FANS of Chinese influencer Li Ziqi had a delightful and unexpected surprise for them Tuesday. The lifestyle vlogger, 34, returned to social media with two new videos after a three-year hiatus, shocking followers who have long wondered whether she would ever record again. The videos posted on Douyin, Sina Weibo, and YouTube quickly went viral, with her Douyin uploads alone garnering over 2 million likes and nearly 200,000 comments in just two hours. “This lacquer video is four years late,” Li captioned her first YouTube upload, which shows her crafting a lacquer wardrobe door. “The Chinese pronunciation of lacquer is the same as ‘qi.’ I named this lacquerware with flower patterns ‘Zi Qi Dong Lai (the coming auspiciousness).’ … I send this wish to everyone who sees the video, I miss you very much.” Her second video, also uploaded Tuesday, showed her turning a woodshed into a cloakroom. “I’ve always wanted to have a cloakroom of my own for many years, located in the forest, surrounded by flowers, where I could lie on the sofa in it and watch the stars,” she captioned the clip. “I really missed your videos, you and your grandmother. Whenever I watch your videos, I feel relaxed,”commented a YouTube fan. Another social media user added, “New Li Ziqi video … I just fell to my knees.” Li is one of China’s most popular influencers, at one point holding the Guinness World Record for most subscribers to a Chinese-language YouTube channel. Before she stopped posting, she had nearly 50 million followers on Douyin, the Chinese version of TikTok. Her YouTube videos, now followed by 20 million subscribers, showcase her life in rural China as she makes handicrafts and cooks for herself and her grandma. Since July 2021, however, Li has been silent on social media, leading fans to wonder where she was or whether she had retired from posting. There had been a business dispute between Li and Weinian, the agency that owned a majority stake in her brand. They reportedly reached a settlement in late 2022 that gave Li control over her company, but she still didn’t post any new videos. Li hasn’t commented on where she’s been all this time, but she posted on the Weibo that she might share more soon.(SD-Agencies) | 