With the release of “For Rent”, I really wanted to start a new Let’s Play series that centers around Tomarang and property ownership. So I built an entire apartment complex in the heart of Tomarang and set out to create the “Yang” family. The primary focus of our Let’s Play will be Bodhi Yang, his wife Mei Zhou-Yang, and their two sons, Hai (7) and Thao (2). Let’s learn a bit about their backgrounds, shall we?
Bodhi Yang is 28 and has a twin brother, Chaou Yang who is a notorious bachelor but runs his own restaurant on the island of Sulani even though he still lives at home. They have two sisters. One older, one younger. Bodhi studied to become a veterenarian and focuses on the care of rare animals. That has meant, until now, mostly marine animals… but he wants to branch out. Their eldest sister Chantou Yang is married and has four kids — infant Andre, twin toddlers Ralph and Chanel, and pre-teen Lauren. She is a conservationalist, like her father who is now retired. Her husband, Jasper Murphy is a former Olympian in Surfing. Bodhi’s youngest sister, Lin is heading to University soon to study the scientific arts and also lives at home with her parents. Bodhi’s dad is Li-em Yang, 61 — the island’s most premire conservationalist that has recently retired but has set out to write many books on the subject of Island and Marine Conservation. Bodhi’s mom is Vinh Yang, 59 — born of the sea (but not a mermaid!) she worked at her family’s fishery on the island for the majority of her life. She also taught youngsters how to fish, how to swim, and how to dive. She still works part time as a lifeguard for the beaches of Sulani. This family is extremely close and tight-knit. They raise their children collectively and as an unified family. So, they meddle and meddle often!
Mei Zhou is 27 and has one older brother. She hails from the far away land of China, where her father runs a conglomerate that pretty much owns almost all of the residential buildings across Bejing. Her father Huyang is not just rich, he’s filthy rich! Her brother, Hai (who she named her son after) is poised to take over the entire business. Her parents were extremely strict and very distant. Her father had established this succession since Hai’s birth — it was never going to go to her. Her mother, Ming-Na, told her not to expect to be invited into the family business; she was a girl. Her sole purpose was to marry well, not be in business. She found that completely unfair, so she dove into her studies and earned a master’s degree from Britechester in Business. Her brother has pledged to give her the seed money for investment property in Tomarang; which is closer to China but much further away from Sulani. She for one would sorely welcome the ability to be on their own without the meddling of her husband’s family in her every move. She’s simply not used to that.
Will Mei be able to convince her husband to leave the island he loves so dearly? Will the Yang family be able to support Bodhi and his family moving so far away? Will Mei and Bodhi be able to establish a profitable business of their own or will they need Huyang’s financial assistance?
WHERE TO WATCH
ACTIVE HOUSEHOLD
Since he was very little, Bodhi fell in love with animals — those on ground and in the sea. He went to college to become a large-animal vet. He now works as a marine veterinarian on the island of Sulani, where he lives with his wife and kids. His family are dubbed the “meddlers” because they meddle in every part of his life, just as he meddles into his siblings lives as well. It’s part of his culture and on the island everyone is nosy!
Mei was born into a very privileged life back in China. Her parents not only own some of the biggest residential spots in China, but also across the world. In Sulani, they own an apartment building where the family can often vacation in, that is when its not leased. But she knew that her father’s business would never, ever pass to her. It would go to her older brother, Hai. So she decided to study business and make her own wealth. However, meeting the love of her life was not part of the plan. But she did, married him, and now has to deal with his meddling family. She wants OFF the island and back to Asia. She dreams of owning residential properties in Tomarang, where her mother grew up.
Bodhi & Mei have 2 kids. Their first born is named after Mei’s brother, Hai. She got pregnant almost right away after her island wedding, then she took a break before welcoming young Thao into the family. Hai is a precocious child, inquisitive, and naturally brilliant. He’s a bit of an introvert, but living on the island with such a big family has really helped him in that regard. The island life, the culture, the community is really great for him! And he’s not going to want to move.
SUPPORTING HOUSEHOLDS
Li-em Yang has a prestine reputation on the island of Sulani as its lead conservationalist. Decades ago he spearheaded the formation of the main conservation group on the island, becoming its president. He has now retired, but his daughter Chantou has followed in her father’s footsteps and works with the conservation group that he founded. He’s a very involved father, attentitive, wise, and the backbone of the entire family. He has a strong belief in the culture of the island and families sticking together, raising all their children together. He wants all his kids to grow their own families in Sulani. He worries the most about his son Bodhi, who has a deep desire to view the rest of the world and further his studies beyond the life of the sea. His son’s young pretty wife isn’t helping matters, but he can appreciate that Mei is smart, talented, and loves his son very much.
