Zhuang Zedong - Marriage With Sasaki Atsuko

Marriage With Sasaki Atsuko

Later in 1985, the Chinese-born Japanese woman, Sasaki Atsuko met Zhuang again in Beijing and started dating him. Sasaki was born in 1944 in Zhangye, Gansu, China to Japanese parents. Her family did not move back to Japan until 1976. By this time, Sasaki had finished her high-school education in China and her father had died of cancer in Lanzhou. Sasaki Atsuko had met Zhuang Zedong previously in Japan in 1971 and 1972 and was a fan of Zhuang. Later Sasaki worked for a Japanese company that often sent her to Beijing to live there for business for long periods of time. This is how she had the opportunity to find Zhuang and start their romantic relationship.

Sasaki told Zhuang that she would be unable to bear his child, because she had had a womb tumor earlier and had had a hysterectomy. Zhuang accepted her nonetheless.

When Zhuang and Sasaki decided to get married, both had to go through a difficult political process due to the political environment in China. Zhuang had to write to Jiang Zemin and Deng Xiaoping about the matter, and Sasaki had to give up her Japanese citizenship and apply for Chinese citizenship. Eventually, Zhuang and Sasaki got married on December 19, 1987.

As of 2007, Zhuang and Sasaki have been living together happily for 20 years. Zhuang has written a book about their love story, entitled Deng Xiaoping approved our marriage. Zhuang has opened an international ping-pong club in Beijing. He visited the United States in 2007, speaking at USC and other universities about his role in fostering better relations between China and the United States.