Popular Chinese influencer Li Ziqi makes surprise online comeback

Li Ziqi, one of China's most popular influencers, made a surprising comeback on Tuesday afternoon after she stopped posting videos for more than three years.

Li resumed posting online with two new videos showing how she transformed a shed into a woodland cloakroom and making wardrobe doors using the intangible cultural heritage Chinese lacquerware techniques across social media platforms, including Douyin, Sina Weibo and YouTube.

Despite not updating her content since July 14, 2021, she has seen her followers increase and fans requesting for new videos during her absence. Many had wondered where she was or whether she had retired from posting. After her new videos were posted, her number of followers quickly shot up to more than 26.67 million on Sina Weibo and 50.15 million on Douyin.

Overnight, Li's return became the top trending topic online and as of 10 am Wednesday, her lacquerware video had garnered 120 million views on Sina Weibo, with more than 1.94 million interactions, including shares, comments and likes.

Many people have flooded her comment section with messages of support, saying it is such a surprise to see her posting updates again. She commented saying she also missed her viewers and followers. "There is no time for me to write a small essay today. I will make it up to you when I am not that busy. Miss you!" she wrote.

Li started posting short videos on Sina Weibo in 2016, featuring poetic portrayals of rural life, traditional cooking techniques and cultural practices, such as making ink and clothing. In 2020, she set a Guinness World Record for the most subscribers on a Chinese-language YouTube channel, with a total of 11.4 million followers at the time.