Cheng Yi Named C-Drama's No. 1 'Broken' Leading Man, Beating Xiao Zhan

Chinese audiences have crowned Cheng Yi's tormented martial artist in Love and Redemption the country's most affecting "broken" leading man, according to a ranking drawn from years of Weibo debate over which actors best convey visible heartbreak on screen. Cheng edged out longtime favorites Luo Yunxi and Tan Jianci, both prized for roles built on restraint that finally cracks.

The ranking tracked which performances came up most often alongside "broken" — 破碎感 in Chinese, fandom shorthand for a character who holds pain behind a composed exterior until a look, a trembling voice or a moment of collapse breaks through. Ten actors made the list, prized less for crying on cue than for letting devastation show while visibly trying not to.

Wang Anyu plays competitive high jumper Duan Yucheng in the sports drama Falling Into You, a character whose sunny, puppy-like energy masks real insecurity about being taken seriously. Duan Yucheng usually bounces back quickly from setbacks, but Wang lets the character's mood visibly crash when he feels overlooked, jealous or unfairly judged by teammates and coaches. A clip of Duan Yucheng breaking down after a training failure drew comments describing his tears as "the real thing," with viewers noting that his vulnerability comes less from tragic fate than from ordinary teenage insecurity, which many found easy to relate to.

Wang Yibo plays wandering swordsman Xie Yun in the wuxia drama Legend of Fei, a character introduced as glib, quick-witted and always ready with a joke, hiding a fatal poison eating away at his body. Once the poison takes hold, the once-carefree Xie Yun grows pale and weak while still forcing a smile, and the contrast between his early charm and later fragility became one of the drama's most talked-about arcs. Fans have said the character's "broken" quality lands harder precisely because Xie Yun rarely lets his suffering show outright, with the strain visible mainly in how hard he works to appear unaffected as his fate closes in.

Liu Yuning plays Ning Yuanzhou, head of the Six Ways Hall intelligence network, in A Journey to Love. The character starts out composed, decisive and every inch a leader, but as the story unfolds, the weight of the comrades, life-and-death stakes and duty riding on him becomes harder to hide. Viewers have praised Liu for capturing both the character's "broken" and "safe to lean on" qualities at once, noting that Ning Yuanzhou's exhaustion and tenderness surface mainly once he is badly wounded, which makes the moments he finally looks vulnerable feel earned rather than sudden.

Zhang Linghe plays the immortal lord Chang Heng in Love Between Fairy and Devil, a highborn, dutiful figure whose calm exterior hides years of romantic longing he can never act on. Chang Heng has the standing and the power to protect nearly everyone around him, yet remains bound by rules and rank when it comes to the one relationship he actually wants, giving the character a quietly tragic undertone. Fans have described him as restrained and elegant with "unspoken heartbreak" written all over him, with Zhang keeping most of that suffering in his eyes and expression rather than any outburst, which is part of why the character's rare cracks in composure have stayed memorable.

Ding Yuxi plays Mu Sheng in Love Game in Eastern Fantasy, a character who starts out guarded, dangerous and faintly paranoid before slowly opening up to the woman who earns his trust. As Mu Sheng begins to fear losing someone he has let himself care about, the shift from intimidating to unguarded becomes one of the drama's signature moments, particularly a widely shared scene of him crying while tying back his hair. Viewers called the scene "devastating and disarming at once," saying Ding blends menace and fragility so seamlessly that the character's sudden vulnerability lands as a gut punch rather than a slow reveal.

Xiao Zhan plays Shi Ying, an aloof deity from Mount Jiuyi, in The Longest Promise, a character whose entire life is shaped by fate, duty and feelings he is not permitted to act on. Shi Ying keeps his composure through most of the story, so it hits harder when tragedy finally cracks it, whether through a loved one's death or a conflict between love and destiny he cannot resolve. Online commenters have called the performance "devastating" and impossible to watch without feeling it, noting that scenes built around white robes, blood and quiet grief make Shi Ying's suffering feel almost inevitable rather than melodramatic.

Ren Jialun plays celebrated general Zhou Shengchen in One and Only, a decorated military leader bound by loyalty and duty even as his feelings for the woman he loves stay carefully restrained behind the lines of rank and propriety. When Zhou Shengchen is later falsely accused of treason and executed, the character's fall from celebrated hero to tragic victim has stuck with viewers for years after the show aired. Fans still describe the arc as a "double blow of heartbreak and idealism," pointing out that Ren rarely lets Zhou Shengchen's emotions spill over fully, which only makes the character's helplessness in the face of his fate feel more devastating.

Tan Jianci plays Xiang Liu, a nine-lived military strategist, in Lost You Forever, a cold, dutiful figure who puts loyalty and responsibility ahead of everything else, including his own feelings for the young princess he serves. Xiang Liu expresses that devotion mostly through action rather than words, quietly protecting her without ever admitting how he feels, until his story ends on the battlefield. Fans have said there has been no Xiang Liu quite like Tan's since the show aired, crediting him with folding the character's loneliness and heartbreak into small expressions and glances rather than any grand declaration.

Luo Yunxi plays Run Yu in Ashes of Love, a courteous, gentle fish deity in the drama's early episodes whose backstory turns out to be filled with old wounds. After years of being overlooked, watching his mother die and repeatedly losing the person he loves, Run Yu shifts from soft-spoken restraint toward obsession and a hunger for power, though the character's loneliness never fully disappears even after he takes the throne. Years after the show aired, fans still cite his crying scenes as some of the most affecting in Chinese television, noting that Luo rarely leans on big physical or facial reactions, letting the character's unraveling show mainly through his eyes.

Topping the ranking is Cheng Yi, who plays disciple Yu Sifeng of Lize Palace in Love and Redemption. From his teenage years onward, the character survives misunderstanding, injury, betrayal and repeated brushes with death, all while his romantic relationship remains largely one of sacrifice and heartbreak. Yu Sifeng tends to stay gentle and composed even in his most painful moments, rarely breaking into an outright sob, instead letting a look, a pause or his physical state carry the weight of what he is feeling, which is why words like "battle-worn," "bloodied" and "tearful" have become shorthand among fans for his period roles. One widely shared comment describes watching Yu Sifeng cry as impossible not to cry along with, and viewers often bring up Cheng's other historical roles in the same breath, arguing that few actors switch as convincingly between "broken" and "resilient" as he does.

Original Article In Chinese

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