Chen Xiao Gives Up 140 Million to Cut Ties with Michelle Chen, Rumored to Reconcile with Zhao Liying

Chen Xiao and Michelle Chen officially ended their 8-year marriage early last year. It is rumored that in order to regain his freedom, Chen Xiao was even willing to forgo up to NT$1.1 billion (about RM141 million) in assets just to break away from Michelle Chen. As early as 2023, rumors circulated that he had privately contacted his former rumored girlfriend Zhao Liying seeking a reconciliation. Now that both Chen Xiao and Zhao Liying have become single again, whether this former “on-screen couple” will reignite their romance has once more become a hot topic online.

Chen Xiao and Michelle Chen met while filming the Chinese drama “The Romance of the Condor Heroes”, married in 2016, and had a son. However, rumors of marital issues began circulating two years ago. Reportedly, Chen Xiao was very determined about the divorce, not only initiating it himself but moving out and separating from Michelle Chen. He even blocked her on WeChat and changed his phone number, forcing Michelle Chen to contact him through third parties.

Further reports claim that the end of this marriage came with a hefty division of assets, with Chen Xiao allegedly leaving with nothing, abandoning assets worth up to NT$1.1 billion (about RM141 million) to regain his single status. Although both parties only publicly announced the divorce on February 18 last year, Chinese paparazzi “Jiang Xiaoyan” and “Wang Dafa” had already revealed their marital breakdown at the end of the year before. They also claimed that Chen Xiao had turned back to his ex-girlfriend Zhao Liying.

After Chen Xiao and Michelle Chen made their divorce public, keywords like “Chen Xiao partners with Zhao Liying again” quickly trended on Weibo. Looking back at the Chen Xiao and Zhao Liying rumors, the two became popular after collaborating on “Legend of Lu Zhen” in 2013. Chen Xiao had publicly stated “I have feelings for Zhao Liying,” even saying she was his type. However, after filming “The Romance of the Condor Heroes,” Chen Xiao soon publicly began a relationship with Michelle Chen, causing some of Zhao Liying’s fans to resent Michelle Chen as a “third party.”

Back then, Chen Xiao, to protect his relationship, mercilessly stated that he and Zhao Liying merely “cooperated for promotional hype.” This led Zhao Liying to immediately unfollow him on Weibo. Their relationship dropped to freezing point—they couldn’t even remain friends and stopped exchanging birthday wishes.

However, Zhao Liying also ended her 3-year marriage with Feng Shaofeng in 2021, and like Chen Xiao, is now single again. Because of this, fortune teller Teacher Maoyi analyzed their birth charts, saying: “The threads tying them together are really tight; there is indeed a possibility for things to rekindle.” The expert also stated that Zhao Liying’s horoscope indicates a strong impulse for romance in recent years.

The personality clash between Chen Xiao and Michelle Chen had already surfaced early in their marriage. Before the divorce, Michelle Chen had repeatedly complained that Chen Xiao didn’t like going out, in stark contrast to her love of traveling. Their personality differences may have been the final straw that broke the marriage. Recently, the influencer program “Peng You Ju” also alluded to the primary cause of their divorce being Chen Xiao’s stubborn temper. Allegedly, on the way to the airport, Chen Xiao once became upset in the car, suddenly opened the door to get out, and then vanished without a trace.

Many believe this is all connected to Chen Xiao’s family background. Born into a highly-educated family, he almost never had to worry about money. Perhaps this allowed him to develop his free-spirited and unrestrained personality. Chen Xiao did not come from a poor background—he was born into a typical scholarly family: his grandfather was the principal of a traditional Chinese medicine school, his father worked in the health department, and both his mother and aunt were teachers. Growing up in a family that highly valued education and rules, Chen Xiao still chose the “most rebellious” path of becoming an actor. This background gave him a rare sense of pride and fortitude in the entertainment industry.

Chen Xiao pursues his career with utmost dedication and maintains unquestionable boundaries in his private life. From the moment he defied his family’s wishes to enroll in the Central Academy of Drama, his rebelliousness was evident. Perhaps this also explains why, once he decides to leave a relationship, he never looks back.