Jennifer Tse has been largely living life outside of the spotlight since her big baby announcement in June last year. The 37-year-old’s bombshell announcement that she had given birth to a baby girl had taken many by surprise, including her older brother, Hongkong singer-actor Nicholas Tse.

The surprise quickly turned to curiosity, as Jennifer refused to reveal who her baby daddy is, driving both the media and netizens nuts. 

At one point, it was speculated that Jen's ex-boyfriend American actor Jeremy Renner might just be the guy.

Alas, that rumour turned out to be a dud, as Jennifer remained mum on the subject. Interviews with Jennifer’s dad, former matinee idol Patrick Tse and Nicholas went nowhere as well, with both pleading ignorance.

​Last week, February 21 to be exact, Jennifer took to Instagram to upload a rare post about her daughter, showing off a customised cake that her friend had gotten her baby girl for her first birthday.

"I love you more than you’ll ever know... Happy 1st birthday, Hunny Bug,” she wrote. Although Jennifer did not mention the name of her daughter in her caption, the cake was decorated with the name “Sara" in black fondant letters.

Jennifer’s friends, including Joyce Cheng and Karena Ng, also left comments, wishing baby Sara a happy birthday.

It’s been about 10 months since the mistress of all celebrity cheating scandals — and secret dash cam recordings — sent shockwaves across Asia. While things seem to be cooling down for the parties involved, it looks like it might be a while before everyone actually stops talking about it..

We are, of course, referring to the time Andy Hui was caught making out with Jacqueline Wong in the backseat of a car. A clip like that alone would have been embarrassing for anyone, but it was extra damaging because Andy was — and still is — married to singer-actress Sammi Cheng, while Jacqueline was — but is no longer — dating actor Kenneth Ma.

On the evening the day the scandal broke, Andy held a press conference where he tearfully apologised for his actions and announced that he would be halting all work activities “until [he finds] the right version of [himself]”. Even his wife, who graciously forgave him, admitted that she is “in no hurry to see him go back to work” as he should be reorganising and reflecting on himself instead.

Sure enough, there hasn’t been news of any comeback project from Andy. Instead, he’s been busy going on vacations with Sammi and being a supportive husband at her concerts (even though he got booed by disapproving fans). You know, generally keeping a low profile. 

Recently, reporters spotted the 52-year-old singer meeting some friends for tea, and grabbed this rare opportunity to catch up with him. According to Hongkong media, Andy was in a very good mood, and was more than happy to have a short chat with them.

He also appeared to have put on some weight, judging from his slightly bulkier build and rounder face (no doubt the result of being on an indefinite work hiatus). Perhaps that’s why he told the paps he’s been exercising and hiking regularly.

​However, his friendly demeanour took a 180-degree turn the moment he was asked if he has heard the rumours about Jacqueline and RubberBand drummer Lai Man Wang, who were snapped shopping for pet supplies together.

As soon as he heard his former mistress’ name, Andy stopped smiling and immediately turned around to escape into a nearby building, signalling the end of the conversation and proving that he is in absolutely no mood to address any questions about the scandal.

Remember when Fan Bingbing, 38, was so desperate to hide her budding relationship with Li Chen, 41, she literally hid under a tablecloth to avoid questions from reporters?

At one point, it seemed like the golden couple was headed straight for a life of marital bliss, after getting engaged in 2017. 

However, Bingbing’s tax evasion scandal brought their relationship to a grinding halt, with the duo announcing that they had chosen to go their separate ways in June 2019.

Since then, Bingbing and Li Chen have been the subject of multiple reports claiming they are still very much in love.

From anonymous screenshots that allegedly show Bingbing wishing Li Chen a happy birthday in November last year, to rumours that Bingbing has a bun in the oven, and to reports claiming that their break-up was “nothing more than a marketing ploy”, the former couple's lives are still under intense scrutiny.

Now, netizens claim that the couple is hinting at a reconciliation by posting similar messages wishing for the arrival of spring.

On February 24th, Li Chen made a post on Weibo, writing: “Waiting for the warmth of spring, for the flowers to bloom.”

It was an innocuous post, yes, but then a day prior, Bingbing had liked a post on Weibo that had this message: “Love creates anticipation, love lets us connect [with each other], love lets us trust, love allows us to continue waiting for the warm spring together, where the flowers bloom."

