"The Secrets of Empress Wu" features large-scale scenes of breasts exposure and wet-body scenes, and has been criticized for its outrageous errors.

The grand ancient costume legendary epic "Empress Wu Zetian's Secret History" has been a hot topic since its premiere. With consistently high ratings, netizens have been relentlessly criticizing the show, claiming it's "unbearable," and have exposed various ridiculous continuity errors. Additionally, Tao Yin's bold performance in the series, including revealing wet scenes, has been shocking.

Although "Empress Wu Zetian's Secret History" is a "secret history" rather than orthodox history, some historical inaccuracies are still outrageously wrong. Tao Yin's bold performance, such as revealing wet scenes, has crossed boundaries.

After becoming emperor, her name seems prophetic.

In the first episode of the TV series, Emperor Taizong first meets Empress Wu Zetian, who is flustered but delighted. Wu tells Li Shimin: "My real name is Wu Zhao." "Wu Zhao" is the name Empress Wu Zetian gave herself after she became empress. "Starting off incorrectly in the first episode leads to repeated inconsistencies later on," viewers said helplessly. "There was never a eunuch around Emperor Taizong; it was always Consort Wu serving him. How could that be possible?" "Emperor Taizong was actually angered to death by the affair between Li Zhi and Wu Meiniang? This adaptation is too exaggerated!" The voices of dissent from the audience grew louder.

At the start of the TV series, Wu Shiyue dies while saving Li Shimin. Some netizens asked, when did Wu Shiyue become a general under Li Shimin's command? Why did he die for him? Even at his dying moment, he expressed his final wish: "The person I worry about most is Wu Meiniang." "Wu Mei was the title bestowed upon Wu Zetian when she entered the palace and was granted the rank of Cairen (a lower-ranking concubine) by Emperor Taizong," so how could Wu Shiyue foresee this before his death? Historical records indicate that Wu Shiyue was a merchant, but in the TV series, he transforms into a "heroic figure."

"Tri-colored Tang pottery" makes an appearance

When Wu Zetian enters the palace, a beam collapses, and a book called "Palace Secrets" falls from the sky, inscribed with the words "Three generations after the Tang dynasty, the female ruler will be Empress Wu." In "Empress Wu Zetian's Secret History," this helps her travel back five hundred years, placing a bound book in Emperor Taizong's hands. However, during the Tang dynasty, books were only available in scroll form, and it wasn't until late Tang that scrolls began transitioning to bound books. The line-bound books shown in the drama didn't become widespread until the Ming dynasty, making this "Palace Secrets" book quite confusing. Sharp-eyed netizens also noticed "Tang tri-colored pottery" inside Wu Zetian's room! During the Tang dynasty, "Tang tri-colored pottery" was used as burial goods, yet here it proudly decorates the interior. Furthermore, common mistakes like ministers performing the kowtow with their right hand above their left, though overlooked by netizens, include a plate of apples clearly visible behind the young emperor in his bedroom. It is understood that apples were introduced to China in the 19th century, prompting netizens to comment on how this Tang dynasty emperor eats Qing dynasty apples—a highly anachronistic scene.

"Brother Bao" mourns flowers in a ridiculous manner

How many ridiculous scenes are there! The young male lead, Li Zhi, played by Shaqun Yu, looks extremely similar to "Brother Bao." Brother Bao then "sighs over the flowers shedding tears" and begins mourning them, shocking the audience. Many netizens initially struggled to recognize the familiar male lead, eventually realizing, "Isn't this the same young man from 'Mei Lanfang'? Isn't this the honest Ning Caichen from 'A Chinese Ghost Story'?" The beauties in the drama appear radiant, but when they gather together, a closer look reveals their hairstyles to be a mishmash—plaits, wrapped buns, sugar葫芦串 styles, everything is included. When Lady Helan, Wu Zetian's sister, carries the newly born Prince Li Hong out, the child already has two baby teeth, causing viewers to question, "How can a newborn have teeth?"

"The evolution of a mole"

The most talked-about ridiculous continuity error in "Empress Wu Zetian's Secret History" is the mole on Wu Meiniang's face that moves with age. In the drama, Empress Wu Zetian is portrayed by Tao Yin, Xiaoqing Liu, and Gao Wa Siqin in succession. Tao Yin's portrayal of Wu Zetian features a mole at the corner of her mouth. By the time Xiaoqing Liu plays the middle-aged Wu Zetian, the mole disappears. In the oldest portrayal by Gao Wa Siqin, the mole reappears on her brow. Thus, netizens joked, "This isn't really 'Empress Wu Zetian's Secret History'; it's completely 'The Evolution of a Mole.'"

The closing theme "A Legendary Life" tops the "hit song chart"

"At 14, I entered the harem. At 24, I cut my hair and became a nun... At 61, I lost my second son, exiled my third son, and imprisoned my fourth son..." Such straightforward lyrics resemble Empress Wu Zetian's resume. Netizens remarked, "A Legendary Life is another hit song after 'Tantuo.'" "Error-spotting" netizens even deduced from the lyrics that "the lyrics state Wu Zetian entered the palace at 14 and became a nun at 24, but in the drama, Wu Zetian herself says she served Emperor Taizong for 12 years." If she truly entered the palace at 14 and served in the palace for 12 years, she would have been 26 when she was exiled to Ganye Temple. It's unclear if the screenwriter and lyricist communicated, as such misleading of the audience is heartbreaking. Wu Zetian's clothes are all torn...