A massive dispute surrounding live-streaming tipping, romance, and criminal fraud has recently sparked highly intense public attention in mainland China, with related topics climbing to the top of the trending list on Weibo on August 16.
In the case, a key whistleblower, Xing, who lavishly tipped female anchor Wei millions of yuan in a live stream and later reported her for fraud after his love advances were rejected, was revealed to be related to 14 companies and served as the legal representative of nine of them. After chat records seemingly suggesting coercion for sexual favors were exposed, public outcry ensued.
According to a report by “Jinyun News” on August 15, Wei, a female anchor with nearly 2 million followers on Douyin, was prosecuted for fraud by the First Division of the Hainan Province Prosecutor’s Office in October 2025. The prosecution alleged that since 2019, Wei had attracted male fans to tip large amounts by falsely claiming to be single or unmarried, involving a total of 3 married men with a total sum of 25 million yuan.
One of the implicated individuals was the married businessman Xing from Hainan.
The report stated that Wei started live streaming for entertainment in April 2019 and gradually gained nearly 2 million fans online. Even though she was already married with children, her marriage had broken down, and she finalized her divorce at the end of 2020. Her family claimed that she never publicly declared herself as single during live streams, as she preferred to keep her personal life private to protect her child and family from unwanted attention. In October of the same year, Xing, a businessman from Hainan, entered her live stream and generously tipped Wei more than tens of millions yuan through the platform, earning the nickname “Top Brother” in the tipping circle.
In the live streaming community, the male top spenders who are ranked number one on tipping lists are commonly referred to as “Top Brother”.
According to Wei’s family, as the relationship between Wei and Xing deepened, Xing proposed a romantic relationship and initiated sexual advances, which were firmly rejected by Wei, leading to a deterioration in their relationship.
Screenshots revealed that from late 2020 to early 2021, Xing’s cousin-in-law, Ye, helped negotiate and communicate between Xing and Wei.
Ye told Xing that Wei hoped to first settle the debt before resolving the issue and starting over as friends. Xing replied, “Then go to jail. She is going to spend 20 years in there now. She doesn’t even want to accompany me for a year? Does she think I am too easy to talk to?”
Subsequently, Xing, along with two other male fans, jointly reported Wei to the police, accusing her of inducing tips through false identities and emotional manipulation.
Relatives questioned whether Xing was using criminal charges as a coercion tactic, attempting to force the woman to comply with his sexual demands by threatening her with punishment. “Not sleeping with him means going to jail.” This statement quickly became a hot topic of online discussion.
In September 2022, the Wenchang City police launched an investigation into Wei, and on March 16, 2023, Wei was criminally detained. Xing contacted two other married male fans, Zheng and Ding, and together they reported Wei for fraud to the Wenchang City Public Security Bureau in Hainan Province.
Wei’s mother, Ms. Shao, stated that since 2022, the case had gone through stages of criminal detention, bail pending trial, insufficient evidence for arrest, until she was arrested again in October 2025 and prosecuted. Each key step in the process coincided with the “emotional entanglement” between the whistleblower Xing and Wei. “He asked my daughter to choose between sleeping with him or going to jail. But he is married, and my daughter does not want to interfere with someone else’s relationship.”
Tianjin Dayou Law Firm’s lawyer Zhang Hui believes that as an entertainment anchor, Wei’s failure to disclose her marital and parental status was a reasonable arrangement to protect her privacy. Audience tipping is based on voluntary payment for performance services under platform rules. The available evidence shows that all three whistleblowers are married, and Xing continued tipping after learning about Wei’s true marital status, tipping multiple anchors simultaneously, making it difficult to determine if there was coercion due to being deceived or if Wei had the intention of illegal possession.
Zhang stated that based solely on the total platform recharge amounts by the three individuals, it could not directly equate to the actual earnings of Wei or conclusively prove fraud amounts.
As the case unfolds, Xing’s identity has also garnered attention.
On August 15, a reporter from “Jinyun News” repeatedly tried to reach Xing, but the calls went unanswered.
According to enterprise data, Xing had previously served as the legal representative of Hainan Modern Technology Group Co., Ltd and was currently associated with 14 companies, serving as the legal representative of nine among them.
Furthermore, the family emphasized that the accused “25 million yuan involved in the case” did not equate to Wei’s personal actual gains. Live streaming tipping involved substantial commissions for platforms and agencies, resulting in the individual anchor’s final profit being significantly lower than the reported figures.
From being the generous “Top Brother” who lavishly tipped millions in a live stream to becoming a key whistleblower who dragged a female anchor into a criminal case, the transformation between Xing and Wei, from tipping to emotional entanglement, and to criminal allegations, has become the most discussed aspect of this case.
Currently, the case is still in legal proceedings.
This topic has drawn attention online, with many netizens expressing astonishment at the complexities of human interactions in this vast world.