Rising With the Wind (2023)

One of my favourite contemporary dramas

Rising With The Wind explicitly presents the reality in both the investment and manufacturing industries, and the unruliness that comes with it. It explores the conflict of interest that arises as two people with different nature collides, and also exhibits the difficulty of keeping business and personal life separately.
 
The script writing is compelling. I thoroughly found the dialogues refreshing, and the variety of flawed (or rather dynamic) characters make for a more interesting viewing. The plot knows its theme well and did not go astray into any unnecessary tropes. It gave perfect balance between the following genre: business, romance, and life. The business aspect was intriguing and got me emotionally invested throughout. I enjoyed the flirty banters that the leads had from the beginning, the friendship that they formed while being business partners, and ultimately their seamless progression into being in a relationship. I like the chemistry between the leads, but I had to admit that their relationship was not ideal given their career situation.
 
What I like most about this show was our heroine (Jiang Hu) and her resiliency. She’s smart, capable, passionate about her work, and true to what she believes in. She’s not someone who puts romance first. She sets her priorities straight and someone who could quickly come back up again after every obstacle. SHE’S A QUEEN!
 
The performance of the cast was exceptional. I had a bit of a prejudice with Gong Jun after watching him in The Love Equations. But this drama made me a big fan!  He nailed his acting as the ruthless investor from BaoXing, while on the other hand giving out the most loving expressions after falling in love with Jiang Hu. The portrayal of Chu Xi as Jiang Hu was also amazing -- her natural acting as a fallen heiress was perfect and made me sympathize with her character throughout.
 
I love the friendships that were interwoven with the main characters. These supporting characters were not just there to take up some of the screen time. You could see how they were used as emotional support in multiple ways. Not often do we see such healthy family/friendship/platonic relationships be presented in dramaland, so yes this is very much appreciated.
 
The production quality was above average, and the only problem I had with it (as always with the censorship) was how certain scenes had to be cut, which eventually resulted into awkward scene transitions.
 
Overall, this has been an addicting watch and 40 episodes seemed like nothing! I could see myself rewatching this again some time in the future.

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A Masterpiece of 2023

Best Chinese Drama of 2023.
I am hooked with the story, the chemistry, and the business cases.
Gong Jun as Xu Si and Zhong Chuxi as Jiang Hu are the best decision ever.

Running against the wind. Beginning with Jiang Hu.
When rising with the wind, Zhaoyang will be there for you.

My final points for this drama why I choose this drama as my #1 drama:
1) The drama is as realistic as it can be in C-drama world
2) All scenes are important, not even single scene is some kind of filler
3) The leads have their strengths and weaknesses and have great character development each other
4) The chemistry of the leads are great. Smart and Powerful Couple ever
5) Learning business cases by watching a drama
6) Xu Si is also NOT usual CEO-Type male lead. The finest grey flag man ever. Xu Si yaaaaaaaaa, you’re my top character male lead drama of all time now??
7) The OSTs are superb

Full playlist of this drama : https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Cbaz30HW30w
Compilation of Xu Si and Jiang Hu Best Moments (Part 1) : https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RRKwBU-J8_g

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Masterpiece, award winning worth drama

Masterpiece, the best chinese drama for me so far, even better than similar theme kdramas (start up, maybe?) in terms of closeness to reality, the chemistry of the casts, life lesson and the struggle. I dont watch many chinese dramas nowadays, i watch a lot k dramas and some lakorns, but since i watched cdramas, taiwanese drama since 1990-2000an era (F4 era), i can say that this is the best chinese drama ever. The c dramas i watched before has a lot of fillers boring scene, uncontinuity storyline, unrealistic story, but this one change my mindset of how a good chinese drama can also be made.

