LayarHijau.com—On February 3, Wang Xiaofei and his new wife Mandy arrived in Taiwan. As Wang Xiaofei exited the airport, he appeared sad and in pain, with swollen eyes. He bowed in front of the reporters and expressed his hope that they would share more positive stories about his ex-wife, Barbie Hsu. When asked if he was there to assist with the funeral, he clasped his hands together and said, “Xiyuan is my family,” without providing a clear answer.
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Meanwhile, Wang Xiaofei’s mother, Zhang Lan, who is also Barbie Hsu’s former mother-in-law, responded to the death of her former daughter-in-law.
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| Source: Sohu |
She stated that as relatives of Barbie Hsu’s children, she and Wang Xiaofei are willing to help with any needs following this tragedy. “Xiyuan’s death is a shared loss for us, and it is a heavy blow to the children! Our priority now is to comfort and protect the two children. This is our common mission and goal,” she expressed in a Weibo post, as reported by Sohu.
Barbie Hsu, whose real name is Xu Xiyuan, leaves behind two children from her former husband, Chinese businessman Wang Xiaofei. They divorced in an unhappy manner in 2021 after being together for ten years. She married her current husband, South Korean musician DJ Koo, in 2022. They had previously dated in the 1990s.
As previously reported, Barbie Hsu, also known as Big S in China, passed away due to pneumonia, according to local media. She was 48 years old.
Barbie Hsu was a prominent figure in the Mandarin-speaking world, and thanks to Meteor Garden, she became a well-known star in countries such as the Philippines, Indonesia, and Thailand after the series was translated into local languages.
The news of her death has caused deep sorrow on social media, with many fans expressing their shock and paying tribute to Hsu for her influence in the entertainment industry.
Her sister, Dee Hsu, confirmed the sad news to TVBS News Taiwan on Monday, following rumors about her death the day before. She reportedly fell ill while on vacation in Japan.
“During the Lunar New Year, our family went on vacation to Japan. My beloved sister, Barbie, has unfortunately passed away after suffering from pneumonia caused by influenza,” Dee stated in a message shared by her manager, as reported by the BBC.
Hsu began her entertainment career at the age of 17 as part of a pop duo with her sister, Dee. They later became TV hosts known for their cheerful style and unique sense of humor.
However, it was Meteor Garden, an adaptation of a 1990s Japanese comic, that made Hsu famous beyond the Mandarin-speaking community.
In the series, Hsu portrayed Shancai, a girl from a middle-class family who attends an elite private school and gets involved in a romantic storyline with a wealthy heir.
Her four male co-stars in Meteor Garden later formed the Taiwanese boy band F4, which became one of the most popular Mandopop groups in the 2000s.
On Monday, F4 member Ken Chu posted a blank black image on Instagram along with a group photo with Hsu. “What a shock,” he wrote on Weibo.
Meteor Garden successfully captured the attention of Asian audiences before the streaming video era. In the Philippines, a local TV station reportedly aired the series eight times to meet fan demand. Bootleg copies of the series were also widely sold at street stalls.
Additionally, the theme song of Meteor Garden was translated into various local languages and became a hit on radio and music video channels.
Two decades after its launch, the popularity of Meteor Garden remains strong, and its remakes over the years have attracted many new fans. Versions of the series have also been produced in Japan, South Korea, mainland China, and India.
Hsu became a trending topic on the Chinese social media platform Weibo on Monday morning. Many posts about influenza in Japan also trended.
“I can’t believe this,” read one comment reflecting the sentiments of hundreds of others.
“She was only 48 years old… this is so sudden,” wrote another comment on Weibo. “It’s hard to accept.”
Hsu had a history of epilepsy and heart disease and had previously been hospitalized due to seizures.
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