Former Cleo Member Chae Eun-jung Opens Up About Heartbreaking Family History

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Chae Eun-jung, a former member of the group Cleo, has revealed her painful family history.

Recently appearing on the YouTube channel '새롭게하소서CBS', Chae Eun-jung shared the hardships she faced during her childhood. She recounted, "My mother passed away from cancer when I was in third grade," adding, "My father went abroad to study for his medical exams, and I lived with my grandparents."

Chae Eun-jung's father remarried three times, resulting in three stepmothers. She confessed, "My father lost his wife at a young age and spent his life studying, leading to remarriages that seemed to be mistakes. The women who came into our lives struggled to fulfill the role of a mother."

She continued, "When I was in the first year of middle school, my father returned after completing his studies, but he felt like a stranger to me. He remarried immediately upon returning to Korea, only to divorce a year later," she recalled. "When the second stepmother came, I thought, 'This is just my father's life.' I was in my adolescence and, in a way, neglected the situation."

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Chae Eun-jung admitted that her heart closed off to her father after his second remarriage, saying, "There were more conflicts and disputes. My father was so focused on running his hospital that he couldn't devote himself to family life."

She added, "It seemed like my stepmother harbored a lot of resentment towards me. She often instigated situations to get me scolded by my father. I didn't want to make excuses, so I took the blame and punishment, even for my siblings. It felt like my stepmother was venting her frustrations with my father on us."

Chae Eun-jung revealed a particularly painful memory, saying, "I was so overwhelmed by my father's violence that I went up to the ninth-floor rooftop of our apartment. But then I thought, 'This would hurt too much,' and came back down."

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Previously, in 2022, Chae Eun-jung appeared on MBN's '특종세상' to share her family story. Despite being known as a 'rich kid,' she clarified, "People often say, 'Your father was a plastic surgeon,' 'You grew up in a wealthy neighborhood,' and assume I was privileged. But at that time, my third stepmother was in the picture. I received no financial support from my parents since high school, so I started living independently from then on."

She further shared, "My father, who was a plastic surgeon, fell ill and battled his condition for eight years before passing away in 2019. I found out about his illness in my mid-20s. It was a hand-trembling disease, which was devastating for a plastic surgeon. Seeing someone so strong become so vulnerable was heartbreaking. My feelings for my father grew stronger after his passing than when he was alive."

Reported by Na-yeon Jo, Ten Asia nybluebook@tenasia.co.kr