able to overcome those problems as well.
Even though Luo Yining tries to hide her past identity, she's unable to fully cover everything up, and it's inevitable that some of the figures from her past find out who she is. I'd say that's the last arc of the story, as certain characters such as her former husband Lu Jiaxue find out her identity and keep trying to kidnap and marry her. There's also more political stuff going on in the background, and Yining is "forced" to marry her 3rd brother Luo Shenyuan to get out of a tricky situation and avoid being accused of deceiving the emperor.
I wasn't expecting the characters from Yining's past to find out about her identity, but once the first person (Cheng Lang, her nephew that she used to raise) found out, I figured it was inevitable for Lu Jiaxue to find out as well. Because of this, she had a lot of suitors, as apparently everyone from her past is still obsessed with her and hasn't let go even after her death. Cheng Lang dealt with it by playing around with a courtesan that looks similar to her old self, while Lu Jiaxue has never married or taken a concubine again. It's sad because all she wants in this new life is to live nicely, but these two won't let her do so.
Still, I'm conflicted on who she should've ended up with. Obviously the ML is Luo Shenyuan and her brother affection for him gradually develop into feelings of love after he saves her time and time again, but I didn't think Lu Jiaxue was that bad either, at least not in terms of how he treated her. We learn along with Yining that he wasn't the one who caused her death, and not only that, but that he deeply mourned her passing and never stopped mourning. And especially at the end, where he drops everything else and rushes to her side when he hears that she's in danger, it's obvious that he really cares about her and treats her genuinely.
While I get that it's not right for Lu Jiaxue to kidnap her not once but twice, he treats her okay while she's in his custody and doesn't attempt to force himself on her. Plus it's not like Luo Shenyuan is a Prince Charming either. He admits himself that even if she was his sister, his feelings for her were strong enough that he might've tried for something. Also, he promised to treat her body carefully and abstain from sexual intercourse for a while since she's only 14 when they marry, but he can't control himself and gets her pregnant not too long afterwards, so really he's not a great guy. So yeah, I finished the book on a very conflicted note. I would have been okay if she had somehow ended up with Lu Jiaxue as well, though obviously that wasn't going to happen since she already had a son with Shenyuan.
I also have very conflicted feelings towards Cheng Lang. At first I was excited for him to be able to reconnect with his beloved aunt Yining and simply be A'Lang again, but when you realize his feelings for her aren't proper, it kinda makes you stop and think. And then when you realize that he can be persuaded to act against her and betray her for power, that's the moment where he goes from helpful supporting character to a character on the villain scale. He's definitely a very complex character, and not one that I typically see in a historical novel.
I think the least interesting of the main and supporting characters is the FL herself, Luo Yining. In the drama, they make her out to be a pretty smart girl who's also good at scheming, but I felt like the book version of her is much more bland and passive. She's a general nice girl but not particularly smart and didn't take the initiative to do much. I definitely like her character in the drama more; it was a bit disappointing to start with the drama version of her and then to go to the book version of her.
The story moves along briskly. I don't think there was ever a moment when I was bored, and I found myself staying up late to read a couple nights in a row. The story doesn't focus on politics, though it does come up from time to time especially near the end, but rather the FL's life as she navigates various family drama and schemes. There's also a good amount of face slapping in this book, which I always enjoy. A lot of the characters who mistreat Yining get their just desserts one way or another, starting with the members of the Luo family and extending to other side characters like Xie Yun.
I started reading this story because of the c-drama, but now that I've finished it, I definitely think of it as a completely different story from the drama. I would recommend that drama fans (and fans of historical Chinese novels in general) give this story a try!
Ending my review with an excerpt from the this last scene between the FL and Lu Jiaxue, which I found quite touching. He finally came to save her!
Perhaps due to blood loss, Lu Jiaxue seemed to be losing consciousness. He tightly gripped her hand in his large one, saying hoarsely, “Back then. I didn’t save you… You’ve resented me all these years.”
His words shook her to the core. Luo Yining now saw the arrow shaft protruding from his back, and she trembled. She reached out to touch it.
Seeing her eyes turn red, Lu Jiaxue raised his other hand to comfort her but only smeared blood on her face. He could only manage a strained smile.
“If I didn’t come to save you this time… you’d resent me for life.”
It was as if everything had come full circle; he had come to save her.
January 17, 2024
2024 - "I can't believe it's been a year since I didn't become a better person."
