Huang Shan-liao: No One Watched the Champion's Clothes, So He Started Selling 'A Sentence of Comfort'

In June 2026, an old poster went viral on Threads.

The photo shows the London runway in 2014, where a young Taiwanese man walked with six outfits. The theme was "Kinmen 1969"—military-style cuts, bullet holes, tassel camouflage nets, and faux-aged fabrics printed with images from the Kinmen Daily News and Zhengqi Zhonghua News. That year, he won the international first prize at the London Graduate Fashion Week. ¹

The comments section below is calculating the same math problem: Is the designer who won the world championship on the poster the same person as the bestselling author being mocked by 600,000 people in a video comment section this week for having "no substance" and being "chicken soup"?

Yes. His name is Huang Shan-liao. One person, two products: A cabinet of clothes telling the story of battlefield history that no media outlet reported on, and healing short sentences of no more than 28 characters that have cumulatively sold over 300,000 copies. He defined those short sentences himself as giving people "a sentence of comfort, like flipping through an horoscope book." ² No one looked at the cabinet of clothes, so he changed to selling "a sentence of comfort," becoming Taiwan's most bestselling and most mocked author.

30-Second Overview: Huang Shan-liao, born in 1992 in Kinmen, his family ran a snack shop. In 2014, he won the international first prize at the London Graduate Fashion Week (Graduate Fashion Week) with "Kinmen 1969," one of the three consecutive years that the Department of Fashion Design at Shih Chien University won awards. But after returning to Taiwan to seek employment, he sent over 100 resumes and received zero interview invitations. An HR representative at a certain company searched online and couldn't find any reports of his award, suspecting his resume was fake—he thus realized "the world doesn't compare who has ability, but who has the ability to speak," angrily started his own media A Shirt (2017–2021) to make the nameless "seen," and then pivoted to becoming a healing author who continuously topped the Eslite Bestseller List. In June 2026, YouTuber Domidolo released a public trial video that broke 600,000 views in one day, pushing him to the风口 (wind vane/trend) of "The Biggest Scam of Taiwan's Most Bestselling Author."

The World Champion No One Reported

Let's clarify that forgotten fact first: He really did win a world championship.

Huang Shan-liao was born on May 3, 1992, in Kinmen. His father is Huang Szu-chu and his mother is Chao Hui-ying. His family ran a snack shop on the island. The name "Shan-liao" was given by his father—the Kinmen Daily News recorded the meaning of his father's naming: Uncarved jade raw material, not weathered, pure, clean, fresh, and slightly angular. ³ Raw material, not finished product; angular, not yet smoothed out. A person's later story is sometimes already hidden in their name.

He entered the Department of Fashion Design at Shih Chien University through the offshore island recommendation system, not out of passion. He was very blunt: "My ambition was never in fashion design. I entered fashion design only because when I was in high school, there was a system called the offshore island recommendation." ⁴ A child from an offshore island with no particular passion for fashion created a graduation work that made the editor-in-chief of Vogue Italia speak in his ear.

"Kinmen 1969" consisted of six outfits telling the battlefield memories of his hometown: Heroic women, battlefield women, the spirit of soldiers, heavily using military totems, bullet holes, military boots, and camouflage nets, printing old newspaper images from the Kinmen Daily News and Zhengqi Zhonghua News onto faux-aged leather-textured fabrics, paired with black iron metal details. ⁵ He explained the design philosophy of these clothes in the Kinmen Daily News: "Memories are gentle, history is resolute. In the版型 (pattern) and silhouette, I演绎 (interpret) the elements of soldiers: bunkers, military uniforms, stability, strength." ³ He also said a more complete sentence: "The principle I grasp is that each work is a personality, a character, telling the stories of that era and defending the cultural history gradually destroyed by civilization." ³

Backstage at the 2014 London Graduate Fashion Week, Huang Shan-liao (center) with models wearing the "Kinmen 1969" series. Military uniforms, newspaper prints, camouflage nets—this cabinet of clothes telling the history of Kinmen's battlefield won him the international first prize, yet it was a cabinet almost no one in Taiwan had seen. Photo: Kinmen Daily News (fair use editorial commentary).

Remember this, because it is the key to the whole article: His peak craftsmanship told the story of his hometown's war memory. A person being called "substanceless," the moment he truly had substance was when he spoke for the history of a small island.

