Cheng Huan Ji (2024)

UNRAVELING FAMILY TIES

Wow, this drama was quite the emotional rollercoaster! From the get-go, I found myself rooting for Mai Chenghuan—a hardworking and diligent woman who seems to always be caught in the web of other people's schemes and manipulations.

Her relationship with Xin Jialiang was so frustrating! Imagine dating someone for three years and not knowing he's the heir to a massive company, only for him to lie about it repeatedly. It’s hard to watch someone like Chenghuan, who gives so much of herself, constantly be let down by the people she loves. Jialiang's love for her is obvious, but his inability to stand up to his family and speak out for her was disappointing. And don’t get me started on his sister, Xin Jiali! The way she tried to sabotage their relationship just because Chenghuan didn’t meet their financial expectations was infuriating.

And then, there’s Yao Zhiming, her boss. From firing her unjustly to using her to his advantage, Zhiming is a complex character. At times, I couldn't tell if he genuinely cared for Chenghuan or was just manipulating her for his own gain. It’s exhausting to navigate his intentions. Still, I have to give him credit for his eventual growth. He goes from being this cold, calculating businessman to someone who genuinely starts to care for the people around him.

But let’s talk about Chenghuan’s family dynamics. Her mother, Liu Wanyu, was hands down one of the most frustrating characters! The constant pressure to marry into wealth, the way she bulldozes over Chenghuan’s desires, and her embarrassing behavior whenever she’s in fancy settings—it was almost unbearable. It’s like she couldn’t see how her actions were tearing Chenghuan apart. And where was Chenghuan's father, Mai Laitian, through all this? Just passively watching everything unfold, never stepping in to support his daughter or check his wife. It was beyond frustrating.

The tension reached its peak during that disastrous engagement banquet. Honestly, I was proud of Chenghuan for finally standing up to both Jialiang’s family and her own. It was a long time coming, and seeing her take control of her life felt empowering. The fact that she was tricked into an engagement she didn’t even know about was outrageous. I was livid alongside her! And Liu Wanyu threatening to disown her—what mother does that? It’s clear that Chenghuan’s breaking point had arrived, and I was so glad when she finally moved out.

Chenghuan’s professional life was just as messy. The constant scheming at Botticelli, the backstabbing from Wu You, and the setups by Zhiming were too much. But watching Chenghuan persist, despite everything, was inspiring. She’s got this quiet strength, even when everyone around her is trying to use her. I particularly loved how she handled Wu You’s framing, standing firm even when the odds were against her. Her eventual decision to leave Botticelli and work elsewhere, only for Zhiming to follow her and try to make amends, showed just how deeply he regretted his actions.

The drama didn’t shy away from the harsh realities of societal expectations either, especially with Chenghuan’s brother Chengzao. His struggles as a law graduate from a non-prestigious school and the way his family’s issues overshadowed his own dreams hit close to home. I admired his quiet resilience, even when he took up a food delivery job just to make ends meet. The love story between him and Mao Yongxin was subtle, but I appreciated how it slowly grew over time, despite the challenges they faced.

By the end of the drama, I felt like I’d been through the wringer. Chenghuan’s journey from a people-pleaser who constantly bent to the wills of others to a strong, independent woman was truly satisfying. And while Zhiming finally learned to treat people with respect, it took a lot of pain and heartache to get there. Their relationship was one that I grew to appreciate, especially since it didn’t feel rushed or forced—they both needed time to grow individually.

But Liu Wanyu… I never really warmed up to her, even with her illness arc. The way she wallowed in self-pity and tried to control everything until the end was just too much. It was frustrating to see her drag her sickness out as a plot device when, frankly, I was more interested in Chenghuan’s development and her work with Xing’anli.

In the end, this drama was a whirlwind of emotions. It dealt with class struggles, family obligations, love, and betrayal. While some characters tested my patience (I’m looking at you, Liu Wanyu), the heart of the story—Chenghuan’s resilience—made it all worth it. The soundtrack was fine, though nothing particularly memorable for me. Overall, the drama was a solid ride, full of twists and heartfelt moments, but also plenty of frustration with the meddling and manipulation that Chenghuan had to endure.

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Good possibilities but ...

it all ended up being so disappointing with the mother being the central part of the show.

