"Ancient vines and old trees, small bridges and flowing water. In such a private residence full of luxury and classical atmosphere, painter Fan Zeng still maintains the habit of getting up at five o'clock every morning to read and paint. He admits that he likes to live a secluded life." This opening remark is from the episode "Fan Zeng" which was previously broadcast on the CCTV documentary program "People".
However, this private residence and its owner have now become a hot topic due to a post by his daughter Fan Xiaohui that said, "My father Fan Zeng moved out of our home (Bishui Manor) and is nowhere to be found."
Is Fan Zeng truly missing? Thepaper.cn reporters conducted multiple inquiries and made a special trip to Beijing's Bishui Manor, where the incident occurred, to find out.
On the evening of August 18, Cao Zeyi, a Beijing calligraphy and painting collector who had frequent interactions with Fan Zeng, told The Paper in a telephone interview that he had visited Fan Zeng on August 4 and found him in good mental and physical condition, with no abnormalities detected. He pointed out that the claim that Fan Zeng had "lost contact" on July 13 was untrue. Regarding the reason for Fan Zeng's move, he said, "As far as I know, the house in Bishui Manor is also occupied by Fan Zeng's stepson. After getting married last year, Fan Zeng promised Xu Meng that he would buy a new home. After more than a year of preparation, he moved into the new residence in mid-July."
One piece of information that can serve as evidence is a report by China Newsweek on August 18th: A reporter from the Hong Kong Wen Wei Po learned from a friend close to Fan Zeng on the 17th that Fan Zeng is currently doing well and is writing a book behind closed doors, and "he personally thanks everyone for their concern."
Fan Zeng
A realistic plot of "Where Are We Going, Dad?"
On the afternoon of August 16, @范晓卉, whose Weibo account shows her as a first-class costume designer for the National Peking Opera Theater and a member of the Youth Federation of the Ministry of Culture, posted a message in response to online rumors that "87-year-old calligrapher and painter Fan Zeng is controlled by his 37-year-old wife, whom he married last year, and that his 2 billion yuan collection has been emptied." She also posted screenshots of WeChat chats with several friends.
Public information indicates that Fan Xiaohui is Fan Zeng's biological daughter, born to him and his second wife, Bian Baohua. In a statement, Fan Xiaohui stated, "Having just returned to China, I received an online report about my father forwarded by a friend. My friend and I drove to Bishui Manor to check and found the door closed and sealed. Sure enough, the house was deserted... Employees informed us that my father was abducted on July 13th by Xu Meng (Fan Zeng's fourth wife, with whom he announced his marriage last year), along with all his daily necessities. It has been over a month, and it appears he will not be returning."
Partial screenshot of Fan Xiaohui's Weibo post
A screenshot of the video posted by Fan Xiaohui on Weibo shows that the seal "Mr. Fan's house is sealed" is obviously not written by Fan Zeng.
The statement also mentioned that Fan Zeng's collection of paintings, calligraphy, and antiques, valued at billions of yuan, was packed up and moved, some longtime employees were laid off, and Xu Meng had threatened employees not to leak the news. Finally, Fan Xiaohui said, "I will actively contact my father's friends to get his exact address and rush to his side. I'll be relieved to see that he's well."
The heartfelt statement, written with care and consideration, conveys the daughter's sincere concern for her father's health and safety.
But what is quite strange is that on the evening of August 16, the company account in which Fan Zeng holds shares, "Fan Zeng Artwork Co., Ltd.", was still live streaming the sale of Fan Zeng's artworks as usual. When some netizens asked about Fan Zeng's loss of contact in the live broadcast room, the official response was: "Rumor."
Screenshot of the live broadcast of Fan Zeng Art Co., Ltd.
Screenshot of Fan Yifu's Xiaohongshu post
According to previous media reports, Fan Zeng, 87, has had four marriages. In 1963, he married his classmate Lin Xiu, also a poet and calligrapher. The marriage lasted five years. In 1971, Fan Zeng married Bian Baohua, who had a daughter with her ex-husband. The couple also had a daughter, Fan Xiaohui. In 1993, after divorcing Bian Baohua, Fan Zeng married Zhang Guiyun (Nanli). Zhang Guiyun had two sons and a daughter with her ex-husband Xu Zunde. After Zhang remarried, their eldest son Xu Bo was renamed Fan Yifu, and Xu Tao was renamed Fan Zhongda. Zhang Guiyun passed away in 2021. Last April, Fan Zeng announced his marriage to Xu Meng.
Late in the evening of August 16th, an account on Xiaohongshu (Red Book) using the ID "Fan Yifu" posted three photos of Fan Zeng at an exhibition, captioned "Grandpa came to see the exhibition." The post didn't specify the time of the exhibition, but listed the location as "France," seemingly indirectly dispelling rumors of Fan Zeng's disappearance. However, netizens quickly discovered that the exhibition display and layout of the paintings in the photos were identical to the "Tao Follows Nature" exhibition at the Taorantian Art Museum in Dongcheng District, Beijing.
