LayarHijau – Zhang Xien (张熙恩), also known by her English name Seanna Chang, has opened up again about her past relationship with Jerry Yan (言承旭), revealing why the two chose to keep their romance out of the public eye. She said they grew closer after bonding over their shared love of reading, while keeping the relationship private was, in her view, a way of protecting Jerry.
In comments that have resurfaced in the media, Zhang Xien said she saw Jerry as someone very different from the stereotypical handsome actor. To her, he was not simply a celebrity who relied on his looks.
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“I felt he wasn’t like those typical handsome actors who are all looks and no substance,” Zhang Xien said.
She explained that their shared interest in books gave them plenty to talk about and eventually brought them closer.
Zhang Xien also addressed why they never publicly confirmed their relationship. She said she did not particularly feel wronged by having to keep their romance private because she believed there was something more important at stake.
“Protecting him mattered more to me,” she said.
In other words, Zhang Xien chose not to make their relationship public because she wanted to give Jerry room to protect his private life and avoid additional media attention.
Jerry Yan and Zhang Xien’s Relationship
Zhang Xien’s name became closely linked to Jerry Yan around 2014. The two were reportedly spotted singing karaoke together before leaving in the same car late at night. At the time, Zhang Xien’s agency said the pair had been friends for years and that there was nothing unusual about them giving each other rides.
The two had apparently known each other well before those reports emerged. Some reports said Zhang Xien was introduced to Jerry through his friend Tang Guozhong, who had previously dated Zhang Xien. They were also reportedly seen together at a karaoke gathering in 2011, although both were said to have arrived with their own friends or partners.
Their relationship attracted renewed attention in 2015. Jerry was reported to be in California in late July, while Zhang Xien was also in the area. A month later, when Jerry held a fan meeting in Tokyo, Zhang Xien was again spotted in the same city. The circumstances fueled speculation that they were more than just friends.
Jerry eventually addressed the situation through his agency. Rather than calling Zhang Xien his girlfriend, he described her as a “very, very important friend” and said she had been there for him during difficult periods in his life.
The comment was widely interpreted by the media at the time as an acknowledgment of their relationship, particularly because Jerry has always been extremely private about his romantic life. Strictly speaking, however, Jerry never explicitly said that Zhang Xien was his girlfriend.
The clearest confirmation instead came from Zhang Xien herself.
In 2019, she openly acknowledged that she and Jerry had dated for more than two years. She even revealed that she had once seriously considered marrying him while they were together.
The relationship eventually came to an end as their busy schedules left them with less and less time together. Zhang Xien also admitted that she would have preferred to be able to enjoy a relationship more openly, such as holding hands in public, but understood Jerry’s position as a major celebrity.
Despite their breakup, the two remained on good terms. Zhang Xien described Jerry as being like family and said they continued to keep in touch.
Their friendship apparently continued through some of the biggest moments in Zhang Xien’s life. Jerry contacted her when she got married and had a child, and he also reached out after the deaths of her parents.
Zhang Xien Was Once a Junior of Lin Chi-ling
Zhang Xien’s story with Jerry is also connected to another woman who has long been associated with the actor’s love life: Lin Chi-ling (林志玲).
Before becoming known as Jerry’s former girlfriend, Zhang Xien worked as a model with Catwalk, the same agency that represented Lin Chi-ling. Zhang was therefore regarded as Lin’s junior in the modeling industry.
Jerry’s relationship with Lin Chi-ling had already attracted enormous attention years before Zhang Xien became linked to him.
Both Jerry and Lin began their careers with Catwalk, and the two were romantically linked as early as the early 2000s. Their relationship was reportedly on and off for years, although neither consistently discussed it publicly.
Their closeness became particularly difficult for the media to ignore after photos of the two together surfaced in 2005. When Lin was injured in a horse-riding accident while filming in Dalian that same year, Jerry was reportedly among the first people to contact her and later went to see her.
In 2009, Jerry also spoke publicly about a past relationship, describing the woman as someone who had genuinely loved him and whom he deeply cared about. Although he did not mention Lin by name, the comments were widely interpreted as referring to her.
Their relationship came back into the spotlight in 2017 after Jerry and Lin were seen together in Malaysia, sparking speculation that they had reconciled. The reunion ultimately did not lead to marriage, however.
Interestingly, Zhang Xien herself discussed Lin Chi-ling when she spoke about her relationship with Jerry in 2019. She said Jerry still had feelings for Lin while the two of them were dating and indicated that Jerry and Lin remained in contact.
Lin Chi-ling eventually married EXILE member AKIRA in 2019.
Zhang Xien has also moved on with her own life. She married in 2022 and later became a mother.
Her latest comments offer a notably warm look back at her relationship with Jerry Yan. Rather than focusing on bitterness or conflict, Zhang remembers a relationship that began through shared interests, including their love of books, and continued as a meaningful friendship even after they went their separate ways.
Her story also highlights the difference between media speculation and an actual confirmation from the people involved. In Zhang Xien’s case, Jerry clearly indicated that she was extremely important to him, but he never publicly called her his girlfriend. It was Zhang herself who eventually confirmed that they had, in fact, been in a relationship.
