The Princess Weiyoung (Chinese: 锦绣未央; pinyin: Jǐnxiù Wèiyāng) is a 2016 Chinese television series starring Tiffany Tang in the title role, alongside Luo Jin, Vanness Wu, Mao Xiaotong and Li Xin'ai. Adapted from the novel The Concubine's Daughter is Poisonous by Qin Jian, it's a fictionalized account of Emperor Wencheng of Northern Wei's reign and Empress Dowager Feng's regency. The series aired on Dragon TV and Beijing TV from November 11 to December 9, 2016.
The series received mixed reviews. It was praised for its fast storyline that showcased the growth of a strong and independent female lead, as well as for fleshing out the background stories of various supporting characters. Viewership ratings reached as high as 2%, making it one of the highest rated drama of 2016. However, it was criticized for its cliché plot devices, illogical plot details, use of excessive and inappropriate makeup, and dubbing of actors' voices. Investigations and a lawsuit showed that the original novel was heavily plagiarized from other similar stories. Nevertheless, the series was nominated for several awards, winning actor and actress awards for both Luo Jin and Tiffany Tang, and the Best Chinese Language Drama award at the 5th Annual DramaFever Awards.
Its spin-off sequel, The Song of Glory, aired in July 2020.
Contents
Synopsis
During the chaotic Northern and Southern dynasties, the Northern Liang's royal family has a princess named Feng Xin'er (Tiffany Tang) who was kind, carefree and loved by all. Chiyun Nan, a marshal from the Chiyun clan of Northern Wei, is driven by greed to overrun Northern Liang and turns it into a bloodbath, massacring the royal family and forcing the Princess to survive on her own.
Li Weiyoung, the daughter of the Prime Minister of Northern Wei by his seventh concubine, shields the Princess from harm. However, Li Weiyoung is killed by the Chiyun family, of which the Prime Minister's wife Chiyun Rou is a member, as they are not pleased when she is recalled to the Prime Minister's Mansion.
Feng Xin'er assumes Li Weiyoung's identity and resides in the mansion, where she is disliked and shunned by her elder half-sister Li Changle and her stepmother Chiyun Rou. She thus takes it upon herself to fight against the Chiyun clan and becomes entangled with Northern Wei's prince, Tuoba Jun (Luo Jin). She also attracts the eye of Tuoba Yu (Vanness Wu) who sees her as a chess piece to be used toward his ultimate goal of becoming emperor. Through her struggles, she gains wisdom and is finally able to find peace for her family while living true to her heart.
Cast
Main
Tiffany Tang as Li Weiyoung / Feng Xin'er
Kind, bright and intelligent, she is a princess of Northern Liang who assumes the identity of Li Weiyoung, the concubine-born daughter of Northern Wei's Prime Minister Li, in order to avenge her own family as well as Li Weiyoung.
Luo Jin as Tuoba Jun, Prince of Gaoyang
Sunny and compassionate, he is the Emperor's favorite grandson as well as the deceased Crown Prince's son. As a result, he is targeted by the Emperor's other sons, Tuoba Han and Tuoba Yu, but he doesn't wish to be involved in politics.
Vanness Wu as Tuoba Yu, Prince of Nan'an
Cunning, ruthless and cold-blooded, he is the Emperor's son whose greatest ambition is to become the emperor.
Mao Xiaotong as Li Changru
Daughter of the second branch of the Li family and Li Weiyoung's younger cousin. Having been oppressed and overshadowed by Li Changle from a young age, she has grown up to be ruthless and hides her hypocritical and scheming nature behind a weak and delicate appearance.
Li Xin'ai as Li Changle
Prime Minister Li's legitimate daughter by Chiyun Rou and Li Weiyoung's elder half-sister. Known as the first beauty of the capital, she is arrogant and selfish, and Li Weiyoung's appearance makes her insecure and jealous.
Supporting
Imperial palace
Canti Lau as Tuoba Tao, Emperor Taiwu of Northern Wei
Wan Meixi as Empress Helian
Ding Ziling as Lu Zhaoyi
Tuoba Yu's mother.
Wang Yujing as Tuoba Huang, Crown Prince Jingmu
Tuoba Jun's deceased father.
Xu Rongzhen as Crown Princess Yujiulü
Tuoba Jun's mother.
Zhang Tianyang as Tuoba Han, Prince of Dongping
Chen Yuqi as Tuoba Di, Princess Shanggu
Hou Ruixiang as Zong Ai
The Emperor's personal eunuch.
Meng Fei as Gao Yun
Rui Weihang as Cheng De
Tuoba Jun's subordinate.
Wu Hong as Cheng An
Tuoba Yu's subordinate.
Zhang Yuechi as Jiang Zuo
Tuoba Han's subordinate.
Guan Shan as Qiu Yi
Personal servant of Crown Princess Yujiulü.
Jiang Zhen as Xiao Linzi
Liu Fenggang as Physician Liu
Original soundtrack
Reception
Ratings
Highest ratings are marked in red, lowest ratings are marked in blue
Controversy
The author of the source novel was involved in a plagiarism case. It was alleged that she used a software to copy hundreds of other works to write her own novel. An alliance formed by 12 writers, including famed wuxia novelist Woon Swee Oan, joined to sue Qin Jian. According to Beijing News, a group of volunteers compared The Concubine's Daughter is Poisonous with more than 200 other novels. They found that out of 294 chapters, only nine chapters were original.
On May 8, 2019, the Chaoyang District People's Court has declared Qin Jian guilty of infringing the works of Shen Wenwen; Qin Jian was fined a total amount of CN¥136,500 ($20,000) for economic loss and intellectual copyright protection to be paid within 10 days of the verdict. Moreover, she must immediately cease sales and distribution of the novel upon the day the sentence was handed down. The scandal was used as an example of popular media plagiarism in a report by CCTV.