SakuraNet Comments Section
[Guys, is it weird that I—a grown man—cried over this episode?]
[Same here. I was watching with my girlfriend, and she got so angry she started cussing out the screenwriter.]
[Why does their relationship have to be this tragic?! Can't the writer act normal for once?]
[I feel awful. I couldn't sleep at all after watching it.]
[Lu Shi and Yi Hua's parting. Shen Buyan kneeling to Lu Yuan, acknowledging her status as Empress, just to stabilize the chaos… This episode completely drained me.]
[But to be fair, this episode really deepened the characters. A female lead who only cares about love is second-rate. Lu Yuan loves Shen Buyan more than her own life—but the people of Sheng Nation matter more to her. That is what makes her a truly great female lead. Compared to her, most romance drama heroines are garbage.]
[And Shen Buyan's amazing, too! As much as it hurt him that Lu Yuan became Empress—choosing a fate where she dies ten years later—he didn't throw a fit or try to change her mind. He supported her decision immediately. That's a hundred times better than those useless male leads we usually get.]
[Everyone has values they'd die for. This episode really showed the protagonists' convictions.]
"It hurt so bad… but honestly, this was probably the best episode of the series so far.]
[I don't care. Why can't they just have a happy ending?!]
[It's all the writer Su Yan's fault. He's the one controlling their fates. It's him.]
[Su Yan, you old villain, are you lurking in the forum comments right now?]
[Don't panic yet! Shen Buyan still has two time-travel chances left. He failed to change history the second time—but maybe the third time will work!]
[Exactly. Changing Lu Yuan's fate is the main plot. If history truly can't be changed, then what's the point of the rest of the series?]
[Don't be so naive! Have you forgotten the tragedy of 'Rurouni Kenshin: Trust & Betrayal'? Su Yan and Shinozaki Ikumi aren't to be trusted!]
[Is this whole show going to end in vain?]
[Stop talking—I'm getting nervous.]
[Shen Buyan only has two chances left. He has to use them to help Lu Yuan defeat Li Yong. Only then can she give up her obsession with Sheng Nation and choose to live a peaceful life with him.]
[But what if… what if he never uses the time travel again? What if he really just stays here with her, fights Li Yong, and lives out his life with her as Empress, him as her official?]
[If that's the ending, I will hate Su Yan and Shinozaki Ikumi forever. Mark my words.]
[A lot of people said the same thing two weeks ago, but look at them—still watching.]
[I can't take this anymore. I'm going to Sakura TV's official website to put pressure on the writing and production team. Let's go demand that Su Yan doesn't give this show a tragic ending!]
[Count me in!]
[Me too!]
[Unchangeable fate? What a joke. If we can influence Su Yan enough, we can even get him to make Lu Yuan ascend to immortality. Fate? Please.]
Su Yan woke up, stretched, and, like always, checked the audience comments for last night's 'An Ancient Love Song' episode.
But within a minute, he closed the browser.
He had expected a flood of criticism.
But seeing thousands of posts calling him names still made his heart skip a beat.
"Well… getting cursed out is one thing. But Xia Nation's audience is sharp."
He glanced again at 'An Ancient Love Song''s rating on SakuraNet.
9.3.
It had risen—again—overnight.
Anger or not, this meant the viewers weren't hating the show, only the writer.
In fact, the emotionally devastating events of last night's episode had clearly moved a lot of viewers—that was why the rating went up.
Early in the morning, Gu Qingyuan was eating breakfast at a local shop when she was recognized by a group of fans.
"Lu Yuan! Lu Yuan!" they called, asking for autographs.
Walking into the film base in the outskirts of Hudu, she was greeted by many staff members along the way.
Even if they weren't part of the 'An Ancient Love Song' crew, they still knew her.
After all, when a drama breaks 2% ratings and enters the weekly Top 20, its lead actress becomes a recognizable name in the industry.
People in this circle were highly sensitive to trends—it wasn't surprising they'd recognize Gu Qingyuan.
Still, she felt a bit… unreal.
Just months ago, nobody in showbiz had known her name.
Arriving at the set, she spotted Shinozaki Ikumi, Shi Peihua, and Su Yan from afar, huddled together, going over the ratings for episode five.
2.49%. It's gone up again," Shinozaki Ikumi said, taking a deep breath, trying to calm her excitement—but failing.
"With these numbers, 'An Ancient Love Song' might squeeze into the Top 15 this week. Maybe even rank 15th if we're lucky," Shi Peihua said, pulling out a chart.
It listed all the dramas that had aired in Xia Nation the previous week.
The show currently at No.16 had a 2.48% rating.
"We're not far from the top ten now," Shinozaki muttered, dazed.
In the beginning, her goal had only been 1.4% and a top 30 rank.
Now, they were nearly at 2.5%.
"Still," Su Yan added, "that's partially because this season's lineup is weak overall."