Finished watching it and i wish i could erase my memory just to rewatch it over and over again!
Plus points:
- amazing cinematography, aesthetic sceneries, how they shoot the camera angle are at the top notch level
- beautiful soundtracks
- engaging storyline, minimal filler scenes, even almost every little thing means something later
- success story always encourage us and motivating, how our FL never give up
- plot twists, and many of it, story telling runs smoothly consistent
- chemistry between the lead, the flirting, both of ML and FL are bad ass in nature
- ML and FL visuals....clothes..who would argue with this?
- character developments, they all learning to become better person in the end, nobody's perfect
- side characters such as aunt Yue, workers like uncle Zhang, who stays beside and help Jianghu during her lowest time - very touching
- smart ML and FL
What i don't like
- last episode is not enough for us - can we get extension episode please

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Definetly unique from the usual C-dramas

I realised Man with a career and Women with passion are super sexy .

This drama is mostly about the business world out there, this revolved around companies and investments, how the market works and how is the market competition like. This is 60% business and 40% romance.
I Love watching dramas where leads are 2 grown up mature individuals who have their own career to focus on, this mixed with inspiration and growth is totally my cup of tea.
I saw many dramas where leads go through diffult times and BOOM , without focusing much on their struggle and growth they achieve success, i am telling you this series explained the struggle and cruelty of enterprenuership in much detail without compromising on the romance .

Oh gosh the leads chemistry was LITTTTT!!! . I absolutely loved how they wrote their characters. Xu Si this man is a perfect portrayal of an investor and loved watching him though i was kinda annoyed by his choices and overpowering behavior.

Now lets talk about our inspiring and bold female lead Jiang Hu, she is a character that we can look up to. Tough initially we saw how broken and dejected she felt, she picked herself up, banged on every possible door looking for opportunity and did her best to stand on her own feet again and proved that no matter where talent goes it will standout.
Loved the leads together, though i was kinda annoyed by Xusi in the ending few episodes and the situations around JianHu , there was no single episode that disappointed me . Oversall this is satisfying and worth a watch

Things i dint like -
--> The abrupt and unnecessary cuts
-->ZhaoYang and YangJian's relationship, i have my own prejudice against them and no possible reasoning can convince me to change my opinion on them

Points worth mentioning -
--> How they designed Gao Yi's character and his story , was satisfying
--> If you are here for Zhe Ming especially someone like me who watched him as ML and liked his dramas , dont expect much screentime here as mentioned in casting list he has a support role
--> The osts are worth listening to, just concentrate on the lyrics they are just lovely and inspiring.

It is definetly not the place/ company you are in that matters, its your attitude and confidence that will make you shine. - BY ME?

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Best 2023 Modern Drama. Realistic, non-cliche story, slow burn romance & fantastic cinematography

This drama tells the story of a female lead who is a spoiled princess until her father dies and she loses everything, and a male lead who is a ruthless investor but despite all odds, decides to help her revive her father’s old shoe company. The drama shows the realistic side of life and starting a business, with morally grey and flawed characters who make mistakes but learn from them. Both male and female leads go through a major character development, from a spoiled princess the female lead becomes a hard-working business woman and from a ruthless investor the male lead opens up emotionally and becomes more caring and loving towards others, realising that money and making the most profitable deals is not the most important thing in life.

The drama executed fantastically many important life lessons such as never giving up, no matter how much challenges life throws at you, that money is not everything, about selfless love and sticking to your morals and promises no matter what.

POSITIVE:
- Realistic drama about the struggles of life and starting a new business
- Morally grey characters that feel like real human beings (make mistakes and are not perfect).
- Non-cliche/predictable storylines.
- Hot chemistry between the main leads.
- Platonic relationships between men and women are done well (which is very rare to see in cdramas).
- Breathtaking cinematography - the aesthetics from colours to buildings and people’s wardrobe is on point.
- Exceptionally well done directing - when characters are experiencing internal struggles, it's visually represented very well.
- Stella cast with brilliant acting (especially the female lead).
- Slow burn romance.
- Cute dog scenes.
- Great pacing, engaging plot, no filler episodes or boring parts.
- Business talks are part of the plot and meaningful compared to other dramas that feel more like filler scenes.
- Male and female lead that are both strong willed and determined.
- Happy ending for both couples.

