# Good Bye My Princess (东宫)
**Good Bye My Princess** (东宫, *Dōng Gōng*, also translated *Goodbye My Princess* and known as *Eastern Palace*) is a 2019 Chinese historical romance television series adapted from the novel of the same name by the web novelist Fei Wo Si Cun (匪我思存), directed by Li Muge and starring Chen Xingxu and Peng Xiaoran. It premiered on Youku on February 14, 2019 and ran to March 25, 2019 in 52 episodes, with a 55-episode director's cut released later.[1](https://wiki.d-addicts.com/Good_Bye_My_Princess) • [2](https://wikis.pro/%E4%B8%9C%E5%AE%AB_%28%E7%94%B5%E8%A7%86%E5%89%A7%29)
| Key fact | Detail |
|---|---|
| Original title | 东宫 (*Dong Gong*), also known as *Eastern Palace*[1](https://wiki.d-addicts.com/Good_Bye_My_Princess) |
| Source | Novel *Dong Gong* by Fei Wo Si Cun[1](https://wiki.d-addicts.com/Good_Bye_My_Princess) |
| Broadcast | Youku, February 14 to March 25, 2019; 52 episodes, 55 in the director's cut[1](https://wiki.d-addicts.com/Good_Bye_My_Princess) |
| Lead cast | Chen Xingxu as Li Chengyin / Gu Xiaowu; Peng Xiaoran as Qu Xiaofeng; Wei Qianxiang as Gu Jian[1](https://wiki.d-addicts.com/Good_Bye_My_Princess) |
| Filming | August 21, 2017 (Huairou) to February 2018; locations included Beijing, Bashang Grassland, Dunhuang, and Hengdian[1](https://wiki.d-addicts.com/Good_Bye_My_Princess) |
| Reception | Douban score of 7.6, the second-highest of all dramas premiering in 2019 and the highest among 2019 web dramas at the time of that report[3](https://www.jiemian.com/article/2944393.html); IMDb 7.5/10 from 427 ratings[4](https://www.imdb.com/title/tt11156508/ratings/) |
| Spin-off | *Good Bye My Princess: Easter Egg* (东宫：彩蛋), 4 modern-set episodes on Youku, April 4 to 7, 2019[1](https://wiki.d-addicts.com/Good_Bye_My_Princess) |
## Spoilers
### Premise and cast
The story follows Qu Xiaofeng, the ninth princess of the Western State (Xizhou), who travels to the Central Plains for a marriage alliance with the crown prince of the Li dynasty, and the entangled relationship that develops between her and Li Chengyin.[5](https://m.jiemian.com/article/2935986.html) The DramaWiki synopsis describes it as the heart-wrenching love between the fifth prince of the Li dynasty and the ninth princess of the Western State; Li Chengyin, the fifth prince (Prince Yi), later becomes crown prince.[1](https://wiki.d-addicts.com/Good_Bye_My_Princess) Streaming synopses add the tragic frame: Xiao Feng is forced to marry the man responsible for her family's destruction, and buried memories that have yet to resurface drive the plot.[6](https://www.justwatch.com/us/tv-show/good-bye-my-princess) • [7](https://www.viki.com/tv/36177c-goodbye-my-princess?locale=en)
Chen Xingxu and Peng Xiaoran, then little-known actors, led the cast, with Wei Qianxiang as Gu Jian; veteran actors including Siqin Gaowa, Gallen Lo, and Wang Zhifei appeared in supporting and special roles.[5](https://m.jiemian.com/article/2935986.html) • [8](https://www.cpophome.com/good-bye-my-princess-chen-xingxu-peng-xiaoran/) Producer Li Huan said the leads' lack of fame was one reason television networks declined the series, since each network applied its own standards for recognizable faces.[9](https://ent.ifeng.com/c/7kiy9v121Oo)
