This praise and criticism, coupled with the immense attention, caused the popularity of "The Twin Saints of the Great Tang" to explode like New Year's fireworks.
When audiences set aside the sensitive topic of distorted and modified history, and revisited the drama, they were surprised to find that the characters were so full of personality.
Empress Wang's arrogance and willfulness, Consort Xiao's shrewishness, the protagonist Wu Meiniang's resilience and intelligence, Changsun Wuji's cunning and astuteness...
A thousand people, a thousand faces, the brilliance and darkness of human nature intertwined, virtues and flaws coexisting, possessing both good and evil, bursting forth in a dazzling display.
Among them, the greatest contrast naturally came from Tang Gaozong, Li Zhi, played by Jian Zhou.
In previous impressions, Li Zhi was merely a weak and incompetent loser, overshadowed by his father Li Shimin and his wife Empress Wu, unable to find any sense of presence.
But the Li Zhi in the drama, outwardly a cute and adorable puppy, was in reality a wolf who devoured people without spitting out bones, most adept at feigning weakness to deceive the strong.
During Li Shimin's reign, he feigned weakness and filial piety, secretly instigating conflict between his two elder brothers, leading to both being disfavored by Li Shimin and losing their chance at the太子 (Crown Prince) title.
Empress Changsun had only borne three sons. With the two elder brothers disqualified, the太子 position naturally fell to him, the youngest legitimate son.
Upon Li Shimin's death, power was controlled by senior officials, who were also his maternal uncles, such as Changsun Wuji.
Li Zhi continued to play the game of deceiving the strong, appearing harmless on the surface, but in reality, he sowed discord and played favorites, elevating one while denigrating another.
He utilized harem rivalries to trigger court disputes, allowing all those who threatened his power to tear each other apart until they were mutually weakened. Only then did he step in to eliminate them all.
Because Jian Zhou's inherently innocent "puppy dog" face was so deceptive, during his performance, not only the characters within the drama but also the audience outside were easily fooled by him.
When the plot twists occurred and Li Zhi revealed his true nature, the audience was stunned.
"Playing the weak to fool the strong, truly 666!"
"I knew it. A man who dared to have an affair with his stepmother couldn't possibly be a good-for-nothing!"
"This black-hearted innocent, historically the one who issued edicts to have Changsun Wuji, the Empress, and others executed was clearly him, yet all the blame fell on his wife, Empress Wu, while he gained the reputation of a 'benevolent and filial ruler'."
"Zhang Wuji's mother said that the prettier a woman is, the more she lies. It's the same with men. Jian Zhou's face is too deceptive. He looks soft and innocent, but he strikes harder than anyone. As they say, a man's words are like a ghost's deception."
"The cutest face, the cruelest actions. Truly the Empress's husband!"
"So, the question arises: how did Wu Zetian emerge and gradually become Empress, given Li Zhi's intelligence, cunning, deep scheming, and his intense desire for power?"
For a long time, the audience believed Li Zhi and Empress Wu to be a couple with complementary personalities.
Li Zhi was weak, Empress Wu was strong.
Li Zhi was the puppy, Empress Wu was the seductive older sister.
Their personalities were perfectly complementary, hence their thirty-plus years of marital devotion and deep affection.
Now that Li Zhi had transformed into an intelligent and cunning individual, one who would go to any lengths to consolidate his imperial power, how would their love story unfold?
Unlike Jiang Ling, who had seen the entire script and completed the filming, the audience watching the drama, still curious after Li Zhi's departure from his conventional portrayal, wondered how the Empress would conquer him now that he had become assertive and astute.