NEGATIVE:
- The first 8-10 episodes of the drama are quite heavy on business talks. If you don’t know anything about business you might find it hard to follow. But the talks are done really well and easy to digest. I especially learned a lot from this drama so it's not a hard negative but personal preference.

OVERALL:
This is one of the best modern cdramas that I’ve watched with fantastic cast, meaningful storyline and beautiful cinematography and OST. If you want to watch a realistic drama that feels like a biography, with an engaging and non-cliche/predictable story about reviving a business and a slow burn romance with characters that are human and real, this drama is for you.

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If the shoe fits & Never give up on your Dreams.

::::::FAMOUS SHOE QUOTES:::::::::

"Give a girl the right shoes and she can conquer the world.” - Marilyn Monroe

" A woman can carry a bag, but it is the shoe that carries the woman.” - Christian Louboutin

"It doesn’t matter how great your shoes are if you don"t accomplish anything in them.” - Martina Boone

'Momma always says there's an awful lot you could tell about a person by their shoes. Where they're going. Where they've been.” - Forrest Gump



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::::::::STORY::::::::::

The feel of this series is quite like the novels of 'Danielle Steel' Probably because the novels were based on business, family heritage and struggle to keep the heritage.

Good collection of OST's, there are quite a few of them some are peppy and others soulful and melodious. Gong Jun, Zhong Chuxi and Wu Xuanyi, the actors playing prominent characters in this drama have each sung an(Wu Xuanyi sung two) OST in the series... My personal favorite is " Song of Faith" sung by Wu Xuanyi, very empowering lyrics for women.


::::::::::::::(Rising against the wind. Beginning with Jiang Hu (**)When rising with the wind, Zhaoyang(** )will be there for you. :::::::::::

**note? on meaning of Jiang Hu and zhaoyang at the end of review)

This is the story of Jiang Hu(Zhong Chuxi) who along with Zhaoyang(Wu Xuanyi) forges a new future for old brands.

The story starts with an ambitious investor Xu Si (Gong Jun) wishing to acquire, Industrial site of an old shoe brand 'Tengyue' for his land acquisition deal with Yuanfeng Logistics. Tengyue is a company under Free Unicorn group of companies managed by Jiang Qi Shen. Jiang Qi Shen's only daughter, Jiang Hu(zhong chuxi) the Apple of his eye whom he lovingly calls "little butterfly" wants to revive 'Tengyue' brand because the brand has deep connection with her family. 'Tengyue' company had been established by Jiang Hu's maternal grandfather and later her own father, Jiang Qi Shen became famous because of the Tengyue brand, however since the 1980's and 1990's, Jiang Qi Shen focused more on expanding the Free Unicorn Group of Companies which manufacturers clothing and shoes, Tengyue has just one product left and it is just a nostalgic reminder, rather than a profit making unit.

Xu Si tries to get a meeting with Jiang Qi Shen to discuss the sale of Tengyue's industrial site however is unsuccessful to get an appointment so Xu Si tries to approach Jiang Qi Shen through Jiang Hu. Jiang Hu has arranged a party at the factory of Tengyue inviting influencers to start her revival project. Xiang Zhaoyang (Wu Xuanyi) an award winning shoe designer at Aneda, moonlighting as a masked influencer who is also long time high school rival of Jiang Hu, is invited intentionally by Jiang Hu to be an influencer at this event. As per Jiang Hu's plan to boost her online sales of Tengyue shoes, another influencer present at the event exposes the real identity of Zhaoyang..... As a result Zhaoyang loses her job at Aneda due to non-compete agreement.
Soon after this event Jiang Hu's father dies due bad health compounded by sudden financial problems in his business, immediately leading to Free Unicorn being bankrupt. Jiang Hu falls to bad times and is now reviled and preyed upon by the same society vultures who at one time revered her... Jiang Hu decides to take charge of her life and in a desperate bid uses all her leftover inheritance money to buy the Shares of Tengyue and trademark for Tengyue shoes.

