Name: Sahi K's review of Golden Stage [黄金台] by 苍梧宾白 (Cang Wu Bin Bai)
Item: Golden Stage [黄金台]
Rating: 5
Author: Sahi K

苍梧宾白 (Cang Wu Bin Bai)

Golden Stage [黄金台]

Sahi K

黄金台 Golden Stage

gracia 

dija

“ “To have been able to meet you is three lifetime’s worth of blessings.” 

The uncomditional love and suppost and utmost resepct these characters have for each othee baffles me. I love them sm

Buddy read with  bff <3

jana

i’m so weak for capital d Devotion and courtly scheming, and golden stage has both in spades, and it’s executed just! so! well!!! not to mention that cang wu bin bai’s prose is absolutely stunning—i mean hello “all hearts were grown of flesh. to say that he wasn’t moved would be a lie.” i will literally never recover—and chichi’s translation is amazing (i’d actually put the novel on hold for a bit after the official english edition got announced bc i knew i wanted to get it but the fan tl is just so well-done i had to finish it. i will be reading the official tl too once it’s out bc i’m (a) a lover of the nuances of translation and (b) already looking for an excuse to reread this; i just wanted to go on this tangent bc i think it illustrates just how much i loved both the story and the translation).
i did have some minor nitpicks, mostly regarding some of the language surrounding disability, but i do think fu shen’s disability was overall handled well (i can’t speak to his exact condition, but as a Chronic Pain Haver there were certain details i very much appreciated seeing).
i have so many thoughts about how wonderful and layered both fu shen and yan xiaohan are, how lovely their relationship is, how well-crafted the plot is, but i think i’ll save that for when i reread the official tl <3

I do like my Chinese bl novels but tbh, I’ve only read the two - MDZS and TYK - because I loved their adaptations and then QiYe because it seemed like a fun spinoff. So when I saw this book being talked about on my social media, I wasn’t 100% sure I wanted to check it out because I know there’s hardly any hope for bl adaptations coming out anytime soon. But then I found myself in a slump and thought, maybe this one will get me out of it. And what a beauty this turned out to be. 

Firstly, I have to immensely commend the translator because their work is wonderful and there was never a point where I felt that I was’t reading a professionally translated book published by a big name publisher. The prose is beautiful, particularly in the emotional and romantic moments and there were so many times where I just felt so much (I’m basically struggling here to describe my feelings 😂). 

Coming to the story itself, my major draw to pick it up was the arranged marriage trope between two “supposedly” enemies. This plotline is executed to perfection, with the characters going from friends to rivals to husbands to lovers. While the majority of the story is court politics and threats to the empire from outsiders, it’s the romance with the sweetest dialogues and heartfelt feelings that leaves a deep impression on anyone reading the book. That doesn’t mean the politics and conspiracies take a backseat - it is as juicy and fascinating as any well done palace drama with many players vying for power and influence, a paranoid emperor (who very much reminded me of the one from Nirvana in Fire) who can’t seem to place the welfare of his empire before that of his fears, attacks and occupations by many rival lands, and a couple who are loyal to each other and the people but can’t seem to find a peaceful way to live. The book was so engrossing that I actually binge read it in 2 days on my laptop, which I’ve always found difficult before. 

After gushing so much about the book, how can I not talk about our main couple. Fu Shen is a military man through and through - brave and loyal and righteous, always doing everything he can to ensure the safety of the empire even if it puts him at odds with the emperor himself, knowing his survival isn’t going to be easy when the Son of Heaven himself doesn’t trust him but this doesnt stop him from standing up for himself when necessary. 

Yan Xiaohan on the other hand is a very loyal lackey of the emperor himself - coming from a controversial background and despised and sneered on by the nobles, he comes across as ruthless and unscrupulous, who will use any means to achieve what the emperor wishes. But it’s evident from pretty early on that there are many sides to him and it’s fascinating to watch his behavior in various circumstances. And it was super satisfying to see him employ his ruthless tactics to protect his love. 

And what can I say about them together. They have a complicated history which is slowly revealed, which just makes their arranged marriage even more fraught. But their constant bickering (even in open court) belies an underlying depth of feelings for each other, and watching them discover each other’s love was a joy to behold. Atleast one of them is in danger for a majority of the book which makes for a tense atmosphere, but the extremely sweet romantic dialogues between them just make you feel warm all over. And despite the powerful positions they hold, I was impressed by the level of communication they had and how the miscommunication trope was never even touched. I never expected to find such fluff in an intense political novel but I have to appreciate the author for balancing both the politics and love story very well. 

There are many many side characters in the book but except a few, not many have long subplots. Emperor Yuantai is probably a competent ruler but my feelings are definitely clouded by the fact that he distrusted Fu Shen so much, so it was natural that I disliked him a lot. I mostly liked all the characters from the Northern Yan army because they were very protective of their general and their camaraderie was nice. Among the characters who actually aren’t present but nevertheless whose mentions really made me like them were the Prince of Su, Fu Shen’s second uncle and Yan Xiaohan’s adopted father. In a world full of snakes, they seemed like genuinely good people and it was nice to see that their qualities somewhat reflected in both the main characters. 

I actually don’t know how to conclude. I probably have much to say but can’t seem to find the words. So let me conclude by saying that if you love tense and anxiety inducing Chinese palace dramas with a nice romance, then this book is perfect for you. The writing is beautiful, the story is engaging and the characters are easy to love. And if like me, you’ve loved reading QiYe, this is totally your cup of tea. Also, don’t miss the extras because you’ll definitely get some shocks.

Sahi K &
Golden Stage [黄金台] by 苍梧宾白 (Cang Wu Bin Bai)

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Sahi K &Golden Stage [黄金台] by 苍梧宾白 (Cang Wu Bin Bai)

Reviews

Join the club

Sahi K &
Golden Stage [黄金台] by 苍梧宾白 (Cang Wu Bin Bai)