Short Review: The Best Thing (2025) 爱你
Summary: Hotel Manager Shen Xi Fan (ft. Xu Ruo Han 徐若晗) has insomnia due to her high pressure work environment. She goes to visit a Chinese medicine doctor and meets He Su Ye (ft Zhang Ling He 张凌赫). Due to the chaotic nature of her job, she forgets to grab her medicine, which is a source of much headache for Su Ye. They quickly find out that they actually live in the small neighborhood and have more encounters. Shen Xi Fan previously had a failed relationship and has since been hesitant to start anything new. The two gradually develop feelings for each other and encourage each other to pursue their dreams.
Total Episode Count: 28
Initial Airing Date: Feb 25, 2025
Platform: Jiangsu TV, iQiYi
Short Review 6.7/10 [8 episodes] – This drama is like a bowl of plain congee—warm and comforting but ultimately lacking depth. Zhang Ling He delivers a charming performance with decent chemistry alongside Xu Ruo Han, yet the story itself feels uneventful and forgettable.
He Su Ye 何苏叶 Zhang Ling He 张凌赫
Chinese medicine doctor who also specializes in tumors, he comes from a family of Chinese medicine doctors
Shen Xi Fan 沈惜凡 Xu Ruo Han 徐若晗
Hotel department manager who aspires to study abroad to learn hotel management
Xu Xiang Ya 许向雅 Huang Can Can 黄灿灿
Best friend of Shen Xi Fan and fellow colleague at the hotel they work at
Lin Yi Shen 林亿深 Wang You Jun 王宥钧
Friend of Xu Xiang Ya and Shen Xi Fan who also works at the hotel
Overall Thoughts
I’ll continue using metaphors to describe this drama. It’s like a gently flowing creek: pleasant and clear, but ultimately lacking depth. After powering through the disaster that was The First Frost, I found this series to be a much more enjoyable watch, though it didn’t offer enough substance to fully hold my interest. It was simply pleasant.
The premise is established in the first episode. Shen Xi Fan, facing a high-stress work environment and pressure from her parents, agrees to visit a traditional Chinese medicine clinic. There, she meets the handsome He Su Ye, setting the story in motion. However, by the eighth episode, I found little momentum driving the drama forward. The relationship between the leads felt somewhat forced (which I’ll talk about later), making it difficult to invest in their relationship, even though Zhang Ling He was at his most charming. Personally, I was more interested in Shen Xi Fan’s career development than in seeing her enter another relationship (I know this is a completely personal preference that defeats the whole purpose of a romance drama). Xu Ruo Han was competent as the female lead, but the narrative failed to establish why her character truly stood out.
One of the drama’s focus is its incorporation of traditional Chinese medicine, offering audiences some insight into the fundamentals of herbal remedies and dietary health. For Chinese viewers, this is a familiar and respected subject, while Western audiences may view it with skepticism due to the lack of robust scientific validation. The drama is most effective when focusing on herbal medicine and holistic well-being rather than blending traditional and Western medical approaches. For example, I didn’t know there was a Traditional Chinese Medicine Oncology field of study and it was a little difficult for me to accept this (seemingly) prevalent department in China.
Amid the overwhelming buzz, both positive for The Filter and negative for The First Frost, this drama has somewhat slipped under the radar. Nevertheless, airing on Jiangsu TV has been a quiet success for both Zhang Ling He and Xu Ruo Han. Zhang Ling He, in particular, shines in roles that highlight his charm and supportive nature, and he may benefit from continuing in this vein for future projects for now.
What I Liked (Minor Spoilers)
- Zhang Ling He – I vastly prefer Zhang Ling He in this drama than in many of his previous period dramas. He appears much more at ease in this role, portraying a charismatic young Chinese medicine doctor rather than the calculating chancellors of his period dramas. His natural charm and soothing voice make him well-suited for the character. As a clean-cut doctor in a romance drama, he feels significantly more natural, and the on-screen chemistry between the leads is largely driven by his presence rather than that of his co-star, Xu Ruo Han. Since the role does not demand excessive gravitas, he delivers a more balanced performance, avoiding the overacting seen in some of his previous roles. It’s a comforting watch without wishing he can restrain himself.
- Female Health – The drama addresses some sensitive topics related to women’s health, including menstruation, which is rarely depicted in television dramas, period (pun intended). In the drama, it is Shen Xi Fan, the female patient, who feels uncomfortable discussing the subject, while He Su Ye, the male doctor, maintains his professionalism, creating a reassuring environment and easing her embarrassment. This portrayal is particularly significant, as women’s health remains an often-overlooked topic that deserves greater representation on screen as a normal and integral part of daily life.
- Jiangnan– the drama was filmed on location in the cities of Nanjing and Hangzhou. Hangzhou is still primarily known for it’s Jiangnan flavor with its small canals and abundance of rivers. The drama showcased the city and added its own flavor to it. It was comfortably included that didn’t seemed forced. I wish other dramas would do this more.
What could be better
- Slow pace and lack of momentum –After 8 episodes, while the drama devotes significant attention to the main couple, very little actually happens, which slowed the momentum and diminished my enthusiasm to continue watching. While I agree that the drama is generally pleasant and lacks any major flaws, it also lacks a compelling driving force. There are hints of a jealous coworker who may play a role in future episodes, but the narrative is taking an unnecessarily long time to establish other characters.
- Why Shen Xi Fan? – As I watched the drama, I found myself questioning what exactly drew He Su Ye to Shen Xi Fan. Was it her professionalism, her beauty, or her ambition in pursuing a higher degree for her career? These qualities are evident to the audience but are not directly conveyed to He Su Ye, he only learns about them in passing from others. Their initial interactions also felt rather contrived, as Shen Xi Fan is initially portrayed as a skeptical and reluctant patient who does not trust Chinese medicine. Yet, after just one encounter, He Su Ye is seemingly drawn to her. But I felt her interaction with He Su Ye wasn’t out of the ordinary with many other patients. The attraction appears rather one-sided, and while I appreciate that Shen Xi Fan remains focused on her career, I struggled to understand what, from He Su Ye’s perspective, made her so compelling.