Jiang Hu decides to revive the 100 year old brand Tengyue, she shifts into factory premises.. She doesn't have funds to continue current manufacturing operations, She meets many challenges to revive the brand and she tackles those problems head on, she has to negotiate with Xu Si to allow her to continue operation at the industrial site of Tengyue that now belonged to his company purchased during the bankruptcy auction of free unicorn. She forms a new team of personnel:
*Yang Jian( Gao zhiting) and his merry band of boys operating online website help her with online sales at the starting of her company.
*Zhaoyang becomes the shoe designer for her company
* Ms.Yue from her father's old company joins in as Account manager
* Mr. Pei her maternal uncle becomes the production manger.
* Jiang Hu herself handles marketing and sales.
* Boss the old factory dog becomes her constant companion in this new journey

Jiang Hu with the help of her new team, overcomes various problems faced by an outdated brand... She successfully handles HR problems created by some old workers, redesigns the shoes, tackles the problem of distribution and sales by using innovative marketing strategies. Growing influence of e-commerce in current market scenario is highlighted in this drama. She continues to plod on by using the motivational quote "going against the wind".

Along the way she finds love, Xu Si... Makes new friends, Yang Jian and reconnects with her old rival turned BFF, Zhaoyang. This show has shown quite a realistic depiction(text book version) of business problems and their solution.

Besides Xu Si and Jiang Hu's love story there is also a secondary love story of Zhaoyang and Yang Jian, Zhaoyang's step brother who has been in love with Zhaoyang since last ten years.

As much as this is a story of the successful revival of an old brand in a new market, it is also a story of human connections and team building.

As per my understanding, this series is focusing on TWO business issues.

1. Growing impact of influencers and internet in generating sales of any product. It is necessary for old brands to use new methods to survive in current market.

2. Small old businesses shutting down due to lack of funds and lack of modern technologies that other big companies have at their disposal to manufacture more at cheaper rate due to having deep pockets and accessibility to mechanised impersonal technology......
Handmade, indigenous products and labourers are suffering.... Saving these business is another theme of this series. What a country needs not not few big brands but diversified national brands.


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::::::::RELATIONSHIPS:::::::
First Leads
Gong Jun(XU Si) x Zhong Chuxi(Jiang Hu)
The headstrong CEO meets an arrogant daughter.. Their story is combustive with sparks flying everywhere, they have a spicy and confrontational love story. In the beginning there are lots of trust issues, Jiang Hu has been betrayed by people closest to her so it's quite difficult for her to trust an 'Investor' who might take away her company. Slowly their relationship transitions into reluctant partnership morphing into trust and finally love.

Second leads
Gao Zhi Ting(Yang Jian) x Wu Xuanyi(Xiang Zhaoyang)
Sweet designer with her step brother, they have known each other since childhood. Their story provides a breath of fresh air on a sunny day... Their love story is more tender. Yang Jian has always cared for zhaoyang. Standing like a rock beside her, ensuring she is safe, happy and silently removing all obstacles in her path. He showers his love by ensuring zhaoyang is always well fed, making delicious food, taking care of the household chores leaving her free to pursue her dreams, encouraging her creativity and progress.


BFFs; Zhong Chuxi (Jiang Hu) x Wu Xuanyi (Xiang zhaoyang)

Both these girls have known the other since high school. They are competitive to the extreme, they like the same food, music and both had a crush on Gao Yi. Due to zhaoyang's humble background and Jiang Hu's privileged upbringing there were lots of hostile situations causing friction between the girls in their earlier years.. After Jiang Hu lost her father and decided to revive 'Tengyue' shoes, she and zhaoyang a shoe designer who wanted to bring authentic chineses designs back in the market joined hands and became a formidable team, tackling all hardships and forging ahead in their own paths to success, achieving their personal goals while securing a glorious future for 'Tengyue'.

