Sequels usually end up in disaster and are terribly bad, but this sequel was much better than I had ever hoped for!!

Story:
The story is much more different than the story of NIF1. In this drama, the theme focuses more around familial ties as well as loyalty and righteousness towards the emperor, the country, and the people in general. Overall I loved the story, although I must admit that the final few episodes were just a tiny-bit underwhelming.

I personally feel that the characters in NIF2 were much more "human" and relatable than the characters in NIF1. But the plot in NIF1 is a bit more complex since it focused more on the political aspect rather than the familial aspect. I sincerely ADORED so many of the characters. I loved Pingzhang's cautiousness and wisdom, Pingjing's playful and carefree manners, Lin Xi's calm and collected poise, Qianxue's love and understanding, Tingsheng's awesome fathering skills and loyalty to his brother and his country, oh I could go on with Xun Fei Zhan and Lin Jiu, and etc.

Plus every time they hinted at or mentioned someone from NIF1, the feels would really start to hit :')

Acting:
I'm sure everyone was in doubt towards the actors when the casting was first announced. Much to my surprise, HXM did wayyyyyy better than I expected. LHR is very young (only 20 yrs old) and I think for his age, he did amazing and portrayed his character of Xiao Pingjing very well, from playful/carefree young lad to a changed/more solemn young man. I loved the female actresses too; TLY and ZHW both portrayed their characters very well. And of course, all of the supporting casts that Daylight Entertainment likes to reuse in all of their productions also acted very well.

Music:
Opening theme is a variation of the opening theme of NIF1, with a slightly more hopeful melody (as with the more happy ending than in NIF1).  I love the ending theme song as well (both the female and male versions). Instrumental was good too.

Rewatch:
There are A LOT of specific scenes that I think are very worth rewatching, such as a lot of the early wuxia-fighting scenes were wonderfully filmed. And of course, all of the deep and emotional family scenes (Tingsheng and Pingjing!) as well as the daily Xiao family shenanigans. I wouldn't rewatch the whole drama though, but there are a lot of scenes I will definitely rewatch.

Overall:
Absolutely loved this show. Compared to all the sequels of movies/dramas I've ever seen in my life, this is a sequel that can almost be equal to its prequel. Both NIF1 and NIF2 are equal in my heart, and both have their pros and cons. Definitely worth giving it a shot if you've seen NIF1 and are debating or not whether to watch this!! If you haven't seen NIF1, then by all means, watch this, because this is still a very good quality drama on its own.