{ "id": "ep1f2h36ks", "slug": "key-to-the-phoenix-heart", "title": "Key to the Phoenix Heart (雀骨)", "updated": "2026-11-01", "topic_path": [ { "id": "culture", "label": "Arts and culture", "api_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/api/v1/topics/culture" }, { "id": "culture.performance", "label": "Screen and stage", "api_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/api/v1/topics/culture.performance" }, { "id": "culture.performance.screen", "label": "Film and television", "api_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/api/v1/topics/culture.performance.screen" }, { "id": "culture.performance.screen.series", "label": "Series and fictional screen worlds", "api_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/api/v1/topics/culture.performance.screen.series" }, { "id": "culture.performance.screen.series.series_international_serials", "label": "International serial drama and telenovelas", "api_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/api/v1/topics/culture.performance.screen.series.series_international_serials" }, { "id": "culture.performance.screen.series.series_int_serials_east_asia", "label": "East Asian drama series", "api_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/api/v1/topics/culture.performance.screen.series.series_int_serials_east_asia" }, { "id": "culture.performance.screen.series.series_int_serials_east_asia.east_asian_web_streaming_serials", "label": "East Asian web and streaming serials", "api_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/api/v1/topics/culture.performance.screen.series.series_int_serials_east_asia.east_asian_web_streaming_serials" }, { "id": "culture.performance.screen.series.series_int_serials_east_asia.east_asian_web_streaming_serials.alpha-iv-to-my", "label": "Titles Iv to My", "api_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/api/v1/topics/culture.performance.screen.series.series_int_serials_east_asia.east_asian_web_streaming_serials.alpha-iv-to-my" } ], "geo": [ { "id": "geo.chn.t2021.culture.performance.screen.series.series_int_serials_east_asia.east_asian_web_streaming_serials.alpha-iv-to-my", "label": "China · 2021 and later: Titles Iv to My", "api_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/api/v1/geo/geo.chn.t2021.culture.performance.screen.series.series_int_serials_east_asia.east_asian_web_streaming_serials.alpha-iv-to-my", "path": [ { "id": "geo.chn", "label": "China", "api_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/api/v1/geo/geo.chn" }, { "id": "geo.chn.t2021", "label": "China · 2021 and later", "api_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/api/v1/geo/geo.chn.t2021" }, { "id": "geo.chn.t2021.culture", "label": "Arts and culture", "api_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/api/v1/geo/geo.chn.t2021.culture" }, { "id": "geo.chn.t2021.culture.performance", "label": "Screen and stage", "api_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/api/v1/geo/geo.chn.t2021.culture.performance" }, { "id": "geo.chn.t2021.culture.performance.screen", "label": "Film and television", "api_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/api/v1/geo/geo.chn.t2021.culture.performance.screen" }, { "id": "geo.chn.t2021.culture.performance.screen.series", "label": "Series and fictional screen worlds", "api_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/api/v1/geo/geo.chn.t2021.culture.performance.screen.series" }, { "id": "geo.chn.t2021.culture.performance.screen.series.series_international_serials", "label": "International serial drama and telenovelas", "api_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/api/v1/geo/geo.chn.t2021.culture.performance.screen.series.series_international_serials" }, { "id": "geo.chn.t2021.culture.performance.screen.series.series_int_serials_east_asia.east_asian_web_streaming_serials", "label": "East Asian web and streaming