Both love stories provide a mix of sweet and spicy while all them together struggle to even the odds stacked against them...Also there is a plausible and realistic platonic relationship between Jiang Hu and Yang Jian who become confidants having trusting work relations because both have warm and outgoing personalities. Xu Si and Xiang Zhaoyang also share admiration for the other's ability, recognizing the other's capability but they always maintain a cool efficient business relationship due their reserved nature... All these relationships were in tandem till the 100 year anniversary of Tengyue (first 32 episodes) then suddenly lots of angst, non-communication made their relations seem strained and filled with lots of melodrama in the latter part of the series... But in episodes 39 and 40, concluding episodes the series tied everything in a pretty bow and gave a Happy Ending for both the couples.


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::::::::ACTORS PLAYING THEIR CHARACTERS:::::::

Gong Jun playing Xu Si :
Gong Jun played the part of a dispassionate and shrewd investor quite well. He was able to display a wide range of emotions through his character. In the beginning his attitude was arrogant for the goal oriented Xu Si... Later in the series with the change in Xu Si's character, Gong Jun 's eyes reflected his turmoil, sadness and hurt. He also revealed during the promotional campaign for the drama and his own personality was quite introvert compared to Xu Si's extrovert nature, so as an actor he did a fabulous job.


Zhong Chuxi playing Jiang Hu:
Zhong Chuxi looks stunning as Jiang Hu the rich heiress who dresses in expensive designer shoes & dresses and drives a fast red car, she portrayed the haughty and imperious side of Jiang Hu 'To the T'. Her body language exuded her confidence, then she was equally believable as a 'fallen from grace' startup entrepreneur, who uses her wit and intelligence to forge ahead... .Zhong Chuxi's charming smile and genial attitude makes Jiang Hu's struggles to achieve success in business relatable.


Wu Xuanyi playing Xiang Zhaoyang:
Wu Xuanyi was remarkable in her depiction of Xiang Zhaoyang.. Zhaoyang with her tenacious nature, achieving success with her hardwork, appearing detached and indifferent but very warm hearted and loyal to the core. Wu Xuanyi successfully Portrayed the minimal expression of zhaoyang used to keeping her own counsel. Her demeanor was professional and reserved giving professional vibe. Body language was closed.. This is good acting because Wu Xuanyi in her real life is more of a vivacious, outgoing personality. As wu Xuanyi discussed in the promotional campaign she herself is an extrovert playing the role of an introvert zhaoyang. ( If you like wu Xuanyi, do read my highlights in the comment section of this review about, why I like Zhaoyang in spite of her imperfections. )

Gao Zhi Ting playing Yang Jian:
This is the first time, I am watching Gao Zhi Ting's work... His portrayal of Yang Jian is very candid.......When he smiles it is quite wholesome and genuine and his crestfallen face when Zhaoyang is not happy with him is full of emotions.... Gao Zhiting is a very natural actor, all emotions of his character are well conveyed through his face and body posture. He carries out "the boy next door" image quite well.

Honorable mentions
1. Wei zhe Ming who played the part of Gao Yi did not have much screen time but he managed to capture audience's attention with few scenes, his character was also a more distant personality, fre scenes that he had to showcase his emotions were with his wife... There his tearful anguish filled face evoked sympathy in viewer's heart.

2. Wen Zheng Rong who played the character of Yue Shan was brilliant in her ultra efficient, tolerate no nonsense manner suiting a woman who has spent majority of her life navigating the business world.

3. Morni Chang who played the character of Pei Zhi Yuan, a true veteran actor realistically brought to life the supportive maternal uncle of Jiang Hu who was equally miserly and opportunist while still retaining his love for his niece.

4. BOSS the dog was the showstopper, he was such a well trained animal, so many BTS of actors having a great time playing with him are uploaded on the net.. I don't know how the trainer manages to get the dog to display different postures and emotions at different time... For me BOSS was 'THE BOSS' of this series.



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OVERALL: A unique drama depicting realistic business scenarios while superbly telling a story of revival of a brand and struggle of two ladies Jiang Hu and Zhaoyang, rising in their own spheres, defying the odds stacked against them., though after first 32 episodes things turn more melodramatic like a soap opera.... However the show got back on track in last two episodes 39 and 40 and managed to resolve the whole story in a satisfactory manner.....A must watch.

