LAST December, when the Hong Kong paparazzi alleged that actor Simon Yam had a night of illicit sex with an unknown girl in a hotel in Hangzhou, China, ex-supermodel Qiqi rubbished the reports immediately.

Like she has always done in her 13 years of marriage to Yam.

"When I come across news like this, I don't feel angry, nor do I feel the compulsion to clarify the matter," she told The New Paper when she was in town to grace an event for skincare brand SK-II. "Some time back, when he was photographed in Starbucks having coffee with a female reporter, both of us had a good laugh over that.

"I trust my husband and I have absolute confidence in myself...I believe I'm the best for him and likewise, he's the best for me."

Born in Shanghai and brought up in Vienna, the 38-year-old porcelain beauty - who towers above most women at 1.8m - married Yam, 55, in 1997 after an eight-year-courtship.

The couple have a six-year-old daughter, Ella. It is not always Yam who is portrayed as the flirtatious party, added Qiqi.

Caught with other men

"There have been occasions when I was caught on camera shopping with other men," she said with a laugh.

"And these men turned out to be none other than my younger brother and my dad!"

In the fickle showbiz industry where celebrity nuptials have a reputation for being short-lived, Qiqi explained how she and Yam have managed to keep the flame in their relationship burning.

"There's no doubt that we love each other deeply and we're able to share everything in our lives," she said.

"We have common goals and values.

"More importantly, till today, we don't need to deliberately create 'sparks of romance'. Romance is naturally there for us."

Qiqi, who shot to fame in the early 1990s playing a high school teacher in a memorable Oil of Ulan commercial, explained that it's the "little things" Yam does from time to time that warm her heart. She recalled: "There was once when he was overseas for filming.

"On returning to Hong Kong, he placed a small glass of saga seeds (also commonly known as love seeds) on my desk.

"It was really comforting...I don't need him to spend money on lavish gifts. Small surprises make me happy."

While the couple dated for several years before walking down the aisle, Qiqi was rather blase about the recent media attention on Taiwanese actress Barbie Hsu and restaurant empire heir Wang Xiaofei's whirlwind courtship.

Hsu was engaged to Wang after meeting him just four times over 20 days.

They registered their marriage in Beijing on Nov 16.

"Personally, I think there's no standard operating procedure when it comes to relationships," said Qiqi.

"For some individuals, they simply can't resist the overwhelming power of love. Big S (Hsu's nickname) is a mature grown-up and everyone should trust that she knows what she's doing.

"We should give both of them our blessings."

And when one comes face to face with one of Asia's most gorgeous women, there was no escaping the question on her dieting secrets.

How does Qiqi keep her slender figure and appear spiffy all the time?

"Actually, I don't work out at all," she said, looking a tad sheepish.

"At most, I go golfing with my husband. He is the sporty one. He plays football, table tennis and has been trying to get me to do yoga for the longest time."

The only time she exercised vigorously to lose weight was after giving birth to Ella in 2004. "I had gained 26kg because of my pregnancy," said Qiqi.

"My husband bought me a treadmill and I'd jog for 25 minutes at a stretch wearing a tight diving suit.

"It helps me to sweat more easily."

This article was first published in The New Paper.