serials", "api_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/api/v1/geo/geo.chn.t2021.culture.performance.screen.series.series_int_serials_east_asia.east_asian_web_streaming_serials" }, { "id": "geo.chn.t2021.culture.performance.screen.series.series_int_serials_east_asia.east_asian_web_streaming_serials.alpha-iv-to-my", "label": "Titles Iv to My", "api_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/api/v1/geo/geo.chn.t2021.culture.performance.screen.series.series_int_serials_east_asia.east_asian_web_streaming_serials.alpha-iv-to-my" } ] } ], "excerpt": "Key to the Phoenix Heart (雀骨, alias Sparrow Bone) is a 2026 28-episode Chinese costume romance drama on iQIYI, starring Hou Minghao and Amy in a marriage-before-love court-intrigue story; a zero-marketing summer hit with divided reviews.", "snippet": "Key to the Phoenix Heart (雀骨, alias Sparrow Bone) is a 2026 28-episode Chinese costume romance drama on iQIYI, starring Hou Minghao and Amy in a marriage-before-love court-intrigue story; a zero-marketing summer hit with divided reviews.", "node": "culture.performance.screen.series.series_int_serials_east_asia.east_asian_web_streaming_serials.alpha-iv-to-my", "markdown": "# Key to the Phoenix Heart (雀骨)\n\n**Key to the Phoenix Heart** (雀骨; also listed under the alias Sparrow Bone) is a 2026 Chinese costume romance and court-intrigue television series of 28 episodes, each about 45 minutes, that premiered on July 11, 2026 as an iQIYI exclusive.[1](https://www.taicike.com/tv/58712069/) It stars Hou Minghao as the general Xiao Wuyi and Amy as the mechanic-savant Xie Jiayu, and follows a contract marriage that turns into a partnership against a court conspiracy.[2](https://ent.sina.cn/2026-07-09/detail-inihesky8278413.d.html) Despite a near-total absence of pre-broadcast marketing, the series finished the 2026 summer season as the highest-rated costume idol drama on Douban.[3](https://post.smzdm.com/p/a5rd9pzx/)\n\n| Key fact | Detail |\n|---|---|\n| Native title / English title | 雀骨 / Key to the Phoenix Heart (alias Sparrow Bone)[1](https://www.taicike.com/tv/58712069/) |\n| Format | 28 episodes, about 45 minutes each; costume romance and court intrigue[1](https://www.taicike.com/tv/58712069/) |\n| Premiere | July 11, 2026, 18:00, iQIYI exclusive; moved up from a rumored July 25 slot about two weeks early[4](https://ent.sina.cn/2026-07-12/detail-inihnhar8136386.d.html?oid=weme%E3%80%90TK.CYOU%E3%80%91.upxh&vt=4) |\n| Leads | Hou Minghao as Xiao Wuyi; Amy (real name Xu Chenchen) as Xie Jiayu, their second collaboration[2](https://ent.sina.cn/2026-07-09/detail-inihesky8278413.d.html) • [5](https://www.thepaper.cn/newsDetail_forward_33955511) |\n| Directors and writers | Gao Yijun, Sun Mengfei, and Cheng Lu (程箓) directing; screenwriters Wu Mengzhang and Shi Ruomin[6](https://bkso.baidu.com/item/%E3%80%8A%E9%9B%80%E9%AA%A8%E3%80%8B/65443922?fromModule=lemma_inlink) |\n| Production | Original script with no source novel; small-to-mid budget; shot from July 15 to November 5, 2025, under four months[5](https://www.thepaper.cn/newsDetail_forward_33955511) |\n| Performance | In-site heat peak 8727; peak Yunhe market share 17.2%; over 599 million effective views on Maoyan by July 29, 2026[5](https://www.thepaper.cn/newsDetail_forward_33955511) |\n| Ratings | Douban opening reported as 7.5 by one account and 6.7 by others, later around 6.9; iQIYI in-site score 8.1[7](https://www.sina.cn/news/detail/5320174832192519.html) • [8](https://m.iqiyi.com/m/playShare?shareId=MjM0OTI0Mjk1NTgzMjUxNA%3D%3D&social_platform=official_pub) |\n\n## Spoilers\n\n### Premise and plot\n\nThe story is set in a fictional dynasty and centers on Xiao Wuyi (萧无衣), heir to the Prince of Jing'an's household, who carries the stigma of having killed a sovereign and is known as the \"devil general\", and Xie Jiayu (谢嘉鱼), daughter of the Grand Tutor and an expert in Mohist mechanism craft (engineering tradition of ancient Chinese Mohist school, known for mechanical devices), who wields a sparrow-bone fan.