As a rising star based in China and the daughter of eight-time Star Awards Best Host Quan Yifeng, many would find it natural for actress Eleanor Lee to be living a life of privilege.
But the 24-year-old says otherwise.
Yesterday, Eleanor took to her socials to promote her new Chinese movie To Live Through Death.
The interesting thing was, instead of actually talking about her movie, the star decided to use this opportunity to clarify some assumptions people might have of her.
“I know many people think I may be born into this industry or think I’m spoon fed and everything is handed to me easy. But on the contrary to many disbelief (sic), I had to work really hard to achieve what I want,” she wrote in English.
She then said her mum only gave her S$100 when she left home in 2016 to start her showbiz career in China.
Eleanor, who was only 16 then, broke into the Chinese market after scoring a role in an Apple commercial that went viral in 2015.
Eleanor also emphasised that while she never thought she would stay in China for long and was just pushing on with the “go with the flow mentality”, she eventually made a life there for herself and “continued to strive”.
She revealed she had to stay at her manager’s home and sleep on the couch for months before earning enough money to buy new clothes for herself.
“Slowly I turned 100 into many more zeros and I’m proud of that. But, believe it or not, I never ever know how much I earn and not once did I ever think I’m a rich person,” she said.
Despite her fame, Eleanor insisted that all the money she earned “never touches [her] wallet” and is locked into a bank account monitored by Yifeng.
Eleanor also said her mum never spoils her, and still tells her to work hard for what she wants.
“Just like in my primary school days, if I wanted to buy a pencil I liked, my mom would never give me extra money. She would say: ‘You have to earn what you want’, so I would save up, eat less and buy what I wanted. This way I would know and pay the price, treasure everything because I know its worth,” she explained.
The actress apparently still lives on her “piggy bank” on a day-to-day basis, which is why she has to watch what she buys.
“I like it this way, because it reminds us to work harder every day and stay grounded,” she said, before abruptly making a toast to her new movie, which will premiere on Jul 31.
Yifeng has since left a comment on Eleanor’s post, gushing: “I’m really proud of you” before quipping: “There’s some change from the S$100 I gave you, do you still want it?”
Her daughter’s response? “You can use it to buy a better portable charger” and adding a tearing emoji for effect.