A 13-year-old girl from Sanmenxia, Henan Province, known as Xiaotong, has sparked widespread attention after spending her father’s entire life savings of 180,000 yuan on purchasing anime-style artwork, with the most expensive piece costing 5,400 yuan. The incident was reported by local media on May 11.
According to reports, the girl’s account on one of the main platforms she used for commissioning art has been suspended. The platform displayed a notice stating “The current user is under a freeze penalty. Please contact customer service for inquiries.”
Artist Xiaobei, who created the 5,400-yuan piece, posted a video on May 11 stating that she was unaware the client was a minor at the time of the commission. She said she has contacted the platform to establish communication and is willing to voluntarily refund the fee, but has yet to receive a response. Xiaobei emphasized that her commissioning guidelines clearly state she does not accept orders from minors, and she did not encourage the purchase. The buyer herself requested an expedited delivery, compressing the original one-month deadline to five days, which required multiple late-night work sessions. The original price was lower, she added.
Another artist, Xiaoyan, also shared a video saying she had received a commission from Xiaotong. Before the May Day holiday, Xiaotong placed an order and requested expedited service. However, just as Xiaoyan was about to start working during the holiday, she received a message from Xiaotong requesting a refund, citing a need for money to cover medical expenses. Believing it was a case of buyer’s remorse, Xiaoyan immediately processed the refund.
An analysis of Xiaotong’s account history shows that since May 2025, she has been making monthly purchases. In February, she bought as many as 14 artworks in a single month. Records indicate four works are still in progress, with the latest deadline set for June 1.
The phenomenon is linked to the “OC” (original character) subculture within the anime art community, where collectors commission custom-designed characters for personal enjoyment, often spending significant sums.
According to a report from Henan Broadcasting System’s Livelihood Channel on May 9, Xiaotong’s father, who works away from home, discovered the issue when he tried to use his phone’s payment function to pay for a tire replacement and found it was not working. Upon checking his daughter’s tablet, he realized she had secretly used his entire savings of 180,000 yuan, which he had earned over several years. Her father, who suffered carbon monoxide poisoning last year that affected his brain, had entrusted her with the bank card password. The family’s mother also has schizophrenia. In a tearful confession, Xiaotong told her father, “I don’t deserve to be your daughter,” and promised, “I won’t use your card or buy these useless things again.” Her father comforted her.
The family is currently in discussions with multiple platforms to recover funds, focusing on refunds for orders that have not yet been completed, acknowledging that artists have already invested time and effort in completed works.