PUBLISHED ONMarch 25, 2026 10:46 AMBYYeo Shu HuiChinese drama Pursuit of Jade is one of the most widely discussed series on social media now due to its compelling storyline, the actors' stunning looks and their sweet chemistry.
Directed by Zeng Qingjie, the series — currently streaming on Netflix, iQiyi and WeTV — centres on the love story between butcher Fan Changyu (Tian Xiwei) and marquis-warrior Xie Zheng (Zhang Linghe).
The latter, hiding in Lin'an town under the false name Yan Zheng after he was seriously injured in battle and saved by Changyu, agrees to enter a fake marriage with her to save her family home.
As they grow to care for each other over time, war separates them. Xie Zheng reclaims his title, fighting to protect his country and seeking revenge, while Changyu goes to the battlefield in search of him and finds out the truth behind her parents' deaths. Reunited in battle, they stand together, fighting for justice, truth and their love.
With the drama enthralling countless fans globally, the cast are now experiencing new heights in their career. Here are some interesting things to know about eight actors from the series.
Zhang Linghe, who plays Xie Zheng/Yan Zheng in the drama, debuted in showbiz in 2019 after he was reportedly scouted by a talent agent while studying for his postgraduate admission examinations in a cafe.
The 1.9m tall Jiangsu native, whose real name is Zhang Jiawei, graduated from Nanjing Normal University, where he majored in electrical engineering.
Despite playing leading roles in dramas since his debut, his big break came in 2022, when he played the second male lead, god of war Chang Heng, in the wuxia-romance drama Love Between Fairy and Devil, which starred Chinese actors Dylan Wang and Esther Yu.
The 28-year-old told AsiaOne in an interview that year he entered showbiz "out of curiosity" and grew to enjoy what he does because he can have different life experiences.
He added then that he sees fame as "a form or recognition from the public", which motivates him to work harder.
Since then, Linghe has played a series of memorable characters in Chinese dramas, including nobleman Gong Ziyu in My Journey to You (2023), crown prince preceptor Xie Wei in The Story of Kunning Palace (2023) and traditional Chinese medicine physician He Suye in The Best Thing (2025).
Outside of acting, Linghe is known for being good in mathematics, having scored 182 out of 200 in the subject for his university admissions examination. He has also showcased his arithmetic talents in multiple Chinese game variety shows including Youth Periplous season four (2023) and The Truth (2024 till now).
In an interview published by Elle China on March 19, he shared that he picked up photography as a new hobby at the end of 2025 when he returned home to spend time with his family and saw his aunt had brought a camera to take their family photos.
"Suddenly, I had a thought that perhaps I could own a camera to record some moments [in daily life]," he said.
Since then, he has taken the time to study every component and feature about photography as well as the editing process whenever he has personal time.
Linghe, who is currently filming historical-romance drama The Road to Glory in Zhejiang's Hengdian World Studios as well as the RPG reality show The Truth Season 4, is seen carrying various cameras every day in fancams.
Chongqing-born Tian Xiwei debuted in showbiz in 2017 and is a graduate of the prestigious Shanghai Theatre Academy.
The 28-year-old, who plays Changyu in the series, has been interested in acting from an early age and was a member of her high school acting club. However, she had never thought about joining showbiz until her teacher told her she was suitable to become an actress.
As a rookie, she acted in a series of web dramas until she rose to fame in romance-comedy series New Life Begins in 2022, where she played Li Wei, who enters a political marriage with prince Yin Zheng, played by Chinese actor Bai Jingting.
Since then, she has played more memorable characters in dramas including Princess Lin'an in adventure-fantasy series Guardians of the Dafeng (2024) and cat demon Wu Zhen in Moonlit Reunion (2025).
Xiwei is currently filming romance drama Where the Mask Ends in Hengdian World Studios.
Prior to working with Linghe in Pursuit of Jade, which was filmed between December 2024 and April 2025, they had walked the red carpet and received awards onstage together at Weibo Night and iQiyi Scream Night in 2023.
Following the popularity of Pursuit of Jade, Kong Xue'er gained significant attention for her performance as businesswoman Yu Qianqian, one half of an ill-fated toxic couple opposite Deng Kai, who plays obsessive prince Sui Yuanhai.
The 29-year-old Qianjiang native, also known as Snow Kong, was an idol trainee under JYP Entertainment in South Korea from 2012 to 2015.
After returning to China, she participated in the Chinese girl group reality show LadyBees in 2016 and debuted as a member of the group in the same year.
After LadyBees disbanded in 2019, she joined idol survival show Youth With You 2 in 2020 and debuted as a member of girl group The9 that year. Members included Esther Yu, Liu Yuxin, Xu Jiaqi, Zhao Xiaotang, Yu Yan, Xie Keyin, An Qi and Lu Keran. The group disbanded in 2021.
Since then, Snow has focused on acting, playing main and supporting roles in Chinese dramas including The Double (2024), Blossom (2024), The Prisoner of Beauty (2025), Legend of the Female General (2025) and Moonlit Reunion (2025).
Xue'er and Deng Kai are currently filming romance drama Jiang Men Du Hou, which stars actors Dylan Wang and Meng Ziyi.
