Model Hong Que: 'At 17, I received money from a tycoon and had to pay the price'

Meeting Hong Que again at the age of 25, she was a single mother, raising her little daughter alone. After many years away from showbiz, away from the illusions of luxury, Hong Que cried when recalling the past, but somewhere in her eyes, love still shone when talking about the stage.

- Hong Que started her modeling career at a very young age. At that time, many people expected her to be a new star, maybe even crowned Miss. However, she did not follow that path. Was it because youth is rebellious or because the modeling profession has too many pitfalls that led her astray?

- If we blame everything on the temptations and pitfalls of the modeling profession, it is just a way to deny the past. The biggest reason comes from me. I was too hasty to assert myself when I was still too young. The journey and path I took at that time (it can be said) had reached 90%, unfortunately, I only had 10% left, and I let it slip away.

At the age of 12, I entered the modeling profession and was overprotected by the management company. When I grew up a little, I could not imagine what the outside world was like. With confusion, curiosity, and the guidance of some friends, I began to think in a deviant way.

I think I was being oppressed too much and longed to break free… Until now, I still feel regretful.

- Hong Que at the age of 16-17 appeared in the press with a lot of information about dropping out of school, getting bad grades, getting tattoos, going to bars, drinking alcohol... Do you still look back and face that past?

- I paid a lot and there was a time when I thought I couldn't get up. There were times when I fell down and thought about letting go of everything, letting my life go on its own, wherever it might be.

During that time, only my parents and siblings were there, standing by me and crying with me. Today, I have gone through a long journey of 10 years but have not achieved what I really wanted.

My parents thought that their daughter would one day stand on the top of glory, receive some award to affirm herself. They thought I was capable of doing that, but I ruined everything.

After all, I am satisfied with my current life. I live more peacefully, without fighting, jealousy, competition or having to fight for each performance. I do not have to live in a trap and I choose a peaceful life, being with my family, spending more time with my parents to make up for the time I neglected everything, only caring about myself.

- Is it because you fell too early that made you scared?

- Yes, I dare not experiment or do anything anymore because I am afraid of making mistakes, I have no way back. I am no longer 18 years old so if I make a mistake I can still turn back. I am 25 years old and a mother. I have to have the necessary maturity.

- Many models have spoken out admitting that around them, many rich men suddenly appeared, offering and negotiating with sky-high sums of money. Surely Hong Que has also experienced such a time?

- A lot. The shows I performed at small tea rooms were only 200,000 VND per night, but the offers were up to 10, 20 million VND, sometimes even hundreds of millions VND. Such large sums of money kept falling from everywhere, even if you worked hard all year round you still wouldn't be able to earn that amount of income.

And for a young girl, surrounded by family and company like me, how could I foresee the consequences of accepting such an invitation?

- How old was Hong Que when she received invitations from rich men?

-17 years old. At that age, I was really overwhelmed. I didn't understand why, suddenly there were so many rich men appearing. Somehow, they got my phone number. There were countless text messages inviting me.

- What is the largest amount of money that Hong Que was offered?

- A lot, a lot. They are willing to give me houses, cars, luxury goods, and a lot of money.

- What did you receive among all those valuable materials?

- I didn't dare accept the house, didn't dare accept the car, because the amount of money was too big, I was also afraid. I did accept from them branded items, a little money... The praise, the halo that came too soon along with the invitations really made a little girl like me "overwhelmed".

Money blinded me. Facing her like this, I couldn't say that I had never given in to temptation, that I had never accepted money, and that I was innocent.

Showbiz is full of temptations, that's the truth. Very fewbeautycan stand firm in that situation. Among the beauties, models, beauty queens, and runners-up that I know, there is only one person that I admire, and that is Miss Ngoc Han.

Ngoc Han lived the same way before she was crowned, and she still lives the same after she was crowned. I can’t find a girl in showbiz who is as “clean” as her.

- How did the love-money relationships you experienced end?

- I have been in a few relationships. They are really sweet. They are like honey, very easy to trap. They are very good at understanding women's psychology. When we first met, they could give me hundreds of millions of dong without asking for anything in return. They just gave me gifts and money, just as a way to get to know each other.

Don't think that when we meet rich men, they give us money and then force us to trade this and that immediately. No. They are like honey, tempting us very slowly, and we fall into their trap without even realizing it.

I ended it all bitterly, not because of men, but because of a girlfriend. She was the one who led me down this path, and then betrayed me. The betrayal was like a slap that knocked me down, but woke me up.

- Many models share that there are many “jobs” related to the rich, the “cleanest” of these jobs is going to parties, dressing up, eating, talking and laughing with them and can earn several thousand USD. How much does Hong Que pay for a party?

- To be honest, I have never been to a party but I know about this job and have been invited. As I said, I had a good start. When I stepped on the catwalk at the age of 12-13, I was praised as a phenomenon in the modeling world.

I became famous very quickly, performed a lot, and was also picky about invitations when appearing. In my mind, I always wanted to build a good image, always wanted to go further in my career, but everything fell apart beyond expectations.

-In public, the best image for models is often showing off wealth, covered in branded goods, luxury cars, and big houses. Having gone through those days of showing off, what is Hong Que's remaining feeling?

- I met a few men, they provided for me, bought me branded goods, and surrounded me with money… Those days, when they passed, seemed so useless. And the consequences were obvious. When everything collapsed, I realized that if I didn’t find a truly decent and kind person to be with me, I would never be happy.

At the age of 17-18, I lived a wild life, turning my back on everything. I was very spoiled. All day I just went out partying, drinking. Sometimes I stayed out all night and didn't come home. Money was spent like water.

Because I didn't earn that money, didn't work for it, so how could I feel sorry? No matter how much money I had, I spent it on luxury goods, on endless entertainment. Now that I'm sitting back and looking back, why do I feel so regretful?

At 18, I was stubborn, selfish and rebellious. Money was like magic to me. Like a fairy godmother had shown me everything. I couldn't see the hidden costs that I would have to pay later.

I was in a downward spiral for 2 years, when I woke up, I thought I would never get up again. I had no friends left. Around me, there were only my parents and family. I felt regret and remorse, when everything was gone. My path should have been paved with roses, success was so close, if I had not destroyed everything with my own hands.

- Many beauties believe that when they are young and protected by a rich man, they will take advantage of this time to save up capital to prepare for their future life - when they have fallen out of favor. That is also a way of calculating. For example, Ngoc Trinh. Did Hong Que have time to calculate that move for herself?

- If she were a sensible girl, she would take advantage of that time to save money for her family. Ngoc Trinh has taken care of her whole family. Personally, I was young and foolish at that time. I spent all my money on luxury goods.

If I had saved up at that time, I could have bought a house. But after my breakdown, I only had a small amount left, which I deposited in the bank so that I could get interest every month to pay part of my child's tuition.