20 020
"Yes, sir!"
Each episode of "Dear Mom" has a different focus.
The pilot episode is where the guests meet the audience for the first time, while the first episode is about the three mother-daughter pairs getting to know each other and getting along.
The theme of this second episode is to recreate the guests' daily lives at home, so the initial filming location was also the guests' own homes.
The live stream was divided into three perspectives, each corresponding to one of the three groups of guests, while there was also a main live stream where the director controlled the switching of the screen.
When the production crew arrived at Ning Fei's home, Ning Fei had already applied delicate light makeup, and her smooth black hair was held in place by a blue crystal hair clip, making her look elegant and classy.
How does my goddess manage to be so beautiful all the time?! I'm stunned by her beauty!
Teacher Ning truly amazes me every time she appears; she's so beautiful!
Some viewers are looking for Ning Yuxuan.
Why is only Teacher Ning here? Isn't Ning Yuxuan here?
[Yeah, where is she? Maybe she hasn't finished her makeup yet?]
The staff are also looking for people.
This episode focuses on authenticity and realism, and the production team did not prepare any styling or assign any tasks to the guests in advance.
The production team only entered the guest's home with their equipment when the live broadcast started on time.
The staff searched around but couldn't find her, so they had to ask Ning Fei for help: "Teacher Ning, where's Yu Xuan?"
Ning Fei cleared her throat: "I called her just now, she should be out soon."
The staff member understood: "Ms. Yuxuan is touching up her makeup? May we go in and take photos?"
When Ning Yuxuan came to Ning Fei's house last time to film the pilot episode, she appeared on camera completely without makeup, without any foundation.
It's understandable that Ning Yuxuan wanted to tidy up her makeup and change her image before appearing on camera, hoping to give the audience a surprise.
Ning Fei looked troubled and was about to speak.
Footsteps came from the stairs, and the photographer quickly pointed his camera in the direction of the sound.
Ning Yuxuan was wearing pajamas, one hand holding her long hair behind her head, and the other waving at the camera: "Good morning."
Staff: "..."
So, Ning Yuxuan wasn't touching up her makeup in the room, but had just woken up?
[It's already past 10 a.m.! Ning Yuxuan is only now getting out of bed?]
[Sleeping until I naturally wake up is so wonderful! No wonder I live the life of a stay-at-home daughter.]
Ning Fei apologized to the production team on behalf of Ning Yuxuan: "I'm sorry, I was thinking of waking Xuanxuan up earlier, but she said..."
While tying her hair, Ning Yuxuan continued, "I heard that this episode focuses on authenticity, showing the audience the guests' daily lives in their truest form. If I deliberately get up early, wouldn't that go against the show's purpose?"
[...Isn't this really just an excuse to sleep in?!]
To be fair, Ning Yuxuan looks quite healthy, with a rosy glow. Could this be the effect of getting enough sleep?
[Is this a fake no-makeup look? Is she deliberately trying to create an effortlessly beautiful image, but actually using a full face of foundation, blush, and contouring...?]
[Look at her messy hair, the water droplets on her eyebrows, and that pimple on her chin. Do you think it looks fake?]
[Seriously, Ning Yuxuan looks like she has a pimple, haha, it's so true!]
Ning Yuxuan and Ning Shiyue both inherited Ning Fei's good skin, naturally having fair and pinkish-white skin.
Back when Ning Shiyue participated in the talent show, the TV station made a spin-off program about dormitory life, where dozens of boys around twenty years old lived together, and Ning Shiyue had the best skin among them.
Ning Yuxuan has very good skin and rarely gets pimples.
But she ate too much spicy food yesterday and drank a whole bottle of soda, and this morning she immediately got a pimple.
As Ning Yuxuan spoke, she tied her hair into a loose low ponytail. However, due to her casual technique, a strand of hair was not tied in, and many loose strands were scattered on both sides of her cheeks.
Ning Fei looked Ning Yuxuan's hair up and down, then frowned slightly. "How about Mom re-tied your hair?"
She never interfered much with her daughter's lifestyle. As long as it didn't affect her health, whether it was sleeping in late or not liking to wear makeup, Ning Fei would never force her daughter to change.
