Local TV host Quan Yifeng has broken her silence on her fallout with local celebrity hairstylist Addy Lee, detailing in a recent interview what went down between them.
Lee, 54, hosted a Facebook live stream for two consecutive nights on May 13 and 14, bringing up his beef with Quan, 51, after her daughter Eleanor Lee hogged headlines last week for allegedly making derogatory comments about the people of China.
The 25-year-old China-based Singaporean actress has denied making such remarks, but the incident dealt a major blow to her burgeoning career in the country. Addy Lee then implied that what happened to Eleanor was "karmic retribution".
In his rambling six-hour tirade on May 13, the Malaysia-born personality said he and Quan were "close like family" for over two decades.
However, their relationship soured after she stopped conducting live-stream sales together with him and moved out of his home, where she and her daughter had stayed temporarily for a few months during the Covid-19 pandemic in 2020.
Lee explained that during the pandemic, he had to foot his ill parents' medical expenses. His 10 hair salons also needed a cash turnover. He added that he had to make money through live streaming as he could have gone bankrupt any time.
He then called Quan "heartless" for leaving him when he was facing a crisis.
Responding to his claims, Quan told local Chinese-language daily Lianhe Zaobao in an exclusive interview on May 15: "He owned a $3 million property, drove a luxury car and had several assistants then. He never told me he was in financial trouble."
She said they began doing live streaming together after Lee told her that he saw a business opportunity in the area.
Quan said that on top of working more than 10 hours hosting shows at her day job, she continued with live streaming at night at Lee's home. She added that the longest live stream session was 14 straight hours.
"I was so tired during those three months," she said, adding that it was not the main reason she quit live streaming with Lee.
Quan, a Mediacorp artiste, said her management had noticed she was earning additional income through that avenue, and it was inappropriate to do so while she was still an employee with the broadcaster.
She also disputed Lee's claim that he helped her earn $300,000 in one month doing live-stream sales, saying that it was actually $400,000 in three months.
"That was like money falling from the sky and it was the first time I saw such a large sum of income," she told Zaobao. "He said it was more than what I made in a year at Mediacorp, and asked me not to be a host but to sell goods together with him."
Lee began to sell a range of products that he developed, and she felt guilty promoting them as she did not understand them fully.
She also felt she was exploiting her over 260,000 Facebook followers, who had bought large quantities to support her.
Quan and Eleanor eventually moved out of Lee's home, and she said she penned him a long farewell letter.
"I am following the principle of friends parting on good terms," she told Zaobao. "We should cherish each other if we are fated to be together, but we can slowly fade out of each other's lives if we are not fated to be together."
Quan remains perplexed over Lee's accusation that she and Eleanor had been "ungrateful".
"After all, we used to be friends. I don't know where his bottom line is," she said. "His criticisms have no effect on me."
