Love comes in so many different forms, colors, and ways, and you’ll be surprised at the stories people have.
Now, I’ll be listing 15 absolutely fabulous Chinese dramas about forced or arranged marriages where the both are forced to enter the marriage and soon fall in love with each other.
1. Untouchable Lovers
Tianji Tower wants to overthrow the tyrannical ruler, Liu Zi Ye, so they replace Liu Chu Yu with their disciple Zhu Que, who looks like the Princess.
Chu Yu and Rong Zhi’s relationship breaks down over misunderstandings, and Rong Zhi fakes his death, and they meet again after their memories are wiped.
Chu Yu is then forced to marry Rong Zhi, who is now Northern Wei’s Prince Regent, and this kicks off their baleful yet heartwarming romance in this forced marriage Cdrama.
Ye Rong Er is also known as the “female Zhang Fei” in Lianwang County, and despite her fierce reputation, she was forced to marry someone she had never met, Yin Sishen, due to a royal decree.
And to handle her divorce case, she decided to become a top-notch matchmaker and opened Boqing Inn and there, she helps break up marriages and solves cases every day.
But things get interesting when she discovers that two first-level matchmakers in her inn have hidden motives, and her runaway “husband” Yin Sishen might be involved too.
This is one of the best Chinese dramas about forced marriage where the husband and wife have what I’d call a cat and dog relationship that’s the sweetest.
3. Legend of Yun Xi
Legend of Yun Xi follows a lady doctor named Han Yun Xi, who marries into the royal family during a chaotic time with three kingdoms.
The Emperor is cunning and arranges for her to marry Long Fei Ye even though she didn’t care for him.
Han Yun Xi is kind, talented in medicine and poisons, and becomes a royal consort in name only, and she soon impresses Long Fei Ye with her skills and they fall in love.
4. She Is The One
Yuan Yue Yue poses as her sister to cover up a mistake and agrees to marry a wealthy man, Wen Jin Chen, without ever meeting him.
On the wedding day, things go wrong, and she decides to escape in a car, unaware that Wen Jin Chen is inside.
After a wild chase, they agree to meet again, leading to possible romance despite the unusual start and hidden identities.
In this forced marriage Chinese drama, Yue Yue is literally boxed into a corner because of her sister, and I loved the way they found love after their marriage – literally the sweetest.
5. The World of Love
In the 5 Dynasties and 10 Kingdoms period, Yuan Yue Zheng was forced into a marriage with the ambitious Eldest Prince Feng Lin.
He initially didn’t care for her, but as she sacrificed herself to help him, he fell in love with her.
But, his past actions and motives caused misunderstandings, and another woman, Du Si Yu, tried to marry him to win his love.
6. Siege In Fog
Siege In Fog follows a proud guy from a powerful family who falls head over heels for a beautiful girl, so he tries everything to make her marry him, even though she likes someone else.
At first, she’s not happy about the forced marriage and pushes him away, but as they face challenges together during wartime, their love grows.
Things get tricky when her old crush comes back and becomes his helper, and their love after marriage in this series about a forced marriage was very heartwarming.
Bai Yun Feng, a strong female bandit, tried to steal a birthday gift from General Hu Shou meant for Shang Shu Hu Bu, but they got caught by General Huang Fu.
So, he offered her two choices: either be executed or marry his second son, Huang Fu Yao, pretending to be Lu Wan’er.
Bai Yun Feng chose to marry Huang Fu Yao, and their love story began with exciting adventures and sweet moments.
The premise of this forced marriage Chinese drama is handsdown the most epic I’ve ever seen and I was totally not disappointed when I watched it.
8. You Are My Destiny
On a cruise to the Bahamas, Chen Jia Xin and Wang Xi Yi have a chance encounter, and this meeting would change their lives forever.
Jia Xin, who is an admin assistant, gets pregnant and agrees to a contract marriage with Xi Yi due to family pressure from both sides.
There was a whole lot to love about this second chance drama with an unexpected pregnancy, but one thing I hold dear months after watching it is how precious and dear the progression of their romance felt.
9. Princess At Large
In this time-travel Chinese drama, Doctor Ji Xian Yun is magically transported to the past and forced into a marriage with Prince Ming Wang by her family.
She didn’t want to marry him, but circumstances led her into this tricky situation, and now, she has to navigate this challenging situation in the olden times.
10. The Sleepless Princess
Princess Chu Yue suffers from insomnia due to a childhood accident, and she soon finds herself in a forced marriage with General Xue Yao, a serious and stern, cold man.
But, fate has something unexpected in store for them, as their marriage is only the beginning of their journey.
As they investigate a suspicious death related to Yao’s older brother, their hearts connect, and a sweet and heart-wrenching romance ignites between them.
If you’re in the mood for a Chinese drama where the leads find love after marriage, then I couldn’t recommend this drama more – It’s that good and you’ll definitely love it.
11. The Romance of Hua Rong
Hua Rong is very excited to start her epic adventure, but she gets kidnapped by the infamous pirate Qin Shang Cheng, who wants to marry her, even if she doesn’t want to.
After several tries, Rong manages to escape from the island prison and the sea monster, and on her journey, she meets the charming Prince Jin Yi Wen, who falls for her instantly.
12. Chef Fang
Fang Yi Shao, a talented orphan chef, gets unexpectedly forced into a marriage with the infamous young master Shen Yong as a substitute bride.
Little does she know that Shen Yong had saved her from kidnappers before, as their forced union leads to heartwarming and comedic moments as Yi Shao’s culinary and martial arts skills win over her in-laws and eventually Shen Yong himself.
Imperial Concubine is about Lin Ruo, a lady from the Lin mansion, who was forced to marry Prince Lu Jun Yi of Qi, but, Lu Jun Yi has a mysterious secret – he got infected with a strange poison three years ago.
This poison makes him change every three hours, turning into different people – sometimes a man, sometimes a woman, and sometimes even a child.
14. Fierce Bride
Zhuang Momo, a modern screenwriter, found herself in the script “Yasha Bride” and she is unexpectedly forced into a secret marriage with the Long family.
Even though she became the ugly bride, she didn’t want to accept this twist of fate.
So instead, she decided to use the “immortal spirit” to try and change her destiny, and what follows is the sweetest and most romantic journey of growth and self-discovery.
15. It Turned Out To Be Hua Nan City
Shen Ru Yi became known as a skilled seamstress at eighteen, but just as she was becoming successful, she was forced to marry someone far away.
Unfortunately, her husband passed away soon after, and people considered her a jinx, so she fought with her evil mother-in-law and eventually escaped with her husband’s divorce papers.
On her way home, she was robbed by bandits, but thankfully, the owner of Nanchuan City rescued her when she was penniless.
While her love interest in this forced marriage Chinese drama isn’t the person she was forced to marry, it still falls under because the arranged marriage contracted without her consent was essentially the catalyst to everything that happened in her life.
There you have it – 16 wonderfully-written, romantic Chinese dramas about forced marriages where the leads fell in love after marriage and the acting isn’t cringey.
Check them out if you’re looking for something new to watch and if you want some more recommendations, the related posts are just below.
