@PotatoChip Just finish ep 5. I like the 1st 2 ep more than the rest that I have watched to date. Probably like you mentioned, there are several factions packed in without developing the story much and there are a few characters that are starting to irritate me.
Do correct if I am wrong, it seems like an ambitious plot, first a mystery and murder wrapped around a hidden treasure and revolt with struggle against discrimination somewhere in the busy plot and now the Japanese are involved. I do hope the production team manages to do a good storytelling.
I like the story when it shifted to the Qing guards. Liu Yuning seems like a misfit in it. His acting is passable, better than a few others in this drama but whenever the camera is on him, it just feels like I am watching another drama.