Vihn Yang was born in Sulani, like her husband. She comes from a long line of fishermen and chefs, which has sparked a love of food for not only her husband but their children too. Chaou, one of the twin boys she birthed, is a celebrated chef and owns one of the best restaurants on the island. But Chaou is very non-committal and quite the playboy on the island, which worries her. She wants him to settle down and have children, as she dreams of a big happy family. So far, her eldest daughter has really done the heavy lifting in that department. Chantou has 4 kids with her former Olympian husband Jasper. And Bodhi, Chaou’s twin brother, has 2 himself. Her young daughter, Lin, is about enter University. When each of her kids left for school, they all came back, so she’s hoping that Lin will too. But once she does, she will have this big empty house. Just her and her Li-em.
Lin did okay in high school, not super stellar, at least not stellar enough for any scholarships. But she did try her best. Her parents really want her to return home after graduating from school, but she’s not entirely sure. Her parents are very traditional and she feels the weight of their expectations to live her life on the island, get married, and have kids. BUT… she knows that having kids will be very difficult for her because she’s a lesbian. Her siblings know, but she hasn’t flat out told her parents yet. In a very traditional culture, she knows her way of life won’t be easily accepted. She loves that her brother Bodhi married such an elevated, well-travelled, woman like Mei. Mei has told her of a whole other world out there that has made her question whether the island life is really for her.
No one will ever replace Li-em Yang in Chantou’s eyes. Her father is the epitome of what every man should strive to be. And she has been laser-focused on following her father’s footsteps, that is until she met Jasper Murphy. What was just a fling as the local surfing competitions started opening up to the world, bringing in all sorts of atheletes from all over, turned into a torrid love affair she couldn’t be without. She got pregnant almost right away, before she was even married, which caused quite the stir in her family and across the island. And Jasper was still in major world compeitions that took him away for months. She decided to accept her life as is, welcoming her daughter Lauren. Jasper would fly his girlfriend and baby daughter all over the world for his compeitions, which expanded Chantou’s view of the world. She fell in love with all the finer things in life, most especially fashion! Jasper finally proposed and moved permanently from California to the island of Sulani. More children shortly followed, as these two lovebirds couldn’t keep their hands to themselves.
A four-time Olympian, two-time Gold Medalist, Jasper Murphy’s name is well known in surfing. He was born into the sport, as his father is world-famous himself and now coaches both his sons, Jasper and Connor, back in California’s golden coast, Carlsbad and Oceanside. Jasper was a playboy from the time he was 14, but all of that changed when during one of his world compeitions in the beautiful island of Sulani had him cross paths with the beautiful, smart Chantou Yang. He fell, and fell hard. Jasper won his first gold medal at the age of 16, repeating the feat just four years later. At 24, he got his first silver medal, which his father and fans touted to him being distracted by his girlfriend and young baby daughter. Two years later, Jasper suffered a major injury when he was dragged under and slammed into the rockside. Chantou, having had her own close call with a shark many years before, stood by him and together they got him back to fit form. This past summer Olympics, Jasper did NOT podium, placing 5th. But he says it was his most emotional win because he was just lucky to have been there. He retired from the sport a hero… at just 28. Now he’s writing books and booking speaking engagements around the world, but devotes his time to raising his kids and supporting his wife in her career.
Little Lauren is the apple of her dad’s eye. Jasper’s first born got to travel all over the world with her father so she looks forward to a time where she can do the same. She wants to take up sailing and be part of a team that will get to the World Cup. She’s ambitious and determined. And her father couldn’t be prouder. Her grandparents though, not necessarily thrilled that she already wants to leave Sulani at just 10 years old. Her other grandparents, the Murphy’s, are very much pushing for it. Jasper however, is very protective of her and doesn’t want his father to push her the way he pushed him or continues to push his younger brother, Connor. He’s happy to let her be herself. The twins, Chanel & Ralph, (both 3) couldn’t be more opposite. They do not get along and remind Chantou of her own brothers, also twins, Bodhi and Chaou. Jasper and Chantou’s “oopsie” baby, little Andre was a complete surprise. Chantou wants to stop at 4, but Jasper would be happy to keep having more kids. Jasper wants to build a new house for them and has bought property on the island to do just that, but Chantou isn’t looking to live in a glass mansion. She wants to give their kids a “normal” childhood, so they live in her little house. We’ll see who wins out!
