Chinese Tycoon's 'Best Mistress' Contest Takes Tragic Turn

A 'best mistress' competition held by a local tycoon in eastern China ended with one of the women driving him and her four rivals off a cliff, reports the Shanghai Daily.

The details behind the crash come to light after the parents of the 29-year-old dead woman, only identified as Yu, handed over to police a letter that she had written.

In her letter she said had been one of five mistresses kept by a married Chinese businessman, identified only by his surname, Fan, since 2000. All the five knew about each other, but chose not to break up the relationship as they received a monthly 'allowance' of 5,000 yuan ($733) and a rent-free apartment from the man.

"The businessman was going to lay off four of his five mistresses due to financial troubles," the paper says. "Hence, the women were allowed to vie for the remaining position by competing on their looks, their singing and speaking and their ability to drink alcohol."

The man decided to organize a closed pageant to select the best of the five and even invited an instructor from a modeling agency to help him with his choice. Yu was knocked out of the first round of the competition.

"When Fan told her she had lost the position and he was selling her apartment, she decided to take revenge," says the newspaper.

She invited the businessman and the four other mistresses on a mountain trip, but missed them, and drove the car off a cliff, killing herself. The four rivals and the businessman were injured in the incident.

As a result of the now public scandal, the tycoon's wife has demanded a divorce after learning about his affairs, while the four mistresses have left him after he shut down his business to pay 580,000 yuan ($85,000) compensation to the parents of the dead woman.

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