The two couples were great. I love the development of both relationships. Individual growth was also nice to see. Overall, I was hooked as long as I fast-forwarded the mom's parts and the spineless dad, I was fine.

The problem for me began when FL & ML got together and it wasn't her mom but now other family members came into the scene. Like what kind of toxicity are we justifying in the name of family? I know families like that exist but I can't...

I absolutely hated the narrative of family they were trying to push down our throats. I'm all for forgiving when there are disagreements but come on, some people are bad even if they're your family. Just trying to keep the peace because you share blood is toxic IMO. If I'm going to sacrifice about 37 hours of mine to your show, that's not the type of narrative I want to waste my time watching.

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Worth the watch!!

I actually completed a long time ago but its still a great watch! The story line is great, every character has something to say and the script writers did a great job, other than that the acting is fabulous both the leads did a great job in portraying their role, not only the leads but the parents, friend and sibling all did great. its a very realistic drama i would say and say's a lot about the Asian culture at first i didn't except anything i would say but by the last episode i was bawling my eyes out on how retainable the drama is! I would definitely watch it, i do think the overall rating didn't do justice on how good the drama actually is.

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Dysfunctional families

This is my first time watching both Yang Zi and Xu Kai in a contemporary drama. Their acting was convincing, and kept the plot going. In general, the supporting actors also did a credible job.

Ranking;
#1 Dysfunctional Family Mai... Mother
#2 Dysfunctional Family Xin ... Son, Daughter, Father, Mother
#3 Dysfunctional Family Yao ... Father

MAI family
Mother Liu Wanyu was overbearing and controlling, but she was emphatic and kindhearted occasionally. She was the nucleus of the Mai family. Her husband Mai, son Zao and daughter Huan were her satellites. The drama should have been named Story of Wanyu since she seemed to dominate the plot. The actress should have been attributed a Main Lead designation.

XIN family
A privileged family of four, lacking in ethics, but full of arrogance and condescension. Son was too clingy, trying to manipulate Mai Cheng Huan. Daughter was psychotic and condescending. Mother and Father were calculating.

YAO family
Ex-convict Mr Yao had his fifteen minutes of fame. The day he grew a conscience, was the day he died. That was cold, Scriptwriter! Yao should have lived, reside permanently at Xing Anli, and work as a host. Son Yao Zhiming realized too late that his father had redemption.

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If Mother/Daughter Dramas are you're thing, this is the one for you...

I loved this drama because of its heartfelt messages of love and family unity in helping to face the difficulties of life and family strife. These messages are conveyed in the story of Mai Chenghuan, who has dreams of excelling in her career, but has a well-meaning and controlling mother who gets in her way.

I think this drama hits home for many women, young and old, who've had moms like this. They work hard all their lives taking care of you and wanting what's best for you, but just can't seem to make the transition from raising their children, to being hands-off companions to their adult children. They get caught in the push/pull of what they believe will make their children happy instead of listening to what they actually need, making them horribly unhappy because they've grown used to being in control. This is where our story begins.

The mother/daughter leads are played masterfully by Yang Zi, as Mai Chenghuan, and veteran actress, He Sai Fei, as Liu Wanyu. These two actresses were phenomenal together. They took us into their tumultuous relationship, making us cry with their heart-breaking fights and making us cry again when they make up. They got their characters down pat and brought them to life on-screen. What an honor I can imagine it must have been for Yang Zi to work alongside such a talented actress that is He Sai Fei. I could see right off that she took all her younger counterparts to unimaginable heights. My hat is off to the director for guiding them all to go further in their performances. The ensemble cast were all wonderful as the Mai family. They felt like a very real family, supporting each other in good times and in bad. It is no wonder then that Yao Zhiming, wants so badly to be a part of it?

Xu Kai, as Yao Ziming, is the quiet loner who slowly becomes entangled with Mai Chenghuan and her family life. They both share a very important person in their lives and she is instrumental in teaching them that nothing is more important than love for family and doing what is right. She gently guides Yao to become more free and less transactional, employing the efforts of Mai Chenghuan in her endeavors. I was very impressed with Xu Kai's understated performance. He could be the cold CEO, but you could see that he had a big heart and that he was guarding it, not willing to give it away until he was ready. I appreciated that about his performance. He understood his character completely. That inner monologue was present and you don't always get that in less seasoned actors. He was alive, a rock for Chenghuan, but vulnerable at the same time. The rawness of his need for a family was palpable. All I can say is the noodle scene. Without giving anything away, that was the moment he won me over as an actor.