But that strand of hair that wasn't tied in was really distressing for Ning Fei to see.
Ning Fei thinks that, in today's popular parlance, she might have a bit of obsessive-compulsive disorder.
Ning Yuxuan blinked: "Okay."
She readily took the hair tie from the back of her head and handed it to Ning Fei.
This scene was exactly the kind of mother-daughter interaction the production team wanted, and the cameraman immediately found a good angle and pointed the camera at the two of them from the side.
Ning Fei is nearly 1.65 meters tall, which is considered tall among actresses of her generation. Ning Yuxuan is a few centimeters taller than Ning Fei.
Compared to their frontal faces, the mother and daughter's profiles are more similar, with almost identical curves in their foreheads and noses.
[Taking screenshots like crazy, this side profile shot is practically a masterpiece!]
[Waaaaah, how can anyone have such high-quality and consistently good-looking genes?! I'm so jealous!]
[It's a pity Ning Shiyue isn't here, otherwise it would have been a triple beauty overload]
Ning Fei's technique was skillful; after flipping her wrist back and forth a few times, she had braided a fluffy braid for her daughter.
The staff, who were used to seeing stylists do celebrities' hair, were amazed by Ning Fei's skills and praised her sincerely: "Teacher Ning's hands are so skillful, she's almost as good as the stylists in our group."
Ning Fei smiled and said, "I haven't written anything in a long time, but luckily the skills I practiced before haven't become rusty."
A staff member asked curiously, "Did you practice this while on set?"
Ning Fei nodded: "I learned some from the hair and makeup artists on set, and I also figured it out myself. When Xuanxuan was little, she especially liked all kinds of pretty hairstyles, so when I had free time while filming, I would ask the teachers on set for advice and then braid my daughter's hair when I got back."
[Teacher Ning must be working very hard filming, she even remembered to learn how to braid hair for her daughter.]
Loving someone truly means thinking of them no matter where you are, just like Teacher Ning.
After tidying their hair, the staff told the two to do whatever they wanted, just show the audience their daily life on their day off.
Ning Yuxuan thought for two seconds after listening: "Should I do what I'm usually doing at this time now?"
Staff member: "Yes."
Ning Yuxuan turned her head and glanced at the clock on the wall: "At this time on Saturdays... I should still be sleeping. Should I go back to sleep now?"
Staff: "..."
Ning Fei patted her daughter's back helplessly: "Xuanxuan."
The production team couldn't possibly film the guests sleeping in bed.
The staff member shifted their focus: "Ms. Ning, what do you usually do on weekends?"
Ning Fei thought for a moment: "If I don't go out, I usually watch movies, or do flower arranging, puzzles, or something like that."
The staff member's eyes lit up: "I remember in the last episode, Yu Xuan gave Teacher Ning a lot of puzzles, why don't we go do puzzles together?"
As long as Ning Yuxuan doesn't go back to sleep, everything is fine.
The morning's activities have been decided.
Ning Fei let her daughter choose, and Ning Yuxuan picked a 1,000-piece landscape puzzle from the several puzzles she had bought last time.
When she's alone, Ning Fei likes to do jigsaw puzzles on the bay window at home, where there's plenty of sunlight.
However, since a TV crew was filming this time, Ning Fei placed the felt board in the living room, where the space was more spacious and suitable for the staff to set up equipment.
Ning Yuxuan and Ning Fei sat side by side on the ground, surrounded by a circle of acrylic boxes for sorting, and began to sort the puzzle pictures by color.
Ning Fei is a very patient person; otherwise, she wouldn't have a hobby like jigsaw puzzles.
Ning Yuxuan, however, was completely different. Especially today, she was woken up by an alarm clock and felt drowsy after only a short while.
Ning Fei glanced at her daughter beside her: "Xuanxuan, why don't you go find some music to play?"
Ning Yuxuan felt as if she had been granted a pardon and quickly stood up: "Yes, ma'am!"
Ning Fei smiled helplessly.
I wonder who my daughter inherited her restless nature from.
There's a Bluetooth speaker in the living room. Ning Yuxuan connected her phone to the speaker and opened a music player app.