Poster for the "Taoism Follows Nature. Landscape Painting Exhibition" at Taorantian Art Museum. Partial exhibition starts on July 29th.
The Paper reported that the Taorantian Art Museum is an art space run by Fan Yifu, and that the "Taoism Follows Nature: Fan Yifu Landscape Painting Exhibition" ran from July 29 to October 28 of this year. This suggests the photos must have been taken around July 29 at the earliest, contradicting Fan Xiaohui's claim that her father was taken away by Xu Meng on July 13 and has since lost contact.
Fan Zeng's friend: The claim of "lost contact" is untrue. We met Fan Zeng on August 4
Since the August 16th Weibo statement sparked a furor, this real-life drama of "Where Are We Going, Dad?" continues to ferment. Not only have Fan Zeng and Xu Meng failed to issue any clarifications, but "natural blood relative" Fan Xiaohui and stepson Fan Yifu have also stopped posting on their personal social media platforms or giving media interviews. Multiple reporters from The Paper attempted to contact all four individuals, but received no response. Some media reports, citing Beijing art investors, claim that the incident stems from "internal strife between two factions within the family."
Cao Zeyi, a Beijing-based calligraphy and painting collector who interacted closely with Fan Zeng, told The Paper on the evening of August 18th that he had visited Fan Zeng on August 4th and found him in good mental and physical condition, with no abnormalities detected. He also dismissed the claim of him being "out of contact" as untrue. Regarding the claim that Xu Meng had emptied the collection, Cao did not directly deny it, but emphasized that Fan Zeng and Xu Meng were legally married and had the right to dispose of their joint property. If Fan Xiaohui believes her rights have been violated, she should pursue legal action.
Cao Zeyi also said that because Fan Zeng does not use a mobile phone, he may not be aware of the many news and rumors about him now. "As far as I know, as early as when Fan Zeng's ex-wife Nan Li was still alive, he had already made arrangements for the Bishui Manor property under his name. His stepson also lives in the house in Bishui Manor. After Fan Zeng got married last year, he also promised Xu Meng that he would buy a new residence. After more than a year of preparation, the couple moved out of Bishui Manor and moved into a new home in mid-July. The stepson still lives in the house in Bishui Manor."
It is suspected that there are still people sitting outside the villa drinking tea, and it is "inconvenient to enter and visit"
In fact, regardless of whether the so-called "family infighting theory" is true, the fact that Fan Xiaohui's statement directly pointed out that Fan Zeng's current wife Xu Meng "packed and boxed my father's fifty years of collection of calligraphy, paintings, and antiques and shipped them away in batches" has exposed the "feudal families" within the family to the public.
Bishui Manor, where calligraphy and paintings were allegedly removed, is clearly the epicenter of this incident. On the afternoon of August 17th, a reporter from The Paper visited Bishui Manor in Shahe Town, Changping District. Changping, a strategic location with a favorable wind and water supply, is only about 30 kilometers from downtown Beijing and is known as the "Pillow of the Capital." In 1992, when Beijing's villa era began, this area became one of the first five villa districts.
The pool and sculptures in the square at the entrance of Bishui Manor. Photo taken by a reporter from The Paper.
Among them, the Rose Garden Villas, launched in 1992, and the first phase of the Bishui Manor Villas, launched in 1995, are both concentrated in Shahe Town. Online commentary has called Bishui Manor a "living fossil" of Beijing's single-family villas. Its waterfront location, large plot of land, and elite enclave embody the ultimate ideal of a villa: "away from the dust without leaving the city, embodying both wealth and tranquility."
Screenshot of the video circulating online about Fan Zeng's Bishui Manor mansion
In an interview with Fan Zeng on CCTV's "People" program, the painter remarked on his diverse and diverse friends. In the internet age, especially the era of short videos, Fan Zeng's home in Bishui Manor has long been no secret. This is evident in the numerous photos and videos of friends who have posted online in recent years, including photos and videos of the mansion's interiors and exteriors, after visiting the mansion.
A lakeside villa in Bishui Manor (photo taken by a reporter)
On the streetlights lining the square outside the Bishui Manor villa complex, uniformly hung banners printed on a green background with white lettering, proclaiming "Sales Available, Viewings Available Anytime." Reporters took a sightseeing bus into the villa complex, which reportedly covers a total area of 4,000 mu (approximately 1,000 acres). They paused by the approximately 50-mu (approximately 1,000-acre) artificial lake constructed during the Linshui Phase II project, which launched in 2000. A salesperson explained that the single-family villas along the lakeside typically have a floor area of around 800 square meters, with prices generally starting at 80 million yuan.