At the moment of winning the award, he was not as excited as imagined. He wrote in his book: "It turns out that winning the world championship is not as moving as imagined. There was no emotion of finally achieving the goal, no tears of being moved, no hope and憧憬 (yearning) for the future. All I had in my heart was confusion and fear about the future." ⁶ According to descriptions in his book, the award presenter was Vogue Italia editor-in-chief and GFW judge Franca Sozzani, who leaned close to his ear and said: "You are a very talented designer. I look forward to you coming to work in Europe." ⁷

This award stage was significant. The London Graduate Fashion Week was founded in the UK in 1991. The first gold award winner was Christopher Bailey, who later took charge of Burberry. Alumni include Stella McCartney. Chinese media often directly calls this first prize the "world champion." ¹ The problem is—this world champion was almost unknown in Taiwan.

The Words Said by That HR

After returning to Taiwan, for nearly two full years, Huang Shan-liao sent over 100 resumes and received not a single interview invitation. ⁸

What really pinned him down was the reply from an HR representative at a certain company. Storm Media recorded that conversation, word for word: The HR told him that the supervisor had seen the resume and thought he was excellent, but "he said his supervisor searched my name online but couldn't find too many mainstream media reports, so he suspects my resume is fake." ⁸ In other words: A person who won the world championship was treated as fake because there were no media reports about it.

This is an irreplaceable moment in Huang Shan-liao's life. Everything that followed grew from here. His realization was also recorded word for word: "It turns out this world doesn't compare who has ability, but who has the ability to speak!" And "I have actually been compensating for the past lack of being seen!" ⁸ In another interview in the Kinmen Daily News, he said it again in different words: "At that time, I felt very frustrated. My strength竟然 (unexpectedly) had to rely on media endorsement to be recognized," followed by "I fell in this place, so I stood up from where I fell." ⁹

To fairly understand this wound, we need to zoom out a bit: Behind it is the structural problem of an entire industry, not just his personal bad luck. The starting salary for new fashion designers in Taiwan is about 26,000 to 35,000 NTD. It takes about ten years to rise to design director. Overtime is common, and turnover is high. Even the industry affiliation reveals the problem: The UK and France classify the fashion industry under the Ministry of Culture. Only Taiwan classifies the fashion industry under the Ministry of Economic Affairs—a mindset that treats clothes as OEM (original equipment manufacturing) rather than culture. ¹⁰ Huang Shan-liao himself described this despair: "Many young brothers and sisters just starting out want to do very creative things, but honestly, those things have no commercial value in Taiwan." Then came the heavier sentence: "Look at me, someone who already won awards and returned, and it's already this hard. What about those who didn't win awards?" ⁴

The common mocking version says: He found out that writing chicken soup makes more money than making clothes, so he defected. This narrative is convenient, but it reverses the cause and effect. He was first taught a cruel lesson by the industry, and only then saw that there was money to be made: Not being seen equals non-existence. If even a world champion can become fake because no reports can be found, then how can a nameless person prove their existence? Everything he did later was an answer to this question.

Making "Being Seen" a Business

In 2017, at age 25, Huang Shan-liao took out a loan of 2 million NTD, quit his design job that lasted only 11 months, and founded A Shirt. ¹¹

This was a media platform dedicated to making the nameless "seen." The Facebook page positioning wrote "The daily scenery of the city you splash," with the theme being craftsman stories of "resigning—starting a business—chasing dreams"—the kind of life he was trapped in, he went to film it for others. He did 161 character interviews in one year, nearly reaching 10 million views weekly, YouTube cumulative views of about 13.38 million, team peak of about 20 people, reaching about 20 million Chinese-speaking people. ¹² A person who failed to find employment because he wasn't reported on became someone who specialized in reporting on others. This turn itself is the most beautiful counterpoint of his entire story.

Character interviews for A Shirt—Huang Shan-liao took the kind of life he was once trapped in and filmed it for others. Video: Parent-Child World YouTube.

But as he did it, he emptied himself. In November 2020, he stepped down; in June 2021, he announced the closure of A Shirt. ¹² He explained the reason for closing it was not commercial failure, but that he disliked his transformed self: "After taking on too heavy a responsibility, I became impatient with people. In fact, I very much hated that Huang Shan-liao." ¹³ And another sentence, even more reluctant to let go: "A Shirt is a baby I gave birth to myself. Letting go is very reluctant. It really needs to leave. I can no longer hesitate, can no longer sacrifice anyone else because I'm reluctant to leave." ¹⁴

Later, in a 2024 interview in Malaysia, he spoke more sharply about that alienation: He said he "was not serving creation, but was an advertising company." ¹⁵ This sentence is a retrospective reflection, not what he said at the moment of closing in 2021—but it accurately points out a contradiction: He did media to make people "seen," but when "being seen" becomes a business, what does this business feed: creation, or traffic itself? He hit the ceiling of the attention economy with his personal experience and then chose to step down.

