Bu Bu Jing Xin 《步步惊心》 - Nicky Wu, Liu Shi Shi, Kevin Cheng, Yuan Hong

[Plushie]

Well, I haven't read the book, but I read on tieba that modern day Ruo Xi is 25 and when she travels back in time, she's like 16? I mean, why couldn't she go for 13th and 14th - single guys, military men (so definitely lean and buff), and not old enough to be her dad?!!

Both 13th and 14th have multiple wives... So they are definitely not single! XD. People generally marry young back then and as princes you really have no say in regards to your marriages, especially your first wife. Also, when Ruo Xi goes back in time, 8th was around 22-23 and 4th was 26, so the age gap isn't that bad. It's as the story progresses do they age to 40s while Ruo Xi ages to 30s.

This is why I actually support Tangren for hiring older actors. They fit historical facts and have the maturity needed for the characters better than younger actors hired for only looks.

[kengyew]

Really? I don't have time to read the novel. So when the story starts, 13th & 14th are like 10? And how long does the story dwell on the time 4th & 8th are in their 20s, when Yuan Hong's 13th appears in at least 26 (out of 35) episodes? Oooh, so all the pictures we are seeing here is of LSS playing a 30-something character and Yuan Hong & Lin Gengxin's characters are a couple of years younger than her?

They should have gotten Charlie Yeung to play Ruo Xi instead. Since according to Karen Cai, Yuan Hong is appearing in 26 episodes (and when she said that, she was planning for 30 episodes which was later changed to 35 episodes), LSS is aged mid-30s in at least 26 episodes. Then I'd say LSS is a complete miscast.

Sure, they hired older actors as 4th & 8th. But LSS as a 35-year-old in majority of the series????

[Ren Ying Ying]

Really? I don't have time to read the novel. So when the story starts, 13th & 14th are like 10? And how long does the story dwell on the time 4th & 8th are in their 20s, when Yuan Hong's 13th appears in 26 (out of 35) episodes? Oooh, so all the pictures we are seeing here is of LSS playing a 30-something character and Yuan Hong & Lin Gengxin's characters are a couple of years younger than her?

They should have gotten Charlie Yeung to play Ruo Xi instead.

I think I read somewhere that the main character starts off in her 20s during modern time, but when she goes back in time and becomes the actual Luoxi, she actually becomes a kid/teenager...so she loses a few years.

[Plushie]

Really? I don't have time to read the novel. So when the story starts, 13th & 14th are like 10? And how long does the story dwell on the time 4th & 8th are in their 20s, when Yuan Hong's 13th appears in 26 (out of 35) episodes? Oooh, so all the pictures we are seeing here is of LSS playing a 30-something character and Yuan Hong & Lin Gengxin's characters are a couple of years younger than her?

They should have gotten Charlie Yeung to play Ruo Xi instead.

Lol. No they are not 10. When Ruo Xi first meets the princes, the 4th Prince is 26, 8th is around 22-23, 13th is around 17-18, and 14th is around 15-16. Ruo Xi is also not 30s for the entirety of the book, only at the end. The novel itself spans a large number of years so all the characters age accordingly depending on the time.

[xiaolong]

They should have gotten Charlie Yeung to play Ruo Xi instead. Since according to Karen Cai, Yuan Hong is appearing in 26 episodes (and when she said that, she was planning for 30 episodes which was later changed to 35 episodes), LSS is aged mid-30s in at least 26 episodes. Then I'd say LSS is a complete miscast.

Sure, they hired older actors as 4th & 8th. But LSS as a 35-year-old in majority of the series????

Hmmm...this doesn't sound right. I'm going to skim thro the (very long) novel over the weekend to find out.

FYI - DON'T use Gong as a basis for the story.

[Plushie]

I think I read somewhere that the main character starts off in her 20s during modern time, but when she goes back in time and becomes the actual Luoxi, she actually becomes a kid/teenager...so she loses a few years.

Yes, the protagonist starts off as a 25 year old woman named Zhang XiaoWen. She basically becomes a young Manchu aristocrat named RuoXi, who is actually 13 in the book, but they are changing it to 16 in the drama. (Probably because 13 is just way too young from a modern perspective)

I guess it's not so much physical time travel but her spirit traveling through time to take over RuoXi's body; if that makes any sense.

[Plushie]

They should have gotten Charlie Yeung to play Ruo Xi instead. Since according to Karen Cai, Yuan Hong is appearing in 26 episodes (and when she said that, she was planning for 30 episodes which was later changed to 35 episodes), LSS is aged mid-30s in at least 26 episodes. Then I'd say LSS is a complete miscast.

Sure, they hired older actors as 4th & 8th. But LSS as a 35-year-old in majority of the series????

