What a difference 9 years makes: all is forgiven after ugly triad incident

In Hong Kong, there are no permanent enemies. This is especially true in showbiz. So it seems all is forgiven between actress Carina Lau Ka-ling (pictured) and media bosss Albert Yeung Sau-shing. Let the Bullets Fly, starring Lau and financed by Yeung's Emperor Motion Pictures, has grossed more than 600 million yuan (HK$702 million) on the mainland. Everyone is laughing to the bank. But things didn't used to be so harmonious.

Eons ago, that's in 2002, Yeung was the owner of tabloid magazine Eastweek, which published on its front cover the infamous picture of a half-naked Lau taken forcibly by triads after she was allegedly kidnapped. A public outcry ensued. Senior editors lost their jobs, including executive editor-in-chief Lee Sin-sau, who was convicted of publishing an obscene picture, though the verdict was subsequently overturned.

Yeung shut the magazine days after the photo's publication and sold it afterwards. But money makes the world go round. Now Yeung and Lau are happy together again.