She hasn't listened to music much lately, and when she opened her playlist, it was full of sad love songs she had added a long time ago.
Ning Yuxuan remembered that these songs seemed to be the ones she used to play when she was venting her emotions alone in her room after arguing with Gu Yunhao.
Thinking of Gu Yunhao, Ning Yuxuan wrinkled her nose and decisively swiped the screen to return.
After thinking for a moment, she opened the search bar and typed in "Ning Shiyue".
Sure enough, the software showed songs sung by Ning Shiyue, including live performances during his talent show days, songs released by his group after their formation, and several of his solo singles.
However, the group only lasted for a year before disbanding. After that, Ning Shiyue focused more on acting and hasn't released any new songs for a long time, except for singing two original soundtracks for his own dramas.
Ning Yuxuan chose the song ranked first, and the tens of thousands of yuan worth of audio equipment in the living room immediately started playing Ning Shiyue's solo single.
The sound from the speakers was so loud that it startled Ning Yuxuan herself.
The viewers in the live stream instantly snapped back to reality.
[Isn't this Ning Shiyue's song? Although my younger brother is no longer with us, his spirit will always be with our mother and sister!]
[Hahaha, the previous comments are hilarious! It's like Ning Shiyue is dead.]
Wow! Ning Shiyue's fans are thrilled! Ning Shiyue's voice is really distinctive and has a youthful feel, it's a pity he's not releasing new songs anymore.
[And I remember Ning Shiyue's singing skills were also quite good. At the time, the professional judges all said he had great potential, but he just lacked professional training.]
When Ning Shiyue debuted, Ning Fei had already retired from the entertainment industry.
Ning Fei paid close attention to her son's career throughout, following the entire talent show from beginning to end.
Ning Fei recognized the song as soon as the intro started playing.
She looked up at her daughter: "Is it Xiaoyue's 'Umbrella and You'?"
Ning Yuxuan glanced at her phone: "Yes. It's only been playing for a few seconds, and you already knew it, Mom?"
Ning Fei smiled and said, "I've heard that a lot before."
Ning Yuxuan sat down next to Ning Fei, and the two continued working on the puzzle while listening to music.
Meanwhile, live streams from two other perspectives were also being broadcast simultaneously.
Jiang Ning'an was reading a script with her mother in the study.
Unlike Ning Fei, Qin Man is still on the front line of the entertainment industry even though she is over fifty years old.
However, compared to when she was younger and focused on her career, she is now more discerning in choosing scripts, and only one or two works will be released to the audience.
In the first half of last year, the movie starring Qin Man won the box office champion during the summer season.
However, after that, Qin Man did not receive a suitable script and therefore did not join any more productions.
At this moment, Qin Man and Jiang Ning'an were looking at several notebooks that their agent had recently handed over.
One of the novels, adapted into a film script, caught the attention of both of them.
Most movies on the market today are told from a male perspective, giving middle-aged male actors far more opportunities than female actors of the same age.
The play, titled "The Wrongly Sent Letter," features two middle-aged women as the main characters.
One of the main characters is a 47-year-old mother named Zhao Wanyi.
Zhao Wanyi has a family that others envy: her husband has a stable job with a good salary, and her son was admitted to a key university last year.
However, after her son finished his college entrance examination, Zhao Wanyi suddenly found that she had lost her purpose in life and was filled with confusion.
Her husband and she had long since lost any spiritual connection. Every day, his eyes were filled with impatience and disdain when he looked at her. Her son would only occasionally reply to her messages as if he were completing a task, and he never took the initiative to contact her.
When the relatives heard that Zhao Wanyi was dissatisfied with the current situation, they all felt that she was ungrateful and was just looking for trouble.
No one could understand her feelings, so Zhao Wanyi could only write down her frustrations on letters and continue to be the perfect wife and mother in the eyes of outsiders.
However, due to a series of unforeseen circumstances, one of Zhao Wanyi's letters was mistakenly sent to another city and ended up in the hands of a woman of similar age to her.
The two became pen pals and confided in each other...
Of the several scripts on the table, Qin Man spent the most time reading this one.
Jiang Ning'an noticed her mother's fondness for the script and asked Qin Man, "Mom, do you like this story?"