The Bestseller Logic of One Line of 28 Characters

After closing the media, Huang Shan-liao set a goal for himself: Complete ten novels in five years. ¹⁶

He started writing full-time from 2021. His first book Drifting Youth (2019) was actually published early, but the first edition royalty was only 140,000 NTD—he himself said that because of this, "I continued to work at that company for another 2 years." ¹⁷ The real explosion was after 2021: Live Well, Meet Slowly, Say Goodbye Well, Don't Fail the Encounter, That Girl Said to Me, The Rest of Your Life is You, It Doesn't Matter if It's Late, Lonely in the Human World, Yet Like Old Friends at First Sight, The Heart is Small, Just Hold What You Like, Make Days Slowly Better, Having Owned is Enough—almost one to two books a year, all published by Sancai Culture, all gentle short sentences, large whitespace healing prose and novels. ¹⁶

The numbers are astonishing. Verified by the Eslite official annual list: In 2021, Live Well took the TOP 1 in the Psychological Inspiration category and 3rd overall for the year; in 2022 and 2023, it won the Eslite Overall Bestseller Champion for two consecutive years (Say Goodbye Well, The Rest of Your Life); in 2024 and 2025, it was 2nd overall, losing to Cai Kang-yung's You Will and The Autobiography of Terry Gou. ¹⁸ In terms of sales, he stated in 2023 that six books cumulatively exceeded 300,000 copies; in 2025, media called it over 400,000 copies; The Heart is Small pre-sales opened and sold 3,000 copies in 6 minutes, breaking 1 million in revenue, with a first print run of 30,000; Lonely in the Human World first print run of 30,000 plus 5,000 signed copies all sold out. ¹⁹²⁰

After switching to writing, Huang Shan-liao became a regular on the Eslite charts. Stacks of new books on the signing table are the concrete scale of "a sentence of comfort" becoming a national commodity. Photo: Huang Shan-liao Instagram (@iam_3636) / Bella Nongnong (fair use editorial commentary).

The most crucial part is how he views what he is doing. In a 2025 Mirror Media interview, he spoke unreservedly about his bestseller methodology: "I have always felt that my opponents are not other authors, but TikTok, Facebook, Threads." "What I write can be finished in one glance as you swipe past." "One line of 26 to 28 characters; if it exceeds that, their eyes might not be able to handle it." ²¹ In a 2023 China Times Supplement interview, he stated his goal even more bluntly: "How to make people who don't like reading willing to finish this book is my goal." He wants people to "be like flipping through an horoscope book, needing a sentence of comfort." ²

📝 Curator's Note
It is easy for everyone to read this methodology as "he admits he is slacking off." But looking at the two products together is more interesting: On the left is the "Kinmen 1969" cabinet, printed with old newspapers, bullet holes, camouflage nets, telling the war memory of an island, with no media outlet looking at it; on the right are lines of 26 to 28 characters, with whitespace taking up half a page, selling over 300,000 copies. A person whose existence was denied ten years ago because "no one reported on him" has now turned "how to be caught by a person swiping a phone in three seconds" into a science calculated down to the character count. He did not abandon craftsmanship. He changed it from fabric to attention. The lesson HR taught him that day, he learned too well.

He is even honest enough to admit he is not from a literary youth background: "I used to write diaries on MySpace, but I didn't read books. I only developed the habit of reading after finishing Drifting Youth in 2019." ²² This sentence has two valid readings: Critics will say "No wonder it's written shallowly," while sympathizers will say "A person who doesn't read books climbed to the top through self-study." The same sentence, depending on which side you stand on.

A Shallow Pond, or a Mirror?

On June 5, 2026, YouTuber Domidolo uploaded a video titled "Public Trial of Taiwan's Most Bestselling Author's Biggest Scam," breaking 600,000 views in one day and about 700,000 in three days. ²³

The criticism was heavy. Domidolo said he "clearly read 6 books, but the feeling was only 2," mocking the large whitespace—"Has your book been touched by the Soup Witch? The characters are missing by half," calling his books "textual Blue妖姬 (Blue Rose)," and giving a literary professional evaluation of "can only get 0 points," "an unqualified writer, a master of mass psychology provocation." ²⁴

On June 5, 2026, Domidolo's public trial video broke 600,000 views in one day, becoming the ignition point for this national discussion. Video: Domidolo Domidolo YouTube.

But what should be remembered most in this video is not those heavy words, but a metaphor: "Huang Shan-liao is not a very deep well, but a very shallow pond. You can see the bottom at a glance, but you can see yourself reflected in the water surface." ²³

This sentence is powerful because it doesn't stop at cursing. It accurately points out Huang Shan-liao's resonance mechanism: His books are mirrors, not wells. Readers see themselves in those short sentences and whitespace.

