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| Zhao Yingzi Opens Up in Live Stream About Romance With Younger Star and His Eye-Watering Pay |
Chinese actress Sarah Zhao Yingzi has certainly stirred the pot. In a recent social-media live stream, she revealed she once dated a younger actor whose pay per project reportedly reached ¥20 million — and dropped a few audacious details to boot.
Zhao Yingzi, who’s been in the game for a while as an actress in mainland China, shared that the ex-boyfriend in question was “11 years younger” than her and had a reputation for being smooth-talking and highly romantic.
She recalled how he told her: “If you’re with me, your life-experience will be totally different.”
That pitch, she said, convinced her to give the relationship a chance.
In those early days, the actor apparently showered her with daily surprises — for example, sending 99 roses every day and jumping to 999 roses on a special date such as “520” (China’s version of Valentine’s-Day).
But Zhao Yingzi admitted that she had politely asked him to stop sending flowers because “I actually prefer handbags.”
When the actor questioned her taste, saying she was being “too materialistic”, Zhao Yingzi fired back that she earned her own money and bought bags anyway — so why the criticism?
The kicker: the actor allegedly told her that once his project wrapped and he got paid, he’d buy her a handbag.
Zhao Yingzi laughed and asked: “You get paid ¥20 million for one project and you only buy me one bag?”
The remark landed with all the witty timing of a stand-up set and went viral.
Unsurprisingly, the revelation sent Chinese social-media into overdrive, with fans and netizens scrambling to guess the identity of this high-earning younger star.
Zhao Yingzi declined to name him, though she made clear that the relationship is over.
While the confessional was bold, some observers are pointing out the tricky context.
The figure of ¥20 million per project seems unusually high — industry sources suggest that pay rates for younger or mid-tier actors in 2025 are under serious pressure amid an overall “winter” period for Chinese entertainment, where budgets are shrinking and top name talent is being squeezed.
The number thus raises eyebrows rather than settling questions.
Also noteworthy: Zhao Yingzi has made multiple similar statements in the past — including previous live-stream comments about actors she’s worked with.
Some critics argue that these kinds of “shock revelations” may carry a tinge of self-promotion or traffic generation, especially given her active presence in livestream commerce.
But Zhao Yingzi pushed back, saying that controversy gets eyeballs — though she admitted it can also undermine professional credibility over time.
At the end of the day, Zhao Yingzi appears to be striking a chord — part star-confession, part personal branding. Whether the story is wholly accurate or partly embellished, it underscores a recurring dynamic in the Chinese entertainment world: relationships, pay-scales and public image are all intertwined.
Source: iFeng