Deng Kai debuted in showbiz in 2018 after graduating from Lu Xun Academy of Fine Arts.
The 1.89m tall Liaoning native reportedly joined Pursuit of Jade as Prince Sui Yuanhai at the last minute to replace someone who had withdrawn from the show.
He has attracted a pool of new fans since playing the white-haired sadistic prince and he was mobbed at the airport while travelling to Changsha to film variety show Hello, Saturday on March 23.
He appeared flustered by the crowd and attention, telling his fans jokingly at one point that he "had enough" and started speeding up, resulting in his fans giving chase.
Deng Kai also had to use the washroom at the airport and was running to escape the chasing fangirls with no success, leaving him to remark: "I can't even go to the toilet now."
When the 31-year-old eventually made it there, he was heard making a loud sigh as he entered the restroom, with fans still pointing their mobile phone cameras at him at the entrance.
That's not the end of it; as he sat down on a bench later, he thanked and pleaded with fans, saying: "Okay, I think that's enough, please go home to rest, it's so tiring for you."
Even when he was on board the plane later, fans still swarmed around his seat and refused to move down the aisle, resulting in him putting his hands together again and waving at them to move along. As the fans eventually moved away, Deng Kai was seen breathing a sigh of relief as he rolled his eyes and settled in his seat.
Chengdu-born Ren Hao, who plays military commandant Li Huai'an in Pursuit of Jade, began his showbiz career in 2014 as part of the hip-hop group Zero-G.
The 30-year-old, standing at 1.83m, participated in the Chinese idol survival reality show Produce Camp 2019 and later debuted as part of boy group R1SE. The group disbanded in 2021.
Since 2016, he has also acted in Chinese dramas and movies, including A Female Student Arrives at the Imperial College (2021), Ancient Love Poetry (2021), Everlasting Longing (2025) and Better Halves (2025), where he and Xue'er played a couple.
Lin Muran, who plays one of the antagonists, crown prince Sui Yuanqing, in Pursuit of Jade, began his career at the age of one in Chinese drama Golden Marriage (2006).
Over the years, the dimpled 20-year-old performed alongside Asian superstars including Andy Lau, Donnie Yen and Zhao Wei in movies and series.
Since gaining more recognition for his performance in Pursuit of Jade, he even had fans travelling from South Korea just to visit him on his drama set.
In a Weibo reel on March 23, Muran is seen interacting with the two fans in English, asking if they visited China for a holiday or just to visit him. When he heard they came specially to visit him, he was visible touched, saying he didn't prepare any gifts for them beforehand.
Later, the fans each received a piece of Chinese paper art from Muran, which was passed to them by a staff member. The latter reportedly told them that Muran had driven to a nearby shop to buy it to thank them for visiting him in China.
Li Qing, who was born in Shaanxi Province and plays scholar-military strategist Gongsun Yin in Pursuit of Jade, debuted in showbiz in 2019.
The 25-year-old, whose real name is Li Zihao, is a graduate of Beijing Film Academy and is known mostly for playing supporting roles in Chinese dramas, including Nothing But You (2023), A Dream Within A Dream (2025) and Legend of the Female General (2025).
In a livestream on March 23 with actress Yu Zhongli, who plays Gongsun Yin's love interest Princess Qi Shu in Pursuit of Jade, he shared two impromptu scenes which made it into the final cut of the series.
Spoilers ahead.
In episode 24, Gongsun Yin and a soldier eavesdrop on Xie Zheng's conversation outside his tent and Gongsun Yin advises the soldier to leave the marquis alone for now.
Praising his own wisdom, he descends the stairs and tumbles, before getting up quickly to walk away in embarrassment.
Li Qing recounted he had slipped for real during the rehearsal, which the director found amusing, and he told Zhongli he had to fall two or three times for the cameras.
Another scene was in episode 31, where Gongsun Yin and Princess Qi meet for the first time in Lord Li's manor after leaving Xie Zheng's camp on bad terms.
As he runs after her, his billowy sleeve gets caught in the bridge parapet and he has to release himself before continuing to chase her.
Li Qing shared in the livestream that was also an incident that happened during rehearsals which the director found good enough to include in the final cut.
"I think it's always these small impromptu actions which make the scenes better. It's quite fun," he said.
Nine, who plays Changyu's friend Man Di in the series, is a Thai actor-singer who debuted in China showbiz in 2021.
The 26-year-old, whose real name is Kornchid Boonsathitpakdee, is known as Gao Qingchen in China, and he participated in the Chinese idol reality show Produce Camp 2021, debuting as a member of the boy group Into1 in the same year.
After the group disbanded in 2023, Nine participated in season four and five of the reality show Call Me By Fire in 2024 and 2025.
Besides singing, he also took on supporting roles in Chinese dramas The Rise of Ning (2024) and Insect Detective season two (2024).
In a Weibo post to bid farewell to Man Di on March 21, Nine wrote: "Thank you for giving me so many opportunities and experiences.
"You taught me to always persevere, to do what I've thought of, and to love those who love me. You are my pride, my light, and you've made me a better person. Your courage will repeatedly remind me to be brave too. Goodnight, Didi, have a good rest."
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