What can we say? Chaou likes his island women and his island men! He’s not picky. But he is picky about his food. Especially food he serves to his customers. Following in the footsteps of his mother’s family of fishermen and chefs, Chaou owns a five-star seafood restaurant in Sulani, the only of its kind. And he doesn’t want to stop there. He’s waiting to raise the fund to outright buy The Sand Bar, a local long-standing bar that’s been in the Hoapili family for many generations. Chaou is ready to build his own empire right here in Sulani. But a spouse and kids? NOPE! No matter how much his family pressures him to do it, he’s absolutely not ready to settle down, and maybe he will never be!
A power house of a woman, Ming-Na stands at 5’0 tall but a power house none-the-less. She knew her arranged marriage to one of China’s wealthiest men, the heir of the Zhou Empire, would be financially beneficial, but she never expected to actually fall in love with her husband. Huyang charmed his way into her heart, afterall for him, it was love at first sight and he would have paid any dowry amount set to win her hand. And that he did. Huyang’s parents wanted the marriage for the convinience of the partnership her family could bring to the empire — Ming-Na Hong’s family owns a lucrative construction empire of their own. When I say they are rich… we really mean rich. They own the largest, most oppulent estate in Del Sol Valley, just north of famous Hollywood. They made the world-famous celebrity Judith Ward an offer she could not refuse at 5 million dollars and rebuilt the estate from the ground up. In all, they poured an additional 2 million in renovations. And have bet it all on their son, Hai.
From the moment Huyang was 28 and first laid eyes on the beautiful, young Ming-Na, his heart was hers. But she did NOT feel the same. So Huyang went to his parents asked them to basically buy her for him. And that they did, they arranged the marriage and paid a very lucrative dowry for their future daughter-in-law. At first, Ming recented the whole thing. She had wanted to fall in love and then marry for love… but her parents were having none of that. The Hong’s own a construction company in China that has been running for over 50 years building most of the amazing structures the litter the Bejing skyline. She knew the marriage would be convinient for her family and did her duty. Slowly, however, after they were married, Huyang wormed his way into her heart. It took years, but finally Huyang got his prize. Both the patriach and matriach of the Zhou dynasty rule it with an iron fist. They had two kids and have been very strict with them. Huyang even had to help his son get out of a bad marriage that ended up breaking his boy’s heart and bank account. Now, he worries that Hai may have made the same mistake twice marrying a young girl barely of age and pursing the most ridiculous career in his eyes, acting. Like… really?
Hai has been one of the world’s most elligble bachelors as the hair to the Zhou real-estate empire. He has been married twice so far, both with air-tight prenups but Hai has been afraid to have kids, despite the urging of his parents to procure an heir to their empire. His most recent marriage is to starlet Madison Vanderbilt, who comes from her own pedigreed lineage that includes an entire university named after the founder, Cornelius Vanderbilt. But his fear of children is mostly self-preservation as every one of his high-powered friends keep cautioning him that children become collateral damage in divorces at their level. A pawn by which an ex can get even more money for them. His ex-wife, Veronica Spencer, was literally royalty – a distant cousin of Princess Diana, so the prenup they signed was a total of 48 pages long. Roni wanted children but of course Hai want to wait. It became an obsession for her so much so that she cheated on Hai, got pregnant, and tried to pawn off the child as Hai’s. But the truth came out, soon followed by a nasty divorce that pinned China’s most famous family against the Royal Crown of Britain. Needless to say, tabloids had a field day.
Safe, young Madison doesn’t want kids. At least not yet. She’s only 23 and she’s an upcoming star in Hollywood. She knows Hai’s first wife was literally royalty, but she is kinda royalty herself coming from one of the most prominent families, the Vanderbilts, in America. Her cousins are no other than Anderson Cooper and Timothy Olyphant! Tim has taken her under his wing as she caught the acting bug early and he continues to mentor her career. She’s very focused on becoming the next Meryl Streep and building her own brand. She doesn’t see herself having kids anytime soon. She can borrow her nephews when she wants to! For Hai, she’s more at his speed. So when they met at the premire of her latest movie, where she got rave reviews, it was a match made in heaven. Hai wasn’t even divorced officially yet when they started dating, which of course for Mads meant keeping it all under the radar. But as things will, it was all discovered and Hai’s ex-wife made it a nightmare for them. Needless to say, Mads hates Hai’s first wife!