Of course netizens couldn’t help but draw parallels between the two posts.

Could Bingbing and Li Chen be dropping hints about a reconciliation? Guess we’ll have to wait and see if the actress is hiding under any tablecloth. 

Like Louis Koo, Huang Xiaoming sounds like a pretty darn good boss to work for. Apart from giving out very generous ang pows during Chinese New Year, the 42-year-old recently made the news again after he reportedly refused to accept an employee’s resignation.

You see, the employee, who works for Xiaoming’s work studio, has been unable to report for work due to the COVID-19 outbreak.

As a result, the unnamed employee decided to resign instead. To the employee’s surprise, Xiaoming rejected the resignation.

“[Just] eat well and drink well, and don’t think of these unimportant matters. As long as I’m around, you guys will definitely not starve,” Xiaoming wrote, in reply to the resignation letter.

After all, Xiaoming, who has chosen to quarantine himself for the past month, knows how it feels to have life come to a standstill 'cos of the outbreak. 

He was originally scheduled to shoot his upcoming drama Game Changer over the Chinese New Year holidays. However, the COVID-19 outbreak caused everything to grind to a halt. 

According to reports, the actor now keeps himself busy by working out, reading his script, and watching movies while in quarantine. 

He has also been busy contributing to charity, with his latest donation being a 10-day supply of eggs for medical workers so as to boost their nutrition.

When reached for a comment, the actor’s agent wrote, “The company is currently running well. Because of the outbreak, everyone has been assigned to work from home. We’ll monitor the situation, before informing the employees to return to the office. Other than Xiaoming and our colleagues in the production team, everyone is working from home, as per normal. We have no intentions of asking employees to go on unpaid leave, or reducing their salaries.”

Everyone, in some way or another, have had their work routine disrupted by the COVID-19 outbreak. Take former TVB actress Louisa Mak, for example. The 28-year-old, who declined to signed a long term management contract with the station last year, is now working as a consultant at a multinational law firm.

Here's some background info on Louisa first. She found fame when she won Miss Hongkong in 2015, and was admired for having both beauty and brains as she’s also a Cambridge law graduate. She then signed on with TVB as an actress but still managed to find time in between filming to take on law courses in the United States. In 2018, she became a qualified attorney to practice law in America.

In order to pursue a career in law, Louisa decided to not renew her contract with TVB last year and opted for a “per show” contract instead.

Louisa, who went to Taiwan for work just at the start of the outbreak, found herself unable to return to Hongkong after the Taiwanese government announced a ban on Hongkong and Macau visitors into the country in a bid to curb the spread. If she returns to Hongkong, she wouldn't be able to enter Taiwan again. 

With the ban in place, Louisa had no choice but find accommodation in a hotel in Taipei for the time being. 

For the past month, Louisa has been giving her Instagram followers updates on her days living and working from the luxurious W Taipei hotel, which believe it or not, still has its cons, no thanks to the epidemic.

​“And you [have to] wash your underwear because you’ve been stuck here for almost a month,” Louisa ranted on an IG story, which showed her soaking her clothing in a bathtub that overlooks the city. She also included the hashtag: “You can’t get back into the country once you leave”.

Netizens then teased her for “being not a normal wage earner”, as she has “a very luxurious office”, but then Louisa revealed that the hotel had given her a free upgrade due to a lack of guests. 

And good for her. Her suite at the W Taipei reportedly costs almost S$800 a night, so imagine the bill she could have racked up since she's been staying there for a month.

Hongkong actor Marco Ngai, 52, started his year on a bad note when the media to went to town with reports that his wife, Zhang Lihua, had cheated on him. Rumour has it that it's not the first time Lihua, who is two decades younger than Marco, had cheated on the actor during their 12-year marriage.

After weeks of silence, Marco has finally confirmed that he has filed for divorce. According to the Hongkong media, the couple has slept in separate rooms for five years, but they tried to maintain a sense of normalcy at home for the sake of their nine-year-old daughter Jessica.