Here comes the paradox. Domidolo, who scolded Huang Shan-liao to the end, and the hundreds of thousands of readers who praised Huang Shan-liao to the top, are actually describing the same mechanism. Those defending him also agree. On Threads, an author @authorlinyt spoke for him: "Huang Shan-liao's shallow writing actually fits the reading market of the past 10 years very well. Just like after the rise of short videos and short dramas, everyone's reception rhythm for content has become thinner and faster." ²⁵ And Huang Shan-liao himself had long admitted: "What I write can be finished in one glance as you swipe past." ²¹

All three agree on the essence of this matter: Easy to read, like a mirror, designed to be caught by people swiping phones in an era fighting for attention. Domidolo calls it a "shallow pond," defenders call it "market structure," and Huang Shan-liao himself calls it "finished in one glance." The three people are describing the same mirror, but the evaluation facing it is exactly opposite.

📝 Curator's Note
This is where Huang Shan-liao's case is truly interesting. Those who scold him think "seeing yourself in the water surface" is evidence of shallowness; those who love him think "seeing yourself in the water surface" is precisely the moment of being caught. The two sides seem to be arguing about Huang Shan-liao, but they are actually arguing about a bigger problem: After an island's reading rhythm is rewritten by short videos, does "reflecting yourself" count as a value? Huang Shan-liao is just the person standing exactly in the center of the crack.

Facing this public trial, Huang Shan-liao's response was quiet enough to be刺眼 (eye-paining). On June 6, he indirectly shared a sentence from his new book in his IG Stories: "Many times, it's not that you are not good enough, but that the environment you are in is inherently not healthy enough." ²⁶ On the morning of June 7, he issued a formal statement: "I understand that each reader likes different works and expects different reading experiences. This year is the fifth year of full-time writing. My direction of effort has always been to make more people who originally didn't read willing to walk into bookstores, or even flip through a book. I still have a lot to improve, and I will continue to learn and grow. Thank you to all sectors for my suggestions, and again thank you to all readers for their support all along." ²⁷

A person who won a world championship, when given 0 points, said he "will continue to learn."

Three Consecutive Champions, Three Fates

To understand why Huang Shan-liao is being scolded, the best method is to put him back in the world he left, and look at him side by side with those who stayed.

The Department of Fashion Design at Shih Chien University had won the international first prize at the London Graduate Fashion Week for three consecutive years: Angus Chiang in 2013, Huang Shan-liao in 2014, and Zhou Yun-ting in 2015. ²⁸ Same school, same stage, three completely different paths.

Angus Chiang stayed. His 2013 award-winning work "Sailing to the Moon" combined Taiwanese temple elements with spacesuits (Western reporters even read it as "Mexican spacesuit," a cross-cultural misreading). ²⁹ Later, he founded his eponymous brand ANGUS CHIANG in 2015, became the first Taiwanese designer to be shortlisted for the LVMH Prize in 2017 (semi-finalist), and appeared at Paris Fashion Week. ³⁰ He gained respect in the international fashion circle—and niche volume. In the Taiwanese public, far fewer people know the name Angus Chiang than know Huang Shan-liao.

Among the three consecutive champions from Shih Chien's London GFW, Angus Chiang (right) chose to stay in fashion: His eponymous brand ANGUS CHIANG turned the visuals of Taiwanese temples and betel nut stalls into avant-garde menswear on the international runway. In 2017, he became the first Taiwanese designer to be shortlisted for the LVMH Prize. The international fashion circle knows him, but the Taiwanese public mostly doesn't. Photo: Marie Claire (fair use editorial commentary).

Huang Shan-liao left. He changed the stage from the runway to the bookstore bestseller list, gaining national-level commercial volume—and national-level mockery.

📊 Three Consecutive Champions, Three Fates

Winner	Year	Work	Afterward
Angus Chiang	2013	Sailing to the Moon	Stayed in fashion → Shortlisted for LVMH Prize, Paris Fashion Week → International respect + Niche volume
Huang Shan-liao	2014	Kinmen 1969	Left fashion → Did media, became author → National volume + National mockery
Zhou Yun-ting	2015	(Single source: Inspired by Simone de Beauvoir's The Second Sex)	Relatively low-key

Same school (Shih Chien), same stage (London GFW), opposite fates. ²⁸³⁰

This table lays out, rather than just the personality differences of three people, a test question for Taiwan: Does this island reward "doing things well" or "being seen by many people"? Angus Chiang did things to an international standard, but the Taiwanese public doesn't really know him. Huang Shan-liao made himself seen by the most people, and the Taiwanese public scolds him every day. One is neglected, one is trampled. Those who do things well get no applause; those seen by many people are treated as a joke. The two classmates who both reached the extreme of these two paths just demonstrated for Taiwan: Two paths, possibly with no applause.

