Chinese big stomach influencer Langweixian—known for her insatiable appetite and commanding presence on social media, has recently revealed to her 32 million followers on social media her deepest darkest secret-she is actually a biologically male, living as a woman.

But it seems that her fans doesn't really care, as her "coming out" video was eclipsed by her tumultuous legal battle with a former collaborator and multi-channel network (MCN).

"Coming Out" after years of deception

Langweixian, originally known as Li Hangze, rose to fame back in 2018 when she gained notoriety as a "big stomach influencer," showcasing her ability to consume massive amounts of food.

While her eating achievements paled in comparison to those of other competitive eaters, fans were often curious and speculated their own theories around her real gender.

You see, while Langweixian often presents herself with a feminine persona, but her deep baritone voice fueled years of speculation about her gender identity. She later revealed her real gender, confirming many years of speculation and rumours that turned out to be true.

In her "Come Out" video, Langweixian explained that he adopted the female persona partly to fulfill dual parental roles for his teenage son after divorcing his wife. He also expressed remorse that his son did not have a mother to pick him up from school like his peers did.

She also admitted to have underwent multiple cosmetic surgeries to enhance his femininity. But rather expressing outrage over the deception, the public attention seems to quickly shift from her gender reveal to her legal troubles with MCN.

A friend's betrayal

Langweixian's account was suspended after she was deceived by her friend, You Xu, to leave her original Tianquanxing MCN company, located in Southwestern China's Chongqing.

You was among the company's earliest staff members, and she was later entrusted with managing both the business and Langweixian's account.

Exploiting her friend's trust, You reportedly forged documents to register the account under her own name and even attempted to sell it for 10 million yuan.

A staff member later disclosed that You had also removed several electronic devices from the company, including hard drives and mobile phones.

Later in 2023, You's was arrested on charges of occupational embezzlement. She was sentenced to eight years in prison and fined one million yuan. Following this resolution, Li regained control of her account and resumed content creation.