Chiung Yao, one of the most influential Chinese-language romance novelists whose work helped launch numerous entertainment careers, died Wednesday at her home in New Taipei City. She was 86.
Emergency services reported the death as an apparent suicide, according to Taiwan’s Central News Agency. Hours before her body was discovered, a farewell message appeared on her Facebook account: “Goodbye, my loved ones. I feel lucky that I have met and known you in this life.” The post included a request for young people “not to give up on life easily” and to confront death only when “you live until 86 or 87.”
Born Chen Che in Sichuan, China in 1938, Chiung Yao fled to Taiwan with her family in 1949 following the Communist Party’s rise to power. She began her writing career at 18, with her debut novel “Outside The Window,” inspired by her romance with a high school teacher, achieving immediate success.
Over her career, she published more than 60 novels and created numerous television adaptations. Her most celebrated work, the television drama “My Fair Princess,” a Qing Dynasty-era Cinderella story, launched the careers of several major Asian stars including Fan Bingbing, Ruby Lin, and Zhao Wei.
In recent years, Chiung Yao had retreated from public life, making headlines only in 2017 during a public dispute with her stepchildren over the care of her then-ailing husband.