Qin Man seemed hesitant: "Well, it's just..."
In this script, the two female leads have equally prominent roles, making it a film with two female leads.
If you're going to take on this script, the co-star is very important; otherwise, the final result will be greatly diminished.
However, the subject matter of this movie is not appealing. Nowadays, audiences either prefer family-friendly comedies, romance movies, or action-packed dramas about men striving for success.
A film that focuses on the struggles and careers of middle-aged women, but has no romance, is unlikely to attract an audience.
Although the viewers in the live stream couldn't see the detailed script, some of them had read the original novel.
Viewers with even a little knowledge could guess Qin Man's concerns.
This story is indeed interesting, but the subject matter is too niche, and it's very likely that it will end up being neither critically acclaimed nor commercially successful.
Indeed, there are very few films with two female leads on the market these days, and even those that exist are usually romance films. This script, however, is about a middle-aged woman's career, a niche subject with high risks. Well-known actors probably wouldn't want to take it, fearing it would be a thankless task.
It's clear that Qin Man really likes this script, but finding a suitable co-star must be difficult. I haven't thought of a suitable actress yet.
Jiang Ning'an didn't think as much as Qin Man did. She just felt that the script had a rich storyline and excellent character arcs, which was very suitable for her mother.
She advised, "Mom, since you like it, why don't you consider it first? If you're worried about the other actors, you can ask the production company to choose the right people."
Qin Man smiled at her daughter and said, "Mm."
In reality, she didn't have high hopes. The phrase "choosing the right people" sounds simple, but it's far from easy in practice.
Capital is profit-driven, so films with such niche themes may not get much investment, making it difficult to find good actors.
Even if she herself is willing to take a pay cut to act in the script, her co-stars may not be willing.
Jiang Ning'an flipped through the script in her hand, when suddenly a flash of inspiration struck her: "Mom, I've thought of a perfect candidate!"
Qin Man's brow twitched slightly: "Who?"
...
From Cen Meng's perspective, she and Qiao Yazhen are taking viewers on a "room tour" of the villa.
The previous teaser only filmed the first floor of the villa and did not fully showcase the luxury of this mansion in Jinshui Bay.
Jinshuiwan, one of the most luxurious residential areas in the northern part of the city, covers an area of 70,000 square meters but has only 26 buildings.
It's safe to say that the homeowners here are among the wealthiest people in the northern part of the city.
Cen Meng presented herself on the show as someone from a scholarly family, someone who was low-key and cultured, and someone who was wealthy but never ostentatious.
Therefore, she did not emphasize the value of the house, but only inadvertently let the audience see the luxurious decoration and expensive furniture in the house.
Cen Meng believed that discerning viewers would definitely be able to see that this place was unusual.
A week has passed since the last affair scandal, and the online discussion has decreased considerably.
Cen Meng's response that she was completely unaware of the situation, while not very effective, did manage to appease her fans.
Now, whenever someone mentions on social media that Cen Meng is a third party, fans will respond with phrases like "the clarification has already been issued" and "it only takes one mouth to spread rumors, but it takes a lot of legwork to refute them."
This live stream was divided into three perspectives. Most of the viewers who came specifically to watch Cen Meng were her fans, and the atmosphere in the chat was relatively harmonious.
At this moment, the live stream was filled with viewers, mainly Cen Meng's fans, praising her.
[Mengmeng's home is so beautiful! The decoration is exquisite; it's clearly a family with a refined taste.]
[As expected of our low-key Mengmeng, she comes from a wealthy family but never flaunts it.]
Yes, unlike some people who buy luxury goods like nouveau riche as soon as they have a little money.
After the recent events, Cen Meng's fans now hate Ning Yuxuan to the core and seize every opportunity to criticize and belittle her.
Cen Meng first led everyone on a tour of the first floor, and then took the staff to the library on the second floor.
This is the room she renovated with the most care; it cost a lot of money and took almost two months to decorate.
Because the recording time was too short during the filming of the pilot episode, she didn't have time to properly show this part to the audience.
This time, Cen Meng risked angering Gu Yunhao to insist that he let her and her family stay here for a few more days, just so that all the effort she had put in wouldn't go to waste.