## Production and adaptation
The project began in 2016, when the television rights to the novel, which had changed hands several times, were acquired by Tangde Film & [Television](https://www.edgepedia.org/television). Li Huan, Tangde's vice president and the series' chief producer, was a fan of the novel and invited the company's contracted director Li Muge to direct, citing his experience on costume dramas as executive director of *Three Kingdoms* and his handling of romantic relationships in contemporary dramas.[9](https://ent.ifeng.com/c/7kiy9v121Oo) • [5](https://m.jiemian.com/article/2935986.html) The screenplay took two years to develop, with six screenwriters credited, led by Qian Jue.[9](https://ent.ifeng.com/c/7kiy9v121Oo) • [1](https://wiki.d-addicts.com/Good_Bye_My_Princess)
**Adaptation choices.** Li Muge described the adaptation principle as "filling in rather than overturning": the drama stays faithful to the novel's core while expanding material the short original leaves undeveloped, adding storylines for characters the novel does not fully narrate.[3](https://www.jiemian.com/article/2944393.html) • [10](https://www.sohu.com/a/231913669_116162) Screenwriter Qian Jue explained one structural change: the novel has Xiaofeng suddenly recall all her past memories three years after marrying Li Chengyin, but the drama unfolds her psychological journey step by step instead.[11](https://www.weibo.com/ttarticle/p/show?id=2309404350059046126820) The fragmented, first-person narrative of the novel, with its flashbacks and insertions, was converted to a chronological structure for television.[5](https://m.jiemian.com/article/2935986.html)
The production used visual composition to distinguish settings: scenes in the Feng dynasty court favor inverted-triangle, line-driven framing to convey the precarious, turbulent atmosphere of the Eastern Palace, while the Western State and Danjiao peoples are shot with circular, softer color aesthetics to suggest openness.[5](https://m.jiemian.com/article/2935986.html) Location shooting covered the Bashang grassland, Dunhuang, and Duobagou, about 350 kilometers from Dunhuang, for the border kingdoms' scenes.[12](https://www.tangde.com.cn/news_detail.aspx?id=1811)
## Release and audience response
The series was originally produced to television-drama standards, but by late post-production in 2018 the market had shifted: costume dramas faced quota restrictions on satellite television, and streaming platforms were increasing investment in head-line self-produced and licensed series. Tangde chose an internet-first release on Youku.[9](https://ent.ifeng.com/c/7kiy9v121Oo) Fans of the novel had pressed the producer for years over scheduling, and the February 14, 2019 premiere went ahead without withdrawal or rescheduling.[9](https://ent.ifeng.com/c/7kiy9v121Oo)
**Fan-driven revisions.** The production became known for responding to viewer feedback during the run. After fans complained that the background music for the famous scene in which Xiaofeng and Gu Xiaowu jump into the River of Forgetfulness was ineffective, the team revised the footage overnight and replaced it the next day; the hashtag #东宫导演宠粉 ("the Dong Gong director spoils fans") trended on Weibo.[12](https://www.tangde.com.cn/news_detail.aspx?id=1811) The production also bought the rights to the well-known gufeng song *Ai Shang* (爱殇) by the singer Xiaoshi Guniang as an insert song, and made further adjustments to the color grading, subtitles, and dubbing in response to comments, re-uploading corrected episodes.[12](https://www.tangde.com.cn/news_detail.aspx?id=1811) • [3](https://www.jiemian.com/article/2944393.html)
The series' online heat was substantial. By late March 2019 the main Weibo topic #电视剧东宫# had exceeded 2.63 billion reads with 1.229 million discussions, and the official Weibo account had surpassed 2.1 billion reads, with the show's fan community (超话) ranked second on the platform behind *Guardian* (镇魂).