[2](https://ent.sina.cn/2026-07-09/detail-inihesky8278413.d.html) Xiao Wuyi forcibly marries Xie Jiayu as a side consort while investigating a military-equipment fraud case; she appears to be a money-obsessed eccentric but hides an identity secret of her own.[4](https://ent.sina.cn/2026-07-12/detail-inihnhar8136386.d.html?oid=weme%E3%80%90TK.CYOU%E3%80%91.upxh&vt=4) • [1](https://www.taicike.com/tv/58712069/)\n\nThe narrative runs three threads in parallel: the core secret behind the saying \"when the sparrow bone appears, the realm is settled\", keyed to the sparrow-bone token Xiao Wuyi holds; the wrongful case of 30,000 Northern Prefecture soldiers destroyed at Jiuzhangyuan because of fraudulent weaponry; and the mystery of Xie Jiayu's parentage. The threads converge on the reveal that Xie Jiayu is the \"wonderful-hand gentleman\" Xiao Wuyi has been pursuing. Media accounts noted that a palace coup arrives by episode three and a mask-drop by episode four, an unusually high information density for the genre.[5](https://www.thepaper.cn/newsDetail_forward_33955511)\n\nXie Jiayu's arc moves from political-marriage pawn to rebel-army leader: after entering the prince's residence she uncovers the truth about the fraudulent weapons, breaks with her adoptive father, burns all her old blueprints, and develops the ultimate firearm, the fire caltrop (huo jili), before the battle at Dingfeng Slope.[4](https://ent.sina.cn/2026-07-12/detail-inihnhar8136386.d.html?oid=weme%E3%80%90TK.CYOU%E3%80%91.upxh&vt=4) • [5](https://www.thepaper.cn/newsDetail_forward_33955511)\n\n## Cast\n\nHou Minghao and Amy lead the series as a second-time screen pairing in a \"marriage before love, mutual redemption\" contract-couple storyline.[2](https://ent.sina.cn/2026-07-09/detail-inihesky8278413.d.html) The full 18-person lineup announced on July 9, 2026 included Wang Yilun as Li Mao, Ma Qiuyuan as Li Lejun, Mi Re as the Eagle King, Liu Lingzi as Ruisheng, Peter Ho (He Rundong) as Xie Huaigui, and Zheng Yawen as He Yuanji, with Wang Likun as Shaoyang, Tao Xinran as Empress Dowager He, Su Jiehe as Xiao Yao, Jin Sha as Li Fuhua, Pang Bo as Jing Lan, and Sheng Yilun, Cheng Lisha, Zhang Yujian, Dang Tao, and Man Jiang (as Cui Jun) among the supporting cast.[2](https://ent.sina.cn/2026-07-09/detail-inihesky8278413.d.html) Sheng Yilun plays the Emperor and Zhang Yujian the Prince of Changsha in the fuller credits.[8](https://m.iqiyi.com/m/playShare?shareId=MjM0OTI0Mjk1NTgzMjUxNA%3D%3D&social_platform=official_pub)\n\nThe billing order drew comment: established actors including Peter Ho, Wang Likun, Mi Re, and Tao Xinran were listed under \"special appearances\" beneath the two young leads.[5](https://www.thepaper.cn/newsDetail_forward_33955511)\n\n## Production\n\nThe series is an original screenplay with no source novel, produced by iQIYI with Honghu Culture, China Film Industry Group, and Xinmei Co. as co-producers; chief supervisor Wang Xiaohui, producer Gong Yu, and Beijing Honghu Culture as the production company.[5](https://www.thepaper.cn/newsDetail_forward_33955511) One pre-broadcast report described it as an adaptation of the novel *Xie Jia de Duanming Gui* (《谢家的短命鬼》), which conflicts with the production accounts; the original-script description is the one repeated by the trade coverage and the show's own credits.[9](https://k.sina.com.cn/article_7879922982_1d5ae15260680aytie.html) • [5](https://www.thepaper.cn/newsDetail_forward_33955511)\n\nDirector Gao Yijun, from Hong Kong, built his career on court-intrigue costume drama, directing *The Prince of Han Dynasty* (2002), *Yang Naiwu and Xiaobaicai* (2006), and *The Empress of China* (2015). Sun Mengfei served as co-director and Cheng Lu as an additional co-director; the crew included cinematographer Hong Wei, art director Shao Changyong, costume designer Hou Yunyi, action director Chen Botao, and dubbing directors Jiang Guangtao, Ma Haiyan, and Zhao Zhen.