19 y/o student chooses to leave his inherited S$3.8M estate to childhood friend instead of parents because they didn’t spend much time with him

CHINA: A 19-year-old student from Shanghai has drawn attention across China after making a legally notarised will that leaves his entire estate, worth 20 million yuan (S$3.8 million), to his childhood friend instead of his family.

The teenager, identified only by his surname Li, said he made the decision because he wanted someone he trusted to inherit his assets if he died, as he enjoys extreme sports and felt it was sensible to plan ahead.

Li’s estate includes a flat and several million yuan in savings, all of which were given to him by his parents after they divorced and later remarried, South China Morning Post (SCMP) reported (July 11).

Distance from his parents shaped the decision

Li said he grew up feeling emotionally distant from his parents because they spent little time with him after their divorce.

Li further explained that if he were to die unexpectedly, he didn’t want his parents’ current spouses, whom he considers strangers, to benefit from his estate through inheritance rules. Instead, he chose the childhood friend he has known and trusted for years.

Under China’s inheritance law, parents are among the first legal heirs when a person dies without a will. By making a will, however, people can legally leave their property to someone outside their immediate family.

Young people are becoming more willing to write wills

Li completed the process through the China Will Registration Centre in Shanghai.

Office manager Huang Haibo said the named beneficiary must legally accept the inheritance within 60 days. Failing to do so is treated as giving up the inheritance rights.

The registration centre, launched in 2013 as a public welfare project, has recorded more than 400,000 wills. Its latest report also shows attitudes are changing. The average age of people making wills has fallen from 77 to 67.

Huang said people born in the 1980s, 1990s and 2000s are making wills in increasing numbers, showing that estate planning is no longer viewed as something only older people should think about.

A notary from Zhejiang province, identified by the surname Chen, said that younger adults commonly prepare wills before marriage to protect property they already own or inherited. Single people without children are also choosing to make similar arrangements.

Online reactions: Some defended his choice, while others backed his parents

The student’s decision sparked lively discussion on Chinese social media. Some felt his parents deserved to inherit the estate because they had given him the property in the first place, despite their strained relationship.

Others felt he was still too young to make such a major life decision and could change his mind later.

Some simply admired the friendship, joking that they wished they had a friend trusted enough to receive such an inheritance.

Stories like this show that wills are no longer just about wealth. They can also reveal how people view trust, family and the relationships that matter most.

While emotions may change over time, planning ahead through legal channels gives people the freedom to decide what happens to their assets instead of leaving the decision to default inheritance rules.