A lakeside villa in Bishui Manor (Photo taken by The Paper)
The reporter from The Paper tried to inquire about a red lakeside villa suspected to be where Fan Zeng's home was located, but was told by the property staff that "this is commercial, for other people's personal use. It usually seems that there are not many people, so it is not convenient to enter and visit."
In fact, in the afternoon of that day, some people could be seen sitting and drinking tea under the pavilion outside the villa, and it seemed that a group of house-viewers were pointing and talking on the nearby hiking trail.
Coincidentally, in 2007, renowned crosstalk artist Hou Yaowen died of a sudden heart attack at his Rose Garden villa, also involving a celebrity property dispute. In 2009, his eldest daughter, Hou Zan, filed a lawsuit against her uncle, Hou Yaohua, and others, alleging "inheritance misappropriation." This high-profile family inheritance dispute in the Chinese literary and art world was resolved through an out-of-court settlement. However, despite the intense negotiations, Hou Yaowen's ashes were not buried until 2011, a matter of great regret.
Did the relatives report the case? "The police's handling logic is directly related to the nature of the incident."
In her statement, Fan Xiaohui explicitly accused Xu Meng of "illegally controlling personal freedom" (taking away 87-year-old Fan Zeng and then losing contact), "illegally transferring property" (packing and moving away calligraphy, paintings, and antiques worth billions of yuan), and "threatening employees." If true, these actions would reach the boundaries of crimes such as illegal detention, theft, and embezzlement under the Criminal Law.
On August 17, a reporter from Red Star News contacted the police in Changping District, Beijing. The local police station stated that they had not received a report from Fan Zeng's family. Meanwhile, a reporter from The Paper, in a casual conversation with a resident of the residential complex, learned that "Fan Zeng's daughter and son-in-law had both visited the local police station, at least in the past two weeks." However, this person could not confirm whether this "daughter" was Fan Xiaohui, or whether the "daughter" and "son-in-law" had come to the police station merely to inquire or to formally report the case.
Chen Zhuo, a lawyer at Jiangsu Century Tongren Law Firm, told The Paper that from a legal perspective, the media's focus on whether a person reported a case to the police and the police filing of a case stems from the fact that the police's handling logic is directly related to the nature of the incident in different situations.
"If a person is simply missing, after the family reports the case to the police, they will initiate a search, which is essentially a basic protection of citizens' personal rights and interests. However, if there is a possibility of infringement, the police will initiate criminal proceedings, which means that the incident is suspected of being illegal or even a crime, and the nature of the incident has escalated from a simple missing person to a legal dispute that may endanger personal rights."
"Specifically in this case, combined with the various circumstances described by Fan Zeng's daughter Fan Xiaohui, the core point of contention is whether there is a personal safety risk behind the loss of contact. No one's personal freedom shall be illegally restricted. If the loss of contact involves illegal restrictions on personal freedom, etc., it constitutes a criminal act and the corresponding legal responsibility must be borne." Chen Zhuo said.
Another lawyer, who wished to remain anonymous, bluntly told reporters, "Based on the information that has been revealed so far, this incident is more likely to be entwined with complex property disputes, particularly family property disputes involving huge amounts of assets."
Let's revisit Fan Xiaohui's original statement. She mentioned, "As a daughter, I don't want my father's departure to be hyped online." This statement seems to be intended to protect both her father's reputation and the family's dignity. Granted, if this is simply a "family matter," it doesn't involve public interest, nor does it rise to the level of public awareness. But the truth of the matter, especially for Fan Zeng, a nationally renowned and controversial painter, and a man in his eighties or nineties, is whether he is truly missing? A clear answer is needed.
File photo of Fan Zeng and his fourth wife Xu Meng
Appendix: Introduction to Fan Zeng
Fan Zeng, born in 1938, is from Nantong, Jiangsu Province. He was admitted to Nankai University in Tianjin in 1959 and later transferred to the Central Academy of Fine Arts. He has studied under many famous artists such as Wu Zuoren, Li Keran, Jiang Zhaohe, and Li Kuchan.
In his youth, Fan Zeng had close ties with the renowned writer Shen Congwen. During a period of uncertainty, he wrote a big-character poster about Shen Congwen, which caused him "great pain and great shock." Shen Congwen wrote in the article, "I am still very grateful to Comrade Fan Zeng, because he taught me a lesson and made me more sensible, understanding the meaning of 'harming others to benefit oneself.' This can be considered one of my gains."
Fan Zeng's paintings once fetched high prices at auctions in the early years, and some critics accused him of being good at speculation and manipulation. More than 20 years ago, collector Guo Qingxiang was sued by Fan Zeng for accusing him of "assembly line painting."