Well, at least this year I hope to get back in the saddle and actually do a few reviews -sigh!!
Any way as if I haven't got enough to read, I have been driving myself crazy trying to read AI translated Chinese novels and I finally found one that really exceeded my expectations and was worth the time to make use of my limited brain capacity and the years of experience of trying to decipher "Gen X" speech.
What really made it hard was the fact that the Chines language doesn't seem to make a gender differentiation so that made things a bit confusing.
But to summarize what I think happened: Our leading lady Yin Ning is basically Cat Nip for Psychopath's or definitely morally challenged characters, think Helen of Troy level.
So, buckle up and here we go:
She marries the first guy (nut job), and then is murdered, she then lives for at least 10 years as a ghost in a Hairpin, which allows her to see the future and what unfolds, for her Ex and other players. She is then reincarnated back in time into the one family that has an even bigger nutjob as her older brother (but you can understand why). She decides to use him to secure future protection for when she might cross paths with her ex who gets even worse the older, he gets.
Problem is brother starts falling for her, basically because she is the only one that truly pays him any attention, think incest but not, because it turns out they are not related but I don't think that would have stopped him.
Then over time throw in another nutjob that she (as an aunt) raised as a child and became the only women he ever loves and who realises it's her which leads to the Ex realising its her ...and as a result what we have is a glorious trainwreck of jealousy kidnapping and possessive insanity. (But I admit to feeling sorry for them all by the end)
But be warned it includes era specific underage sex, and childbirth (too young), but it doesn't make it right, but there is a HEA.
I loved every mad minute of it even though there are some serious plot holes and unresolved issues that I felt could have gone in other directions, but maybe I should be glad it didn't because it was long nearly 200 chapters long, and a I actually needed sleep by the 3rd day..
Ps A screen adaption is due out soon too.
Well, at least this year I hope to get back in the saddle and actually do a few reviews -sigh!!
Any way as if I haven't got enough to read, I have been driving myself crazy trying to read AI translated Chinese novels and I finally found one that really exceeded my expectations and was worth the time to make use of my limited brain capacity and the years of experience of trying to decipher "Gen X" speech.
What really made it hard was the fact that the Chines language doesn't seem to make a gender differentiation so that made things a bit confusing.
But to summarize what I think happened: Our leading lady Yin Ning is basically Cat Nip for Psychopath's or definitely morally challenged characters, think Helen of Troy level.
So, buckle up and here we go:
She marries the first guy (nut job), and then is murdered, she then lives for at least 10 years as a ghost in a Hairpin, which allows her to see the future and what unfolds, for her Ex and other players. She is then reincarnated back in time into the one family that has an even bigger nutjob as her older brother (but you can understand why). She decides to use him to secure future protection for when she might cross paths with her ex who gets even worse the older, he gets.
Problem is brother starts falling for her, basically because she is the only one that truly pays him any attention, think incest but not, because it turns out they are not related but I don't think that would have stopped him.
Then over time throw in another nutjob that she (as an aunt) raised as a child and became the only women he ever loves and who realises it's her which leads to the Ex realising its her ...and as a result what we have is a glorious trainwreck of jealousy kidnapping and possessive insanity. (But I admit to feeling sorry for them all by the end)
But be warned it includes era specific underage sex, and childbirth (too young), but it doesn't make it right, but there is a HEA.
I loved every mad minute of it even though there are some serious plot holes and unresolved issues that I felt could have gone in other directions, but maybe I should be glad it didn't because it was long nearly 200 chapters long, and a I actually needed sleep by the 3rd day..
Ps A screen adaption is due out soon too.
October 21, 2024
Eu tô sem palavras para descrever todos os sentimentos que essa história me despertou, eu li de forma despretensiosa só por conta da série ainda em andamento, mas chegou a um ponto que simplesmente não consegui mais largar a leitura.
Se você veio pela série fica o meu alerta de que a novel é muito mais intensa com personagens extremamente complexos que são só um vislumbre dos personagens da série. Também acho bom deixar o aviso de que a história acompanha o crescimento da protagonista e que boa parte dos acontecimentos se dão quando ela tem por volta dos 13/14 anos, isso não é uma novidade no universo das novels, mas se você veio pela série acho bom deixar esse aviso pois há conteúdo que pode ser considerado perturbador.