Ever since the scandal, some netizens have revelled in his misfortune, saying that he “deserves to have a bad ending” because of what he did to his ex-girlfriend actress Joyce Tang. The former golden couple started dating in 1998 after filming the drama Armed Reaction together. After close to a decade together, they broke up in 2007 and Marco tied the knot with Lihua just months later.

At that time, rumours were rife that Marco had cheated on Joyce, although neither party ever publicly acknowledged the gossip.

“Karma took a while to get to him, but he’s getting his just desserts for starting his relationship in such a bad way,” wrote one netizen. Another added: “It’s quite obvious what happened, considering he managed to get married to another person so quickly after ending a nine year relationship. Joyce was the victim.”

​The media recently caught up with Marco to ask how he's been coping since the split. The actor revealed: “I haven’t completely gotten over [the relationship yet]. I feel like I’m caught in the middle. I'll not be able to get into another relationship again. I’ll never marry again.”

He was also asked if he still keeps in touch with Joyce, who got married to exec Matthew Chu in 2013. “Even though we broke up a long time ago, I still pay attention to what she’s up too,” he said. “When she got hurt, I thought to myself, ‘Oh dear, how could this happen?’ Her husband treats her very well, and I’m sure he treats her better than I used to. I wish her a lifetime of happiness.”

One can never be too prepared.

So with a beanie, a huge pair of shades that could pass for ski goggles, and a surgical mask strapped to her face, that's how Hong Kong actress Cecilia Cheung chooses to tackle the Covid-19 epidemic.

Never mind the fact she's walking around in an indoor mall.

"Isn't my get-up so safe?" She asks in a video uploaded to her Instagram on Saturday (Feb 22). "Others think I'm going skiing."

The 39-year-old humorously demonstrates some of her skiing techniques for good measure.

But in all seriousness, she isn't playing around. The number of confirmed cases in Hong Kong has soared to 74, leaving two dead.

"Safety is the most important. Even though everyone says I'm too dramatic but ... Safety first!"

Cecilia can't, however, compare to this passenger Hong Kong actress Selena Lee ran into onboard a flight to Toronto that same day.

In a series of Instagram Stories, she highlights a peculiar passenger several seats in front with a plastic hood above the seat, forming some form of a makeshift tent.

We're not too sure if that's supposed to do anything, considering how the air inside aircraft cabins are actually much fresher than the likes of our homes and offices. 

​From the looks of it, the TVB actress was stunned too.

Suddenly the videos of her scrubbing down her seat with paper towels and a bottle of disinfectant while wearing a pair of aviators and face mask seem to pale in comparison.

"I thought I was paranoid…" she said.

Taiwanese artiste Jason Hsu and his supermodel wife Bernice Chao are expecting a baby girl, Kwong Wah Yit Poh reported

Hsu, who married Chao on Dec 10 last year, announced he will be a father on instagram.

The former 5566 boyband member uploaded a video of Chao's relatives, friends and him at their baby's gender reveal party.

​Hsu couldn't contain his excitement in the video.

Hsu recently uploaded several pictures of him having a good time with Chao at the beach, but it was hard to tell if she was pregnant at that time due to her slim figure.

If you grew up in the '80s and '90s listening to Mandarin pop songs, these guys might have a special place in your heart.

The Little Tigers - with Nicky Wu, Julian Chen, and Alec Su - was Taiwan's first Mandopop idol boy band, and part of a generation's collective memory with their wholesome looks and catchy radio hits like Hong Qing Ting, Qing Ping Guo Le Yuan, and Fang Xin Qu Fei.

The trio disbanded in 1995 and last performed together in 2010 in a Chinese New Year show, although they met for dinner in November last year.

So you can imagine the poignancy when Julian and Alec made a teary reunion on stage after 10 years in a recent episode of the Chinese music variety show, The Treasured Voice, where Alec is a judge.

The entire 98-minute episode — featuring other singers as well — is available on ZJSTV Music Channel's YouTube page.

But for readers who only want to catch the parts featuring Alec and Julian, read on and let's take a nostalgic walk down memory lane together. (This article won't explain what else happens in the episode or the competition mechanics, for simplicity's sake. We're here just for the Little Tigers, yah?)

WATCH

From the 23rd-minute mark: Julian, 48, comes on stage, and Alec's eyes widened in surprise. Cue a video montage of the Little Tigers' old music videos, and Julian in rehearsal for his performance with rookie, Yao Chen.