Ruo Xi shouldn't be 35 for the majority of the series. The bulk of the book has to do with the time before the 4th Prince becomes the Emperor. Ruo Xi starts off as 13 in the novel, even with the change to 16 in the drama, she would be around 31-34 (depending which age is used) when 4th takes the throne.

This is of course based on if the drama will follow the timeline of the novel and how many episodes they want to dedicate to each section of the timeline. It is possible they want to focus more on the time after 4th becomes the Emperor, in which case, then yes Ruo Xi will be in her 30s.

[xiaolong]

But I'm in the first few pages of the book and 14th Prince is already a 20-something general . Are they following history? Bcos 4th is more than a decade older than 14th.

Awwww...then I'm going to keep wishing Charlie Yeung was Ruo Xi instead since she's much more age appropriate with great acting chops. Miss Nicky & Charlie...memories of Butterfly Lovers

[Plushie]

But I'm in the first few pages of the book and 14th Prince is already a 20-something general of the imperial army . Are they following history? Bcos 4th is more than a decade older than 14th.

Awwww...then I'm going to keep wishing Charlie Yeung was Ruo Xi instead since she's much more age appropriate has even better acting chops & screen presence than LSS. Miss Nicky & Charlie...memories of Butterfly Lovers *sigh*

Are you reading the same story? Bu Bu Jing Xin is often split into parts. The version I read is split into 2 (up and down). You might be reading later parts or the wrong book.

If you can read simplified Chinese:

Bu Bu Jing Xin (Up): http://book.qq.com/s/book/0/4/4850/index.shtml
Bu Bu Jing Xin (Down): http://book.qq.com/s/book/0/4/4851/index.shtml

The book starts off in Kang Xi's 43rd reign year. This is confirmed when the 8th Prince is later described as 22-23 years old. The date and age matches. There is no way 14th is already 20 and a general.

[xiaolong]

I'm reading the actual book in traditional Chinese published in Taiwan in 2009 (sorry, don't like reading a whole novel online) - this book version is also available on YesAsia (see http://www.yesasia.com/global/bu-bu-...0-en/info.html). 14th Prince is already introduced as a 20-something adult in the first chapter. There has been a few editions of the said novel since it first debuted on the Internet in the mid-2000s.

Tangren had said they are working with Tong Hua to adapt the story - so doesn't mean they are following everything word by word. LSS already has scenes with a 20-something 13th Prince (Yuan Hong) very early in the filming - remember Xiao Xiao's posting of the two of them sitting down together for a drink? Tong Hua has also re-written 13th Prince's character for the TV adaptation.

Also, LSS greatest appeal has always been her youthful looks, spirit & exuberance (e.g. Yan San Niang, Mu Nianci, Princess Jiayi). She doesn't have the aura of a worldly-wise mature 30-something like Li Xiaoran or my all-time favourite 1990s actress Charlie Yeung . Don't think Tong Hua would have been so supportive of LSS casting if her age and aura is too way off.

[Plushie]

I'm reading the actual book in traditional Chinese published in Taiwan in 2009 (sorry, don't like reading a whole novel online) - this book version is also available on YesAsia (see http://www.yesasia.com/global/bu-bu-...0-en/info.html). 14th Prince is already introduced as a 20-something adult in the first chapter. There has been a few editions of the said novel since it first debuted on the Internet in the mid-2000s.

Tangren had said they are working with Tong Hua to adapt the story - so doesn't mean they are following everything word by word. LSS already has scenes with a 20-something 13th Prince (Yuan Hong) very early in the filming - remember Xiao Xiao's posting of the two of them sitting down together for a drink? Tong Hua has also re-written 13th Prince's character for the TV adaptation.

Also, LSS greatest appeal has always been her youthful looks, spirit & exuberance (e.g. Yan San Niang, Mu Nianci, Princess Jiayi). She doesn't have the aura of a worldly-wise mature 30-something like Li Xiaoran or my all-time favourite 1990s actress Charlie Yeung . Don't think Tong Hua would have been so supportive of LSS casting if her age and aura is too way off.

Honestly, I've always found LSS more mature than her actual age, so I'm sure she'll do fine =D. The book itself does't really put too much emphasis on the ages of characters anyhow, so I don't think it'll be too much of a problem.

[xiaolong]

Well, yes, agree that her attitude towards her work is mature and professional, but she looks sooo early 20s or younger in all the pics. I can't envisage her playing a 30-something character.

<After reading more> OK, sorry, I'm assuming too much that 13th & 14th are 20-something at the beginning of the book bcos they are both so adult-like to me. But yeah, they are probably teenagers (same age as Ruoxi) and in those days, people are already considered adults by age 15.

How the times have changed. 15-year-old boys are kids in today's world!

