A twin sister in China who posed as her dead sibling for five years to spare the feelings of her elderly family members has divided opinion online. - Photo: SCMP composite/TikTok
BEIJING (SCMP): A Chinese Canadian lifestyle influencer has told of her attempt to hide the death of her twin sister from her elderly family for five years, sparking disbelief from international online observers but understanding from people in China.
Annie Niu, a key opinion leader with 200,000 followers, recently posted a video saying she just revealed to her family in China that her identical twin sister, whose name she did not disclose, died from viral meningitis five years ago.
Niu, 34, confessed in a 2022 video that she had been calling her grandparents pretending to be her sister for three years because their voices were similar.
She continued doing so for her grandma until she passed away in July. On her deathbed, her father told her that her granddaughter would be waiting for her in heaven.
Her grandfather was also in the dark.
The twin sisters not only looked alike they also shared very similar voices. - Photo: TikTok@annie_niu
After she told her family the truth, they took down all the family photos with her in them. She said nearly all the 17 photos she counted last time were removed, leaving the walls empty.
Both Niu’s videos attracted more than 7 million online views, with many people expressing shock and disbelief.
“I don’t think that’s fair, “ one person said.
“How did they not know for five years?” said another.
Niu explained that it was because her grandparents were both 92 and her father asked her to withhold the information fearing causing them more heartbreak.
Niu and her sister grew up in China and moved to Canada with their parents around 10. They lived apart from their grandparents and other relatives in China, which made the white lies easier.
After Niu to her family the truth they took down all the photos in their home with her in them. Photo: TikTok@annie_niu
Meanwhile, some were empathetic with Niu.
One online observer said: “After my dad passed away my grandma stopped eating and basically died of a broken heart. She passed away two weeks after my dad.”
Netizens in China said it is a common practice in Chinese culture.
It is considered ominous to see your offspring die before yourself.
As of taking down pictures, some interpreted that it was to avoid them evoking sadness.
In December, a 38-year-old Chinese woman in the southwestern province of Guizhou dressed like her mother, who died from illness six months ago, to see her grandma with Alzheimer’s disease and comfort her.
In March, a Chinese man from the northeastern province of Liaoning used artificial intelligence to disguise himself as his deceased father in video calls, to hide his death from his frail grandmother.
Both cases drew a wave of compassionate reactions online. - SOUTH CHINA MORNING POST
