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Chinese actress Zheng Shuang has been embroiled in controversy since Jan. 18.
Allegedly abandoned her children
The 29-year-old had allegedly abandoned her two children born to different United States-based surrogate mothers, leaving her producer ex-boyfriend, Zhang Heng, stranded in the U.S. with the children.
Fans unstanned her
Many fans were unable to condone Zheng's actions and left the fandom one by one.
Zheng Shuang's official fanclub president even posted a scathing announcement of his departure on Weibo:
"Goodbye friends, here are some final words. I will not abandon or delete my account.
Weibo is half of my family. Without one family, I cannot do without the other, being part of this fandom has been a thrilling experience, even its destruction is different from others."
The Weibo account, "Zheng Shuang Fan Site", which has 410k followers, has completely wiped out all of its contents.
The main page is a bare, blank slate, giving it a deserted feeling.
According to Sina, the account user had posted an announcement of its closure on Jan. 19, saying: "Live well, I am referring to you guys."
The user also changed the account bio to "Site is closed, private mailbox is shut. This account is not for sale... See you never."
The account name has since been changed to "nziwjhs" and the bio now states, "end 2019".
Ex-boyfriend clarifies
After the scandal blew up, some netizens alleged that Zhang had used Zheng's name to secretly borrow from loan sharks while they were dating and had absconded to the United State with the money.
Photo via Sohu
These allegations fuelled the perception of Zhang as a kept man who was living off Zheng, which was not favourable to Zhang's image.
On Jan. 18, Zhang defended himself via a lengthy Weibo post, saying rumours about his alleged acts of fraud were baseless:
"Hello everyone, I am Zhang Heng, long time no see.
As what everyone can see, I was recently a trending topic again. In the past year or so, baseless slander against me have surfaced on the internet in the form of unrestrained, defamatory cyber violence. Feeling helpless about my plight, my family members are exhausted, to the extent of not being able to live their normal lives and resume social activities. My family have also been forced to avoid reunions. I truly feel really miserable.
I realised that I could no longer bury my head in the sand because I am not the only one who is dealing with this issue. My beloved family members are also involved. I have decided not to stay silent any longer, for my family's sake and my sake, to clarify the facts publicly.
Online rumours about my alleged acts of fraud, borrowing from loan sharks, debt evasion, absconding to the U.S. with the money etc. are completely baseless. I swear that I have never committed any of those acts! Nor will I ever commit them! I was indeed in the U.S. However, the reason why my family and I have been staying in the U.S. for over a year is that we had to care for and protect two young, innocent lives. We had no choice but to stay in the U.S.
In addition, I have hired lawyers to handle the relevant affairs. I believe the Chinese and American courts will restore all truths.
Lastly, I sincerely implore all media outlets and righteous members of the public to recognise the facts and not be blinded by online rumours."
Zhang attached a photograph with his post.
Photo via Zhang Heng on Weibo
Zheng's statements on Weibo
On Jan. 19, Zheng made two posts on her personal Weibo page.
The first one, published at 1:30 pm, said:
"This is a very sad and private matter for me. Initially, I was unwilling to share it publicly but now that the matter has reached this stage, being gradually exposed by those with ulterior motives.
I've thought about it for a long time, I did not wish to take up media resources in the first place, hence I must respond. Since the previous year, the lawyer teams from both China and the United States have never given up on safeguarding the legal rights of myself and my family, and have never given up on communication and mediation between both parties.
During the legal proceedings in China, we repeatedly refuse blackmails of privacy extortion. During the legal proceedings in the U.S., we safeguarded our rights first. As an artiste, I am deeply aware of my country's prevention and control of the pandemic. On Mainland Chinese soil, I have never defied my country's directives, I am also definitely respectful of the laws when abroad. If I am expected to publicise and explain all information that has yet to be verified, this is my most sincere reply."
