Business Iron Lady and "Rosewood Queen" Chen Lihua's legendary life comes to an end

Ask AI · How did Liuhua Chen rise from grassroots entrepreneurship to become a business-world “iron lady”?

On April 7, 2026, Fuhua International Group released a heartbreaking obituary, announcing that Liuhua Chen, the Group’s Honorary Chairwoman and the Director of the China Zitan Museum, passed away in Beijing on April 5, 2026, after failing to recover from illness, at the age of 85.

The news quickly drew widespread attention across society. The passing of this legendary woman, revered as “China’s first female billionaire,” not only signals the fall of a business titan, but also brings an end to her highly watched marriage to her husband, Chizhongrui, which spanned more than three decades.

During her lifetime, Liuhua Chen served as the President of the Beijing Overseas Chinese Merchants Association, and she was also the Honorary Chairwoman of Fuhua International Group. Her professional career was filled with achievements. She once became China’s first female billionaire on the mainland with a personal fortune of 5.5 billion yuan, earning her widespread respect in the business world. Her death marks the end of an era, and also prompts people to look back on her outstanding performance in corporate development and social contributions.

Liuhua Chen’s life reads like a roller-coaster story of relentless struggle. She was born in 1941 into a Manchu Zhenghuang Banner family, a descendant of the Yehe Nara clan. Although she bore a prominent surname, her path to entrepreneurship—seemingly “born with a golden key in hand”—in fact began entirely at the grassroots level.

After dropping out of high school, she worked as a seamstress and also found employment at a furniture repair factory. However, unwilling to remain ordinary, she relied on her uncommon boldness and business acumen to found Fuhua International Group in Hong Kong in 1982. At that time, it was the early stage of China’s reform and opening up. Liuhua Chen seized the opportunities of the era, accumulating her first pot of gold through the furniture business and real estate investments.

Then, she assessed the situation and shifted her investment focus back to Beijing, kicking off her grand real estate plans in the capital. Behind Beijing landmarks such as the Chang’an Club, Jinbao Street, and the Regent Hotel, there was always Liuhua Chen’s presence. She cemented her unshakable position in the high-end real estate industry through tangible “works,” becoming the real and deserving “iron lady” of the business world.

From furniture to real estate, Liuhua Chen demonstrated the grit and vision rarely seen in women entrepreneurs. In the 1990s, she secured prime land near Tiananmen Square and built the top-tier Chang’an Club. This not only became synonymous with Beijing’s premier private members’ clubs, but also marked Fuhua International’s rise in the high-end real estate sector.

After that, her overall renovation project on Jinbao Street further made her name widely known. This important district, linking Wangfujing and Jinbao Hutong, was transformed under her direction, becoming an international business district integrating high-end shopping, business offices, and hotel accommodations—greatly enhancing the image of Beijing as a central city.

In running her business, Liuhua Chen pursued not only economic benefits but also social ones. She repeatedly emphasized that a company’s success cannot be separated from opportunities provided by the times, and also cannot be separated from support from society. This pragmatic approach to management ran through her professional life from beginning to end.

Under the glow of wealth, what Liuhua Chen cared more about was an entrepreneur’s social responsibility. In times of major national disasters such as the SARS outbreak and the Wenchuan earthquake, Liuhua Chen was always among the first to generously open her purse and donate money and goods. She also dedicated herself to poverty alleviation and supporting education—building schools and nursing homes in various places—and carried out the ancient teaching of “one should drink with gratitude and remember the source” through her concrete actions.

In the eyes of her employees, Liuhua Chen was both a decisive, no-nonsense leader and a kind, approachable elder; in the eyes of her business partners, she was trustworthy and kept her promises, with a big-picture mindset. This management style that balanced toughness and gentleness helped Fuhua International Group maintain a steady development trajectory throughout decades of ups and downs.

If real estate was the foundation on which Liuhua Chen accumulated her wealth, then zitan culture was the place where she anchored her soul.

Liuhua Chen’s love for zitan was nearly obsessive; deep in her heart, she always carried a love for traditional culture. She once said plainly, “What I’m most proud of in my life isn’t how much money I made, but that I left behind zitan.” In order to rescue and protect zitan craftsmanship on the verge of being lost, she was willing to sell assets and spared no expense to establish the China Zitan Museum. This museum is not only the world’s largest in scale and richest in collections among zitan-themed museums, but also a treasure house of traditional Chinese handicraft.

During the construction process, Liuhua Chen personally led the team of artisans to replicate the architectural style of the city gate towers from old Beijing. She produced countless exquisite zitan furniture and artworks. She donated zitan masterpieces to the Palace Museum many times, aiming to bring zitan culture to the world. To her, zitan is not only a rare and valuable wood, but also a witness to history and a form of cultural inheritance. She hoped that through her own efforts, future generations could feel the warmth of history—this is also what earned her the reputation of “the Zitan Queen.”

In the dramatic chapters of Liuhua Chen’s life, her union with Chizhongrui is undoubtedly the most talked-about story in public. In 1990, Liuhua Chen married Chizhongrui, a household name thanks to his role as Tang Seng in the TV series Journey to the West. At the time, the marriage sparked tremendous controversy. Liuhua Chen was 11 years older than Chizhongrui and was divorced with three children, while Chizhongrui was in the prime of his life and an idol in the hearts of countless viewers. Questions from the outside about this relationship never stopped; some even speculated that Chizhongrui was coveting Liuhua Chen’s wealth. Yet the two broke those outside prejudices with their actions.

Over 36 years of marriage, the two supported each other and stayed inseparable. Chizhongrui’s respect and care for Liuhua Chen were reflected in every detail of daily life. Ironically, this “strong woman and weak man” pattern became the secret of how they kept each other for a lifetime.

In her later years, although Liuhua Chen had a substantial fortune, her approach to life remained, to a certain degree, simple and devout. When Master Xingyun passed away in 2023, Liuhua Chen and Chizhongrui held a memorial ceremony for him at the Zitan Museum. That moment made the public see a genuine side of Liuhua Chen.

At the time, Liuhua Chen, already 82 years old, attended without makeup-free appearance and without wearing any jewelry or accessories. At the memorial, she wept bitterly and even performed kneeling tributes. Chizhongrui stood by carefully supporting her, handing her tissues and comforting her. This detail not only showed her respect for Master Xingyun, but also reflected the deep emotional bond between her and Chizhongrui.

By then, Liuhua Chen may have sensed the passing of time and gained a deeper understanding of life and death. Chizhongrui’s attentiveness and thoughtfulness once again proved that he was a solid reliance for Liuhua Chen in her later years.

Now that the person is gone, what Liuhua Chen leaves behind is not only a massive business empire and the precious Zitan Museum, but also a legendary life marked by her refusal to conform to worldly norms and her brave pursuit of love. Her life was one of striving, one of inheritance, and one filled with love and warmth.

(Author: Li Qiang)