Justin Sun is suing Chinese actress Jing Tian and her parents over ¥30M ($4M+) — and it has become one of the biggest stories on Chinese social media

If you follow crypto, you probably know Justin Sun.

But you may have completely missed the story that is blowing up on Chinese social media right now.

It involves Sun, one of China’s most recognizable actresses, a relationship that allegedly reached the point of marriage, more than ¥30 million ($4M+) in disputed money, and a very strange essay Sun published about the whole thing.

Here’s the story.

Who is Jing Tian?

If you don’t follow Chinese entertainment, you may actually recognize her from Hollywood.

Jing Tian is a Chinese actress who appeared in Kong: Skull Island, Pacific Rim: Uprising and The Great Wall.

She is a major celebrity in China.

And according to Justin Sun’s lawyer, Sun and Jing were previously in a relationship.

The lawyer says they had reached the point of discussing marriage before breaking up sometime in the first half of 2026.

Then came the ¥30 million lawsuit.

On August 27, Sun’s lawyer, Zhang Qihuai, publicly confirmed that Sun had filed a civil lawsuit against Jing Tian and her parents over a financial/property dispute involving more than ¥30 million.

That’s roughly $4M+.

According to Sun’s lawyer, the money was a caili (彩礼) — a traditional Chinese betrothal gift given in connection with marriage.

Sun’s side is seeking its return after the relationship ended.

The lawsuit has been formally accepted by the court, and Sun’s side has also applied for asset preservation.

But this part is important:

The case has NOT yet gone to substantive trial.

Jing’s side has challenged the court’s jurisdiction, so the underlying claims have not been decided by a court.

There is currently no final ruling saying either side is right.

And then Justin Sun published an essay called “My Girlfriend Jing Tian.”

This is where the story went from a legal dispute to full-blown Chinese internet chaos.

On the same day the lawsuit became public, Sun published a long first-person essay titled:

“My Girlfriend Jing Tian.”

The essay describes what Sun presents as a relationship story involving years of fascination with Jing, finally meeting her after becoming wealthy, expensive trips and dates, discussions about marriage, large transfers of money and eventually a dramatic breakup.

It also contains much more sensational claims involving surrogacy and huge sums of money.

But there is a very important caveat.

At the end of the essay, Sun included a disclaimer saying the story was fictional.

And when he was interviewed about it on August 28, Sun acknowledged that the article contained fictionalized elements.

He said that most of it reflected what he believed to be a truthful account from his perspective, but that he could not guarantee every detail was 100% factual.

So the sensational details circulating online should NOT be treated as established facts.

Jing Tian’s response was short — and immediately went viral.

Jing’s studio accused the other side of using an artist’s reputation as leverage and said the dispute should be handled through the legal system.

Then Jing herself posted a response on August 28.

In essence, she said:

She has never sold — and will never sell — her love or her soul for money.

She said she still believes in love, while jokingly admitting that her judgment in relationships apparently isn’t very good.

And she said she believes in the law and that time will eventually reveal the truth.

That response exploded across Chinese social media.

Why is this such a huge story in China?

Because it combines several completely different internet worlds:

Crypto billionaire

A-list Chinese actress

A ¥30M+ lawsuit

A secret relationship that allegedly reached the point of marriage

A bizarre first-person essay

Two completely different narratives about what happened

And the actual lawsuit hasn’t even reached substantive trial yet.

So right now there are really two different stories happening at once:

What we know:

Justin Sun has filed a civil lawsuit involving Jing Tian and her parents over more than ¥30 million.

His lawyer says the money was a betrothal gift and that Sun wants it returned after their breakup.

Jing Tian’s side is fighting the case through legal procedures.

The court has not yet ruled on the substance of the dispute.

What we do NOT know:

Whether the much more sensational details being circulated from Sun’s essay and online rumors are actually true.

Those claims remain disputed and/or unverified.

That distinction is getting lost very quickly as the story spreads across Chinese social media.

But the basic story alone is already pretty wild:

One of crypto’s most famous billionaires apparently had a relationship with one of China’s best-known actresses, they reportedly reached the point of discussing marriage, the relationship collapsed, and now more than ¥30 million is being fought over in court.

And most of the English-speaking internet seems to have barely noticed.

Welcome to today’s Chinese internet.