Poor Nicky and LSS had to start work again on the second day of Chinese New Year (I'd die if I had to do that!) and YH only spent 3 days in Wuhan with his folks before flying back to Hengdian tomorrow to work.
Latest entry on Bu Bu weibo:
现场花絮预告：四爷@吴奇隆 穿睡衣了...若曦@刘诗诗 晚上也要穿睡衣了...
4th and Ruoxi are changing into their...errr...pyjamas. Oh my, don't tell me there's really going to be a Nicky-LSS bed scene.

[munianci]

Everyone in China now reads novels online. Only the most popular novels get to be published as hard copy books.

From what I've read in Bu Bu, the ages of the key characters when the novel first starts are:
4th Prince - 26
8th Prince - 23
13th Prince - 17
14th Prince - 15
Ruoxi - 13

Yup, 13th and 14th are regarded as adult "men" grown-up enough to commandeer armies, and not "boys", even though they are below legal drinking age & R-rated movie age limit. Ruoxi is way below the age of consent

I'm not looking forward to any Nicky-LSS bed scene OMG...is she going to have a hot passionate kiss with Nicky like she had with YH in LOCH? I can watch that kind of kiss with Kevin but not with Mr Penguin. Too bad YH is still in Wuhan and not around to watch

[Plushie]

4th and Ruoxi are changing into their...errr...pyjamas. Oh my, don't tell me there's really going to be a Nicky-LSS bed scene.

Oh yes! I look forward to see how they film that scene. Although I don't know why, I only envision awkwardness when I think of Nicky and LSS together in their PJs. haha.

[Plushie]

I can watch that kind of kiss with Kevin but not with Mr Penguin.

Oh don't worry, there should be plenty of kisses with Kevin if you are looking forward to that. :P

[kengyew]

Oh yes! I look forward to see how they film that scene. Although I don't know why, I only envision awkwardness when I think of Nicky and LSS together in their PJs. haha.

Yeah, LSS & Nicky together in PJs will just CRACK ME UP

Wow, I'm 15 and my Mom kicked up a huge fuss when I wanted to go to Hanoi for a school Geography trip. I can imagine my Mom seeing Lin Gengxin acting all adult-like onscreen and shouting, "Hey kid, you are only 15!" But yeah, guess we have to suspend our knowledge about their ages.

[xiaolong]

From what I've read in Bu Bu, the ages of the key characters when the novel first starts are:
4th Prince - 26
8th Prince - 23
13th Prince - 17
14th Prince - 15
Ruoxi - 13

Yeah, you & Plushie are right! That said, Bu Bu is a lot more absorbing than I thought.

Sorry, I just kept thinking of the actors' looks - YH & Lin Gengxin look sooo in their 20s. When I think of 15/17-year-olds, I think of popcorn-munching, skateboarding responsibility-free kids with ears plugged to their iPods.

I think in the TV adaptation, they are adding 3 years to all the ages:
4th - 29
8th - 26
13th - 20
14th - 18
Ruoxi - 16
Now that looks a little bit more right . Kevin can pass off in the 25-29 age bracket, but Nicky? Hmmm...

[TiffTiff]

Thank you so much for all of the pictures, news, and updates xiaolong, liu xiao xiao, swzanlaydee, and anyone else I might have left out. These thread will not be possible without your updates!

Where is the pix of Nicky and LSS in pj? I don't see it ????

So LSS will have a love triangle w/ both Kevin and Nicky, but end up married to the 14th prince? And Nicky (4th) prince will become king, right? I assume when Nicky becomes king, he will kill Kevin (the 8th prince) off?

So LSS will stay married to the 14th prince and that's all to it? Who does she love though? I'm hoping for Kevin

[Liu Xiao Xiao]

Ruoxi stealing food

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[Plushie]

Yeah, you & Plushie are right! That said, Bu Bu is a lot more absorbing than I thought.

Sorry, I just kept thinking of the actors' looks - YH & Lin Gengxin look sooo in their 20s. When I think of 15/17-year-olds, I think of popcorn-munching, skateboarding responsibility-free kids with ears plugged to their iPods.

I think in the TV adaptation, they are adding 3 years to all the ages:
4th - 29
8th - 26
13th - 20
14th - 18
Ruoxi - 16
Now that looks a little bit more right . Kevin can pass off in the 25-29 age bracket, but Nicky? Hmmm...

I was under the impression that only Ruo Xi's age will change, because it will probably be a bit unacceptable for the general public for a 13 year old to have hand holding scenes etc etc. lol. Plus, LSS looks young, but it will be stretching it even for her to start off as 13 year old. XD

The story spans across approximately 22 years. If they are keeping it the same in the drama, I don't think it would be too much of a problem for both Nicky or Kevin since both of their characters should be mainly in their 30s - 40s for the duration of the series.