Beyond Chicken Soup: The Controversies That Must Be Honestly Recorded

Treating Huang Shan-liao as a simple victim is another form of slacking off. His controversies are not just simple as "low literary evaluation." There are several points that must be honestly laid out.

Monthly Salary 250,000 NTD Plagiarism Incident (October 2020). His article Monthly Salary 250,000 NTD and 30,000 NTD People Have the Same Worries was pointed out to have 6 similarities with a PTT post from August ("ordering 500 NTD worth of Uber Eats at once," "taking a taxi when going out," "ordering large fries and eating half"). ³¹ His rebuttal was: "I didn't plagiarize!" "That is 'quoting'," and added "Perhaps I didn't write it clearly enough, that's my problem, I'm stupid," and "I still get hurt, I'm not made of iron." ³² Internet celebrity Chen Yi questioned that the "neighbor" earning 250,000 NTD in the article was fictional. He responded: "The struggle of the past ten years cannot be overturned by data pieced together on the internet." ³³ This controversy has no conclusion to date, but the blurry line between "quoting" and "plagiarism" is one of the starting points of his trust rift.

Domestic Violence Remarks Incident (June 2024, Malaysia). This point must be handled with extra care. In the edited clips circulating on the internet, his words were heard as: "If one person always abuses you, then you can always resist his domestic violence; he is the suitable partner for you." ³⁴ After the public outcry, he publicly apologized, word for word: "Regarding domestic violence, I 100% oppose it. I do not support anyone in a relationship using violence to solve problems. My expression ability is poor, my meaning is incomplete. Domestic violence is wrong; this is my persistent stance." He also stated that the clip was edited. ³⁵

This matter cannot be balanced just by recording his apology. The stance of experts must be placed here equally clearly: Lan Yi-feng of the Counseling Psychologists Association said "violence absolutely cannot be tolerated and should not be rationalized"; Chang Hsiu-yuan, Director of the Protection Services Division of the Ministry of Health and Welfare, said "violence is absolutely not a way to solve problems." ³⁶ Commentators also pointed out deeper problems—the title of an article on The News Lens was Huang Shan-liao's "Support Domestic Violence" Remarks Go Viral: Expression Ability Has Big Problems Yet Becomes a Bestselling Author, You and I Both Pushed It. ³⁷ Regardless of whether that sentence was edited, putting "whether you can resist domestic violence" into a sentence about "whether you are suitable to be together" is inherently dangerous. Violence allows no compromise; this point should not be diluted by anyone's apology or explanation.

Other controversies include a string: In March 2021, he said "People who are truly depressed to the bottom will not say they are depressed; they will directly disappear from the world," and was criticized for fake positive energy; ³⁸ In August 2023, his chicken soup text was posted on the NTU campus bulletin board, and was removed in less than 6 hours, with netizens sarcastically saying "only 6 hours and no substance." ³⁹ But some people spoke up for him—In 2022, YouTuber Gua Ji criticized his books as "useless to society," and he responded magnanimously: "Diverse ideas are important." ⁴⁰ Author Wu Dan-ru then smoothed things over: Seeing your book but not liking it means even people who don't like your book see your book; you should be happy. ⁴⁰

⚠️ A Matter That Must Be Clarified
In March 2026, there was a "Daily Scenery Co., Ltd." embezzlement case. Huang Shan-liao was the victim, not the defendant. His company's shareholder, Chiu Chih-chien, was prosecuted for forging documents and embezzling 5.74 million NTD. ⁴¹ During the public trial, some people on the internet mixed this up with him. Here it must be made clear: In this case, the person who was embezzled from was him.

I Actually Envy Those Who Are Completely Blackened

Back to that old poster going viral on Threads.

The young man who walked the London runway in 2014 wearing "Kinmen 1969" and the bestselling author being mocked by 600,000 people this week for having "no substance" are the same person. From a Kinmen snack shop, to the London runway, to the Eslite top, to a meme under a public trial video—this is a line that has always only wanted to do one thing: Be seen. He used fabric to speak of his hometown's war, used lenses to make the nameless appear, used short sentences of 28 characters per line to catch people swiping phones. The carrier has always been changing, but that desire growing out of HR's words "can't find reports" has never changed.

He is a student personally taught by Taiwan. Taiwan told him that this world compares not ability, but the skill of speaking—he believed it, he practiced the skill of speaking to the national first place—and then Taiwan turned around and mocked him for not having real ability. He is the most complete living proof of this lesson.