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:::;:Note? on Jiang Hu and Zhaoyang meaning:::::

Zhaoyang means 'rising sun'(☀️).I did a little google Research on the name Jiang Hu, it is a bit more complicated to understand...... But simply speaking it translates to 'rivers and lakes' in terms of wuxia. The meaning of the name Jiang Hu, that I think is most suitable for this drama is a band of virtuous outcasts of society grouping to form their own parallel society with their own code of rules.... Isn't that what Jiang Hu is trying to achieve with Tengyue?? Bringing together a band of outcasts to form her own version of perfect society.


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PS: If anyone is interested in reading more;
1. I am leaving clickable links to my episodes summary and musings in the comments section of this review(each episodic comment has two parts, general thoughts and another spoiler tag comments including details of those episodes)...... I have given a brief overview of the episodes along with my personal musing in them.

2. Also leaving in the comment to this review, my explanation of certain business situations pertaining to this drama.

3.My 'Minority Report' why I like the character of ZHAOYANG, inspite of her imperfections... Main highlights only.

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Best 2023 Business Romance Drama

When I came to know this drama, I was not at all expecting that the story would be this enticing, and would leave you to ask more episodes everyday. These are some points which made me like the drama.
1) Conveyed heart warming scenes at early episodes touching Paternal relationship.
2) There were scenes that made you pause with them and feel the same feeling felt by the characters (slow paced scenes)
3) Tackled values which are important to have to run a business or career development or relationship
4) OSTs linger to your senses for very long time, they were perfectly layered with the important scenes in the drama.
5) The actors played their roles soo well, not forced and naturally executed which made everyone feel you are immerse to the scenes.

I highly recommend this drama for everyone to watch. You will not regret spending your time watching it. Somehow the story is addicting.

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Best Business Drama of 2023

I loved the drama. Everything was good. The business part made the drama more interesting and the incomparable chemistry between the main leads was the cherry on top.
It has a solid storyline. The story unfolds in a beautiful way. The development and consistency of the characters were also good. We get to understand why certain characters are the way they are. The acting of all casts were superb. The delivered powerful message. I regret not starting the drama after it was over as waiting for each new episode felt like torture to me! I will definitely rewatch it. This drama is highly recommended to anyone who loves the work they do.

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The best C-drama in 2023!

It’s a mature romance. Not too sweet, all flirty, with some business talks in most episodes. I like it because it felt realistic. The casts, cinematography, ost, all are perfect.

This is my first time watching Elaine Zhong. And I can say, among all of C actresses, she’s definitely one of my favorite. She doesn’t use that high pitch voice to deliver the script. She got the sass, and she’s very well portraying JH.

Gong Jun also showed some improvement. I’ve seen his other work. And I can say he really performed well portraying XS.

Anyway, it’s really the best c-drama at least for me.

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Worth The Wait!

"Rising With The Wind" is a high-quality drama that pays attention to details. The story reflects the current social phenomena and promotes professional eithics & moral values.

Before this drama was released, the intimate scenes in the trailer led me to think that it's a romantic drama. The story is actually well developed and paced well; it doesn't throw cheesy romantic scenes just for the sake of it. The plot revolving around the business challenges and opportunities under the impact of e-commerce is inspirational. I am pleasantly surprised by its high-quality production and strong acting cast.

After finish watching few episodes, I must say this is a very good drama, the plot is so different from other dramas, interesting lines and perfect pace. The leads not only good looking but their performance are superb! I was touched when seeing the female lead crying. The male lead is not a typical "cool face" bossy type investor but he showed his warm side when he saw the female lead in trouble. I like this kind of boss hahahaha! And there are many senior actors/actresses too, all with very good acting skill.

All actors in this drama are of excellent acting. Not only the main leads (Simon and Elaine) and the seasoned supporting actors (Morning Chang, etc.) performed well, the other supporting actors (e.g. The factory workers Xiao Lin and Liu Jun) are also very good......this drama is definitely a Must watch drama this 2023!

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