An Zhiwu

Biodata

Background / History

Childhood and Education

An Zhiwu spent part of her childhood in the countryside with her younger twin brother, An Zhiheng. She raised a large goose that followed her through the village, but its confidence disappeared after Zhiheng acquired a wolfdog. Their rivalry included frequent physical fights until their mother intervened; afterward, they continued competing through verbal jabs 5.

Their father worked as a sailor and was away throughout the year, leaving Mother An to raise the twins largely on her own. Both siblings later left home for university. Zhiwu majored in marketing and taught herself photography while studying 13 37.

Livestream Accident and Gastritis Diagnosis

After graduation, Zhiwu worked in new media, handling photographs, retouching, videos, and daily official-account posts. Even weekends brought assignments, and she commonly stayed up until two or three in the morning. She also streamed food content without telling her parents 4 5 7.

Vomiting during a livestream led to accusations that she deliberately induced it. As the controversy spread and her follower count fell, she sought treatment from Song Yihe and underwent a capsule gastroscopy. He diagnosed chronic gastritis, prescribed medicine, and advised dietary changes, adequate sleep, and exercise 1 2 4 5 7.

Remembering her grandmother’s death from esophageal cancer strengthened her resolve to change her habits. When her manager refused a two-month leave request, she resigned. Rather than abandon streaming, she began preparing milder meals, starting with seafood congee 7.

Freelance Work and Healthier Routines

Zhiwu began morning runs at Lakeside Park. Initially exhausted after half a lap, she completed five kilometers with Song Yihe’s coaching. She subsequently maintained the routine, improved her running time, and adopted habits such as evening foot soaks 9 14.

Seeking work with more flexible hours, she answered a fashion blogger’s advertisement and became Xia Qian’s photographer. Their working relationship expanded into shared cooking livestreams, including soup and handmade vegetarian dumplings. Her following exceeded 400,000 during one of these broadcasts 10 11 16.

Through Shen Songqing’s recommendation, Zhiwu also joined a Zhikang Hospital promotional-video project. Her assignments included filming the oncology inpatient ward and interviewing Song Yihe 17 20 21.

An Zhiheng’s Hospitalization

When Zhiheng developed severe abdominal pain, vomiting, and cold sweats, Zhiwu rushed to Zhikang Hospital and asked Song Yihe to examine him. Song diagnosed acute appendicitis and agreed to operate 23.

Zhiwu and her mother divided his care between night and day shifts while she continued editing the hospital video and taking photography jobs. After seeing her sleeping on a folding bed, Song lent her his on-call room. She used it for two nights and replaced his nearly finished toothpaste before returning the key 26 27 29.

Moving into Yihe Garden

A burst pipe flooded Zhiwu’s rental apartment shortly after her brother’s hospitalization. When the landlady sent her son to inspect the damage, Zhiwu discovered that he was Song Yihe. With the apartment temporarily uninhabitable, she accepted a third-floor bedroom in his Yihe Garden house so she could remain near her work and continue streaming 29 30.

She disclosed her food-streaming work and obtained permission to use his kitchen. Their shared routine developed around her cooking and his washing dishes. With his permission, she also began transforming the neglected yard into a flower-and-vegetable garden 31 32 33 41.

During this period, Zhiwu confronted another professional controversy: claims that her appearance depended on heavy beauty filters. In a joint broadcast with Xinxin Loves Spicy Food, she demonstrated the filters’ distortion effects and then switched them off to show her actual appearance 34 35 36.

Relationship with Song Yihe

Zhiwu’s attraction to Song grew through his medical care, running guidance, and everyday consideration. She initially worried that Tang Jingwen was his girlfriend, but he explained that Tang was a childhood neighbor, not a romantic partner 14 17 20 37.

After Tang entered Song’s home and knocked Zhiwu’s pastries onto the floor, Zhiwu proposed moving out to avoid misunderstandings. Song instead asked her to become his girlfriend. They acknowledged their mutual feelings and began dating 37 38.

Song subsequently gave her star-and-moon earrings and changed his door code to her birthday, telling her that she alone knew the new code. They shared their first kiss, and Zhiwu reciprocated his gift with a silver tie clip and sea-blue cufflinks costing more than 5,000 yuan 39 41 45.

Zhiwu told her brother about the relationship but concealed it from her mother, wanting greater stability before raising her expectations. She also worried about whether Song’s family would accept her. Nevertheless, Song accepted an invitation to eat with her family, and Zhiheng privately questioned him about his intentions 46 47 48.

Their exercise routine later shifted toward swimming lessons. Although Zhiwu initially panicked and swallowed water, Song’s in-water guidance helped her learn to float and stand 44 49 50.

Appearance

• Face: Large, dewy eyes, a small nose and mouth, and delicate features that give her a lively expression 7 25.
• Complexion: Naturally fair, smooth skin. Sun exposure makes her turn red rather than remain tanned afterward 19 22.
• Build: Described as curvy; she becomes self-conscious about a little abdominal fat when anticipating swimming lessons 12 39.
• Presentation: Sometimes wears her hair loosely tied back and applies makeup before appearing on camera, but does not use the beauty filters her critics accuse her of relying on 7 25 36.