In a 2025 Mirror Media interview, he said a sentence that reads like a prophecy now. He said: "I actually envy those public figures who are completely blackened, because those completely blackened people have no one who can kidnap them. Because look at a completely black person, even if more dirty water is splashed on them, they are still black." ⁴²

A person who won a world championship envies those who are completely blackened and no longer need to care about anyone's opinion. A person who practiced bestsellers to one line of 28 characters, his deepest desire is actually the freedom of not being seen.

That cabinet of "Kinmen 1969" no one looked at, so it disappeared; that one sentence "a sentence of comfort" everyone bought, so he became a national meme. So next time you want to mock "that substanceless chicken soup author," maybe you can first look at the water surface of that pond—ask yourself, the line you think is shallow, reflects his shallowness, or an island that only applauds "reading in a glance" and refuses to applaud "making things"? Those who scold him, those who forward him, those who defend him, are all reflecting the same mirror.

---

Further Reading:

• Wu Bao-chun — Another Taiwanese craftsman who won a world championship, the difference is that his craftsmanship was seen
• Chiang Chen-cheng — Established coordinates for Taiwanese chefs on the international stage, another fate on the path of "doing things well"
• Chang Chih-chi — Another "information curator" who similarly made complexity readable and sought resonance in the attention era
• Jimmy Liao — From an advertising company background, turned into an internationally bestselling healing creator, another way of being seen
• Tang Feng — How Taiwan treats a person who is difficult to categorize, another mirror

Image Sources

All images in this article are fair use editorial commentary, cached locally, for reporting and commentary only:

• Hero Portrait: Mirror Media Mirror Big Shot Interview (2025)
• "Kinmen 1969" Backstage Photo: Kinmen Daily News
• Book Signing Photo: Huang Shan-liao Instagram (@iam_3636) / Bella Nongnong
• Angus Chiang Works and Portrait: Marie Claire
• Videos: Parent-Child World, Domidolo Domidolo Official YouTube Embed

