K-pop star Park Shin-hye Photo: Screenshot of website

Earning more than 600 million views on China’s Twitter-like Sina Weibo, news about the pregnancy and engagement of South Korean actress Park Shin-hye on Tuesday had many Chinese K-drama fans heading to social media to wish the star the best for this new chapter in her life. 

On behalf of Park, her agency SALT Entertainment on Tuesday confirmed that the star and Choi Tae-joon, a fellow actor in the K-entertainment industry who many see as “less popular than Park,” are engaged and the wedding will be held privately on January 22, 2022 in Seoul. 

Along with this, the additional news that Park had become pregnant surprised her fans in China, with some saying it all seemed very sudden.

Many said that the actress’ willingness to openly announce that she became pregnant outside of wedlock made them love her more. 

“As a fan of hers for more than six years, I knew the two had started dating each other four years ago, but I was still shocked since the actress who feels like the ‘girl next door’ is actually sassy and frank enough to tell the world she got pregnant before marriage... I guess we may see her less on the screen for a while, but her attitude makes me love her more,” Zhu Junjun, a Park fan, told the Global Times. 

Park herself also wrote fans a letter to explain the decision to announce her pregnancy. 

“And though I am cautious to say this as it is very early on, I was blessed with a baby. I wanted to tell you before anyone else. I will show you a positive side after I start a family as well,” said the letter. 

Some netizens said they felt sad about “losing” their “childhood goddess,” adding that they felt the same as when they heard Japanese actress Yui Aragaki got married earlier in 2021. 

“She was the white moonlight in my heart, I’m confident she will not only be my childhood goddess as she is still young,” a fan wrote on Sina Weibo. 
  
Some other fans found it amusing that compared to Park’s fame in China, they had barely heard of her spouse-to-be Choi Tae-joon. 

First debuting as a child star 20 years ago, Park has continued to be a favourite in China among K-pop culture fans. Her best-known works in China include 2014 romance drama Pinocchio with actor Lee Jong-suk, leading many netizens to “ship” the two stars.