Taiwan Ah Cheng's Chen Zhaorong, Whose E-Commerce Biz Has An Annual Turnover Of S$4.9Mil, Says He’s “No Longer An Artiste”
“I used to be successful and popular, and that’s enough,” declared the 53-year-old.
Taiwanese actor Chen Zhaorong, who is dubbed the “First Brother of Local Dramas” in Taiwan, shot to fame over two decades ago thanks to TV series Taiwan Ah Cheng, but it seems he may be done with life in front of the camera.
The 53-year-old recently penned a rather pensive Facebook post looking back on his life and career, which ended with a puzzling declaration that he’s “no longer an artiste”.
Zhaorong has cut down on acting roles significantly in recent years to focus his efforts on the lucrative world of e-commerce live streaming, with his online seafood shop reportedly achieving an annual turnover of more than NT$100mil (S$4.9mil).
He’s now the “First Brother” of live streaming instead
A young Zhaorong in 1994 drama Eat Drink Man Woman
The star began his post by recalling how he left his hometown of Yuli, Hualien at the age of 13. While he was in junior college, he took on numerous part-time jobs in restaurants, beer houses, various factories, bookstores, and arcades before joining showbiz.
“I wasn’t popular in the film industry… I was so poor that I had to eat instant noodles to survive,” he wrote. “When I entered the television industry, I wasn’t popular either. I finally joined Sanlih [E-Television], but my first two dramas weren’t popular.”
It wasn’t until 2001’s Taiwan Ah Cheng that things began to look up for Zhaorong, but he said that it was only after 98 episodes that he started getting the public’s attention.
“I was already 32 years old when I finally realised that those who work hard will definitely have a chance to succeed,” he mused. “21 years have passed since then, and I’ve made fewer friends and gotten even lonelier.”Zhaorong then shared his thoughts on haters and their nasty remarks, saying that he feels “indifferent” towards them now.
He added that he’s gotten over those he helped that ended up turning against him, rumours that he’s a “spoiled boss”, and people who talk about him behind his back.
“Don’t think you know me from what others say about me!” he said. “‘Cos you don’t know how hard I’ve worked for my life.”
According to Zhaorong, he is at work from 8am to 11pm every day and doesn’t have any holidays. He also sets aside 20 per cent of his salary to donate to charity, which he’s been doing for the past 20 years.
“So far, I’ve done nothing in my life that I’m ashamed of, and neither is there anyone I’ve let down,” he continued. “To my friends who are slowly becoming strangers that I’ve neglected to contact, please understand, I’m still working hard to live a wonderful life.”
Every day he’s hustling
With 2022 just around the corner, Zhaorong took the opportunity to share some of his upcoming hopes for the new year, which include “meeting new partners and working hard together” and “slowly stepping down to help young people”.
“I used to be successful and popular, and that’s enough… I’m no longer an artiste,” he wrote. “The future belongs to the younger generation.”
It certainly looks like Zhaorong won’t be returning to the screen any time soon as he’s way too busy being an entrepreneur.
In addition to his seafood shop, he recently launched his own short video app called Hi8, which aims to be Taiwan’s version of Douyin or TikTok.
Happy New Year to you too, Zhaorong
Photos: Aaron Chen/Facebook, IMDb
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