References

1. Graduate Fashion Week — Wikipedia — A graduate fashion week founded in the UK in 1991. The first gold award winner was Christopher Bailey; alumni include Stella McCartney. Chinese media often refers to its international first prize as the "world champion."↩
2. China Times Supplement: Huang Shan-liao Writing Concept (2023) — Records Huang Shan-liao "How to make people who don't like reading willing to finish this book is my goal," "Like flipping through an horoscope book, needing a sentence of comfort" word-for-word.↩
3. Kinmen Daily News: Huang Shan-liao Design Philosophy and Name Origin — A first-hand local report, recording the word-for-word design philosophy of the six outfits of "Kinmen 1969," the meaning of his father naming him "uncarved jade raw material," and original quotes like "Memories are gentle, history is resolute" and "Each work is a personality."↩
4. HeavenRaven: Huang Shan-liao and A Shirt Interview (2019) — In-depth interview, recording word-for-word quotes on industry difficulties: "My ambition was never in fashion design," "Offshore island recommendation," "Those things have no commercial value in Taiwan," "Even those who won awards and returned are this hard."↩
5. 裂島少女: Kinmen 1969 Detailed Description — A blog post detailing the elements of the six outfits of "Kinmen 1969": Military totems, bullet holes, military boots, images from Kinmen Daily News and Zhengqi Zhonghua News, tassel camouflage nets, faux-aged fabric digital prints.↩
6. ETtoday: Drifting Youth Excerpt · Feelings of Winning the Award — Records the word-for-word passage from Huang Shan-liao's book describing his feelings when winning the award: "It turns out that winning the world championship is not as moving as imagined... All I had was confusion and fear about the future."↩
7. Business Weekly: Huang Shan-liao London Award Book Excerpt — Book excerpt, recording award presenter Franca Sozzani saying in his ear "You are a very talented designer. I look forward to you coming to work in Europe," and the process of borrowing 100,000 NTD to buy a ticket to London (single source, marked "according to descriptions in his book").↩
8. Storm Media: Huang Shan-liao's "Fake World Champion" Wound — Records sending over 100 resumes with zero interviews, HR supervisor's word-for-word "couldn't find reports online so suspected resume was fake," and the realization quotes "This world doesn't compare who has ability, but who has the ability to speak" and "Compensating for the past lack of being seen."↩
9. Kinmen Daily News: Drifting Youth × A Shirt Interview — First-hand report, recording word-for-word quotes: "My strength unexpectedly had to rely on media endorsement to be recognized" and "I fell in this place, so I stood up from where I fell."↩
10. Beautimode: Taiwan Fashion Industry Affiliation and Designer Situation — Industry analysis, pointing out that the UK and France classify the fashion industry under the Ministry of Culture, while Taiwan still classifies it under the Ministry of Economic Affairs, an OEM mindset, and the starting salary and promotion structure for Taiwanese fashion designers.↩
11. CM Media: Huang Shan-liao Takes Out 2 Million Loan at Age 25 to Start Business — Reports Huang Shan-liao taking out a 2 million NTD loan at age 25, quitting his design job that lasted only 11 months, and founding A Shirt in 2017.↩
12. Bella Nongnong: A Shirt Closes Down — Reports A Shirt did 161 character interviews in one year, YouTube cumulative views of about 13.38 million, team peak of about 20 people, stepped down in November 2020 and closed in June 2021, recording the original quote "A baby I gave birth to myself" regarding closure.↩
13. TTshow: Huang Shan-liao Announces Closure Original Quote — Records Huang Shan-liao's word-for-word reason for closing A Shirt: "After taking on too heavy a responsibility, I became impatient with people, in fact I very much hated that Huang Shan-liao."↩
14. Bella Nongnong: A Shirt Closes Down (Closure Statement) — Records Huang Shan-liao's closure statement word-for-word: "A Shirt is a baby I gave birth to myself. Letting go is very reluctant... Can no longer sacrifice anyone else because I'm reluctant to leave."↩
15. Sin Chew Daily: Huang Shan-liao Malaysia Interview (2024) — Malaysian media 2024 interview, recording Huang Shan-liao's retrospective reflection "Not serving creation, but an advertising company" word-for-word (post-talk, must mark 2024).↩
16. Sancai Culture: Huang Shan-liao Author Page and Bibliography — Publisher official page, recording Huang Shan-liao's annual works bibliography (all published by Sancai Culture) and pre-sales sales numbers for The Heart is Small.↩
17. Mirror Media: Huang Shan-liao One-Shot (2023) — In-depth character report, recording Drifting Youth first edition royalty was only 140,000 NTD "so I continued to work at that company for another 2 years" and "Gave myself 5 years to complete 10 novels" word-for-word.↩
18. Digital Times: 2022 Eslite Annual Top Ten Bestseller List — Reports the 2022 Eslite Annual Bestseller List, Huang Shan-liao's Say Goodbye Well, Don't Fail the Encounter took the TOP 1 Overall Bestseller Champion. (2023 The Rest of Your Life won the Overall Bestseller Champion again, 2024 and 2025 were 2nd overall, losing to Cai Kang-yung's You Will and The Autobiography of Terry Gou, verified by Eslite's annual official lists.)↩
19. Mirror Big Shot: Huang Shan-liao Interview · Sales Self-Statement (2025) — Records Huang Shan-liao stating six books cumulatively exceeded 300,000 copies (2023), 2025 media called it over 400,000 copies sales numbers.↩
20. Langlang Yuedu: Lonely in the Human World First Print Data — Reports Lonely in the Human World, Yet Like Old Friends at First Sight first print run of 30,000 copies plus 5,000 signed copies all sold out, and The Heart is Small pre-sales 6 minutes sell 3,000 copies, breaking 1 million revenue.↩
21. Mirror Big Shot: Huang Shan-liao Interview · Writing Philosophy (2025) — Records Huang Shan-liao's writing methodology word-for-word: "My opponents are not other authors, but TikTok, Facebook, Threads," "Can be finished in one glance as you swipe past," "One line of 26 to 28 characters."↩
