The Story of Yanxi Palace

Abstract

攻略 is a historical period drama that gained astonishing popularity in the northern summer of 2018 — with over 14.5 billion online views since its release on the streaming platform iQiyi. The story is set during the reign of the Qing emperor Qianlong (1735– 1796), a fictional tale of revenge about one of his concubines, Wei Yingluo 魏 璎珞, posthumously known as Empress Xiaoyichun 孝仪纯, and mother of the succeeding Emperor Jiaqing. This historical reimagining of court intrigue features seemingly authentic, fabulous costumes and elegant hair accessories; some of the craft skills that went into their making are listed as Intangible Cultural Heritage in Jiangsu province. The vivid portrayal of imperial life through fashion, makeup, and hairstyles distinguished the show from many other imperial palace dramas that spend a huge amount of money on big-name stars but do not put as much effort into visual authenticity. The Story of Yanxi Palace had its critics. Feminists argued that the protagonist is not so much a female fighter against an unbalanced structure of gendered power as a dependent of the authority of the patriarchal system. Social liberals attacked the show for revelling in the brutality of patriarchal power politics, and for depicting the female body as capital in the struggle for power, as well as a means for manipulating power. Despite these criticisms, the fastpaced, 70-episode serial was well received by mainstream viewers. Its genT H E S T O R Y O F YA N X I PA L A C E