King of Mandopop ranked second richest

Compiled by FATIMAH ZAINAL, C. ARUNO and R. ARAVINTHAN

DESPITE being known as the King of Mandopop for the past two decades, singer-songwriter Jay Chou, who is estimated to have earned 2.1 billion yuan (RM1.4bil) between 2017 and 2020, is ranked only the second richest person in the Chinese entertainment industry, China Press reported.

The richest celebrity is the lesser known Chi Zhongrui, an actor best known for his role as Tang Sanzang in multiple Journey to the West films.

Chi, 68, is estimated to have a net worth of 200 billion yuan (RM131bil) following his marriage to Chen Lihua, one of the richest women in China.

The two met in 1988. Despite their 11-year age gap, the pair got hitched in 1990.

He was unfazed by jibes that he was financially dependent on his wife.

Chi quit showbusiness after his marriage to Chen. He helps his wife in managing her companies and expanding her business.

According to estimates by the media, Taiwanese supermodel Lin Chi-ling is ranked the third richest artiste, followed by veteran actor Jacky Chan.

> A woman in China’s Guizhou province broke down in tears after her mentally challenged son tore up bank notes amounting to 6,000 yuan (RM3,969) that were meant to pay for her husband’s medical bills, Sin Chew Daily reported.

She had earlier sold two of the family cows for 12,500 yuan (RM8,269) to help care for her bedridden husband.

The money was kept in two separate places but the seven-year-old boy discovered one of the hiding places and tore up the notes.

When she found out about it, the woman burst into tears. Her cries startled her neighbours who came asking after her.

One of them contacted a village committee member who in turn asked the manager of a local bank for help.

They took the torn notes, which numbered about 300 pieces, to the bank.

On the first day, two bank employees spent nine hours each patching up the notes.

The next day, three employees worked from morning until 8pm to complete the task.

The bank manager said he understood the family’s predicament so he felt it was the bank’s duty to help out.

Despite taking up considerable time and manpower, he said it was a meaningful task.

The above articles are compiled from the vernacular newspapers (Bahasa Malaysia, Chinese and Tamil dailies). As such, stories are grouped according to the respective language/medium. Where a paragraph begins with a >, it denotes a separate news item.