[5](https://www.thepaper.cn/newsDetail_forward_33955511)\n\nWorking within a limited budget, the production emphasized craft over spectacle: Hou Minghao trained for three months in combat, horsemanship, and swordsmanship, performed his own stunts, and fought in 30 jin (about 15 kg) of armor through real-fire battlefield scenes; the crew built 27 kinds of mechanism props with reference to ancient craftsmanship, and the art team was the same one behind *Nirvana in Fire*.[10](https://ent.sina.cn/2026-07-11/detail-inihmzut8130286.d.html?vt=4) • [11](https://m.thepaper.cn/newsDetail_forward_33979895)\n\n## Reception\n\nThe series was moved up about two weeks and launched with essentially no marketing, a \"naked broadcast\" with only a two-day promotion window.[7](https://www.sina.cn/news/detail/5320174832192519.html) • [11](https://m.thepaper.cn/newsDetail_forward_33979895) Heat nonetheless climbed quickly: past 5500 within two hours, a first-day peak of 7021, past 8000 within 21 hours, and a final peak of 8727, topping iQIYI's soaring and costume-drama charts on launch day.[7](https://www.sina.cn/news/detail/5320174832192519.html) • [5](https://www.thepaper.cn/newsDetail_forward_33955511) First-day Yunhe market share was 6.1 percent, rising to a peak of 17.2 percent, and total topic reads across platforms reached 980 million.[7](https://www.sina.cn/news/detail/5320174832192519.html) Fans organized 210,000 cloud-bookings (pre-release fan reservations boosting a show's platform visibility) worth over 6.3 million yuan within four hours, and the first six episodes carried 12 advertisements.[7](https://www.sina.cn/news/detail/5320174832192519.html) • [10](https://ent.sina.cn/2026-07-11/detail-inihmzut8130286.d.html?vt=4)\n\nCritical response was divided along predictable lines. Praise concentrated on pacing and structure: reviewers called the 28-episode cut lean and fast, with dense plot reversals and no filler, and the iQIYI page placed it fourth on its costume-romance ranking with an 8.1 in-site score.[7](https://www.sina.cn/news/detail/5320174832192519.html) • [8](https://m.iqiyi.com/m/playShare?shareId=MjM0OTI0Mjk1NTgzMjUxNA%3D%3D&social_platform=official_pub) Character writing was a recurring positive: commentary highlighted non-caricatured villains, a heroine who solves problems rather than causing them, and female supporting characters with ambitions of their own.[6](https://bkso.baidu.com/item/%E3%80%8A%E9%9B%80%E9%AA%A8%E3%80%8B/65443922?fromModule=lemma_inlink) [Criticism](https://www.edgepedia.org/criticism) targeted the production values, with complaints about cheap-looking costumes, wigs, filters, and color grading, and some viewers found the romance underdeveloped or the intrigue shallow.[7](https://www.sina.cn/news/detail/5320174832192519.html) • [10](https://ent.sina.cn/2026-07-11/detail-inihmzut8130286.d.html?vt=4)\n\nDouban scores are reported inconsistently across sources: one early account gave an opening of 7.5, while others record an opening of 6.7 on July 24, 2026 with 54,858 raters as of July 25, rising to 6.9 by late August, the highest of the summer's costume idol dramas.[7](https://www.sina.cn/news/detail/5320174832192519.html) • [6](https://bkso.baidu.com/item/%E3%80%8A%E9%9B%80%E9%AA%A8%E3%80%8B/65443922?fromModule=lemma_inlink) • [3](https://post.smzdm.com/p/a5rd9pzx/) Trade commentary read the result as evidence that spending on script and craft can outperform pre-broadcast marketing spend in the genre.[11](https://m.thepaper.cn/newsDetail_forward_33979895)\n\n## Controversy\n\nIn July 2026 the series faced concentrated viewer reports (complaints filed with regulators) over the casting of Amy, who was 17 during filming, opposite the 11-years-older Hou Minghao in a romance. As of July 15, neither the production nor the platform had issued a formal statement. Some viewers argued the series contains no boundary-crossing intimate scenes, that the emotional storyline is fully developed, and that the work should not be dismissed wholesale on age grounds.[5](https://www.thepaper.cn/newsDetail_forward_33955511) The age gap was also the most-cited criticism in ordinary viewer discussion, with some finding the pairing lacked romantic chemistry.