China Celebs

China’s Most-Discussed Love Triangle: Wang Baoqiang, Ma Rong and Song Zhe

The separation between actor Wang Baoqiang and his estranged wife Ma Rong – due to a love affair with Wang’s manager Song Zhe – is a never-ending story.

Published

2 years ago

September 16, 2017

Richard Barnes

It is a story that just keeps trending on Weibo; the separation between actor Wang Baoqiang and his estranged wife Ma Rong due to an illicit love affair with Wang’s manager Song Zhe. With Ma allegedly regretting the split and Song having been arrested for embezzlement, many netizens say that “justice has been served.”

It was the divorce of the decade. The 2016 split between Chinese movie star Wang Baoqiang and his wife Ma Rong, the mother of his two children, made big news in China after Wang himself exposed that his estranged wife had a secret love affair with his agent Song Zhe (宋喆).

The story unfolded itself on Weibo, as the public posts and comments by both Wang Baoqiang and Ma Rong sparked intense debate. The majority of Weibo’s netizens sided with Wang Baoqiang, saying that Ma Rong only married him for his money.

Wang and Ma in happier times.

The celebrity couple break-up especially drew wide attention because of the general perception many Chinese people have of Wang. Born and raised in a poor family in rural China, Wang fought his way to the top of China’s movie industry, becoming a well-known and respected actor. Rather than seeing him as a successful millionaire, many see the ‘Chinese dream’ in him.

The general support for Wang also means that the majority of Chinese netizens like to see Ma Rong and ex-manager Song Zhe punished for what they did.

Song Zhe Arrested

A year after the initial separation, it seems that the Wang vs Ma divorce drama just has no end to it. On September 12th, Wang’s former agent Song Zhe was arrested in Beijing for embezzlement – a topic that immediately became trending on Chinese social media under the hashtag ‘Song Zhe Arrested’ (#宋喆被抓#).

The direct cause of his arrest is the police report filed by Wang Baoqiang’s studio “Strong Baby” (强宝贝), which accused Song Zhe of abusing his position as studio manager during a four-year period from 2012 to 2016. Song allegedly took money that clients paid for use of the studio for personal use.

After an investigation, Chaoyang police arrested Song Zhe on charges of embezzlement. The case is still ongoing and no further information on court dates have been released.

The majority of Weibo’s netizens, in support of Wang Baoqiang, are celebrating the news of Song Zhe’s arrest. One post, which received over 200,000 likes, said: “This news makes me feel so good! The cheating guy is in prison, when is that sl**t Ma Rong going to be arrested?”

Refusing divorce

Adding to the recent dramatic developments is an exclusive report by Tencent Entertainment News, which states that during Wang Baoqiang and Ma Rong’s second court date regarding their divorce, Ma Rong refuse to sign the divorce papers. During this court hearing, Ma reportedly claimed that she is still in love with Wang Baoqiang, and therefore does not want to divorce.

“Shameless,” “She is only in love with his money,” and “This is the funniest joke of the year, is she crazy?”, typical Weibo comments said.

Despite Ma’s refusal to sign, however, experts say that the marriage can be annulled on the grounds that it is ‘damaged beyond repair.’

What goes around, comes around

While Song Zhe is awaiting his trial in jail, Ma Rong has been restricted to leave the country. According to recent reports, Ma previously attempted to emigrate to Australia using her wealth to obtain a visa through illegal means.

For most people on Weibo, the current messiness in both Songs’s and Ma’s private lives is an issue of ‘what goes around, comes around.’

Under Chinese law, there is no punishment for being the cheater, lover or mistress in a divorce case. However, many say that in its own way, “justice has been served.”

“They deserve what is coming to them,” some said.

By Miranda Barnes & Richard Barnes
Follow @whatsonweibo

China Arts & Entertainment

‘First Lady of Hong Kong TV’ Lily Leung Passes Away at Age 90

Chinese netizens pay their respects to veteran actress Lily Leung Shun-Yin (1929-2019), who passed away on August 13.

Published

2 months ago

August 13, 2019

Manya Koetse

Lily in 1996, image via Sing Tao Daily.

While the Hong Kong protests are dominating the headlines, the death of Hong Kong veteran actress Lily Leung Shun-Yin (梁舜燕) has become a top trending topic on social media site Sina Weibo under the hashtag “Hong Kong Actress Liang Shunyan Dies from Illness” (#香港演员梁舜燕病逝#).

Lily Leung, image via http://www.sohu.com/a/333418087_161795.

The actress was born in Hong Kong in 1929. She starred in dozens of television series, including the first TV drama to be locally broadcasted. She became known as “the first lady of Hong Kong TV.”

Leung acted for TVB and other broadcasters. Some of her more well-known roles were those in Kindred Spirit (真情) and Heart of Greed (溏心风暴).

Leung, also nicknamed ‘Sister Lily’ (Lily姐), passed away on August 13. According to various Chinese media reports, the actress passed peacefully surrounded by family after enduring illness. She was 90 years old.

“I’ve seen so much of her work,” many Weibo netizens say, sharing the favorite roles played by Leung. “I always watched her on TVB while growing up, and will cherish her memory,” one commenter wrote.

Another well-known Hong Kong actress, Teresa Ha Ping (夏萍), also passed away this month. She was 81 years old when she died. Her passing away also attracted a lot of attention on Chinese social media (
#演员夏萍去世#).

Many people express their sadness over the fact that not one but two grand ladies from Hong Kong’s 20th-century entertainment era have passed away this month.

“Those people from our memories pass away one by one, and it represents the passing of an era,” one Weibo user wrote.

“Two familiar faces and old troupers of Hong Kong drama – I hope they rest in peace.”

By Manya Koetse
Follow @whatsonweibo

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China Celebs

Iconic Shanghai Singer Yao Lee Passes Away at the Age of 96

Yao Li, one of the seven great singing stars of Shanghai in the 1940s, has passed away.

Published

3 months ago

July 19, 2019

Manya Koetse

Chinese singer Yao Lee (姚莉), the ‘Queen of Mandarin pop,’ passed away on July 19 at the age of 96.

The singer, with her ‘Silvery Voice,’ was known as one of the seven great singing stars (“七大歌星”) of Shanghai of the 1940s.

For those who may not know her name, you might know her music – one of her iconic songs was used in the hit movie Crazy Rich Asians.

Yao’s most famous songs include “Rose, Rose, I Love You” (玫瑰玫瑰我爱你), “Meet Again” (重逢), and “Love That I Can’t Have” (得不到的爱情).

Yao, born in Shanghai in 1922, started singing at the age of 13. Her brother Yao Min was a popular music songwriter.

When popular music was banned under Mao in the 1950s, Hong Kong became a new center of the Mandarin music industry, and Yao continued her career there.