HIDDEN LOVE

This drama started a bit dragging for me. I persisted in watching though because Zhao Lusi and Chen Zhe Yuan. For those who are into Chinese dramas, I know I need explain how good these two main leads are.

Anyway, on the 7th episode my efforts paid off. I could not stop crying. My tears felt like torrents of rain. I can literally feel the pain our Sang Zhi must have been feeling at that moment. When she sobbed, I pitifully sobbed even louder. So funny, I know. It's not that I have had a similar experience before but all of us who have been through relationships and heartbreaks would know how difficult it is to manage emotional upheavals. How much more so if you have to hide the truth because it is too complicated and shameful to explain. What she did right after was something more of us can relate to. Letting go or keeping out of sight the things that would remind us of the person we want to forget is a process that we need to endure so we can move on.

Then scenes become a bit boring again but then you would suddenly be ticked pink by their chemistry and sweet gestures. This story seems to have a knack at manipulating the viewer's feelings. The seemingly bland details only amplify the intense ones.

I also enjoyed watching the interplay of friendships in this series. How people get close while sharing a dorm during college and eventually develop lasting friendships. Some become partners in business or become in-laws. This made me realize how important the people we meet in school would turn out to be for the rest of our lives. It is imperative therefore to really choose the people you would want to surround yourself with from the start. This is not to say that we need to be snobbish or discriminatory. We just need to make sure that the people we give time and attention to share our values and aspirations. We need to ensure that we will be able to uplift each other rather than bring each other down. This is to explicitly say that we need people in our lives who can bring out the magic and not the madness in us.

Kudos also to the parental characters in this series. Although we have different sets of parents who would greatly influence who we will turn out to be, it is ultimately our choice on how to respond to our circumstances. Our main leads have sets of parents that are polar opposites but they both turn out to be good people. Duan Jiaxu's character is especially impressive in that he was able to overcome all the setbacks in his family alone. He did not give in to self-pity but instead strove hard to make a future for himself and the family he will build with Sang Zhi.

The plot is actually very simple and totally relatable. The characters are well built and the casting is really good. I would certainly recommend this to everyone who wants to relive the bittersweet feeling of love and how important it is to fight for what and who you really want.

Just a word of caution- tissues. Prepare lots and lots of it especially during certain episodes that I will not mention anymore (sorry for the 7th that was mentioned already) because spoilers. You won't regret spending time on this. Just gazing at these two stars will make you feel young and giddy again.