The answer is at least half of his assets, including shares in his company, bank savings and property. And, if his wife manages to prove that Wang is seriously at fault for their marriage break-up, she might be able to get even more.

"It depends on the wishes of his wife," said Cao Cheng, a senior matrimonial lawyer with the Beijing Yingke Law Firm, who has more than six years of experience in matrimonial cases.

"If Wang chose to elope, it means he wanted to escape from the marriage at once. Getting divorced must be what he is longing for. But if the majority of their property is in his wife's name, she doesn't have a financial incentive to get divorced. She might think that the longer the marriage continues, the more Wang will suffer.

"However, if most of their assets are in Wang's name, his wife would probably want to take the matter to court as soon as possible and apply to freeze her husband's property immediately. Before Wang Gongquan decided to elope, he might have transferred his property underground, so in that case, it would be very important for his wife to investigate Wang's private property quickly."

(China Daily 05/20/2011 page1)