Recently, Chinese actor Hu Ge, in a rare interview, spoke about his family, openly admitting for the first time that he has two children and revealing that his second child is a son. However, what caught more attention than Hu Ge’s disclosure about his family situation is his reflection on the “father role.” He candidly admitted that he feels like he is “failing” in being a dad.
Hu Ge, 43 years old, has been married to his manager Huang Xining for 3 years and they have a daughter, “Xiao Moli,” who is over 2 years old. It was rumored some time ago that he welcomed a son as their second child, but he had not confirmed it publicly. During an interview with Tian Pujuan, Hu Ge finally admitted that he now has “both a son and a daughter” and talked openly about his 4-month-old son.
When asked about how he balances his feelings towards his two children, Hu Ge confessed, “I am more patient with my daughter, but I tend to be less patient with my son.” This statement quickly sparked discussions online, with some jokingly saying, “Shanghai men are indeed wrapped around their daughters,” while others questioned if it was a form of favoritism.
Hu Ge mentioned that he feels at a loss when his son cries, but with his 2-year-old daughter, he acts without any principles. He shared a detail: when his daughter throws a tantrum, he would do anything to give her sweets to calm her down, yet when his son cries at night, he awkwardly carries him around in circles and ultimately hands him over to his wife to deal with.
Last year, there were netizens who claimed to have seen Hu Ge and his wife Huang Xining on a plane. At that time, Huang Xining seemed to be pregnant with their second child. As Hu Ge had not officially announced anything about a second child, many netizens were unsure if the news was true. Now, it seems that Huang Xining did give birth to their second child in August.
Some netizens teased, “Hu Ge’s son is only 4 months old, and a 4-month-old baby only knows how to eat and sleep, yet Hu Ge seems a bit lacking in patience. It appears he has given all his fatherly patience to his daughter.”
When Hu Ge talks about his daughter on shows, he always speaks fondly of her. He described his daughter as “a little greedy cat who can’t resist good food,” revealing that she is very cute and good at coaxing, and he is totally controlled by her. To cater to his daughter, Hu Ge even learned to cook and became a “dad with strong culinary skills.”
However, Hu Ge admitted that due to his frequent work away from home, he is mostly absent from his children’s lives, stating, “I am seriously absent in her growth process.” He described his struggle to balance family and career, admitting that he doesn’t perform well in the role of a father, going as far as calling himself “quite a failure.”
Hu Ge shared a touching moment that saddened him; one morning as he was preparing to leave for work, his wife held their daughter, hoping she would kiss him for encouragement. However, the daughter showed resistance instead. Hu Ge explained that it wasn’t a tantrum but rather her way of not wanting him to leave, making him realize his lack of presence in his children’s lives.
Despite the outside world joking about him being a “daughter’s slave” for showing more patience towards his daughter than his son, Hu Ge emphasized that regardless of which child, what he can’t let go of is the inner worry and guilt he feels.
Hu Ge also revealed that as his daughter grows older, he sometimes takes her to his filming sets simply to spend more time together, trying to make up for the “absent fatherly love.” Once, when he took “Xiao Moli” to a high-altitude area, she experienced mild altitude sickness, reminding him that he might have taken a risky decision.
Over the past 3 years, Hu Ge’s way of addressing Huang Xining has changed. Initially, he called her “my wife,” but now he refers to her as “their mother.” Presently, Hu Ge, following his children, calls Huang Xining the same. He believes that love eventually transforms into family ties, expressing gratitude for his wife’s efforts and acknowledging that their time alone together has been compressed into “puzzle-like fragments.”
Hu Ge’s mother greatly influenced his views on relationships; she did not want her son to date someone from the entertainment industry, feeling that women in the entertainment circle were not good homemakers. His past girlfriends, Xue Jianing and Jiang Shuying, could not last due to their professional reasons. As a former team member, Huang Xining leads a simple life, has a traditional personality and even though Hu Ge’s fans once thought they were not compatible, she meets his mother’s expectations for a daughter-in-law. Hu Ge said, “If my mother were still here, she would be delighted.”