[7](https://www.sina.cn/news/detail/5320174832192519.html) • [12](https://post.smzdm.com/p/a5rk44d3/)\n\nIn July 2026 the series was placed on the tenth batch of the year's key works copyright-protection warning list (television category).[6](https://bkso.baidu.com/item/%E3%80%8A%E9%9B%80%E9%AA%A8%E3%80%8B/65443922?fromModule=lemma_inlink)\n\n## Lead actress\n\nAmy (艾米), real name Xu Chenchen (徐晨晨), was born in 2008. She appeared in her first film, *Tong Tu*, at age six, and built a juvenile resume through *Minning Town*, *Who Rules the World*, *[My Journey to You](https://www.edgepedia.org/my-journey-to-you)*, *The Double*, and *Xiantai You Shu*, winning a national-drama new-artist award for *The Double*. Key to the Phoenix Heart was her first role carrying a drama as lead actress.[5](https://www.thepaper.cn/newsDetail_forward_33955511)\n\n## References\n\n1. [《雀骨》电视剧剧情介绍_雀骨演员表_雀骨28集剧情, 台词课](https://www.taicike.com/tv/58712069/)\n2. [《雀骨》全阵容官宣！侯明昊艾米先婚后爱，7月11日爱奇艺独播, 新浪娱乐](https://ent.sina.cn/2026-07-09/detail-inihesky8278413.d.html)\n3. [暑期档评分最高的古偶，居然是零宣发裸播的《雀骨》, 什么值得买](https://post.smzdm.com/p/a5rd9pzx/)\n4. [《雀骨》空降7月11日！侯明昊艾米先婚后爱, 新浪娱乐](https://ent.sina.cn/2026-07-12/detail-inihnhar8136386.d.html?oid=weme%E3%80%90TK.CYOU%E3%80%91.upxh&vt=4)\n5. [《雀骨》：当制作费买不起奇观，戏就回到了演员脸上, 澎湃新闻](https://www.thepaper.cn/newsDetail_forward_33955511)\n6. [雀骨, 百度百科](https://bkso.baidu.com/item/%E3%80%8A%E9%9B%80%E9%AA%A8%E3%80%8B/65443922?fromModule=lemma_inlink)\n7. [雀骨热度爆棚口碑两极, 新浪新闻](https://www.sina.cn/news/detail/5320174832192519.html)\n8. [雀骨, 爱奇艺播放页](https://m.iqiyi.com/m/playShare?shareId=MjM0OTI0Mjk1NTgzMjUxNA%3D%3D&social_platform=official_pub)\n9. [《雀骨》在哪个平台播？爱奇艺独播预约超42万, 新浪新闻](https://k.sina.com.cn/article_7879922982_1d5ae15260680aytie.html)\n10. [《雀骨》的剧情节奏和打戏质感是否名副其实？, 新浪娱乐](https://ent.sina.cn/2026-07-11/detail-inihmzut8130286.d.html?vt=4)\n11. [剧集暑期档的两条铁律，今年夏天全被推翻了, 澎湃新闻](https://m.thepaper.cn/newsDetail_forward_33979895)\n12. [一部零宣发古偶，凭什么把S+制作全部斩落马下, 什么值得买](https://post.smzdm.com/p/a5rk44d3/)\n\n---\n*Topic: Encyclopedia › Arts and culture › Screen and stage › Film and television › Series and fictional screen worlds › International serial drama and telenovelas › East Asian drama series › East Asian web and streaming serials › Titles Iv to My*\n\n*Initially written Oct 3, 2026 · Reviewed: Oct 25, 2026 · Edited: Oct 15, 2026; Oct 25, 2026; Nov 1, 2026 · Last review: Oct 25, 2026*\n\n*Copyright 2026 EdgeChat AI, a subsidiary of Biostate AI.*\n\nLicense: Edgepedia Community License 1.0, https://www.edgepedia.org/edgepedia/license\n", "same_as": [], "url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/key-to-the-phoenix-heart", "markdown_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/key-to-the-phoenix-heart.md", "license": { "name": "Edgepedia Community License 1.0", "url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/edgepedia/license", "summary": "Free with credit, commercial use included. AI training is open to everyone. For other uses, organizations over USD 100M in revenue or 100M monthly users license separately.", "spdx": "LicenseRef-Edgepedia-Community-1.0" }, "credit": "\"Key to the Phoenix Heart (雀骨)\", Edgepedia (EdgeChat), https://www.edgepedia.org/key-to-the-phoenix-heart. Edgepedia Community License 1.0.", "credit_md": "\"[Key to the Phoenix Heart (雀骨)](https://www.edgepedia.org/key-to-the-phoenix-heart)\", Edgepedia (EdgeChat), [https://www.edgepedia.org/key-to-the-phoenix-heart](https://www.edgepedia.org/key-to-the-phoenix-heart). [Edgepedia Community License 1.0](https://www.edgepedia.org/edgepedia/license).", "credit_html": "\"Key to the Phoenix Heart (雀骨)\", Edgepedia (EdgeChat), https://www.edgepedia.org/key-to-the-phoenix-heart. Edgepedia Community License 1.0.", "speakable": "Key to the Phoenix Heart is a 2026 28-episode Chinese costume romance drama on iQIYI, starring Hou Minghao and Amy in a marriage-before-love court-intrigue story; a zero-marketing summer hit with divided reviews." }