Zhe 'Shelly' Wang took to Weibo, the Chinese social media site, to refute the 'unfounded rumors' that she was having an affair with Bill Gates.
A Chinese interpreter who has worked for the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation has rejected claims that she was responsible for the high-profile divorce of Microsoft founder Bill Gates and his wife of 27 years - Melinda Gates.
The 36-year-old Zhe'Shelly' Wang took to Weibo, the Chinese social media site, to refute the 'unfounded rumors' that she was having an affair with Bill Gates.
"I originally thought [the rumor] would be self-defeating from groundless sources, but I didn't expect it to get more crazy,' she wrote in Mandarin. 'Thank you for your concern over the past 24 hours through private messages, and friends who helped me dispel rumors," she said.
1. Who is Zhe 'Shelly' Wang?
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Wang lives in Seattle and is unmarried. She is a professional translator who has done work for the Yale School of Management and Harvard Business School, as well as the Gates Foundation.
2. What made Wang a target of online rumours?
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It is unclear what started the online rumours targeting Wang because she has not posted anything online other than photos of her translation engagements for the Gates Foundation.
3. What Wang wrote in her defence?
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"I originally thought it would be self-defeating from groundless sources, but I didn't expect it to get more crazy. How many books can you read during the May 1st holiday? Why waste time on unfounded rumors. Thank you for your concern over the past 24 hours through private messages, and friends who helped me dispel rumors. I hope that this incident will not ruin the good mood of the holiday. Finally, I would like to thank Mr. Li Donglei for his article. No melon, don't cue."
4. Wang's friend said this about her
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Li Donglei, who is a close friend of Wang, said, "She is a former colleague of mine, a very clean girl, and a person I admire. I don't believe she would get involved in other people's marriages. I think it is entirely my instinct that Wang Zhe can't do this kind of thing."
5. Family background of Wang
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Li said that Wang grew up in the Chinese port city of Guangzhou, and later immigrated to the United States. According to Li, Wang owned a restaurant in Provo, Utah from 2006 to 2008.
Wang is proficient in Mandarin, Cantonese, and English.
