Beijing tycoon Wang Xiaofei was crowned “a loyal patriot” after his divorce with Taiwanese actress Barbie Hsu Xiyuan has been confirmed.

The 45-year-old Hsu, better known by her stage name “Big S,” has filed for divorce from Wang, 40, to a Taiwan court after more than 10 years of marriage, asking to divide assets of around HK$266 million including HK$126 million of Hsu’s property and Wang’s HK$98 million S Hotel -- named after Hsu -- in Taipei. They will raise their seven-year-old daughter and five-year-old son together.

The cross-strait pair used to appear as love birds on social media and mainland variety shows. But behind the scenes the couple’s identities as a Beijing businessman and a Taiwanese actress have often placed them in awkward positions as the cross-strait topics become more sensitive in recent years.

The pair have been largely separated since the beginning of the pandemic as Wang is based in mainland for work while Hsu and their two children reside in Taipei.

In June this year, the mainland saw several imported Covid-19 infections from Taiwanese arrivals, which Wang posted about on Weibo and called them “traitors. Hsu almost immediately cut ties with Wang and announced she had initiated a divorce.

Yesterday Chinese netizens flocked to Wang’s Weibo to praise him for the “patriotic divorce” and send their well wishes.

“Wang Xiaofei has become the first man ever to divorce his wife for his love for the nation,” one wrote. “It’s nothing wrong to be a patriot! Your good luck is about to come. You have my support.”

"Patriotic” tycoon Wang Xiaofei confirmed divorce with Taiwanese actress Barbie Hsu