Gillian Chung (鍾欣潼) and Michael Lai (賴弘國) shocked fans a few days ago when their divorce was made public following 14 months of marriage.
Although it was Gillian who filed for divorce on 1st March, the Taiwanese doctor took the liberty to drop the announcement via a long essay on his Instagram account.
https://www.instagram.com/p/B_6_0QNJ_9j/
So they tried to salvage their marriage with Michael flying to Malaysia in February and leaving on a good note, he was still surprise to learn of Gillian’s decision. However, he agreed to sign the divorce papers.
“In March of this year, you called me and said: ‘I’m sorry, I thought I would fall in love with you slowly after marriage, but you really couldn’t do it. When I received your signed separation agreement, my feelings went from sadness to anger to loss, and finally to acceptance of reality. I think life is like this. Although I still can’t believe it, but thank you for telling me your true feelings so that we can walk towards our separate future,” he wrote, after announcing his single status.
So what went wrong?
1. Unsuccessful baby plans
Rumour has it that the Taiwanese-American cosmetologist had his sperm tested and extracted for in vitro fertilisation. However, their plans were disrupted by Covid-19 pandemic.
2. Different values
Reports claim that the former flames had trouble seeing being on the same page. For example, Michael wanted to spend time with family with his parents during Lunar New Year but Gillian insisted on travelling.
3. He couldn’t keep up with the actress’ extravagant lifestyle?
Although the 31-year-old is a successful cosmetic gynecologist in his own right, it’s still a far cry than what the 39-year-old Hong Kong star is cashing in. There has been numerous when Michael was accused of being depended on Gillian’s finances, but the actress has always insisted that wasn’t the case. In fact, they had previously signed a pre-nuptial agreement and agreed that their finances would be kept separated.
4. Long distance relationship
As an actress, Gillian was often either in Hong Kong or flying around the world for work purposes. Meanwhile, Michael had his own work commitments back home. The lack of intimacy after marriage was a huge factor in driving them apart.
5. Age difference a problem?
According to Oriental Daily News, some of Gillian’s friends apparently alleged that the split may be because Michael can sometimes be rather “childish, immature and unmotivated”. They also didn’t like that he went public with their breakup and seemingly painted himself as a victim who was “abandoned”.
This marks Michael’s second divorce. His first marriage last approximately a year before they went separate ways.
Sources: 38JieJiee, Jayne Stars.
