LayarHijau — On December 2, the historical romance drama Love and Crown (凤凰台上) officially aired its finale. Ren Jialun plays Emperor Xiao Huan, whose body is poisoned by a deadly parasite called Yue Shiyin. It may prolong his life, but it slowly destroys his sanity and turns him into a violent monster.
Spoiler warning: This article contains major spoilers for the ending of Love and Crown. If you haven’t watched the final episodes, proceed with caution.
To stop himself from harming the woman he loves, Xiao Huan guides Ling Cangcang’s (Peng Xiaoran) hand as she holds a dagger and pierces it into his heart. With his final breath, he smiles faintly and whispers, “Don’t be afraid. With you in my life, I have no regrets.” The heartbreaking farewell left viewers in tears.
Since the drama’s premiere, however, its reputation has continued to decline. Many Chinese viewers believe the production was rushed to meet licensing deadlines. It’s also widely rumored that the script wasn’t completed before filming began, forcing the writer to develop the story on set — leading to chaotic plot progression and endless forced misunderstandings.
The show scored only 4.8 on Douban and has been labeled one of the most disappointing costume romances of the year. The finale was originally scheduled for December 8, but the platform moved it up due to the drama’s poor performance.
Despite the backlash, audiences agree that Ren Jialun and Peng Xiaoran delivered strong emotional performances — unfortunately overshadowed by weak production quality and an inconsistent storyline.
In the final episode, Xiao Huan deliberately allows Yue Shiyin to take control of his body to lure out the Holy Maiden of the evil cult. But just when the poison fully invades his mind, Ling Cangcang returns to the palace. He begs her to end his life before he loses control, but she cannot bring herself to do it — until he takes her hand and drives the dagger into his chest. He dies in her arms.
Ling Cangcang is revealed to be pregnant with Xiao Huan’s child. She gives birth and raises their son alone for five years. To honor Xiao Huan’s memory, she performs sword dances on Phoenix Terrace for 49 days. However, her health had been severely damaged years ago due to Du Tingxin’s (Estelle Chen Yihan) schemes, making pregnancy dangerous for her from the beginning. Forcing her body to endure five years leaves her completely drained.
At her final moment, she looks lovingly at her young son, Xiao Ning, urging him to protect the nation in the future. As she smiles softly — as if seeing Xiao Huan waiting for her — she whispers, “Xiao Huan, Cangcang is coming.” She passes away, leaving Xiao Qianqing (Zhang Yao) to assist the young emperor in ascending the throne.
Alongside its tragic conclusion, two major issues have sparked harsh criticism. First, both the male and female leads die — an ending viewers say was designed only to hurt their feelings without narrative purpose. Considering Ling Cangcang survived years after childbirth, many find her sudden death illogical and abrupt.
Second, Du Tingxin — who manipulated the imperial court and even caused the death of Princess Xiao Ying — receives no fitting punishment and is merely imprisoned. Fans are calling the resolution unfair and sloppy.
In the end, Love and Crown suffers from its scattered storytelling, wasting the strong performances of Ren Jialun and Peng Xiaoran that should have been the drama’s biggest strengths.