Personality

Zhiwu is playful and quick-tongued, especially with her brother and Shen Songqing. She enjoys verbal sparring and even records memorable insults from games in a notebook. When targeted by other streamers or Tang Jingwen, she answers directly rather than quietly accepting humiliation 5 35 37 45.

She is independent about work and living arrangements. She refuses her mother’s suggestion to move home after her diagnosis, chooses flexible freelance work, and adapts her livestream content to accommodate her health. However, her new routine takes effort: before her diagnosis, she describes herself as a couch potato who routinely works late 7 10.

Her family loyalty underlies her teasing. She buys her parents clothes, calls them, lends Zhiheng money, and helps care for him after surgery. Despite her affection for Song, she explicitly refuses to tolerate any future in-laws looking down on her parents or family 5 13 23 46.

Romantically inexperienced, Zhiwu is more hesitant than her sharp public manner suggests. She struggles to confess, repeatedly questions whether Song likes her, and becomes easily embarrassed by intimacy. His practical support and clear boundaries with Tang give her a stronger sense of security 24 28 37 39 50.

Abilities & Skills

Cooking and Food Presentation

Zhiwu prepares meals on camera while explaining ingredients, proportions, and cooking techniques 8 12.

• Makes seafood congee, corn-and-pork-rib soup, shrimp with broccoli, handmade vegetarian dumplings, and baked chicken wings 7 11 16 21.
• Posts recipe instructions for viewers to save and reproduce 8.
• Adjusts her content toward milder food after her gastritis diagnosis 7.

Photography and Digital Media

Her professional strengths lie in editing and retouching, supported by self-taught photography and experience shooting video 10 37.

• Photographs Xia Qian’s outfits, accessories, and jewelry 11 14 36.
• Shoots and edits promotional material for Zhikang Hospital 20 21 27.
• Has experience maintaining company operations and official accounts 5.

Livestreaming

Zhiwu combines cooking demonstrations, eating, and informal viewer conversations 8 12.

• Builds an audience exceeding 400,000 followers 16.
• Streams around other work rather than maintaining a fixed schedule 12.
• Agrees to try local restaurant-review content after Xia Qian suggests diversifying her broadcasts 40 41.

Gardening

Zhiwu takes responsibility for redesigning Song’s yard, researching planting methods as she works 33 36.

• Clears weeds, loosens soil, and plants flower and vegetable seeds 33 36 41.
• Plans separate growing areas, climbing trellises, and a swing; the trellises and swing remain unfinished when the vegetable seeds are planted 33 41.

Equipment / Items

• Camera — Used for freelance photography and brought along when work may overlap with hospital visits 14 29.
• Phone and livestream stand — Used to frame cooking and eating broadcasts; she asks Song to help adjust the stand for a restaurant outing 8 41.
• Star-and-moon earrings — A gift from Song Yihe, later matched by the cufflinks she buys him 39 45.
• Bracelet — Given to her by Xia Qian 36.

Relationships

• Song Yihe — Her treating doctor, running coach, temporary host, and eventual boyfriend. She values both his medical dependability and his everyday care 7 9 30 38.
• An Zhiheng — Younger fraternal twin and lifelong sparring partner. Beneath their arguments, she supports him financially and during illness; he questions Song to ensure that his intentions are serious 5 13 23 48.
• Mother An — Affectionate and protective, frequently cooking Zhiwu’s favorite meals. She encourages Zhiwu to pursue Song without realizing they are already dating 5 24 48.
• Father An — A sailor whose work keeps him away from home; he cannot return during Zhiheng’s hospitalization 13 27.
• Shen Songqing — Her best friend, confidante, and persistent source of blunt romantic advice. She also recommends Zhiwu for the hospital video project 17 28 37.
• Xia Qian — Photography client turned friend and livestream collaborator. She enjoys Zhiwu’s cooking and suggests expanding into restaurant reviews 11 16 40.
• Tang Jingwen — Song’s childhood neighbor and Zhiwu’s romantic rival. Their conflict includes the destroyed pastries and a later confrontation while shopping 17 37 44.
• Zhang Wanyu — Her accommodating landlady and Song’s mother. She allows monthly rent payments after learning that Zhiwu is a recent graduate 29 30.
• Wang Wenbo — Professional contact for the Zhikang Hospital promotional video 17 20.
• Xinxin Loves Spicy Food — Fellow food streamer involved in the beauty-filter dispute that Zhiwu publicly rebuts 35 36.

Notable Quotes

“I think the point of a mukbang is to bring good food to the public, not to dwell on this kind of meaningless dispute.” 35

“Dr. Song, I think a relationship between a boyfriend and girlfriend should first be built on a foundation of mutual affection.” 38

Trivia

• Shen Songqing derives “An Zhu” from a teasing compression of the pronunciation of “Zhiwu.” Zhiwu protests the nickname, having liked her name’s appearance and sound since kindergarten 1.
• Her March 5 birthday becomes Song Yihe’s front-door code, 0305, after they begin dating 39.
• While reading a romance novel, she imagines writing one about meeting an excellent doctor while seeking treatment 33.