Chivalry is not dead, especially when accusations of plastic surgery are involved. The entertainment press got an earful earlier this week from Chinese heartthrob Huang Xiaoming (黃曉明), who spoke out in defense of his girlfriend, 21-year-old Hong Kong model and otaku dreamgirl Yang Ying (楊穎), who goes by the name Angelababy.
The two lovebirds have been in the spotlight since publicly acknowledging their romance in Shanghai a few weeks ago, and Internet chatter speculating that Angelababy had a facelift and more to jumpstart her career prompted an angry response from Huang.
“I have seen people that have had plastic surgery, and I have seen her. She is 100 percent real!” the 32-year-old actor told reporters. “The people who say these kinds of things cause a lot of hurt to women.”
Huang also shared with reporters his love for “romantic surprises.” When asked if an out-of-the-blue marriage proposal would fit this category, he said: “Maybe. I do know that I would definitely bring along a big diamond ring.” But he was quick to add a caveat: “I still haven’t grown up yet, it’s too early to talk about marriage.”
Lin Chi-ling’s (林志玲) latest acting venture has, surprise, surprise, been deemed a flop. Taiwan’s top supermodel starred in Moon Lovers (月光戀人), a Japanese soap opera that concluded earlier this week with its eighth episode.
Moon Lovers, which has yet to air in Taiwan, garnered dismal ratings in Japan, which was a surprise given the immense popularity of Lin’s co-star Tetsuya Kimura. It was the Japanese male idol’s poorest-performing show in 14 years, noted both the Apple Daily and our sister paper the Liberty Times.
In other celebrity news, Charles Chen (陳建州), better known as Blackie (黑人), has been keeping a low profile lately. Last month Blackie resigned as the host of a talk show after producers brought on a guest who engaged in rumor-mongering about his pop-star pal Jay Chou (周杰倫).
But thanks to the Apple Daily, we can rest assured that the basketball star-turned-entertainer has been eating well and everything is peachy with him and his girlfriend, pop singer Fan Fan (范瑋琪). In an article that racked up a lot of hits this week, the paper’s reporters stalked the couple in Taipei’s East District as they spent an evening at a spicy hot pot restaurant — an event that brought back fond memories for the Apple.
The last time the couple were spotted together indulging in spicy hot pot, the night ended with Fan Fan calling off their marriage and Blackie checking into the hospital with enterogastritis.
This time around was less eventful, but the Apple dutifully served up the details and even managed to cook up a half-racy story of its own. For dinner, Blackie went with the non-spicy broth, on orders from Fan Fan, but loaded his pot with lots of beef slices and around 30 clams.
And, oh, those clams! The Apple’s reporter quickly concluded that the only reason Blackie would eat such a large amount would be to boost his fertility, which led to the further conclusion that the couple was clearly in a hurry to have a child. After all, they are getting married in March next year. The reporter rushed up to the couple as they stepped out of the restaurant to confirm this theory. Uh, no, laughed Blackie. “With hot pot, you have to add tomato and clams so the broth will be sweet.”
But Apple Daily’s headline the next day said it all: “An evening feast of spicy hot pot with Fan Fan, Blackie pigs out on clams to prepare for battle (范范麻辣夜宴黑人狂吞蛤仔備戰).”
Blackie posted a response on his Sina.com.cn microblog, expressing his annoyance at getting ambushed and lamenting the Apple Daily article. “I’d better watch out what I eat,” he wrote. “Otherwise, next time if I get caught eating a chocolate bar, they’re going to say things like I’m eating shit for the sake of sex! Ha Ha Ha.”
Sina.com.cn’s microblogging service, dubbed Weibo (微博) in Mandarin, has suddenly emerged as the new online soapbox of the stars. China’s answer to Twitter took center stage this week when pop singer Jolin Tsai (蔡依林) surprised fans by posting a candid photo of herself with a towel wrapped around her head sans makeup. According to the United Daily News, other stars actively using the social networking site include Vivian Hsu (徐若瑄), Wang Lee-hom (王力宏) and A-hsin (阿信) of Mayday (五月天).
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