Love Beyond the Grave (白日提灯) may not have been the success that everyone hoped for, with complaints about the 8-year age gap between the two leads, Dilraba who turns 34 this year and Arthur Chen who’s 26, and even under the direction of Lost You Forever’s Zoe Qin, the overall look of the drama still left much to be desired. But in an industry where so many shows are lambasted for bad endings, this one manages to satisfy viewers. The show gives two endings, one they call “BE” (bad ending) simply because it’s sad, while the other is a definitive happy ending. Spoilers ahead.
Like many C-dramas that start with a large cast, we’re not left with many by the end with the deaths of characters like Fang Xianye (Gao Heyuan, formerly known as Gao Han) and Yan Ke (Miles Wei). And the one that hit the hardest is saved for last.
Two Endings to Choose From
The Love Beyond the Grave finale centers on a wedding, but it’s a tragic one. Duan Xu, who is already near death, speeds up the process by exchanging all five of his senses to He Simu in a single act, ensuring he won’t even last a day. He dies in He Simu’s arms, but he is able to give Simu the five senses she lived her entire life without. Duan Xu then transforms into a spiritual presence to accompany He Simu forever.
It’s a sad ending, no doubt, but fitting for book fans, staying true to the story’s core theme that humans and spirits are destined to part and highlights He Simu’s responsibility as the Ghost King and the inevitable loneliness of immortality. And there’s still hope, since it’s explicitly stated there’s a chance He Simu and Duan Xu could reunite again.
Meanwhile, the epilogue provides fans with a happy ending. It may feel like a cop-out for some since it doesn’t match the original theme, but that’s exactly why there are two endings to choose from. In this version, Ziji (Hu Yiyao) reveals there’s a way to rewrite their fates so Duan Xu can live again. He Simu willingly gives up her immortality to become human. For her, it’s not a price to pay, but something she has always longed for. In the end, they live happily ever after as two ordinary people.
As for those sad about Chen Ying (Fu Bohan), he completes his arc from rescued child, to young general, to the new Ghost King.
