Chinese influencer Zhou Yuan under probe for teaching women how to attract men

A Chinese influencer, Zhou Yuan, came under scrutiny after she allegedly earned more than $3 million by teaching women how to attract men. She was dubbed as the “Godmother of Sexual Intelligence" on the internet. Zhou, who is currently in her late 40s and hails from Changsha, reportedly left her banking career to start a beauty salon. Later on, she started Black and White Sexual Intelligence School and allegedly earned millions via the courses that taught women flirtation techniques, seductive gazes, and other methods aimed at attracting men.

The influencer faced extreme criticisms as many accused her of running “mistress training" and teaching women to "pander to men". Last week, her social media accounts were banned. As per a report by Zaobao, the market regulators in Changsha on January 30 said they had formed a joint task force with public security and cultural authorities to investigate Zhou.

Her online and offline courses went viral on mainland social media, amassing more than 200,000 followers. In one of her videos, Zhou showed a technique of "eye contact" and advised the female audience to “form an X shape with your eyes and body". In another one, she was seen teaching how to use a flirtatious tone, telling women to “soften your voice and raise the pitch at the end of each word" while complimenting their partners.