On July 21, A Journey to Glow (一念江南) announced the start of filming with Wang Anyu and Zhao Jinmai, bringing an end to months of speculation about the leads. Other cast include Wang Jiajia, Wang Ju, Liu Chang, Bai Bing, Lin Muran, Xu Zhengxi and Guo Junchen, who incidentally collaborates with Zhao Jinmai for the third time since they played a couple in Growing Pains.
A Journey to Glow finally kicks off after a troubled start. The drama was first announced in 2025 with Esther Yu and Wang Anyu as the lead actors. However, the actress became embroiled in controversy due to allegations involving her family business, as well as accusations of bullying on a variety show. The backlash led to speculations that Wang Anyu had withdrawn from the project and that the show was looking for a new male lead for Esther Yu. Filming that was supposed to commence in 2025 was postponed. It prompted claims that the project has been shelved for good even as rumors that the show was attempting to cast new leads cropped up. Nevertheless, it looks like the project is indeed underway as it retained Wang Anyu as the male lead while securing Zhao Jinmai as the new female lead.
Known as the sister project to A Journey to Love, A Journey to Glow follows an ensemble brought together by their quest to uncover a hidden treasure from a fallen dynasty. Zhao Jinmai plays female thief Chu Tingyu while Wang Anyu plays demoted official Lu Qingge. It is produced by Linmon Pictures and iQIYI.
RandomThought
Just want to say that the young girl in the photo above looks like a female Xiao Zhan (just the face) to me in this specific photo. I think its the nose and mouth maybe?
Anon
It’s the bulging gold fish eyes. They fit on her face nicely but not XZ’s, whose eyes frequently appear bloodshot and inflamed.