Nina Wang and I were a perfect match, says jailed Peter Chan

It was compatibility - not black magic or a spell - that kept tycoon Nina Wang Kung Yu-sum in love with him, Peter Chan Chun-chuen, the self-styled fung shui master, has claimed from jail.

In fact, they were such a perfect match that they never once squabbled, and even talked about Chan getting a divorce and marrying Wang, he said.

Chan, 53, who until recently went by the name Tony, was replying to South China Morning Post questions through a friend of his who visited him in prison last week.

"I never used any black magic on Ah Kung [to make her fall in love with me]," he said, using a fond reference to Wang that appeared throughout his answers.

He said it had been painful to detail their relationship in court during his drawn-out fight with the Chinachem Charitable Foundation, which Wang had set up, to claim her HK$83 billion estate as the sole beneficiary.

The drawn-out saga continued during a trial last month that saw him jailed for 12 years for forgery and using a false instrument. During the trial, the court was shown a video supplied by Chan in which the pair kissed and embraced as evidence of their intimate relationship.

"I believe our private life belonged exclusively to the two of us, even though she had expected it would come to light one day after her death," Chan told his friend, who wished to remain anonymous. It pained me immensely to make our relationship public. I felt very sad and struggled fiercely in my heart [to reveal it].

"But I eventually followed the legal advice to do so. The disclosure has left me indebted to Ah Kung, her family and also my family. Such harm cannot be remedied … but I hope God will heal the hurt suffered by my wife and family."

During the criminal trial, Chan rebutted the prosecution's claim that, using his purported geomancy skills, he was trying to help Wang find her husband, Teddy Wang Teh-huei, regain her health and prolong her life after she was diagnosed with cancer.

Through his friend, Chan said Wang had never worried about their affair getting exposed. He, on the other hand, had wanted to keep it under wraps because he was married to Tam Miu-ching, a tour guide. "Chan said Wang felt bad being entangled in a love triangle," the friend said.

The pair had once discussed the possibility of getting married, Chan said. "When I asked Ah Kung whether she would marry me to become Mrs Chan if I divorced, or whether she wanted to remain as Mrs Wang, Ah Kung turned the question on me. She asked if I was willing to leave my wife, who had gone through all the difficult times with me. I became speechless."

Chan also claimed he had two extreme personalities that made him either very quiet, listening to other people, or extremely talkative. Those traits made them a perfect match, he said.

"I had a very special feeling with Ah Kung. Ah Kung loved to talk and I enjoyed listening to her. Her topics ranged from land sales and land resumption to banking and the global and Hong Kong economies. I learned a lot from her and started to admire her. Equally, Ah Kung enjoyed listening to me."

They shared other characteristics, such as being "playful" and sometimes rather "childish", he said. "While Ah Kung was a successful entrepreneur, she was a child at heart - just look at her pigtails."