The First Jasmine‘s Cheng Lei and Bai Lu pairing is a powerful one
As someone who loves Cheng Lei and Bai Lu (what a powerhouse pairing, eh?) in equal measure, I am thrilled to report their upcoming Chinese historical romance drama Mo Li (aka The First Jasmine) began filming today, with booting ceremony photos also released of the pair now the production has properly kicked off along with the main cast announcement.
The filming for the 40-episode series is expected to last four months.
The C-drama is based on the novel The Noble Consort (盛世嫡妃) written by Feng Qing (凤轻), and stars Bai Lu ( 白鹿) (Story of Kunning Palace) as female lead Ye Li, with Cheng Lei (My Journey to You) as Mo Xiuyao.
Production details for The First Jasmine
As for directing, now this one is an interesting one, as there are three directors involved here.
Lin Yufen (Detective Investigation Files 2 and 3) is the chief director, along with Leung Sing Kuen (The Demon Hunter’s Romance) and Liu Zhijun co-directing.
(see photo of all three directors with stars Bai Lu and Cheng Lei below)
The drama was written by Zhao Na (aka Xiao Xiang Dong Er) who also wrote the The Demon Hunter’s Romance so the fantasy element on this should be high, and with Liang Tingting (Brotherhood of Blades 2) designing the costumes.
Considering she also designed the intricate costumes for the fantasy movie A Writer’s Odyssey (which, I am here to tell you is nowhere near as bad as some of the reviews portray), I think we can expect some pretty elaborate clothing here.
As for a potential release date (?), both Bai Lu and Cheng Lei have been incredibly busy lately, with Bai Lu starring in three new dramas — Northward, Feud (visually stunning) and Unveil: Jadewind— and Cheng Lei with Legend of the Female General, Shadow Love, Footprints of Change, and How Dare You? also in the works.
RELATED: 10 pretty Mo Li stills have been released as the drama wraps up filming
With that many C-dramas heading for release involving the pair in around the same time frame, it also means streaming services are even more choosy about when dramas are released so as not to saturate the market, and have us all become bored seeing the same actors in different roles.
Some time in the first half of 2026 then is my guess as to the earliest we can expect Mo Li to hit the airwaves. (Update, April 12th, 2026: Rumors coming out of China after Cheng Lei spoke about the premiere in an interview now place The First Jasmine as premiering some time in June? Update #2: – Mo Li, now titled The First Jasmine, has an official premiere date — June 9th, 2026. Yay!).
Whether it eventually gets an English title, we will have to wait and see.
The First Jasmine‘s action scenes may be some of the last for both Bai Lu and Cheng Lie
Wang Deming (Kill Me Love Me) is the action director and, while that drama was a sh*tshow of stupidity by the time it ended, the action scenes in it were beautifully done, so we can also probably expect some pretty amazing battle/fight scenes in Mo Li as well.
Especially as both Bai Lu and Cheng Lei have done some stellar work in action scenes many times before.
With Bai Lu also being 31 as I write, and having hinted before that she may be cutting back on action scenes due to the intense energy and training required, and it causing problems with lower back strain (Update, January, 2026 – now confirmed by the Chinese actress), The First Jasmine may also be one of the last dramas in which we get to see her in intense scenes like that.
Cheng Lei, too, is the same age and, while fans love watching their favorite actors perform amazing physical feats, I think some don’t always think about how hard it is on the actors, and how many hours they must train in wire work for even the shortest of fight scenes.
Booting ceremony photos concentrate on the leads
Most of the photographs released today from the The First Jasmine booting ceremony concentrate on the two leads as, let’s face it, that’s the major draw of the drama for most of us, isn’t it?
The photo of Cheng Lei was released with the comment:
The young general’s military career changes situation, and the undercurrent stirs up the government and the people. Good luck to #Mo Li#, and and look forward to meeting Mo Xiuyao soon!
While the photo of Bai Lu alone has the comment:
A clever girl goes down the mountain to meet her husband, and a fake and virtuous woman mediates to eliminate evil. Good luck to #BaiLu#, and look forward to meeting Ye Li soon!
If you’re interested in who is producing The First Jasmine, the Chinese drama is co-produced by Tencent Video and Xin Guang Pictures, which of course means it will likely be a Tencent/WeTV exclusive. (It is!)
The First Jasmine plot
As for the drama’s plot, Baidu explains it like this (and yep, I have to say it sounds like a really juicy one!):
Ye Li (played by Bai Lu), the eldest daughter of the Ye family, is married into the declining Ding Manor and weds Mo Xiuyao (played by Cheng Lei), the disabled Prince of Ding. On the same day as her wedding, Prince Li Mo Jingli also marries Ye Ying, the Ye family’s second daughter.
As the last descendant of Mount Li, Ye Li was once sealed away in the mountains for eight years.
Though she appears obedient after marriage, she secretly plots revenge, systematically eliminating the officials responsible for the downfall of her clan. However, her schemes draw suspicion from Mo Xiuyao, who is also pursuing his own vengeance. Their hidden maneuvers send ripples through the seemingly calm waters of the court.
Meanwhile, Mo Jingli, Ye Li’s childhood sweetheart, bears the scornful title of the “Opera Prince”—yet behind the scenes, he schemes to usurp the throne.
Enjoy the The First Jasmine booting ceremony photos, and the previously released concept poster (below).
I will keep updating you as more information about The First Jasmine comes out because, as fantasy historical romance dramas go, you don’t get a pairing with huge potential much more than with these two, do you?
About the Author