WATCH

From the 32nd-minute mark: Alec, 46, calls Julian "er ge" (second elder brother) and admits: "I became extra emotional when I saw him. I got teary watching him sing." Cutaway footage shows Alec wiping away tears as he gazes at Julian.

The two old friends hug and clasp hands on stage.

Taiwanese singer Angela Chang, also a judge in the show, admits: "I chased after celebrities only twice in my youth; once was to see (Taiwanese pop-rap group) L.A Boyz, and the second was after Little Tigers. I've never told anyone this. I went to their autograph session, and ran with everyone else after them. I wanted so much to see them but I couldn't because I was standing too far away."

Julian also says: "It has been 10 years since I was on a TV show. I thought to myself, was it because I'm not popular? I feel a roller-coaster of emotions… You might have seen my news some time back. People saw photos of me in a show and said I looked coquettish.

"But when (the organiser) told me the make-up had to be very exaggerated, can I say 'no'? Can I reject the outfit? I can't. I must be a performer when I'm performing."

In April last year, his unusual outfit during the Shanghai Fashion Week led to rumours that he was mentally unstable. 

WATCH

From the 39th-minute mark: Julian does a soulful snippet of the late Leslie Cheung's song, Wo (Me).

WATCH

From the 42th-minute mark: As part of the show mechanics, Alec has to choose the better singer between Julian and Yao Chen, with the selected one winning the chance to duet with Alec in the second part of the show. He struggles. 

He tells Julian hesitantly: "Both of us have sung for many years, and have a very rich trove of experience performing on stage. The young singers may need more opportunities. Are you okay?"

Julian, nodding his head, replies: "That's not a problem with me. I'm already very happy performing with Yao Chen and singing for everyone again."

"I get it. You're still the brother I know, very magnanimous. I'm touched," Alec says.

He reveals his choice: it's Julian!

"(Yao Chen) will get a lot of opportunities in the future. But I don't know when I'll get the chance to sing with you again," Alec explains.

WATCH

From the 67th-minute mark: The two Little Tigers meet backstage to discuss the song to perform.

WATCH

From the 78th-minute mark: The moment 10 years in the making: Julian and Alec perform together, singing Eason Chan's Sha Sha Nong. (Yeap, we wish it was a Little Tigers song, too.)

Alec later explains: "I chose this song as a sign of support for Julian, after seeing how much he's suffered for staying true to himself. He is like the dragon mentioned in the song, one that isn't accepted by everyone else. The dragon is his own hero, Julian is my hero."

While Alec didn't elaborate on what "suffering" Julian endured, it could be the controversy over what happened during the Shanghai Fashion Week mentioned above. 

Many Chinese stars have been staying home ever since the COVID-19 outbreak caused the productions of many upcoming movies and TV shows to be pushed back indefinitely. But that hasn’t stopped the stars from keeping their fans updated with their day-to-day activities through social media.

Chinese actress Yang Mi, who has more than 100 million followers on Weibo, has been sharing tips on how to stay healthy, and that includes uploading snaps of her diet, which consists mostly of soups.

On February 18, she uploaded a photo of a digital weighing scale that showed how heavy she is. "Today's weight," wrote the star who, according to the pic, weighs 45.2kg. Her pic quickly became a topic of discussion among netizens. 

“You can actually lose weight while doing nothing at home? What’s going on?” read one of the top comments. That lead to other netizens chiming in about how they've been putting on the pounds since the outbreak. “Please tell me your secrets. I’m so bored at home that I’m up for just about anything," wrote one netizen. 

​In case you're wondering, the 33-year-old is 1.68m tall, which puts her BMI at 16. That means she is seriously underweight. 

While most netizens took the information as it is, some were less impressed, and started calling Yang Mi out for promoting “unhealthy eating habits”.

"The last thing we need right now is a humble brag. I can understand you trying to get everyone to eat healthily, but to give impressionable youth the idea that you have to be underweight to be beautiful is not the right thing to do. Please reflect.”

There were also some netizens who tried to diffuse the tense situation with jokes. “Guys, what makes you think she lost weight? She could be telling us that she has put on weight too. Let’s not fight!” wrote one netizen.