Tong Liya denies marrying senior CCP official

31 Dec – Chinese actress Tong Liya has recently denied rumours that she has married deputy minister of the Publicity Department of the Chinese Communist Party and the head of CMG (China Media Group), Shen Haixiong.

The "Beijing Love Story" actress, whose marriage with director Chen Sicheng ended in May this year and whose rumoured marriage with Shen began to circulate online this month, recently released a statement via her agency, which stated that there is no factual basis to the said rumour except for a questionable screenshot.

Stressing that they have hired a lawyer to help with the case, the agency stated that "Ms Tong Liya is divorced and single, and has never committed any unethical behaviour against personal morality."

Tong has even reported the issue to the police, with the Beijing Haidian police releasing a statement saying that the case is now under investigation - much to the amusement of netizens.

It is noted that the marriage rumour itself has attracted a lot of attention after many noticed that the topic "Tong Liya's Remarriage" has been completely taken offline, especially since Shen's CMG owns the likes of CCTV and China National Radio, among other media.

The marriage rumour also seemed to refuel previous speculations as to why Tong was given the opportunity to host the CCTV Spring Festival Gala in 2020 and perform at this year's gala.

(Photo Source: Tong Liya Instagram, SOHU)