[3](https://www.jiemian.com/article/2944393.html) • [5](https://m.jiemian.com/article/2935986.html) On Douban it scored 7.6, the second-highest of all dramas premiering in 2019 and the highest among 2019 web dramas at the time of that report.[3](https://www.jiemian.com/article/2944393.html) Viewers coined phrases such as "dating? the kind that exterminates your whole clan" and "finding sugar among the glass shards" to describe its tragic romance.[5](https://m.jiemian.com/article/2935986.html)
## Distribution and later releases
A four-episode modern-set spin-off, *Good Bye My Princess: Easter Egg*, imagining Gu Xiaowu and Xiao Feng as a happily married country couple running a tea business, aired on Youku from April 4 to 7, 2019.[1](https://wiki.d-addicts.com/Good_Bye_My_Princess) Hunan Television broadcast the series in its daytime slot beginning January 14, 2020, and Japan's CS Satellite Theater aired the complete uncut 55-episode version with Japanese subtitles from March 18, 2020; the uncut version had also been released in Vietnam in May 2019.[2](https://wikis.pro/%E4%B8%9C%E5%AE%AB_%28%E7%94%B5%E8%A7%86%E5%89%A7%29) Internationally, the series streams on Rakuten Viki with subtitles in more than a dozen languages, and is listed on services including OnDemandKorea.[6](https://www.justwatch.com/us/tv-show/good-bye-my-princess) • [13](https://www.roku.com/whats-on/tv-shows/goodbye-my-princess-directors-cut?id=7deea1238688543e976ae9b12ad29d56) A 2020 industry report listed *Good Bye My Princess* among Chinese television series exported to overseas markets.[14](https://cmmrmedia.com/UpLoadFile/Files/2020/4/30/19336921edf3f891-5.pdf)
## References
1. [Good Bye My Princess, DramaWiki](https://wiki.d-addicts.com/Good_Bye_My_Princess)
2. [东宫 (电视剧) - 中文百科](https://wikis.pro/%E4%B8%9C%E5%AE%AB_%28%E7%94%B5%E8%A7%86%E5%89%A7%29)
3. [《东宫》导演李木戈：坚持创作思路的同时，把作品调整得更好, 界面新闻 JMedia (2019)](https://www.jiemian.com/article/2944393.html)
4. [Good Bye, My Princess (TV Series 2019) – Ratings, IMDb](https://www.imdb.com/title/tt11156508/ratings/)
5. [对话制片人李欢："玻璃渣里找糖吃"的《东宫》如何成为网红剧, 界面 · 财经号 (2019)](https://m.jiemian.com/article/2935986.html)
6. [Good Bye My Princess – streaming tv show online, JustWatch](https://www.justwatch.com/us/tv-show/good-bye-my-princess)
7. [Goodbye My Princess, Rakuten Viki](https://www.viki.com/tv/36177c-goodbye-my-princess?locale=en)
8. [Good Bye, My Princess – Chinese Drama 2019, CPOP HOME](https://www.cpophome.com/good-bye-my-princess-chen-xingxu-peng-xiaoran/)
9. [三年《东宫》，一朝"初见"丨专访总制片人李欢, 凤凰网娱乐 (2019)](https://ent.ifeng.com/c/7kiy9v121Oo)
10. [情深不知，别后思量，导演李木戈详述剧版《东宫》诞生记, Sohu (2019)](https://www.sohu.com/a/231913669_116162)
11. [专访《东宫》第一编剧钱珏, Weibo article (2019)](https://www.weibo.com/ttarticle/p/show?id=2309404350059046126820)
12. [唐德大咖｜专访唐德副总裁李欢：《东宫》打响后备战, 唐德影视官网 (2019)](https://www.tangde.com.cn/news_detail.aspx?id=1811)
13. [Goodbye My Princess – Director's Cut, Roku](https://www.roku.com/whats-on/tv-shows/goodbye-my-princess-directors-cut?id=7deea1238688543e976ae9b12ad29d56)
14. [2020年中国电视剧国际传播报告 (cmmrmedia)](https://cmmrmedia.com/UpLoadFile/Files/2020/4/30/19336921edf3f891-5.pdf)
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*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 Cr to In*
*Initially written Oct 3, 2026 · Reviewed: Oct 3, 2026; Oct 25, 2026 · Edited: Oct 15, 2026; Oct 25, 2026; Nov 1, 2026 · Last review: Oct 25, 2026*
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