The reason why "Dae Jang Geum" became so popular in China, as well as Hong Kong and Taiwan, can be analyzed as follows: the TV series achieved a balance between cultural quality and commercial appeal, with rich content and appeal to both the refined and the common people. Its success factors can be roughly divided into four points.

"Dae Jang Geum" doesn't deliberately invoke cultural, historical, or artistic themes; it emphasizes that it's simply a "youthful and inspirational television drama." Commercial elements include handsome men and beautiful women, a fast-paced and dramatic plot, and stunning natural scenery throughout Korea. More importantly, despite expressing philosophies of life and lofty ideals in its 70+ episodes, it never preaches.

Second, culture can be made so "simple and easy to understand." Visually, the wonderful Korean culinary culture is revealed through vibrant colors and clean, crisp editing. Food is essential to life, making it a perennially popular subject. What's remarkable is that some everyday foods possess so many therapeutic benefits that viewers are unaware of.

What's even more embarrassing is that many of the dietary therapies mentioned earlier and the medicinal therapies mentioned later were recorded in the "Compendium of Materia Medica" from the Ming Dynasty. While Chinese drama fans may feel a sense of familiarity, they will also be prompted to deeply reflect on their current cultural understanding and situation.

Deeply moved by his great kindness

A tenacious will to survive. Lee Young-ae's portrayal of Jang-geum embodies the "sunny woman," a quality reminiscent of the heroine in the Japanese drama *Oshin*. Her smile radiates sunshine and confidence, creating an inspiring and relatable image. By casting such a protagonist as a warrior against fate, viewers willingly empathize with her emotions and circumstances. Throughout the drama, regardless of the hardships and betrayals she endures, her indomitable spirit ultimately brings her back to the bright sunshine. This unwavering will to survive, repeatedly overcoming adversity, is a universal human emotion and the foundation of *Dae Jang Geum*'s greatest success in moving audiences emotionally.

The theme of great benevolence. Some Chinese media outlets have analyzed that Chinese audiences were moved by "Dae Jang Geum" because of the character's profound benevolence. Jang Geum practiced medicine with kindness and virtue as her foundation, treating all without discrimination and sacrificing herself to save others.

In today's China, where the rapid economic development has fostered a pervasive sense of short-sightedness, the kind of "great goodness" embodied in Dae Jang Geum, packaged with the emotions of the people, is certainly more likely to win hearts and minds than the rigid, righteous heroes in Chinese TV dramas who speak with an air of righteousness.

Many heroes in Chinese TV dramas are portrayed as carrying the weight of "righteousness" on their shoulders, but Dae Jang Geum is different. She possesses great compassion, but she also has the weaknesses of an ordinary human being, and even some minor flaws. This realism makes the character more three-dimensional and more compelling than the typical Chinese hero.

To be honest, this drama isn't just loved by women; men love it too. It's not just because of Lee Young-ae's appearance in the drama, but also because of her kindness and compassion—it's something every man would adore.

This drama is truly addictive, especially for those born in the 80s and 90s; almost everyone has seen Dae Jang Geum. It's fair to say that this one drama became a sensation throughout Asia.

Then there are dramas like "My Lovely Sam Soon" and "The Mermaid Princess," which were huge hits.

Shows like "I Am a Singer," "Real Men," "Dad! Where Are We Going?", "Infinite Challenge," and "King of Mask Singer" are just examples of how Hunan TV copied them verbatim, ruining the domestic variety show scene.

Hunan TV is truly shameless. They don't produce their own programs; they just copy everything verbatim, making domestic TV stations struggle. These scoundrels don't even need to use their brains to rake in money. They even sell the copyrights for exorbitant prices. A program might only cost around $500,000 in South Korea, but Hunan TV sold it for 800 million RMB domestically.

These variety shows are all powerful weapons, the crown jewels that Shen Fang prepared for Tencent Video.

That's only one aspect. The second is to use this as a shell to make the movies he wants. The censorship of South Korean films is quite different from that in China.

There's a common theme in Chinese TV dramas and movies: bad guys must be brought to justice, good guys need a happy ending, and nudity, gangster scenes, gore, and scenes depicting human nature are all forbidden.

South Korea is following in the footsteps of its American "daddy," and will film whatever it wants as long as it gets paid.

Another point is that Korean dramas and movies always smear Chinese people. Whenever there is a gang, the vast majority of the characters are Chinese, speaking broken Chinese and committing evil deeds on TV and in movies. This must not be tolerated.

Although Shen Fang wants to bring the Korean wave into China, he also wants to counter the Korean wave by bringing Chinese films and television dramas into South Korea. This is Shen Fang's most important purpose in wanting to invest in MBC.