"If this were any of the past few quarters, 2.5% would barely put us in the Top 20. But this season, 2.5% might be Top 15."
"Exactly. Just last year's autumn season had one show break 5%, and two others over 4%," Shi Peihua said.
"But that's the entertainment industry. After a slump, there's always a bounce. Every year or two, you'll see one or two breakout hits. Still, our job is to focus on this season. That's our battlefield."
"Even if ratings plateau starting next week," Shinozaki said, "just surpassing 'Night Sakura' is already a huge win for us."
"The Production Department will take a serious look at our potential—the trio of Su Yan, me, and Aunt Shi. If we pitch new projects in the future, we won't have to beg for funding like before."
Her eyes reddened as she looked at Su Yan, teary with emotion.
These past two months, she had been surviving on less than five hours of sleep per day.
But now—it was worth it.
This was the power of working with the right writer.
Two years of wandering through the network had brought her nothing.
Half a year with Su Yan—and everything changed.
For the first time, she could prove herself to her peers and critics.
She was a competent producer.
Give her funding, and she could run a tight production.
Her previous two flops? Blame the unreliable writers and directors.
Su Yan hesitated.
He wasn't used to emotional scenes like this.
But when he saw the tears in Shinozaki Ikumi's eyes, he handed her a tissue and tried to play it cool.
"If you're crying over these numbers… maybe save it for later."
The two women looked up at him.
"Because this is just the beginning. 'An Ancient Love Song' won't stop here."
"It'll keep rising—and it will pass 'Night Sakura'. It'll break into the Top Ten. And maybe…" he paused, looking at them,
"...maybe even higher."
"I can't prove it right now, but time—and the show's final results—will say everything."
"We're not even halfway through the autumn season yet."
The set fell quiet.
A long pause followed.
Then, Shinozaki Ikumi, Shi Peihua, and Gu Qingyuan—who had been listening from nearby—all lifted their heads.
Their expressions shifted—now filled with contemplation.
In each of their hearts, Su Yan's words had planted a new seed:
Ambition.
Autumn Season, Week 5 – Rankings held steady.
'The Painted One' – No.1
'Lone Doctor' – No.2
'The Gilded Ones' – No.3
'Night Sakura' – holding firm at No.11
But 'An Ancient Love Song'—aired in the Sunday midnight slot—had climbed from 1.38% to 2.49%, and from 27th place to 16th in just four episodes.
Its score on SakuraNet had risen from 9.0 to 9.3, now beating out all three A-tier dramas and claiming the #1 rating of the season.
All this sent a clear message to drama fans across Xia Nation:
'An Ancient Love Song' was a show buried by its unfortunate timeslot.
Its comments section might be full of rage directed at Su Yan—
But no one criticized the plot. No one attacked the characters.
That proved how much they loved the story.
Their fury at Su Yan came from love.
Once the media's narrative begins to shift, it's no longer up to individuals to control it.
In the past week, An 'Ancient Love Song's paid viewership on SakuraNet exploded.
It had overtaken both 'Night Sakura' and 'Under the Blue Sky!', surpassing their average paid views of 3.5 to 3.9 million per episode.
Now, 'An Ancient Love Song' was pulling in 4.6 million per episode—second only to A-tier juggernaut 'The Gilded Ones' with its 5.3 million.
Given that these shows already aired on TV, the number of people still willing to pay to rewatch online was impressive.
Between new fans and rewatchers, pulling four to five million was no joke.
The spike in ratings and paid views shook Sakura TV.
Back when Akasaka Yoshitoki had greenlit this timeslot for 'An Ancient Love Song', he'd justified it by saying it would "revitalize Sunday midnight viewership."
But everyone knew—it was just revenge.
Akasaka had been mad that the show took budget away from 'Night Sakura'.
This was payback.
But now?
It looked like the show might actually do exactly that.
And if it kept performing this well, well, it was going to hurt Akasaka's pride.
A Production Department deputy who couldn't suppress a rookie writer?
Zero credibility.
The situation had even caught the attention of industry insiders at Hudu TV and Zhongxia TV.
Word of Akasaka's feud with newcomer Su Yan had spread.
A lot of people were loving the drama behind the drama.
And most of them sided with Su Yan.
After all, in every workplace, people naturally root against their bosses.
Who knew that, alongside the regular fall season lineup, there'd be such a juicy office drama playing out in real life?
October passed. November arrived.
Another Sunday night.
By now, people in the Xia Nation TV industry—reviewers, critics, journalists—weren't just focused on the 8:00 p.m. airing of episode five of 'Lone Doctor'.
Their attention was also locked on what would happen right after midnight—
Episode six of 'An Ancient Love Song'.
Would the ratings climb again?
Would they fall?
This was only Su Yan's second project after his short-form debut.
Could he handle the long-form structure?
Could he keep the momentum and maintain that 9.3 rating until the very end?