LayarHijau — Chinese actress Nikita Mao has explained why she agreed to play the mother of Zhang Linghe’s and Tian Xiwei’s characters in two dramas, Pursuit of Jade (逐玉) and Where the Mask Ends (嫁金钗). Her role choices have drawn plenty of discussion online.
Asked why she took on mother roles in both dramas, Nikita Mao said she was drawn to the characters the casting team offered. She added that Zhang Linghe and Tian Xiwei are both strikingly good-looking actors. Joking about it, she said, “Looking at these two faces, the children are both so good-looking. As someone who loves a beautiful face (yan gou), I really couldn’t say no.”
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In Pursuit of Jade, Nikita Mao plays Wei Wan, the late mother of Xie Zheng, the character played by Zhang Linghe. Wei Wan is also the late mother-in-law of Fan Changyu, the character played by Tian Xiwei. Although her screen time is limited, her appearance and presence left a strong impression. In Where the Mask Ends, she plays Zhou Fu, an Imperial Noble Consort who is the biological mother of Wei Rao, the character played by Tian Xiwei.
The two dramas are linked through their casts. Zhang Linghe and Tian Xiwei are the leads of Pursuit of Jade. Actor Jin Jia, who plays Nikita Mao’s husband in that drama, also appears in Where the Mask Ends.
In Where the Mask Ends, Zhou Fu is more than a gentle mother. The latest episode reveals that Wei Rao was switched by her aunt when she was a child. A poor family found her and named her A Chou. Her identity was taken by her cousin, Jun Dai, who looks remarkably like her but has a cruel personality.
Ironically, the aunt later forces A Chou to stand in for the fake Wei Rao and marry the male lead, Lu Zhuo. She does not realize that A Chou is the niece she abandoned.
Zhou Fu rarely sees her child and only knows that Jun Dai is Wei Rao, her daughter. To her, A Chou is just a poor girl pretending to be her daughter. This sets off misunderstandings and conflict between mother and daughter. In the latest episode, Zhou Fu points a sword at A Chou because of a misunderstanding over Jun Dai’s death, leaving their relationship tense.
The scene also puts Tian Xiwei’s acting in the spotlight. She plays two characters: A Chou, the biological daughter who grew up in a poor family, and her cousin Jun Dai, who took over the Wei Rao identity. Facing suspicion from her biological mother, A Chou goes from feeling wronged to shocked and finally despairing. Through her eyes and tears, Tian Xiwei conveys the pain of wanting to explain but not being understood. Nikita Mao brings out Zhou Fu’s doubt, anger, and inner struggle as a mother. Their face-off adds emotional tension to the mystery of Wei Rao’s origins.
Beyond the sword scene, the interaction between Tian Xiwei and Nikita Mao is another draw of Where the Mask Ends. Tian Xiwei reportedly studied Nikita Mao’s expressions and way of speaking to make the mother-daughter bond feel more natural on screen. Nikita Mao has also praised Tian Xiwei as sincere, kind, and responsible. The two are said to get along well off screen too.
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