Yanxi Palace lead actress Wu Jinyan has eyes for handsome guys only

By now, you'd probably have heard of Chinese palace drama The Story of Yanxi Palace, a drama which has smashed viewership records across China, Hong Kong, and Taiwan, racking up more than five billion views in China alone. 

The Mainland stars of the series - Wu Jinyan (Wei Yingluo), Su Qing (Hitara Erqing), Xu Kai (Fucha Fuheng) and Qin Lan (Fucha Rongyin) were in Hong Kong recently to promote the drama. 

Here's what was revealed when the cast members appeared in a variety programme hosted by showbiz veteran Carol Cheng:

1. Wu shed 8kg for the role of Wei Yingluo

The 165cm-tall actress used to weigh 51kg before filming. She revealed her secret to losing weight for the role "in order to look better onscreen", by adopting a "6-3-1" method to eating, and largely eliminating starch from her diet.

"6-3-1" refers to apportioning a day's meal into 10 portions, and eating 6/10 of it for breakfast, 3/10 for lunch and 1/10 for dinner. She also ate more vegetables, less meat, and cut down on oil and salt, in addition to daily exercise.

2. Wu's boyfriend has to be handsome

When Wu was asked about her criteria for a boyfriend, fellow actress Qin teased: "He must be handsome", to which Wu agreed: "Yes, he definitely has to be good-looking." Qin, however, revealed she is partial to tall guys. 

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3. Xu's vital stats revealed

Heartthrob Xu, whose smiles lit up the set and melted the audience's hearts, revealed his vital statistics on the show to titters and squeals. For the record, his measurements are 100cm (chest), and 186cm (height). Cheng's co-host Edwin Siu, who's decidedly shorter, added dejectedly: "Oh no, I've always told people I'm 185cm."

4. Xu's ideal woman

When Xu was asked about his ideal partner, Wu interjected that he likes girls who are kind. Xu then joked: "Yes, just like 'Empress' (Qin), she must be kind, generous, beautiful, and sexy," to the delight of the actress. 

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ALSO READ: Need a break from Yanxi Palace? Check out this popular new K-drama

candicec@sph.com.sg