Chinese idol Cai Xukun, the face of Prada, Tag Hauer and De Beers in China, has responded to allegations of inappropriate sexual behavior with a female minor, which have led Chinese authorities to issue a warning regarding the ads through which he appears.

On Monday, Cai released a press release on Weibo confirming his relationship with a “Ms. C,” who had accused him of forcing her to have an abortion. He denied all other allegations which were circulating on social media for the past week.

“I used to be single two years ago and had a relationship with Ms. C. Our private matters were resolved without further entanglement in 2021,” Cai wrote within the statement.

“I need to make clear to everyone and the media that my relationship with Ms. C was consensual. There isn’t any such thing as a ‘[having] minor [sex]’ or ‘forced abortion.’ No criminal activity was involved. Please don’t spread rumors, don’t consider in rumors from social media,” the statement continued.

“This was a painful lesson for me. I’ve been blaming myself for the past two years, and I regret what happened. I apologize again to all my fans and media friends who’ve been following me and witnessing my growth. I’ll strictly limit my words and deeds any longer and accept public and social supervision,” Cai wrote within the statement.

Last Tuesday, a Chinese social media user alleged that the 24-year-old Cai had a one-night stand with a lady named “Ms. C” two years ago at a Beijing karaoke bar. The social media user claimed the girl got pregnant and notified Cai, who allegedly told the girl to get an abortion.

Social media also carried anonymous reports that Cai’s mother and manager allegedly hired a personal investigator to follow “Ms. C” and later paid her 500,000 renminbi, or $69,000, for her silence on the matter.

On Saturday, Beijing’s Promoting Association issued a press release about potential celebrity endorsement risks concerning a Chinese singer whose last name is Cai. On Sunday, Chinese state media CCTV removed all Cai-related content from its video streaming platform Yangshipin.

On Monday, an hour after Cai published his statement, a Weibo blogger posted a message about one other alleged relationship that Cai had with a female minor. Cai has denied those allegations. Cai’s Studio shared on Weibo that the corporate has “notified the police” with regard to the “defamatory posts.”

Cai’s two posts quickly began trending on Weibo, and reached greater than 4 billion views on the time of publishing. He has around 39 million followers on the platform.

Cai is scheduled to perform in Singapore on July 15 as an element of his Kun 2023 Maze World Tour, however it is unclear whether future performances will go forward.

The celebrity represents 40 brands including Prada, Tag Hauer, De Beers and Clé de Peau Beauté.

WWD has contacted those brands for comment.

Prada has been caught up in several other Chinese celebrity scandals and controversies lately.

Last 12 months, the Italian brand severed ties with Li Yifeng after the male actor was detained by local authorities for visits to sex employees, which is illegitimate in China.

In 2021, Prada ended its ambassadorship with Zheng Shuang over one other abortion-related issue eight days after the partnership was unveiled.

Chun Xia, a Chinese actress and Prada ambassador, has been temporarily banned from Chinese social media after voicing support for the so-called “white paper” protest that spread across China last November in response to draconian lockdown measures.

In an effort to diversify its local celebrity partnerships, Prada enlisted the Chinese basketball player Shuyu Yang as its latest brand ambassador. Ma Long, a Chinese table tennis player and Olympic champion, was appointed as a face for China last January.

Chinese actor Li Xian can be a Prada ambassador. He attended the brand’s spring 2024 men’s fashion show in Milan and generated considerable buzz on Chinese social media.

In accordance with industry sources, Prada is about to disclose an ambassadorship with Yang Mi, a top Chinese actress and singer who has greater than 112 million followers on Weibo.

Yang, who can be the face of Etro, Estée Lauder and Victoria’s Secret in China, was famously known within the Western fashion world for cutting ties with Versace back in 2019 when the brand mislabeled Macau and Hong Kong as separate entities from China on T-shirts.