The post has garnered over 4000 comments with the following top five comments:
"Surrogacy is banned in our country, such a disregard for life is outrageous. Due to the demand for boys, surrogate mothers who turn out to be carrying girls will be forced to have an abortion. Foetuses with birth defects also risk abandonment... Such behaviour crosses the line and should not be condoned legally and morally."
"Damn it, even Keyun* knew she had to look for her child despite losing her mind."
"Just leave the entertainment industry, Sister."
"Those who agree to Zheng Shuang's exit from the entertainment industry and jail term, please raise your hand."
"If it is difficult to understand what the entire post means, it must be posted by Zheng Shuang. If it is comprehensible, it must be posted by her team."
*Li Keyun is a character who developed a mental illness after her baby's death in "Romance in the Rain", a well-known Chinese television show.
Zheng appeared to have read the comments, particularly the one which implied that the post was written by her team.
She explicitly stated that she does not have a team in the first line or her sentence post.
The second one, published at 6:56pm, said:
"Firstly, I'm still the Zheng Shuang who is feeling particularly low with no team
I am not evading from the words I have said, not one bit
I had denied everything immediately at the start
I also worked hard to end all of this
I never considered what to do when he cheated
I was in a plane on Sep. 27, 2019
Upon disembarkation, I completed my work in an orderly manner
I didn't say anything about the tears and repentance at night
On the second day, he continues to ask my team if they have prepared outfits for my activities... causing my team to be surprised
I did not plan to bottle up and let any unspoken matters fester, I only wanted to resolve it peacefully
This includes my future and the loan between us
However, being abroad alone resulted in my gradual loss of control over the development of matters, rushing back to my home country,
to settle company matters etc.
Later, [Zhang] Heng's parents came to find my parents to apologise.
It probably lasted from night until early morning.
I was just crying and complaining
Which manifests as the recording that all of you heard
The full version should have been 6 hours long
Who's concerned about whose daughter
My parents only hope that I could stop crying and go to sleep soon
That night, my parents remained by my side
My father said, Big Head (Zheng's nickname), no worries, let's give him the money he wants, it's unimportant, as long as you look on the bright side and stop overcomplicating the matter.
I only felt more self-blame, I am indeed the the stereotypical foolish girl, burdening my family with my own mistakes. Father and mother, I'm sorry for not letting you speak until now because every statement we make
can become gossip fodder
That night, I specifically forwarded Zhang Heng's passport
However, on the second day, the company's finance associate was absent for various reasons
The 4 million [RMB] in the books gradually vanished, nonetheless I could still pay the rent urgently but was unable to come back
Initially, I felt that this matter is not simple and I needed help...
And how to resolve the children's matters..."
Zheng disabled the comments for the second post.
Weibo followers soar by the millions
Surprisingly, even though Zheng's fanclub members have chosen to cut all ties with her and leave the fandom, her Weibo follower count has continued to grow instead of fall.
Zheng has gained around 1.4 million Weibo followers in the past four days.
According to Lianhe Zaobao, Zheng's Weibo follower count was close to 11.2 million at 4pm on Jan. 18, which was the time when the news broke out.
As of the time of writing, her follower count is at 12.6 million and continues to grow by the minute with every page refresh.
Termination of brand partnerships
The backlash that Zheng received due to the scandal had an adverse effect on her brand partnerships.
Photo via Zheng Shuang on Weibo
On Jan. 19, Prada terminated her ambassadorship just a week after her appointment at 6:30pm.
Half an hour later, British jewellery brand Lola Rose followed suit in a Weibo post published at 6:50pm, "The Lola Rose brand has sent Zheng Shuang a contract termination letter and ceased all brand partnerships with her."
At 7pm, Chinese cosmetics brand Chioture also came forward with their own Weibo statement, "The endorsement contract between Chioture and Ms Zheng Shuang have expired, all partnerships with Zheng Shuang have ceased, thank you for your concern."
According to JSTV, Harper's Bazaar China had also removed a Weibo post about a recent photoshoot starring Zheng.
Top images via Zheng Shuang on Weibo.