Yao Wenlong Says His 17-Year-Old Son Does Laundry For The Whole Family, And His Daughter, 7, Washes Her Own Dishes After Meals - 8days Skip to main content

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Yao Wenlong Says His 17-Year-Old Son Does Laundry For The Whole Family, And His Daughter, 7, Washes Her Own Dishes After Meals

While the kids of Wenlong, who stars in new Mediacorp drama Your World In Mine, may do the household chores, the 52-year-old actor says his 'rank' at home is the lowest. 


 
Yao Wenlong Says His 17-Year-Old Son Does Laundry For The Whole Family, And His Daughter, 7, Washes Her Own Dishes After Meals

In new Mediacorp drama Your World In Mine, Yao Wenlong, 52, stars as Zheng Jian Qiang, a gentle and loving father whose youngest son is a special needs child. 

Jian Qiang and his wife, played by Huang Biren, have three children, played by Hong Ling, Zong Zijie and Richie Koh.

Richie's character Tian Cai is a 21-year-old with the mental age of a seven-year-old.

Your World In Mine yao wenlong family
Wenlong’s on screen fam: Hong Ling, Huang Bi Ren, Zong Zi Jie, Richie Koh and Yao Wenlong

 

When 8days.sg met Wenlong at the drama’s recent press conference, he quipped that the white tables in the Mediacorp studio where the press meet was held reminded him of a clinic and even asked if we wanted to see his IC.

We laughed and told him there was no need for that and he quickly switched back to actor-getting-interviewed mode. 


According to Wenlong, Your World In Mine, which is his first drama in two yearsis meant to shine a light on the lives of the intellectually disabled as well as their families.

"People might misunderstand that this show is done to gain sympathy or to make people cry. But after shooting it, I don't think that's what it is," says the actor.

"We're not doing it to show people how pitiful [the characters] are but to let you know what's going on in their minds and how they get along with each other so that we can truly understand [these families with children of special needs]."

In the show, Wenlong does a great job tackling his family's problems which essentially revolves around their youngest son.

It's why we couldn't help but ask the actor, who has a son, Jianyu, 17, and a daughter, Luohui, seven, with wife Jenny Tsai, 39, if he has a way with his own kids too.

And indeed, he does. In that super chill Yao Wenlong-way, of course.

Wenlong with his on-screen wife Biren, and their son played by Richie

In real life, how do you usually resolve parenting conflicts with your wife?

Everyone has different approaches when it comes to educating their children. But I’m very lucky that my wife and I can communicate. For me, we don’t really argue over parenting issues. My wife doesn’t even want to talk to me, how can we argue... (laughs). I’m just joking! Communication is very important, as long as we communicate well and decide on the outcome that we want, then we will make the right decisions together.

Your character is very gentle in the show, are you like this in real life too? 

In my house, for example if there’s A, B, C and D, I’m the D. My 'rank' is the lowest. (Laughs) First is my wife, then gor gor [his son]... No, wait it should be my daughter first then gor gor then me (laughs).

Who’s the bad cop at home, you or your wife?

Normally she plays the bad cop more. But it's not like what you guys think. She's not a 'tigress' or a ‘tiger mum’, she's very gentle too. But compared to me, she's stricter 'cos I'm the most 'useless' one (laughs). I'm very soft, too soft.

Have you always been like that?

It's because I want my kids to have their own way of thinking as they grow up. I always tell my son, "Your opinions are always correct, as long as it's not illegal. Daddy's way of thinking is stuck in the '70s, yours is from the 2000s, so daddy sometimes has to ask for your opinions."

We're trying to let them develop their unique personalities, or their own way of dealing with things, instead of relying on their daddy and mummy for everything. Of course, when they do something wrong we’ll remind them. 

I'm actually quite a stern person but I learnt that such a parenting style doesn't only put pressure on the adults but the kids too. So I let them take responsibility of their own lives. For example, my son has to do laundry every day. But sometimes if he's too tired, I would do it for him. 

Your son does his own laundry?

Yes. He needs to wash his uniform and dry it before he goes to school the next day. The whole family's laundry will be placed at one spot and he's in-charge of that. Sometimes when I reach home he's already asleep but he would wake up in the middle of the night to wash the clothes.

I believe that every kid should know how to do household chores. I'm 52 years old and I still do my chores. I want my son to look at me and know that next time after he gets married he still has to help with the housework. My daughter, she's only seven, but she washes her own dishes after her meals. 

Wenlong has a way with his kids on and off screen

How would you describe the temperaments of your kids?

My son is very cool, he doesn't really get worked up. But when he does, we let him express his emotions naturally. It's like when Richie's character had an outburst in the show, we just let him express himself, but in a safe manner. When you watch the show, you would see me hugging Richie while he vents his anger by banging his head on my chest and all that.

Likewise for my daughter. When she's in a bad mood, we just let her vent her emotions. She can tear up paper, draw, go ride a bike. Sometimes with my son, I take him out to play badminton.

You know when you smash the shuttlecock, it's like venting your frustrations. 

So is your daughter is more hot-tempered than your son?

She's more expressive. And very smart. Sometimes she would tell me, "You wait for me to finish venting [my anger], I'll be okay later". (Laughs

She's very guai in front of her mum, but with me, I really pamper her 'cos I want her to come to me whenever she's unhappy. It's better than her acting recklessly outside.

It might be because the age gap between me and my kids is too big. When I look at my daughter, I feel like I'm looking at my grandchild (laughs). 

Jianyu, Wenlong, Luohui, and Jenny.

Does your son help take care of his sister?

My son is 17 so there's a big age gap between them too. He used to dote on her quite a lot, but now he's busy with school. He's also starting to want to become an adult so he doesn't really care about his sister anymore. 

I can't say he doesn't dote on her too 'cos whenever I'm not home, I'll tell my son that he has to help me take care of the family. He still loves his sister very much, she would say goodnight to everyone before bed every day, and she would always pester her brother until he whines (laughs). 

I think he's learning how to become a better brother. In a few years time, he will be going out to work so I give him more freedom. I always tell him to go out with his friends more often.

How do you usually resolve conflicts between your kids?

I would let them argue. When they quarrel, we won't interrupt. They need to learn how to get along with each other through conflicts and disagreements. Otherwise when we're older, how

Does your son give in to his sister 'cos he's older?

I always let him decide if he wants to. It's not a must for the older brother to give in to his sister. Sometimes I would ask him, "You bought this, did you buy it for your sister too?" If he says no, then no lor. If he did, then good. (Laughs)

Photos: Yao Wenlong/Instagram, Mediacorp photo unit

Catch the first episode of Your World In Mine on meWATCH below:

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