To say that Nicholas Tse (謝霆鋒) and Cecilia Chung’s (張柏芝) dramatic marriage and separation mirrored those of their parents’ past may be an understatement. It may not be Mother’s Day yet, but the love lives of celebrities’ mothers present a fascinating perspective into the family circumstances under which Isabella Leong (梁洛施), Crystal Liu (劉亦菲), Jay Chou (周杰倫), Barbie Hsu (徐熙媛) and Dee Hsu (徐熙娣), and Angela Chang (張韶涵) grew up. Nicholas Tse’s Family Long before the existence of Nicholas Tse, mother Deborah Li (狄波拉) and father Patrick Tse (謝賢) already astounded viewers with their good looks on the silver screen. Deborah, especially, had a life worthy of a drama itself. Due to a tragic childhood, Deborah was adopted and grew up to be highly independent. At a young age, she performed with a dance troupe and lived in Thailand for several years. Beautiful and bold, the social butterfly captured the hearts of viewers quickly when she returned to Hong Kong and appeared in nude scenes without the use of a body double. Prior to marrying Patrick Tse, Deborah had dated Macau casino tycoon Stanley Ho (何鴻燊). When Deborah’s marriage with Patrick was on the verge of breaking down, Patrick allegedly “sold” his wife to Stanley in order to pay off his debts. This once fueled speculations that Nicholas was Stanley Ho’s illegitimate son. Cecilia Cheung’s Family Nicholas’ ex-wife, Cecilia Cheung, has an even more dramatic family background. Cecilia’s mother, Davies Shally, who is a stunner herself, loves to show off her figure and tattoo with her daughter. When she married Cecilia’s father, triad member, Cheung Yan Yung (張仁勇), both were entering their second marriages. Davies Shalley brought her daughter, Cecilia’s half-sister, Dai Pek Chi (戴碧芝) into the family. Cecilia was often the one looking after her half-siblings when her parents divorced when she was only 9 years old. Shortly after Cecilia debuted in the entertainment industry, triads put out a “rape order” on Cecilia when her father failed to pay back massive gambling debts. Throughout the years, Cecilia’s father continued to get in trouble with the law. In 2012, Cheung Yan Yung was suspected in a criminal intimidation case in Hong Kong and recently reported to have gone missing after cheating a partner of 2 million RMB. Isabella Leong’s Family Isabella Leong’s father was from a prominent Macau family of Portuguese-English heritage. Isabella’s mother lived together with Isabella’s father after meeting him, but he died when Isabella was only 6 months old. Because Isabella’s father’s family never accepted the relationship, they never acknowledged Isabella’s existence. Isabella and her mother could only depend on each other, with Isabella dropping out of school and entering the entertainment industry when she was only 12 years old. In 2007, then 19-year-old Isabella Leong met billionaire Li Ka Shing’s (李嘉誠) son, Richard Li (李澤楷), who was 41-years old at the time. Despite the age gap and differences in their family background, Isabella and Richard quickly fell in love and had three sons together out of wedlock. However, Isabella’s fate appeared to be better than her mother’s, as Isabella reportedly received several properties from the Li family and is well taken care of financially following her breakup with Richard in 2011. Crystal Liu’s Family Chinese actress Crystal Liu’s parents divorced when she was merely 6 months old. Her father, An Shaokang (安少康), was a Secretary in the Chinese Embassy in France and a French language university professor. Her mother, Liu Xiaoli (刘晓莉), is known as Wuhan’s best dancer. When Crystal was 11 years old, her mother brought her to the United States and later, remarried a Chinese lawyer there, earning Crystal her American citizenship. Jay Chou’s Family An only child, Jay Chou initially had a loving family. Both his parents were secondary school teachers. His mother already noticed his love for music and started him on piano lessons when he was four years old. However, when he was a teenager, his family began to break apart. It further accelerated when his father was conned in a business venture, causing his father to seek solace in alcohol, which led to more fighting between his parents. Once, in the midst of a fight, Jay’s drunken father broke his beloved tape recorder and caused Jay to be filled with anger towards his father. His parents eventually divorced when Jay was 13 years old. Jay became an introvert and reclusive due to being raised in a single parent household and her personality tendencies were reflected in his earlier songs. Barbie and Dee Hsu’s Family Taiwanese artists and sisters, Barbie Hsu (徐熙媛) and Dee Hsu’s (徐熙娣) parents were divorced before their father passed away. When a magazine disclosed photographs of their mother with a married man, speculating he was her lover, she was angry and scolded the magazine, “Please! He’s like a brother to me!” Angela Chang’s Family Taiwanese singer-actress Angela Chang’s (張韶涵) mother was rumored to have an illicit affair with singer Zhang Haozhe (張鎬哲) in 2007. Both were often seen behaving intimately in public. When the media blasted her mother, Angela stood out in defense of her mother, “Just because I’m Angela Chang, must you all pester my mother? Why can’t you leave her alone?” Eventually, Angela’s parents officially divorced in 2009 and Angela and her mother grew apart due to her mother’s extra-marital affair. Creds: Sina
