Chinese man wins $1.4m lottery, spends it on live-streamer; wife seeks divorce

A man in eastern China has sparked widespread social media attention after winning 10 million yuan ($1.4 million) in a lottery and spending large portions of the prize on a female live-streamer, leaving his wife empty-handed, the South China Morning Post reported.

The woman, surnamed Yuan, shared her story with Henan TV in mid-October after filing for divorce. Married in 2016, the couple lives in Dezhou, Shandong province. Yuan said she felt “betrayed” by her husband.

Yuan said her husband won the lottery on December 17 last year, taking home 8.14 million yuan after tax. “At first, I was as happy as he was. He told me I could buy anything I liked with the money,” she told reporters.

He also gave her a bank card, which she believed held three million yuan ($420,000). Trusting him, she never checked the account and stored the card in a drawer.

According to SCMP, Yuan claimed her husband’s behaviour soon changed. He became reluctant to give her money, instead gambling by day and tipping women on live-streaming platforms by night. One recipient reportedly received 1.2 million yuan ($168,000).

In July, he took the same live-streamer on a four-day trip, which Yuan discovered at a railway station. Chat records showed he referred to the live-streamer as “honey” while calling himself “hubby.”

Yuan later found that the bank card she had been given had no funds. She told Henan TV: "You have treated me unfairly. I have made so many contributions to our family. Do you have any conscience?"

She added: "Before he won this lottery, I thought I would live with him for my whole life. But he betrayed me in an instant. He once said he hoped to find a live-streamer to deliver a child for him."

The man did not defend his actions, telling reporters: "I have spent all the money. Now she has sued me for divorce. Let the court decide everything."

Xi Junqi, a lawyer from Henan Zhongdi Law Firm, told SCMP that lottery winnings acquired during marriage are considered common marital assets.

"If the husband’s tipping is far higher than the family’s average spending, the wife can ask the court to prevent him from sharing those assets," Xi explained. "If the tipping is linked to an immoral relationship, the wife can request the money be returned."