22. Mirror Media: Huang Shan-liao One-Shot · Reading Habits (2023) — Records Huang Shan-liao self-stating "I used to write diaries on MySpace... but I didn't read books, only developed the habit of reading after finishing Drifting Youth in 2019" word-for-word.↩
23. NOWnews: Domidolo Public Trial Huang Shan-liao "Shallow Pond" Metaphor — Reports Domidolo's video on June 5, 2026, breaking 600,000 views in one day, recording the core metaphor word-for-word "Not a very deep well, but a very shallow pond. You can see the bottom at a glance, but you can see yourself reflected in the water surface."↩
24. Liberty Times Net: Domidolo Public Trial "Soup Witch," "Blue Rose" — Records Domidolo's criticism word-for-word: "Clearly read 6 books, feeling was only 2," "Has your book been touched by the Soup Witch," "Textual Blue Rose," "Can only get 0 points," "Unqualified writer, master of mass psychology provocation."↩
25. Threads @authorlinyt: Defending Huang Shan-liao's Books — Author @authorlinyt's post, recording "Huang Shan-liao's shallow writing actually fits the reading market of the past 10 years very well... After the rise of short videos and short dramas, everyone's reception rhythm for content has become thinner and faster" word-for-word defense viewpoint.↩
26. United Daily News: Huang Shan-liao IG Story Response — Reports Huang Shan-liao indirectly sharing his new book sentence in IG Stories on June 6: "Many times, it's not that you are not good enough, but that the environment you are in is inherently not healthy enough" to respond to the public trial.↩
27. China Times: Huang Shan-liao June 7 Formal Statement Full Text — Records Huang Shan-liao's June 7, 2026 formal statement word-for-word: "This year is the fifth year of full-time writing... I still have a lot to improve, and I will continue to learn and grow."↩
28. United Daily News Network: Shih Chien University Wins London Fashion Week for Three Consecutive Years — Reports Shih Chien University winning the international first prize at the London Graduate Fashion Week for three consecutive years in 2013 (Angus Chiang), 2014 (Huang Shan-liao), 2015 (Zhou Yun-ting), and the themes of each year's works.↩
29. plain-me: Angus Chiang Sailing to the Moon — Reports Angus Chiang's 2013 graduation work "Sailing to the Moon" combining Taiwanese temple elements with spacesuits winning the London Graduate Fashion Week International Designer First Prize.↩
30. LVMH Prize Official Website — LVMH Prize official page, recording Angus Chiang (Angus Chiang) being shortlisted in 2017 as a semi-finalist, the only Taiwanese/Chinese designer selected that year.↩
31. Mirror Media: Huang Shan-liao Monthly Salary 250,000 NTD Plagiarism Controversy (2020) — Reports Huang Shan-liao's Monthly Salary 250,000 NTD and 30,000 NTD People Have the Same Worries having 6 similarities with an August PTT post (Uber Eats ordering 500 NTD, taking a taxi, ordering large fries and eating half, etc.).↩
32. CTWANT: Huang Shan-liao Responds to Plagiarism "That is Quoting" — Records Huang Shan-liao's clarification word-for-word: "I didn't plagiarize!" "That is 'quoting'," "Perhaps I didn't write it clearly enough, that's my problem, I'm stupid," "I still get hurt, I'm not made of iron."↩
33. Mirror Media: Huang Shan-liao "Quoting Not Plagiarism" and Rich Second Generation Accusations (2020) — Reports Chen Yi questioning the "neighbor" earning 250,000 NTD in the article as fictional, and Huang Shan-liao responding "The struggle of the past ten years cannot be overturned by data pieced together on the internet."↩
34. Storm Media: Huang Shan-liao Domestic Violence Remarks Controversy (2024) — Reports the edited clip circulating at a Malaysia event in June 2024: "If one person always abuses you, then you can always resist his domestic violence; he is the suitable partner for you" causing public outcry.↩
35. Thought Tank: Lu Yu-jia Discusses Huang Shan-liao Domestic Violence Remarks and Apology — Commentary analysis recording Huang Shan-liao's apology statement "Regarding domestic violence, I 100% oppose... Domestic violence is wrong; this is my persistent stance" and its original context, and examining how "toxic chicken soup" normalizes violence from a gender violence perspective.↩
36. CNA: Expert Response to Domestic Violence Remarks — First-hand report, recording Counseling Psychologists Association's Lan Yi-feng "Violence absolutely cannot be tolerated and should not be rationalized," Ministry of Health and Welfare Protection Services Division's Chang Hsiu-yuan "Violence is absolutely not a way to solve problems" expert stances.↩
37. The News Lens: Huang Shan-liao "Support Domestic Violence" Remarks Go Viral Analysis — Systematic criticism article, title Huang Shan-liao's "Support Domestic Violence" Remarks Go Viral: Expression Ability Has Big Problems Yet Becomes a Bestselling Author, You and I Both Pushed It.↩
38. Huang Shan-liao — Wikipedia — Chinese entry, recording March 2021 depression remarks "People who are truly depressed to the bottom will not say they are depressed; they will directly disappear from the world" and various controversy timelines.↩
39. Liberty Times Net: Huang Shan-liao Chicken Soup Text on NTU Bulletin Board Removed in 6 Hours (2023) — Reports Huang Shan-liao's text being posted on the NTU campus bulletin board in August 2023 "removed in less than 6 hours," and Wu Dan-ru smoothing things over "Means even people who don't like your book see your book."↩
40. Facebook: Huang Shan-liao Responds to Gua Ji Criticism — Huang Shan-liao's Facebook post, responding to Gua Ji's 2022 criticism "Useless to society" word-for-word "Diverse ideas are important."↩
41. ETtoday: Daily Scenery Company Embezzlement Case (2026) — Reports Huang Shan-liao's "Daily Scenery Co., Ltd." shareholder Chiu Chih-chien being prosecuted for forging documents and embezzling 5.74 million NTD, Huang Shan-liao is the victim.↩
42. Mirror Big Shot: Huang Shan-liao Interview Part 2 · Envying Completely Blackened People (2025) — Records Huang Shan-liao word-for-word: "I actually envy those public figures who are completely blackened, because those completely blackened people have no one who can kidnap them."↩