During a recent seminar in Beijing, Yan reminisced about filming in Ningbo, Zhejiang province. She said that most of the props in the courtyard set shared by the two families were real. The orange tree was actually fruiting, and the faucets worked, allowing water to flow. The cozy, inviting decoration was so appealing that Guo even expressed a desire to spend nights there instead of returning to the hotel where the cast and crew were being put up.

Guan Xiaotong, a Beijing native who plays the daughter of Huang and Zhuang, said she thoroughly researched the lifestyle of southern China to convincingly play her role, as a young woman transitioning from being 16 to being an adult.