Se você veio pela série fica o meu alerta de que a novel é muito mais intensa com personagens extremamente complexos que são só um vislumbre dos personagens da série. Também acho bom deixar o aviso de que a história acompanha o crescimento da protagonista e que boa parte dos acontecimentos se dão quando ela tem por volta dos 13/14 anos, isso não é uma novidade no universo das novels, mas se você veio pela série acho bom deixar esse aviso pois há conteúdo que pode ser considerado perturbador.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
March 25, 2024
The reason I've decided to pick this up is because its TV adaptation is said to air this year and we all know, most often than not, the TV version will ruin the book version so I thought it would be wiser to have the original imprint in my mind first.
I don't think i've detested a FL this immediate on a first read.
Maybe i'm being too rational but I really dislike it when conflicts are deliberately created by omission of information. Plus her "soft-heartedness" that literally exposes her not once, not twice, but THREE FREAKING TIMES? And then she gets all entangled with other men and isn't even smart enough to hide it from the first ML, I swear, I just feel pity for the first ML at this point because i actually truly believe that the FL is doing these on purpose to torture him. Sure, ALL the men love her 'cause she's kind but let's be honest, there's a thick line between being kind and being foolish/作死。
To be fair, everyone's downright annoying. I don't get why everyone, old or young, men or women, is soooo narrow-minded. I want her? Let me hold her against her will, force myself on her, and she'll definitely fall head over heels in love. This idiot pissed me off? No problemo, let me explicitly give them a hard time and then do absolutely nothing to prevent them from taking revenge down the road or even bother to hide my tracks. This kid has shown to be ruthless? Oh great, let's mistreat him but continue to let him grow up in our house. What could possibly go wrong?
Maybe this is a deliberate move by the author (I've never read any of her other works) and most of the male leads grew up in a negligent/abusive environment, so it's not too unexpected that their worldview is very constrained, but I would also argue that once you go into society and meet more people/climb up the hierarchy, surely your perception would expand? But I feel like everyone continues to behave as though they still live within the tight four walls of the back house (后宅) they grew up in and all the know is to fight tooth and nail to get the attention of their elders in order to one up the other random relative.
Technically, it's a HE but let's be honest, other than the first ML, i don't think the other MLs got a happy ending. Okay, I guess we can argue and say that the third ML got a decent ending. In that line of thought, we can also say the second ML didn't get too bad of an ending but compared to all of them, he definitely got the short end of the stick.
The fact that I've managed to read the entire novel without skipping or giving up, despite hating the characters' behaviours, gets this book a 2 stars. There are moments where I cried but I'm just overly emphathetic. Would not re-read this.
I don't think i've detested a FL this immediate on a first read.
Maybe i'm being too rational but I really dislike it when conflicts are deliberately created by omission of information. Plus her "soft-heartedness" that literally exposes her not once, not twice, but THREE FREAKING TIMES? And then she gets all entangled with other men and isn't even smart enough to hide it from the first ML, I swear, I just feel pity for the first ML at this point because i actually truly believe that the FL is doing these on purpose to torture him. Sure, ALL the men love her 'cause she's kind but let's be honest, there's a thick line between being kind and being foolish/作死。
To be fair, everyone's downright annoying. I don't get why everyone, old or young, men or women, is soooo narrow-minded. I want her? Let me hold her against her will, force myself on her, and she'll definitely fall head over heels in love. This idiot pissed me off? No problemo, let me explicitly give them a hard time and then do absolutely nothing to prevent them from taking revenge down the road or even bother to hide my tracks. This kid has shown to be ruthless? Oh great, let's mistreat him but continue to let him grow up in our house. What could possibly go wrong?
Maybe this is a deliberate move by the author (I've never read any of her other works) and most of the male leads grew up in a negligent/abusive environment, so it's not too unexpected that their worldview is very constrained, but I would also argue that once you go into society and meet more people/climb up the hierarchy, surely your perception would expand? But I feel like everyone continues to behave as though they still live within the tight four walls of the back house (后宅) they grew up in and all the know is to fight tooth and nail to get the attention of their elders in order to one up the other random relative.
Technically, it's a HE but let's be honest, other than the first ML, i don't think the other MLs got a happy ending. Okay, I guess we can argue and say that the third ML got a decent ending. In that line of thought, we can also say the second ML didn't get too bad of an ending but compared to all of them, he definitely got the short end of the stick.
The fact that I've managed to read the entire novel without skipping or giving up, despite hating the characters' behaviours, gets this book a 2 stars. There are moments where I cried but I'm just overly emphathetic. Would not re-read this.
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