The weakest areas of the plot were at the beginning. The first few episodes felt disjointed and slow. I think the drama was still trying to find its footing and those first 12 episodes could have done with less cliches.

In a forest of Chinese dramas full of young, handsome romantic leads and cliche plots, this was a diamond in the rough because it doesn't just dwell on romance. There is much more going on and that is a good thing. Even the secondary romantic couple is well written and doesn't detract from the main couple or the principal situations. I highly recommend this one for viewers who like slice of life dramas, or want more going on than just the romance.

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Its good but very exaggerated mother daughter duo

I am very confused with this drama honestly.i watched it for xu kai, but ended up watching till the end. i just hated the exaggeration of a mothers obsession towards her children. i kind of did not like the unprofessionalism where a mother can randomly enter a daughter's office meeting and say to have lunch. They were a lot of unattractive points in the drama. but above all the ML and FL has carried the drama beautifully. Even FL's brother and Ex boyfriend did a good job projecting the relationship. It was sensible for a mother to be noisy in a daughter's relationship but it was really really not acceptable for a mother to be noisy in professional fields. I have a lot of mixed feelings towards this drama. Its a family drama with very weird obsessions. The granny was the best among everything.

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Oh so boring! :(

Unfortunately, yes. The trailers and reels would make you think it’s a romance story between Yangzi and Xukai, but it’s really not.

The drama revolves around Mai Chenghuan and her family, centering on her relationship with her mother. The mother has a really annoying character where she talks too much and constantly interferes with other people lives. Too much screen time were given to both the parents which I did not enjoy. The other couple which is her best friend and little brother also did not interest me one bit.

The first half focused mainly on the FL relationship with her bf of 3 years, whom she didn’t know was the son of a very wealthy family. Somehow forced to get married, she finds there’s too many differences in their social status and creates conflict with the future mother and sister in law. These scenes were so frustrating to watch. And her own mother never learns- even after breaking off the relationship, she secretly held an engagement party , tricked her to attend it and it was SUCH A MESS!

After that it gets boring, a grandma dies, she inherits a hotel and navigates her way to run the hotel, whilst getting closer to xukai and liking him… really not that interesting.

So unfortunately will be dropping this. I just fast forward too too much just to get to their kiss scene in ep26- and even that was a lack of chemistry and let down. Definitely not recommended.

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Mai ChengHuan's growth to independence

TLDR: If you've read the discussions on Viki and MDL, you will have seen the overbearing, annoying and toxic mom labels. I won't deny that the mother was portrayed very well by actress He Sai Fei. And many people who are unfamiliar with Asian culture may not understand her portrayal, so they dropped the series because of her, even though she eventually strives to understand her children better, and they reach an understanding. Also, if you're just expecting a RomCom, this series is not for you.

This drama is more about family life and the relationships between the family members. Not many of us will have the economic background as the Mai family, who are living in government housing, and where the parents' big dream is for the government to demolish their building so they can collect the relocation money and move to the suburbs. Mr. and Mrs. Mai have sacrificed enough to be able to send their two children to college, and ChengZao had scholarships while also tutoring while attending school. He's in his early 20s and still sleeps on a cot in their living room. Older sister ChengHuan is 29 and diligently works in the hotel industry. She wants to be independent and to be able to alleviate her parents' difficult life. As her mom increasingly interferes with her life, the fragile balance between filial piety and independence breaks, leading to a public row between her and her mom.

Things I liked:
- the very gradual and realistic change in the relationship between Yao ZhiMing and Mai ChengHuan. They started off on the wrong foot. From my perspective, he fell first but could only support her without her knowing about it.
- Yao ZhiMing and Mai ChengHuan being there for each other, physically present and emotionally available, was the most romantic thing. Viewers define romance differently. Some go for the big ring, flowers, chocolate. Me - someone to hold me when I'm down and someone to listen so I can hear myself think.
- ChengHuan's journey growing up with an overbearing mom to being able to speak up for herself, not second-guessing herself, but being able to stand up for herself was a joy to behold.
- the friendship between siblings ChengHuan and ChengZao. They're the only ones who know their parents and know what the other is going through.
- the friendship between ChengHuan and MaoMao. They have each other's backs.

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