After the curtains were drawn back, a row of bookshelves more than three meters high came into view.
The staff members were also amazed, as it was the first time they had ever seen such a tall bookshelf.
Seeing everyone's expressions, Cen Meng was extremely satisfied.
She feigned surprise and said, "Oh my, has no one ever seen such a tall bookshelf before? Photographer, could you take a closer shot so everyone can see it clearly?"
The photographer followed instructions and took pictures of the huge bookshelf from various angles, drawing waves of praise from the online comments.
Wow! It's amazing! Just like a library!
[Cen Meng is amazing! Collecting so many books must have taken a long time!]
Some viewers also noticed something was amiss.
These books look so new! Even with regular cleaning, not all books can look brand new, right?
[Look closely, these books are arranged so haphazardly... Foreign classics are next to Ming Dynasty vernacular stories, and next to that are self-help books...]
[It looks quite pleasing to the eye from a distance; it seems Cen Meng arranged the books according to color scheme for aesthetic purposes.]
Do frequent readers arrange their books by color? Or is it more convenient to organize them by type?
Fans responded with a barrage of criticism.
【Is it wrong for Mengmeng to be clean? Besides, although Mengmeng doesn't flaunt her wealth, her family has always been well-off, so there must be someone specifically responsible for cleaning the library.】
[Who says books have to be arranged by type? This is Mengmeng's house, not yours. She can arrange them however she wants!]
After the photographer took pictures of the bookshelf, Cen Meng led the staff to the floor-to-ceiling window next to it.
“The lighting here is wonderful.” Cen Meng’s face beamed with a smile. “I always love sitting here to read, feeling incredibly happy as I’m bathed in the warm sunlight and beautiful words.”
As he spoke, the photographer zoomed in on the view outside the window.
Outside, there was a large green lawn, sculptures of various shapes, a rectangular pool, and a fountain.
Wow, the environment here is so nice! This yard feels much bigger than the Ning family's.
【Our Mengmeng just doesn't like to flaunt her wealth, but that doesn't mean she's not as rich as Ning Yuxuan! Only nouveau riche flaunt their wealth every day.】
Does anyone know where this is? I'd like to have some material for my dreams later.
I don't know. Cen Meng won't say either, probably because she's afraid of being disturbed by irrelevant people.
The audience discussed the location of Cen Meng's mansion. Some guessed it was a suburban estate, while others guessed it was a newly built upscale neighborhood.
Amidst the numerous speculations, one comment flashed by—
I know this place; I passed by it once when I was having afternoon tea at a friend's house.
Upon seeing this, Cen Meng's fans immediately began to ridicule her mercilessly.
[Hahaha, you must be mistaken. This isn't a place just anyone would pass by. Do you think it's some kind of neighborhood? Or is your friend on the rich list in the north of the city?]
[Little sister, let me explain something to you. Mansions of this caliber have extremely tight security measures; ordinary people can't even get a glimpse of them from afar.]
[Haha, little sister, you're killing me! Just because Mengmeng seems approachable doesn't mean you can just walk past her mansion, right? Hahahaha]
There were many comments in the live stream, but these few were inconspicuous and were quickly scrolled past.
However, the viewers who initially commented that they had just passed by this spot frowned.
Her friend's parents are on the rich list, what's so funny?
The girl was still in middle school, at the prime of her youth, and immediately took a screenshot of the live stream and sent it to her friend, clearly not to be outdone.
"Qianqian, look, isn't this place right next to your house? I think I'm not mistaken, am I?"
She received a reply very quickly.
Yes, it should be my neighbor next door.
[I knew I wasn't mistaken, this celebrity named Cen Meng is really annoying, and her fans are even more annoying!]
【What's the matter? 】
I mentioned that I once passed by Cen Meng's house, but her fans didn't believe me and even mocked me.
[Cen Mengjia?]
In a luxury mansion in Jinshui Bay, a girl dressed in designer loungewear curiously drew back the curtains, her gaze passing through the spacious courtyard and looking towards a house in the distance.
She had seen the family next door at the owners' dinner last year.
She remembered that the family's surname wasn't Cen.
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
