A Chinese-Canadian woman left internet users stunned after revealing she hid her twin sister’s death from her family for five years, all while impersonating her.
Annie Niu, a lifestyle influencer with 200,000 followers, shared a video explaining how she informed her family in China about the death of her identical twin sister, who passed away from viral meningitis five years ago.
In a 2022 video, Niu, 34, admitted to pretending to be her sister while speaking to their grandparents over the phone for three years, thanks to their identical voices.
The ruse continued until Niu’s grandmother passed away in July. On her deathbed, Niu’s father told the elderly woman that her granddaughter would be waiting for her in heaven.
After the truth came out, the family removed all photos of the deceased sister.
The video went viral, racking up over 7 million views and leaving the internet in shock. Many were left stunned, commenting things like, “I don’t think that’s fair” and “How did they not know for five years?”
Niu explained that her grandparents, both 92, were protected from the heartbreak of her sister’s death at her father’s suggestion, who didn’t want to upset them.
The twin sisters had lived in China until they moved to Canada with their parents at age 10, making it easier to conceal the truth while being so far from their relatives.
Some commenters expressed sympathy for Niu and her parents. One wrote: “After my dad passed away, my grandma stopped eating and basically died of a broken heart. She passed away two weeks after my dad.”
Many Chinese citizens have called the incident “common practice” in Chinese culture.
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