It could be for many reasons that a drama series has to cut down or increase their episode count. The National Radio and Television Administration (NRTA) released a list of drama series that recently made changes to their episode count.
Novoland: Eagle Flag 69 to 70
The Majesty of Wolf 48 to 58
Yi Shen Gu Zhu Zhi Wen Rou 40 to 52
The Legends 50 to 55
Hai Zhi Yao 36 to 45
One Step to the Heavens 40 to 50
Another Me 48 to 53
My True Friend 46 to 48
Handsome Siblings 50 to 53
Listening Snow Tower 60 to 56
City of Desire 45 to 42
All Is Well 55 to 46
The Story of Minglan 76 to 73
Puzzle 40 to 52
The Longest Day in Chang'an 60 to 26
You Are My Answer 40 to 42
The Golden Eyes 60 to 56
A Journey To Meet Love 46 to 53
Qing Yu Nian 52 to 46
August Not The End 80 to 60
Against the Light 30 to 46
Chen Xi Yuan 58 to 60
Among them, the most noticeable is The Longest Day In Chang'An for having a drastic reduction from 60 to 26 episodes! It is an action thriller based on the novel of the same name by Ma Bo Yong starring Jackson Yee and Lei Jiayin. Netizens immediately feared that the reason for the drastic change could be censorship.
Director Cao Dun appeases viewers with an explanation. Apparently, The Longest Day In Chang'An is divided into 2 parts for the NRTA review. The first part reviewed by NRTA was 26 episodes long and the second part is still in post production. Cao Dun reassures that no substantial cuts were made.
Source: 1
