Photo: Sina Weibo
Two TV series based on families with several children have been launched recently and both of them have had stunning performance in terms of word of mouth and viewing numbers, and this could help Chinese audiences see the happiness of multiple-kid families and give them courage to have more children.
The TV dramas, Dear Parents and The Bond, were released online almost at the same time. Both focus on family relations in large-size families with at least five children and they have been viewed more than 2 billion times on Tencent Video in total.
The 43-episode series Dear Parents follows Liu Biyun and Jiang Tianhuai who became husband and wife in their second marriage. Liu had two children with her ex-husband and Jiang had three children with his ex-wife. The seven-member family lives under the same roof and they finally get closer after dealing with many problems.
The Bond focuses on a family surnamed Qiao that has five children. The mother of the family died when giving birth to the fifth son and the father, who should be the backbone of the family, reveals his true colors.
Selfish and unfeeling, the man turns all of his focus inward, leaving his children to fend for themselves. Realizing his father would never be the man he ought to be, the eldest son voluntarily steps into the role of caretaker. All Qiao siblings gradually become aware of the fact that they are on their own with their big brother, but are willing to do whatever is necessary to keep their family together.
Netizens were moved by the plots in the dramas, in which siblings unite together to overcome many difficulties. The older ones take care of younger children and then they can support each other.
In The Bond, the eldest brother has a serious illness at the end of the drama and when he is in hospital, his younger siblings take turns to accompany him even though all of them have their own families.
Finally, the youngest brother decides to donate a kidney to save his brother's life.
"After watching the series, I began to consider if I can give birth to another child for my daughter's sake, as they can help each other when we are old and have no capability to support them," a mother of a 2-year-old girl in Beijing surnamed Du told the Global Times on Thursday.
This is a common response to the two dramas, as they show the advantages and happiness of multiple children.
China announced on May 31 a further easing of family planning policy to allow each couple to have up to three children, following a decline in the number of the country's newborns for four consecutive years, marking a major policy shift from the two-child policy.